The video game industry is changing. Now it becomes more affordable to pay by subscription to your favorite publishers and play their entire game library. In this article, we’ll take a look at the best Windows 10 video game subscription services and compare them to each other.
We’ll start with the Xbox Games Pass and then explore other options, including EA Access and Origin Access, later in the article
Xbox Games Pass
Subscription Price: $ 9.99 per month
Free Trial: $ 1 for First Month
Sync to Consoles?: Yes, Xbox One Only
Xbox is pushing for Windows 10 to be part of its gaming ecosystem, and that makes a big difference for Xbox gamers. Each month, Xbox adds new games to its Xbox Games Pass, many of which are available on PC.
And if the game is only for Xbox One and Windows 10, it will most likely be included in the Games Pass on the first day of release. For example, Sea of ??Thieves is available from Day 1, Crackdown 3 and Halo Infinite will also be available.
The game selection isn’t as big as some of the other subscription services, but you get the added bonus of being able to play all games on both Xbox One and PC for the same price. And with Xbox Play Anywhere, you can easily sync your game progress between both platforms.
There is no free trial, but you can get your first month for just $ 1. Subsequent months will cost $ 9.99. Some of the most popular games right now include ARK: Survival Evolved, Sea of ??Thieves, Gears of War 4, and Halo Wars 2.
Discord Nitro
Subscription Price: $ 9.99 / Month
Free Trial: No Free Trial
Synchronize with Consoles?: No
In an effort to expand and compete with game launchers such as Steam and the Epic Games Store, Discord now allows players to buy games from their own chat app. Discord Nitro, a monthly subscription service, now also gives you free access to a variety of games.
There are no big blockbusters on the list of games like the other options in this article, but you do get a larger selection of games from smaller indie companies, as well as some older games. If you are interested in rogue games, 8-bit games, strategy games and old action games like Darksiders, Discord Nitro might be your best bet.
As Discord Nitro continues to grow, I’m sure we’ll see more support for a wider variety of game genres. Discord Nitro doesn’t have a free trial, but their $ 9.99 monthly subscription or $ 99.99 annual packages are competitive.
Discord Nitro is also exclusive to PC, which means you can’t play any of the games on offer here on Xbox or PS4 for free.
EA Access and Origin Access
Subscription Price: $ 4.99 / month or $ 19.99 / month
Free Trial: No
Sync with Consoles?: No
EA Access is a subscription service available for Xbox One, while Origin Access is the PC version. Unlike Xbox Game Pass, you essentially have to pay for both subscriptions to access games on both platforms. EA Access has one subscription package for $ 4.99 per month or $ 29.99 per year that lets you play older games like Battlefield 1 and Titanfall 2 for free.
You can also play EA Sports games and try new games like Anthem for 10 hours. Also available with a 10% discount on EA games and add-ons.
Origin Access is for the PC-only EA client, which means it has more features available to platform users. Basically, there is a two-tier subscription system, one similar to EA Access and the other offering full access to the game.
First, let’s start at the cheaper tier. For $ 4.99 / month or $ 29.99 / year, you can get the same 10-hour trials for all new games. You also get 10% off any in-game, add-on, or microtransaction purchases. You also get early access to upcoming games and still get full access to older games from the store.
If you pay for Tier 2, known as Origin Access Premier, you get all of these features, plus full, unlimited access to all new releases, including games like Anthem. This also includes early access. The 10% discount on purchases on Origin is still valid, and you can often get exclusive add-on content like free cosmetics and small DLC packs.
Origin Access Premier is more expensive at $ 14.99 / month, but at $ 99.99 / year, it’s essentially as cheap as Discord Nitro and Xbox Games Pass. There are no free trials available for any of the available Origin Access tiers or EA Access on Xbox One.
Summary
Thanks for reading our guide to the best Windows 10 video game subscription services. Was this article helpful? Would you like to know more about these services? Feel free to leave your questions below and I will answer as soon as I can.
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