In a new interview, former PlayStation and Sony Executive Shuhei Yoshida issued a warning that suggests Xbox Game Pass and subscription services like it could be “really dangerous” for developers.
In recent months, the former PlayStation Boss, Shuhei Yoshida has been outspoken on numerous issues in the gaming sector. Back in March 2025, Yoshida shared some insights into the inner workings of Sony’s game development operations, including why the AA JAPAN Studio closed. Today, Yoshida’s latest interview with Game Developer held at gamescom LATAM shed light on how he views gaming subscription services such as Xbox Game Pass. In the interview, he calls them “really dangerous”.
Shuhei Yoshida explains “If the only way for people to play games is through subscriptions that’s really dangerous, because what [type] of games can be created will be dictated by the owner of the subscription services,” adding “That’s really, really risky because there always must always be fresh new ideas tried by small developers that create the next wave of development. But if the big companies dictate what games can be created, I don’t think that will advance the industry.” The notion that subscription services like Xbox Game Pass can gatekeep which games get added to the service is a warning to developers who rely on these services.
Yoshida also mentions that as gaming subscription services continue to expand on their first-party titles, it will be harder for smaller developers to stand out, and on top of that, the subscription services can dictate which games are allowed. Yoshida acknowledges his status as a former PlayStation employee before stating he believes the way Sony approaches subscription services is ‘healthier’ than Xbox Game Pass.
Yoshida says “I believe the way Sony approached [subscriptions] is healthier. You know, not to overpromise and to allow people to spend money to buy the new games,” adding after a few years with services continuing to offer games at a lower initial price, consumers will be deterred even further to spend the initial capital on new releases. Yoshida believes the Xbox Game Pass promise of making first-party titles available on the service day one was a misstep, but he also believes they’ve excelled elsewhere, particularly in the backward compatibility department.
As of this posting, new titles that haven’t been released yet, like Ninja Gaiden 4, are already betrothed to the Xbox Game Pass service and will arrive day one.
