Long before it blossomed into one of the best deals in gaming that it is today, Xbox Game Pass' entire structure was focused on rentals. According to a report from GQ, Game Pass was in the works at Xbox since 2013, and its first iteration was essentially an Xbox-exclusive version of Gamefly.
Game Pass' time as a rental service didn't last too long though, thanks to the rapid growth of two subscription-based services, Spotify and Netflix. Xbox Game Pass then similarly became a subscription
Read more on gamespot.com