Bid farewell to Xbox Live Gold and say hello to Xbox Game Pass Core

Microsoft will phase out Xbox Live Gold and replace it with a new service called Xbox Game Pass Core in September.

The company described Game Pass Core as an "evolution" of Xbox Live Gold that will grant access to multiplayer gaming, a "select collection" of over 25 games, and exclusive member deals for $9.99 per month or $59.99 per year.

Notably, Core will see Microsoft ditch its "Games with Gold" initiative that allowed Xbox Live Gold subscribers to download a selection of titles that refreshed each month.

The switch from Gold to Core will take place on September 14, 2023, and will see Xbox Live Gold members automatically become Game Pass Core members with no change in pricing.

Games with Gold will come to an end on September 1, but Microsoft notes that players will be able to access any Xbox One games they previously redeemed through the program if they remain a Game Pass Core or Game Pass Ultimate member. Xbox 360 titles redeemed through Games with Gold titles will remain in a player's library indefinitely.

"For over twenty years, Xbox players have been connecting via Xbox Live to compete, cooperate, and experience the world’s biggest online multiplayer games. In 2017, we introduced Xbox Game Pass which provided a curated library of games. Game Pass Core brings online play together with Game Pass in a new offering for gamers around the world," wrote Jarret West, Microsoft's CVP of gaming marketing, in a blog post.

"With this evolution, we’re saying farewell to Games with Gold. We wanted to use this opportunity to re-imagine how to include content with this subscription. We found that the answer to the most compelling catalog was to leverage select titles from our Xbox Game Pass catalog."

That 25-title selection box will be updated with new titles two to three times per year, and at launch will include games like Among Us, Descenders, State of Decay 2, Halo 5: Guardians, Gears 5, Forza Horizon 4, and Fable Anniversary.

You can find out more about the dawn of Game Pass Core on the Xbox Wire blog.