Microsoft will add EA Play to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate on November 10, making titles from Electronic Arts available to subscribers on Xbox consoles without a separate EA Play subscription. PC access to EA Play through Game Pass will follow one month later.
What changes for subscribers
From November 10, Xbox Series S and Series X owners who subscribe to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate will gain access to EA Games’ catalog as part of their existing membership. Previously, players who wanted EA Play content needed to maintain two separate subscriptions.
EA Play will be integrated into the Game Pass offering on consoles first, with the PC rollout scheduled to begin in early December.
Bethesda titles also coming to Game Pass
Microsoft said that franchises from Bethesda — the studio it acquired earlier this year — will also be added to Xbox Game Pass. That lineup will include games such as Starfield, which is still in development, and Doom Eternal, which Microsoft said will arrive in the service on Thursday, the 1st.
Microsoft’s view on the next generation of gaming
In a company post, Microsoft emphasized the shifting landscape of play: cross-platform multiplayer, the ongoing expansion of Xbox Game Pass, and cloud gaming enabling play anywhere. The company described this period as the next generation of games, calling it distinct from previous generations and highlighting new ways for players to discover and access experiences.
Exclusivity questions after Bethesda acquisition
Following Microsoft’s acquisition of ZeniMax Media for $7.5 billion, uncertainty arose about whether forthcoming Bethesda releases and those from its subsidiaries would become Xbox exclusives. Questions focused in particular on Deathloop and GhostWire: Tokyo, which had been announced as timed exclusives for PlayStation 5.
Xbox head Phil Spencer told Bloomberg that both Deathloop and GhostWire: Tokyo will remain timed PlayStation 5 exclusives. That means they will be available only on Sony’s console for a defined period before being released on Xbox and potentially other platforms.
Source: Xbox Wire
