Best Alternatives to Xbox Game Pass 

Are Xbox prices getting too high, or are you just looking for a bit more variety or niche titles in your gaming experience? Either way, the Xbox Game Pass isn’t the only cloud gaming service on the market, or even the cheapest in some cases.

In this article, we’ll be looking at alternatives to Xbox Game Pass and what makes them special.

Great Alternatives to Xbox Game Pass

Let’s dive straight into things. While Xbox Game Pass is pretty much accepted as the best cloud gaming service around, they aren’t the only one. In addition, you might find their top-tier membership of $29.99 a bit steep, or not find your favorite nostalgic title. Here are some excellent alternatives:

Nvidia GeForce Now

Let’s start with another industry leader in cloud gaming, and some might say the best Xbox Game Pass alternative. Nvidia has been diversifying in many different ways in the past few years, including AI. Seeing as they’re one of the market leaders in high-end graphics cards, it makes sense that Nvidia would excel in providing cloud gaming to users.

The model differs from the “Netflix” approach of Game Pass, where you can stream any game available. Instead, GeForce Now offers a powerful way to play games that you own (locally or on Steam), ideal for lower-end PCs, and those who don’t want to buy through Microsoft. With over 2000 titles included (compared to the 400+ of Xbox), GeForce Now has a bigger catalogue, with the streaming power that is unparalleled.

GeForce Now is also cheaper, with a free tier, Performance tier ($10 per month with a subscription plan), and Ultimate tier ($20 per month with a subscription), which affects your gaming time, server, and hardware access.

Apple Arcade

If you’re an Apple user, good news! There’s a subscription service that can offer your Apple ecosystem devices some pretty nifty titles without breaking the bank. This is another service that differs from Xbox Game Pass. Instead of playing through the cloud, you can download and install titles on any device connected to your account.

The titles you play are bound by your own hardware limitations, but seeing as most of the catalogue is mobile-first games, you won’t have to worry. Major titles (albeit less demanding ones) are also available.

A big draw for this option is the price. There is one solid subscription fee of $6.99 per month.

Nintendo Switch Online

Nintendo is known for keeping its own IPs very close to its chest, so if you’ve got a hankering to play some titles from SNES, Gameboy, or any other retro console, you’ll have to sign up to Nintendo Switch Online to do so. Much like Apple Arcade, you download the games you want to play to your device and start gaming. What sets this apart from other Xbox Game Pass alternatives is the access to Nintendo titles.

The price itself is also comparatively reasonable, with a yearly plan of $19.99 or $49.99 for the Expansion Pack. The difference between the two is the console games you can access and the modern Switch games’ bonuses.

Amazon Luna

If you have an Amazon Prime membership, then you most likely qualify for Amazon Luna, the company’s answer to Xbox Game Pass. While the catalogue of games might be much smaller than its counterpart (over 50 games), you can still access top titles. Use of Amazon servers means that the cloud gaming experience is smooth. Twitch fans can also rejoice at the integration with the platform.

Luna is free to Prime members and gives you access to 50+ games, but you can access even more games with a Luna Premium for $9.99 per month.