Microsoft’s $80 games are no longer just a looming threat — The Outer Worlds 2 is the first Xbox title to carry the hefty price tag, launching this October.

The Outer Worlds 2’s price reveal comes shortly after the release of Mario Kart World, which is Nintendo’s first $80 game. These price hikes will hit gamers’ wallets and likely make players more selective about trying games they’re unsure of.

Only time will tell whether Microsoft can move the same number of units at a higher price — The Outer Worlds 2 is certainly no Grand Theft Auto 6 — but the company’s strategy may not rely on selling more copies at all.

Xbox’s first-party games are often included on Game Pass at launch, and The Outer Worlds 2 is no exception. If $80 games become the new normal for the Xbox brand, then the $10 per month subscription service suddenly looks much more attractive by comparison.

With a slew of games from the Xbox Showcase arriving on Game Pass on day one, this could be a gambit to convert more gamers into subscribers.

Microsoft’s Game Pass strategy

As previously Xbox-exclusive games continue to go live across multiple platforms — launching on PlayStation as well as PC — Microsoft is deprioritizing its console hardware sales in favor of delivering premium gaming experiences.

Still, the company has an ecosystem of users to maintain and it would still be a poor move to cede every advantage to Sony. Game Pass is Microsoft’s great equalizer, because you can’t access the subscription service on PlayStation consoles (and picking up PC subscribers is tapping into an entirely different part of the market).

PlayStation gamers who want to play the latest Xbox first-party titles will have to cough up $80 — a kind of exclusivity-lite for those outside Microsoft’s ecosystem.

Creating Game Pass subscribers provides Microsoft with a steady stream of gaming revenue, though, and Xbox and PC gamers who are put off by increasing AAA game prices are going to be funnelled toward the digital gaming service.

This is a great deal for gamers, too — one of the best value propositions on the market right now. The core Game Pass subscription costs $120 for 12 months (or $144 for PC Game Pass), which means you’re still getting a good deal if you only enjoy two of the Xbox titles that launch on the platform each year.

Microsoft’s showcase just revealed nearly two dozen games that are coming to Game Pass over the next year and a half, so odds are good that you’ll be able to find at least a small handful of $80 games you enjoy playing that you’d have never pulled the trigger on buying otherwise.

In addition to the AAA games landing on Game Pass, the subscription service houses some of the most critically acclaimed indie darlings of all time, including Celeste, Dead Cells, Stardew Valley and more. These aren’t your $80 juggernauts, but they pad out the service’s impressive library (and inflict massive choice paralysis in the process).

Game Pass was already one of the best deals in gaming. The rise of $80 games will simply make the service even more enticing.