Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft's game subscription, is currently (and almost certainly unintentionally) available for non-subscribers - meaning as things stand, the service is free.
As reported by @Okami13_ on Twitter, both Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Live Gold are apparently available with all benefits, even if a user isn't subscribed to either.
Is Xbox Game Pass Free?
Okami's tweet is below:
Multiple reports of Xbox One owners being able to play online multiplayer without Gold right now.Gold owners also reporting that they're able to use Game Pass without a subscription.Could be a free weekend, could be a glitch, could be permanent change? #XboxOne#XboxSeriesX
— Okami (@Okami13_)
August 6, 2020
This seems most likely to be a glitch, as Xbox Game Pass is an impressive value proposition as things stand - we can't imagine how cutting that subscription money out of Microsoft's income would do the gaming division any good at all.
Don't forget that Game Pass subscriptions presumably help fund game development, so the two are almost in lockstep now.
Gold memberships are more likely to be going away, as Microsoft recently stopped selling 12-month subscriptions and has tried to nudge people to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate which bundles both services together. We'll update if we hear anything from Microsoft.
Still, if you hop on and can download games and play online multiplayer, enjoy it while it lasts!
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