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Note: Xbox Cloud Gaming should not be confused with Xbox Remote Play, which is free and lets you stream Xbox games you own from a console to your phone, PC, or another Xbox over your home network.
This service was only available in Colombia and Ireland and allowed up to five friends and family to share the benefits of Game Pass Ultimate. It costs €22 a month in Ireland. Unfortunately, this service is no longer available, although this statement from Microsoft gives us some hope that it will one day be released globally:
“On August 15, 2023, the Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family preview program will end as we review what we’ve learned over the past few months and investigate how to create an offering we can launch worldwide.”
Nintendo Subscriptions
Nintendo Switch Online versus expansion pack
Your options with Nintendo are simple. Nintendo is the only console maker to currently offer a family gaming plan.
Nintendo’s online multiplayer service costs $4 per month ($8 quarterly or $20 per year) for an individual membership or $35 per year for a family membership. You can play games online with friends, save games to the cloud, use voice chat in compatible games, and get access to a library of over 100 classic NES and SNES titles. You can also use the Nintendo smartphone app to receive occasional special offers. A family membership covers up to eight separate accounts in your family group and allows everyone to play and enjoy the benefits of membership on multiple Switch consoles simultaneously (an option sadly missing on PlayStation and Xbox).
Courtesy of Nintendo
This new offer costs $50 per year for an individual membership or $80 per year for a family membership. It gives you everything mentioned above, but adds a library of Nintendo 64 games, Sega Genesis games, and the Happy Home Paradise downloadable content (DLC) for Animal Crossing: New Horizons (you do not need to subscribe to access the animal crossing downloadable content).
Mobile subscription services
Apple Arcade, Google Play Pass and Netflix games
Mobile games have a bad reputation, but the quality of these titles has slowly started to improve. The services below also remove ads and in-app payments.
Looking for a library of games for your iPhone or iPad? Enter Apple Arcade. With over 200 premium games with no ads or in-app purchases, Apple’s mobile gaming subscription is easy to recommend. The subscription service costs $5 per month or $50 per year, and you can use family sharing to give access to up to five family members. Better yet, you can get three months of Apple Arcade for free if you buy a new iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Apple TV, or Mac. There are some exclusive and attractive games on Apple Arcade, along with some premium titles that are available on the App Store. Apple adds a few new titles each month, but sometimes removes games as well. Apple Arcade is also included as part of any Apple One subscription.
Do you have an Android phone or tablet? Consider Google Play Pass. The service includes nearly 1,000 games and applications. It costs $5 per month or $30 per year and can be shared with up to five family members. Like Apple Arcade, Google’s service has no ads or in-app purchases, but there are no exclusives here. It simply offers access to some popular games that you usually have to pay for individually.
You may be surprised to know that Netflix includes mobile games as part of any Netflix membership. Don’t get too excited – there are over 80 titles to choose from, some are exclusive and some are quite fun. Learn how to play Netflix games to find out for yourself.
Game streaming services
GeForce Now vs. Amazon Luna
Microsoft and Sony have ways to stream games from the internet to your PC, console, tablet, phone or laptop, but there are some dedicated services that focus entirely on this game streaming business model.
Nvidia’s game streaming service is slightly different. Requires a good Internet connection (at least 50 Mbps for highest quality) and You have to bring your own games. You can connect to your Steam or Epic library, but not all games are compatible. This is one of the easiest ways to play the latest games with the best possible graphics if you don’t have a PC equipped (graphics cards are still hard to find). There’s a limited free tier that lets you play on a basic computer for up to one hour, but you can pay $10 per month ($50 per year) for the Priority service for a decent setup that offers 1080p at 60 frames per second for up to six hours. , or $20 per month ($100 for six months) to access an RTX 4080 graphics card for 4K gaming at 120 fps for up to eight hours.
Amazon has a game streaming service much like Google’s ill-fated Stadia. Luna is segmented by channels: the Luna+ channel costs $10 per month and includes a wide variety of games in different genres, but the Ubisoft+ channel costs $18 per month to access dozens of Ubisoft games, such as Assassins Creed There’s a party gaming channel called Jackbox for $5 per month, and if you’re an Amazon Prime member, you can play a rotating selection of games for free. Works on Windows PC, Mac, Fire TV, Fire tablets, iPad, Chromebooks, and phones. You can use the Luna controller to play, an Xbox One or PS4 controller, or a keyboard and mouse.
This is Amazon’s fledgling service and it’s a bit strange. There is certainly not enough here to justify a Amazon Prime Subscription ($15 per month or $139 per year), but if you already have one, then it’s worth checking out. You can get loot in some popular games, free game downloads, free DLC, and a free Twitch subscription (subscriptions to specific Twitch streamers).
Unfortunately, Google’s Stadia has been shut down. The service completely stopped operating on January 18, 2023.
The rest
Humble Choice, EA Play and Ubisoft Plus
We have an alternative type of Humble membership, and some game publishers have decided that their catalogs are large enough to be offered as subscription services (although many of their titles are also available through services we already covered).
Courtesy of Humble Bundle
Unlike the other gaming subscription services on our list, a Humble Choice membership for $12 per month gives you access to a new mix of mainstream and indie PC games each month that you can keep forever. You also get access to the Humble Games collection (a curated library of interesting indies) and special discounts. And 5 percent of every Humble Choice membership is donated to Humble’s featured charity of the month.
Pay $6 per month or $40 per year and you’ll get access to EA titles like FIFA 23, Go crazy 23, Mass Effect Legendary Editionand Titanfall 2 on Xbox, PlayStation or PC. You can also play select new releases up to 10 hours before launch, gain access to in-game challenges and rewards, and get a 10 percent discount on game downloads, season passes, and DLC. The Pro tier at $17 per month or $120 per year upgrades you to premium game editions. For most people, a Game Pass subscription makes a lot more sense.
Note: EA Play is included at no additional cost as part of Xbox Game Pass for PC or Game Pass Ultimate subscriptions.
For $8 a month you can play Ubisoft’s library of about 50 “classics” on your PC. If you want new releases on release day, premium editions, DLC, and in-game rewards, you need to upgrade to Premium for $18 a month, which also lets you play select games on Xbox or through the cloud on Luna. This service seems overpriced for what it offers, so it’s only for die-hard Ubisoft fans who can’t live without all the premium editions and extras.
Note: You can play more than 50 of Ubisoft’s best games through Sony’s PS Plus Extra and Premium subscription services.