Xbox President Reaffirms Day 1 Launch for 1st Party Titles on Game Pass, Activision Titles Included

Amid reports of Microsoft internally debating future Call of Duty titles coming to Game Pass, Xbox president Sarah Bond has reiterated that all Xbox games will launch on day one for the service.

Speaking to Bloomberg’s Dina Bass in an interview at Bloomberg Tech, Bond said (transcription via IGN), “We know our core users love Game Pass. Game Pass is a gaming subscription. You get a whole portfolio of games, but importantly, you get every single one of our games that we build on day one in Game Pass, and the quality and breadth of those games have only been going up over time. You’re going to see some more really big games going into Game Pass later this year.”

When asked if this move included Activision’s titles, she responded, “Across the whole slate. You’re going to see some really amazing things. And keeping that as something that is really special for Xbox players is central for us.” Call of Duty wasn’t explicitly mentioned, but it now seems a given.

Of course, there are rumored “considerations” for Game Pass Ultimate to get another price hike, with Call of Duty titles coming to “most versions” of Game Pass. This could exclude it from Xbox Game Pass Core, much like Blizzard’s Diablo 4 when it joined the service in March. Time will tell, and with the Xbox Games Showcase on June 9th, we may get answers sooner rather than later.

A [REDACTED] Direct follows the showcase, which many assume to be the next Call of Duty’s reveal. The latter is allegedly Call of Duty: Black Ops Gulf War, developed by Treyarch. It’s rumored to feature an open-world campaign and seemingly launching in October. As always, stay tuned for updates.