Microsoft’s Xbox All Access financing program for Xbox consoles is now officially live in Canada, allowing gamers to pre-order either an Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S console with 24 months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate at a discounted price. Previously unavailable in in Canada, the program will be offered exclusively through EB Games Canada (via RBC Bank).
In the past, Xbox All Access had largely been available in the United States, the UK, Australia and New Zealand since the lead up to the launch of the Xbox One X and was originally offered as a financing option for the Xbox One S and the now discontinued Xbox One X and Xbox One S All-Digital Edition consoles. The program was never aggressively marketed however until last month’s reveal and pricing announcement for the next-gen Series X and S consoles, where program was re-launched for the new machines and expanded to 8 additional countries (Canada among them).
Currently there are two financing options available depending on which Xbox Series console you are pre-ordering. The Xbox Series X can be financed at $39.99 CAD per month and comes with 24 months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, while the cheaper Xbox Series S offers the same bundle at the naturally lower price $29.99 CAD per month. Both plans come with 0% APR (Annual Percentage Rate) so despite the similarities one might draw between this financing program and those offered on cellular devices or furniture, there do not appear to be any hidden costs with either option.
Doing the math, financing an Xbox Series X with two years of Game Pass Ultimate at $39.99 CAD ultimately costs the customer $959.76 CAD over the course of 24 months, while the same plan will cost $719.76 CAD to finance the Xbox Series S. Once the retail cost of the consoles are subtracted ($599.99 CAD for Series X and $379.99 CAD for Series S), the customer will be spending $359.77 CAD or $339.77 CAD for their Game Pass Ultimate subscription, respectively.
To put things in perspective, a monthly subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate on its own costs $16.99 CAD per month, which is $407.76 CAD over the course of 24 months. So customers that qualify for Xbox All Access actually stand to save as much as $48 off the cost of the subscription, and they will own the console with no strings attached once the 24-month period has ended.
Considering how difficult it has become to secure pre-orders for any of the next-generation consoles much less the Xbox Series X or S, as well as the fact that Xbox All Access allows customers to do just that with zero upfront cost and save money on a subscription service considered by many to be one of the best deals in gaming ever, it’s hard to argue the value proposition of what Microsoft is offering.
It should be noted however that all Xbox All Access pre-orders will have to be made online, as the program is not currently being offered at physical EB Games locations. I made an inquiry to a local store by phone and the staff confirmed that this is indeed the case. Also according to the retailer’s website, Xbox All Access is currently unavailable to residents of Quebec, but will be “available soon”.
Interested gamers can sign up at EB Games’ Xbox All Access webpage.