Xbox Game Pass Doesn’t Hurt Sales, Says Doom Co-Creator

30 Jan 2025, 11:07 by Solomon Thompson · eTeknix

Xbox Game Pass is widely regarded as a great service. It offers access to a large library of games, including new releases available on launch day for those subscribed to the Ultimate version, all at a relatively low cost, particularly for those who play many games.

However, there has been ongoing debate about whether it is beneficial for developers. Some argue that it could negatively impact traditional game sales, at least on Xbox. Many industry figures have shared their opinions on this matter, and now John Romero, co-creator of Doom, has weighed in on the discussion.

John Romero Defends Xbox Game Pass

In a recent interview with Xbox Expansion Pass, Romero praised Game Pass, expressing his strong support for the service. “I love it,” he said. “I mean, who doesn’t love Game Pass? It’s Netflix for games; who doesn’t want that? It’s great because it’s try before you buy… one thing after another thing. Really the barrier for people to play games is just access to those games. Even free-to-play games, it’s like, knowing that those games exist, and Game Pass is like ‘Here they are!'”

Romero also dismissed concerns that Game Pass harms developers. However, it is unclear whether his statement also applies to games that are made available on the service from day one.