As part of controversial changes made to Xbox Game Pass this week, Microsoft has pulled the 10% discount on DLC for Game Pass games that Ultimate subscribers were able to get, seemingly in favor of its new Rewards scheme.
The news first emerged when the Call of Duty community noticed that Ultimate subscribers were no longer eligible for 10% off COD Points purchases as well as Blackcell, the more expensive version of Call of Duty’s battle pass that can only be bought directly with real world money for $29.99. The discount was seen as highly valuable for fans who play Call of Duty via Game Pass.
CharlieIntel first spotted the change in the U.S., and IGN has verified the discount is no longer available in the UK. IGN has asked Microsoft for comment.
Xbox has removed the 10% discount that Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members could get on add-on content for Call of Duty – including removing the discount on Call of Duty Points and BlackCell as part of the changes to Game Pass this week. pic.twitter.com/ipaMgENuwi
— CharlieIntel (@charlieINTEL) October 3, 2025
It seems that this discount removal extends beyond Call of Duty, however. As spotted by PureXbox, the majority of individual DLC packs for Game Pass games no longer have 10% off for subscribers (except for EA Play games where the 10% reduction still applies).
The removal of the discount was not mentioned in this week’s Ultimate subscription price rise announcement. However, Microsoft did confirm changes to how Ultimate subscribers earn cashback via its rewards system, and it’s believed these changes act as a replacement of sorts.
Here’s Microsoft’s blurb on the upgraded Ultimate Rewards program:
Ultimate subscribers can now earn up to $100 per year (100,000 points globally) in the Store just by playing games. With our upgraded Rewards program, players can get up to 30% value on select Game Pass games, with 4x points on purchases of games and add-ons, 10% back in points on select Game Pass library titles and add-ons, and up to 20% off select Game Pass games.
Essentially, if you subscribe to Ultimate you get more points from COD Points purchases. Clearly, Microsoft’s play here, like so many retailers, is to keep your money swirling around its ecosystem rather than your bank account. As redditor dazzathomas explained: “The change is that Premium gets 5% more Rewards points and Ultimate gets 10% when buying add-on content from Game Pass games. They want you to spend the full amount and give the saving back to you in Reward points so you spend those on gift cards, keeping it in the Xbox ecosystem rather than saving your own money.”
Microsoft sparked a backlash for raising the price of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate from $19.99 a month to $29.99 a month (an extra $120 a year).
To justify the increase in price of Ultimate, Microsoft has increased the number of day one releases per year to 75, and has added Fortnite Crew and Ubisoft+ Classics for the first time ever. There are also upgrades to Xbox Cloud Gaming streaming quality.
Ubisoft+ Classics — valued at $7.99 / £6.99 per month per platform — is now part of Ultimate. Starting November 18, Fortnite Crew — which itself costs $11.99 / £9.99 a month — will be included in Ultimate, with access to the Fortnite Battle Pass and 1,000 V-Bucks each month.
The cloud gaming boost amounts to better performance. Ultimate subscribers “exclusively enjoy our best quality streaming and shortest wait times,” Microsoft said. Xbox Cloud Gaming has also officially exited beta “as part of our commitment to make gameplay smoother and more responsive.”
Microsoft said the new $30 a month Ultimate price reflects “the expanded catalog, new partner benefits, and upgraded cloud gaming experience.”
Interestingly, the new Premium tier (what was called Standard) will add new Xbox-published games within a year of their launch, but that excludes Call of Duty games. This means that if you want to play Call of Duty via Game Pass, you’re pretty much forced into paying for Ultimate. Over the course of a year, that’s $360. And now, you don’t even get 10% off COD Points or BlackCell.
Fans are running the numbers and reassessing whether Game Pass remains right for them. Black Ops 7, which just launched in beta form ahead of its November release date, is a $70 game (Microsoft back-tracked on $80 after a gamer outcry at the cost of Obsidian’s The Outer Worlds 2). Perhaps the decision to stick with $70 for Black Ops 7 has come at an additional cost for both Microsoft and players.
IGN’s poll on the issue, which now has over 22,000 voters, shows 52% of our audience will not subscribe to Game Pass at all. 22.5% said they were going for Ultimate despite the price rise.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
