Leaked Memo Suggests Microsoft Is Rethinking Xbox Game Pass Pricing

Microsoft may be preparing another major change to Xbox Game Pass, but the latest signal is coming from a leaked internal document rather than a public pricing page. In a report published on April 13, The Verge said it obtained a memo from Xbox chief Asha Sharma that described the current Game Pass setup as too expensive for players.

According to The Verge, Sharma told employees that Microsoft needs a better value equation for Game Pass in the short term. The memo also reportedly says the longer-term goal is a more flexible subscription system, though Sharma cautioned that such a shift will take time to test and learn. That language suggests Microsoft is thinking beyond a simple one-time price cut and looking at how the service is packaged overall.

Why the memo matters

• The Verge notes that Xbox Game Pass Ultimate rose to $29.99 per month last year, a 50 percent increase.
• Microsoft paired that increase with broader tier updates, but the report suggests internal leadership now sees a clear pricing problem.
• The story also links some of the pressure to the cost of folding Call of Duty into the subscription lineup.

Importantly, this is not yet an official consumer announcement. Microsoft has not published a new Game Pass pricing chart, and Sharma reportedly told staff she would go deeper on the topic next week. The Verge added that it would not expect immediate changes in the next few days, which means the memo should be read as an internal strategic signal rather than a finalized product update.

For PC and console players, the near-term takeaway is that Microsoft appears to be reconsidering how Game Pass is positioned on price and value after a year of aggressive expansion. Whether that results in lower entry pricing, more granular tiers, or changes to how premium releases fit into the service is still unknown. The current evidence only shows that the debate is active inside Xbox leadership.

Even so, the wording in the memo is notable because it acknowledges a problem in unusually direct terms. For a subscription service that sits at the center of Xbox's platform strategy, that makes this one of the clearest indications yet that Game Pass could change again in the near future.