Microsoft is preparing to remove the Xbox Live Gold requirement from free to play titles on Xbox. It will also no longer be required to access Looking 4 Groups and Party Chat. These changes are currently being flighted for Xbox Insiders and should be available to all players soon.
They arrive months after the company tried to hike the price of Xbox Live Gold. After receiving widespread backlash, Microsoft walked back its stance and also promised that free to play titles would no longer require Gold. The other features being free for all users also lends credence to rumors of Xbox Live Gold being dropped entirely, though it’s still not officially confirmed.
While Xbox Live Gold has been the subject of scrutiny over the past few years, Xbox Game Pass continues to thrive. Titles like Outriders will be coming to the service next week (but only for console players) and reports indicate that games from Ubisoft+, Ubisoft’s own subscription service, could be added as well. Stay tuned in the meantime for more details.
Xbox Insiders in Alpha Skip Ahead & Alpha today we are flighting some new features. Multiplayer in Free-to-play games, Looking 4 Groups and Party Chat on Xbox no longer requires an Xbox Live Gold membership as we flight and test these service changes ahead of general availability
— Xbox Insider (@xboxinsider) March 24, 2021
