Xbox Game Pass has quickly taken hold in the industry, representing a strategic shift for Microsoft that eschews a key part of the traditional model of console competition: namely, directly buying games. The subscription service offers an all-you-can-eat buffet of games from Microsoft itself, as well as third-party developers that Microsoft has partnered with to host its games. But how much does it benefit developers?

That question hasn't been answered clearly, especially since the answer seems to vary by studios and the terms of agreements are not disclosed. Microsoft has not specified exactly how it makes deals, but comments from various developers suggest that it tailors the terms of each deal individually. Xbox head Phil Spencer told The Verge that the deals are "all over the place." Microsoft seemed to concede recently that Game Pass can cannibalize game sales, but quickly clarified that it works with publishers to maximize their profits on an individual basis, while allowing room for "creativity and innovation."

You won't find many people in the industry more vocally positive about Game Pass than Mike Rose, founder of independent publisher No More Robots. He's made a point of talking publicly about how Game Pass has helped his own company's games, most recently in a detailed talk at GDC 2023. That talk, titled Why I Chose Game Pass: No More Robots Talks About Growing their Audience for Let's Build a Zoo, went into an unusual level of detail and insight about the multiple benefits of putting Let's Build a Zoo on Game Pass.