Xbox Game Pass has grown into the home for online gaming — and I'm here for it

Xbox Game Laissez passer has grown into the dwelling house for online gaming — and I'thousand here for it

An image of an Xbox controller and Xbox Game Pass

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

Since signing upward for Xbox Game Pass last Spring, I've noticed a recurring trend. The service is quickly becoming a destination for online gaming, with multiple high-profile online games launching on Game Pass over the past year.

A subscription service similar Xbox Game Laissez passer is the perfect home for online games, especially ones that may have struggled to carve out their own niche otherwise. Launching on Game Pass allows these titles to notice a bigger audience at launch, and as well helps keep the role player base good for you, with a steady stream of new recruits jumping in over time.

I consider myself primarily a single-player gamer. Simply since becoming an Xbox Game Pass subscriber I've found myself drawn more than and more to playing online co-op games, such as Dorsum iv Claret and Aliens Fireteam Elite.

Xbox Game Pass is the de facto home for online games

Xbox Game Pass has an impressively varied content library. From massive open-world RPGs to smaller narrative-driven take chances games, the service likely has something you'll enjoy. Online multiplayer title brand up a big chunk of what'south on offer.

In the last 10 or then months, a slew of online-centric games take hitting Xbox Game Laissez passer. Halo Infinite, Outriders, Back 4 Blood and Rainbow Six: Extraction all launched on the subscription service twenty-four hours-one, with Aliens Fireteam Elite coming simply a few months after its launch. There are also titles such as Dead past Daylight and Ark Survival Evolved, which have been in the Game Pass content library for a couple of years now.

If yous enjoy online play, either cooperative or competitive (and own an Xbox Series X or gaming PC), and so Xbox Game Pass is practically an essential subscription service. Plus, there are more than games to come in the near future ,with Arkane'due south new co-op vampire hunting game Redfall set for a day-one Game Pass release this summer.

How Xbox Game Pass is making online gaming easier

The Division key art — (Prototype credit: Ubisoft)

There are several reasons why Xbox Game Pass is a natural home for online games. Firstly, it removes a significant barrier to entry: the loftier cost of games.

I can vividly retrieve back in 2022 being extremely excited for The Division, only struggling to convince my friends to share in my enthusiasm. They were all still feeling burnt after buying the underwhelming original Destiny at my insistence the previous twelvemonth.

Because of this, I didn't have anybody on my friends list to play with at launch. This resulted in a less-than-platonic experience, as I had to brave the wilderness of random matchmaking. Now, when an online game hits Xbox Game Pass, it's a lot easier to convince my co-op partners to requite the game a shot, since we're all getting access at essentially no additional cost.

Had I been faced with forking over up to $seventy for the likes of Outriders of Back 4 Blood, I would have definitely given them a skip until a full general critical consensus formed. Still, because these tiles launched on Xbox Game Pass, I was able to give them a shot, with no fear bravado my money on games ultimately not worth the access cost.

Hosting online games on Xbox Game Pass also ensures that there's a significantly larger risk of them finding a consistently an active thespian base. I played Aliens Fireteam Elite at launch, and within just a few weeks, its role player count was already dwindling. Its launch on Xbox Game Pass in December reignited the community, and helped populate the matchmaking servers with new recruits.

Looking ahead at what's coming to Game Pass in 2022, I'm definitely nigh excited for the unmarried-histrion experiences that will be hitting the service (gimme Starfield at present!). Nevertheless, I likewise look forward to getting unexpectedly hooked on several of the new online games that will inevitably come to the Xbox Game Laissez passer library in the coming months.

Rory is a staff author at Tom's Guide based in the UK. He covers a wide range of topics including tech news, deals, gaming, streaming and more. When he's not writing hot takes on the latest gaming hardware and streaming shows, he can be found watching a borderline unhealthy amount of movies and being thoroughly disappointed past his terrible football team.