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[Topher]

Emails are apparently going out, but at least in some reasons the new redemption rates are already showing up.

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Microsoft Rewards can be a pretty lucrative program if you're firmly embedded in the company's ecosystem, including Xbox. But if you've been using it to pay for your Xbox Game Pass subscriptions, there's bad news. Microsoft is coming for (more of) your points.

As reported by Pure Xbox, Microsoft Rewards members who use the auto-redeem feature to cash in points for Game Pass subscriptions are being emailed warning of impending changes.

Per Pure Xbox, the email begins:

We wanted to let you know that we will be discontinuing Microsoft Rewards auto-redeem subscriptions for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Xbox Game Pass Core, and PC Game Pass on April 20, 2025. This change is due to a recent increase in Microsoft Rewards points needed for Xbox Game Pass subscriptions purchased with Rewards points. You can still use auto-redeem subscriptions for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Xbox Game Pass Core, and PC Game Pass, but you will need to renew your subscription by selecting a new Rewards auto-redeem option after April 20, 2025.

I'll admit I needed to read it a couple of times because the wording isn't great. What it seems to mean is that the current auto-redeem subscription is going away, but the feature isn't being discontinued entirely. In its place, there will be a new, more expensive auto-redeem for Game Pass products.

Here in the UK, at least, those rates are already showing up. Game Pass PC is going up from 7,750 to 10,500, while Game Pass Ultimate is getting raised from 12,000 to 17,000. That's a lot.

I should also point out those are the rates I see as a level 2 member. It's safe to assume similarly hefty increases for level 1 members, albeit the actual numbers will be different.

Why is Microsoft doing this? Because they can? It won't affect me personally, as I don't earn close to enough points every month to pay for Game Pass. But I'd wager that enough folks out there are basically getting Game Pass for free every month with their points that Microsoft needs to make it harder.

After all, if you can't do it, you're more likely to pay for it with real cash, right? For now, you can still redeem at the existing rates, but if the email from the original report is accurate, you've got less than two months left.

Xbox Game Pass is going to be harder to pay for with Microsoft Rewards from April, it seems

Emails are apparently going out, but at least in some reasons the new redemption rates are already showing up.

www.windowscentral.com

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Long winded way of saying MS rewards points hike for Game Pass is going into effect in April. I'll be downgrading from Ultimate to PC Game Pass next month.

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

 

[bender]

In the US, just doing Rewards and Game Pass activities isn't going to net you 17,000 a month. Maybe you could hit that in months when the 1,000 point puzzle piece cashes in.

 

[Ritsumei2020]

Why is Microsoft doing this?

Lol you know why

 

[Bumblebeetuna]

I’ve always just bought cheap codes online. I don’t want to do any of this rewards stuff. Sucks for those that do, though.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Is there any information on how many people use this thing? Less or more than 3 million?

 

[BigLee74]

Ah well, all good things must come to an end.

I knew they’d eventually get some money out of me.

 

[lughnasadh123]

I don't think MS would be too sad to see GP die as they shift to other consoles where the only option is paying. A sub service just doesn't make sense anymore.

 

[Topher]

Gotta wonder if a price hike is going to happen around the same time.

 

[Antwix]

Wonder if they're going to up the cost of Xbox gift cards too. Hopefully not.

 

[bender]

Already an option on the Rewards sections of the Dashboard.

I wonder if they'll keep offering a 3-month option and what that will increase to (currently 35,000 points).

 

[Kilau]

Glad I’m a level 5 rewards member and immune to this.

 

[Sebastian1295]

They're doing this type of nickle and diming because gamepass isn't sustainable and they need to find ways to raise costs and cut costs. Gamepass has destroyed the entire xbox brand and idk how anyone could say otherwise at this juncture.

 

[Barneyco]

 

[adamsapple]

The funny thing is they actually lowered the reward prices for items in some other countries.

 

[JohnnyFootball]

Getting closer and closer to the end of Gamepass. I cannot wait for that to happen.

 

[JohnnyFootball]

They're doing this type of nickle and diming because gamepass isn't sustainable and they need to find ways to raise costs and cut costs. Gamepass has destroyed the entire xbox brand and idk how anyone could say otherwise at this juncture.

Yep, itll get littered with AI developed games before too much longer.

 

[Beechos]

Sucks for those who take advantage of it. All these rewards programs are shit nowadays compared to what they used to be. I rather companies stop these reward/loyalty programs altogether than insult ppl with the actual rewards.

Good old bestbuy had the best one with their elite plus 20% off of all brand new games.

 

[DR3AM]

Noooo only reason why I use the rewards

 

[Beechos]

I'm still surprised anyone still uses this after the previous nerf where ms greatly reduced the ways people can earn points.

 

[Moriarty1889]

Hope Gamepass dies off.

 

[laynelane]

I don't have any sub services, but isn't this kind of thing par for the course? They get you in with really great prices and deals and then slowly roll those back over time. It would be interesting to see whether the price increase, service changes, and now changes to the Rewards program have an impact on sub numbers - and, if so, how much.

 

[RPS37]

How many points do you think you can realistically get per month at the moment?

 

[Windle Poons]

Here we go again you mean. They did exactly the same last year.

 

[FireFly]

They're doing this type of nickle and diming because gamepass isn't sustainable and they need to find ways to raise costs and cut costs. Gamepass has destroyed the entire xbox brand and idk how anyone could say otherwise at this juncture.

Raising costs and cutting costs, huh?

 

[Three]

Raising costs and cutting costs, huh?

He means raising costs for the user and cutting costs for themselves.

 

[ShaiKhulud1989]

Considering that CoD didn't move a needle, price increase is imminent at that point and all these news are here to lowkey prepare the audience for it.

 

[Insanemaelstrom]

Seems like a prelude to another price increase.

 

[kazuyamishima]

The gift that keeps on giving

 

[Windle Poons]

How many points do you think you can realistically get per month at the moment?

I've managed 11,115 so far this month - I admit I don't max out the 90 points for searching online and 60 points for searching via mobile every day.

 

[zeomax]

I'm still surprised anyone still uses this after the previous nerf where ms greatly reduced the ways people can earn points.

Because you still got enough points for Gamepass every month.

 

[RPS37]

Seems like a prelude to another price increase.

Please no. I’ve virtually never paid, but 20 bucks is high enough.

I've managed 11,115 so far this month - I admit I don't max out the 90 points for searching online and 60 points for searching via mobile every day.

Damn. Fingers crossed we can keep up. There are a lot of new ways to bank points lately.

 

[ToadMan]

Trying to keep up with MS points for GP....

I think this is why a lot of the GP posters gradually drifted away - not enough hours in the day to pay for subs.

 

[Sebastian1295]

Raising costs and cutting costs, huh?

Raising costs by previously raising the price of gamepass previously and now raising microsoft rewards which directly affects gamepass because people were using the system to get gamepass free each month. Cutting costs by closing down tango gameworks, arkane austin, cutting jobs etc. I feel like other studios could be on the choping block soon such as compulsion games if south of midnight tanks. It's a mess over in the xbox division and every studio their should be worried about being closed down thanks to phil spencer and gamepass ala one of the absolute worst things any CEO has ever implemented in gaming history.

 

[MacReady13]

The greatest deal in gaming just keeps getting better!!! Fuck subscription services in gaming. Never pay for games and this is what you get. Microsoft HAS to make their money back somehow…

 

[Sebastian1295]

Yep, itll get littered with AI developed games before too much longer.

I don't see how this is sustainable in anyway, shape, or form. PC gamepass has completely died because no one cares about it and you're not moving players off of steam for it, gamepass itself has stagnated and that's why they stopped celebrating the numbers for it and have gone silent on how it's doing on social media etc, and they're getting no sales of their games from their own hardware which has screwed them royally.



They're essentially going third party to try and make some money back but in turn they're giving sony a 30% cut which is biting them in the ass because console makers lose so much money not selling their own games on their platform because you get 100% of the profits. It's a disaster beyond belief and phil spencer is a fucking clown for orchestrating it.

 

[Windle Poons]

Please no. I’ve virtually never paid, but 20 bucks is high enough.

Damn. Fingers crossed we can keep up. There are a lot of new ways to bank points lately.

Yeah but adamsapple will be on about 22,000 for the month so far...

 

[Elios83]

With COD at day one not increasing the user base considerably it's end of the line for the sustainability of the business model.
The only two options left are increasing the price of the tier with day one games or removing day one games.
Internally the focus is around being a major multiplatform publisher, Gamepass is already a closed chapter relatively to the intial Netflix of gaming ambitions.

 

[panda-zebra]

Why is Microsoft doing this? Because they can? It won't affect me personally, as I don't earn close to enough points every month to pay for Game Pass. But I'd wager that enough folks out there are basically getting Game Pass for free every month with their points that Microsoft needs to make it harder.

To allow some of your most fervent fans who might happen to be sat at a desk all day to get away without paying by simply performing a few arbitrary engagement-boosting menial tasks always seemed like a cheap tactic. Obviously the boosting of engagement figures across a range of MS services has had some benefit for the stat sheets in the past, but it seems even supporting evangelism (given so many here who espouse the best value in gaming while paying nothing) has a limit of usefulness when the balance sheet is king under the gaze of Satya. The books must be getting forensically inspected at this point... what's next, no more freebie controller drops to streamers? That could ruin Colt's business model entirely.

 

[Pantz]

I don't really know if I earn enough per month for that or not but even at a deficit, with my stacks and points built up already I'll be free until at least 2030.

 

[Astray]

Lol figures that they do this right when MS Rewards gets finally supported in my country.

 

[ManaByte]

Seems like a prelude to another price increase.

They raised the price of the Rewards redeem from an equivalent of $12 to $17. That's still less than the price of paying for it outright. So how does that correlate to a price increase?

 

[Windle Poons]

MS needs the money it seems.

O365 up from £59 a year to £85 with some justification of some AI shit that lets face it, your average person (i.e. me) isn't going to use.

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

Here we go again you mean. They did exactly the same last year.

Exactly how I meant it

 

[Bridges]

I haven't been engaging with MS Rewards the last couple years. I used to be an evangelist for it but after the last change to points the grind became too terrible. I got many years of free game pass so I can't complain too badly but it has long since not been worth it

 

[Dr. Wilkinson]

I don't think MS would be too sad to see GP die as they shift to other consoles where the only option is paying. A sub service just doesn't make sense anymore.

Dude their entire business model is shifting everything to Game Pass, so you can seamlessly go from device to device, like what are you honestly talking about

 

[damidu]

Xbox Game Pass is going to be harder to pay for with Microsoft. period.
it seems.. lol

 

[SportsFan581]

The points per $ were lower on GP than most of the other rewards, looks like they are correcting that issue.

 

[peish]

I got this email last friday and didnt think much of it.

my PC gamepass still shows 7750 points needed at level 2 member

20 Apri better clear your rewards!

 

[Topher]

The points per $ were lower on GP than most of the other rewards, looks like they are correcting that issue.

That's always been the case though. Even after the points were adjusted the last time GP price was raised. It was incentive to use the points on Game Pass. I don't think this was an "issue" that needed fixing. It's just a point hike.