The change might be disappointing if you liked Games with Gold's more frequent catalog expansions. The company planned to raise Gold prices in 2021 before quickly reversing the decision. It stopped offering year-long subscriptions in 2020, and ditched Xbox 360 games in 2022. Microsoft has signalled its intent to change Live Gold for a while. Redeemed Xbox 360 games are yours to keep even if your subscription lapses. However, you'll still have access to any Xbox One games you claimed if you're either a Core or Ultimate member. If you're already an Xbox Live Gold member, you'll automatically switch to Game Pass Core when it's available. If you want to see what you're missing out on, check out our ranking of the best Xbox Game Pass games.

Xbox Game Pass Core won't give you access to the full Xbox Game Pass library, with that remaining exclusive to Xbox Game Pass Console and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscriptions. It's worth noting that while Games with Gold is going away, you'll still be able to access any previously-redeemed Xbox 360 and Xbox One games from your library – so long as you remain a Game Pass Core or Game Pass Ultimate subscriber. The strength of this service has waned in recent years, particularly following the launch of the Xbox Game Pass subscription service in 2017. A decade ago, this was a huge selling-point for Gold and, if memory serves, that first year offered up some of the best Xbox 360 games like Assassin's Creed 2, Crackdown, Gears of War, Halo 3, and Rainbow Six: Vegas.

Having launched in July 2013 for Xbox 360, Games with Gold gave Xbox Live Gold subscribers the option of accessing free games every month. One element of Xbox Live is shutting down, however, and that's the Games with Gold initiative. What's key to understand is that while the 'Xbox Live' branding is going away, the service itself remains unchanged: Your Gamertag will remain, so too will your ability to play online, access your friend list, and your library of games.

The service was ultimately popularized by Halo 2 and has gone on to be an integral component to the Xbox ecosystem – iterations of Xbox Live subsequently appeared on the Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. Xbox Live was introduced 20 years ago, having launched in November 2002 and enabling online connectivity for some of the best original Xbox games like MechAssault and Unreal Championship.

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