Microsoft will reportedly KILL the Xbox Live Gold membership plan in September

Xbox Live Gold, the service that’s been required for online multiplayer gaming on Xbox consoles for 21 years, is about to be killed off. Microsoft is replacing it with a new service called Xbox Game Pass Core, which will include all of the features of Xbox Live Gold, plus access to a library of over 25 games. 

As we’ve spotted from the community’s page, Xbox Game Pass Core will include all of the features of Xbox Live Gold, plus access to a library of over 100 games. The price of Xbox Game Pass Core will be the same as the current price of Xbox Live Gold, at $9.99 per month or $59.99 per year. Existing Xbox Live Gold subscribers will be automatically converted to Xbox Game Pass Core subscribers.

The community’s response to the announcement has been diverse, mirroring the varied reactions seen when Microsoft introduced the new Xbox Home UI a few weeks ago. 

Some see this change as an upgrade to Xbox Live Gold, hoping for a better selection of games. Others express concerns about the fate of the games previously collected through Games with Gold, the program that gives Xbox Live Gold subscribers free games each month, and whether they will remain accessible.

The latter feature will also reportedly be discontinued. The change will reportedly take effect on September 1, 2023.

What are your thoughts on Microsoft axing Xbox Live Gold and Games with Gold services? Let us know in the comments!