The Best Game Subscription Services We Tested (2024)

Note: Xbox Cloud Gaming should not be confused with it Xbox Remote Play, which is free, also lets you stream Xbox games you own from the console to your phone, PC, or another Xbox over your home network.

This service was only available in Colombia and Ireland, and allowed up to five friends and family members to share the benefits of Game Pass Ultimate. It costs €22 a month in Ireland. Unfortunately, this service is no longer available, although this statement from Microsoft gives us hope that it may be launched globally one day:

“On August 15, 2023, the Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family preview program will end as we review what we’ve learned over the past few months and investigate how we can build an offering that we can roll out globally.”

Nintendo subscription

Nintendo Switch Online vs. Expansion Pack

Your options with Nintendo are straightforward. Nintendo is the only console manufacturer currently offering a family gaming system.

Nintendo’s online multiplayer service costs $4 per month ($8 per quarter or $20 per year) for a single membership or $35 per year for a family membership. You can play games online with friends, save games to the cloud, use voice chat in supported games, and get access to a library of over 100 classic NES and SNES titles. You can also use Nintendo’s smartphone app to get special offers from time to time. A family membership includes up to eight different accounts in your team family and lets you all play and enjoy the benefits of membership on multiple Switch consoles at the same time (an option that is sadly lacking on PlayStation and Xbox).

Hosted by Nintendo

This new offering costs $50 per year for an individual membership or $80 per year for a family membership. It offers all of the above but adds a library of Nintendo 64 games, Sega Genesis games, and Happy Home Paradise downloadable content (DLC) Animal Crossing: New Horizons (you do not need to register to access the Animal Crossing DLC).

Mobile Subscription Services

Apple Arcade, Google Play Pass, and Netflix Games

Mobile games get a bad rap, but the quality of these titles has started to slowly change for the better. The services below also feature advertisements and in-app payments.

Apple Arcade.

Image: Apple

Looking for a library of games for your iPhone or iPad? Log in to Apple Arcade. Boasting over 200 premium games with no ads or in-app purchases, Apple’s mobile game subscription is easy to recommend. The subscription service costs $5 a month or $50 a year, and you can use family sharing to give access to up to five family members. Even better, you can get three months of Apple Arcade for free when you buy a new iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Apple TV, or Mac. There are compelling, exclusive games on Apple Arcade, alongside some premium titles available on the App Store. Apple adds a few new titles each month, but sometimes removes games, too. Apple Arcade is also included as part of every Apple One subscription.

Have an Android phone or tablet? Consider Google Play Pass. The service includes nearly 1,000 games and applications. It costs $5 a month or $30 a year and can be shared with up to five family members. Like Apple Arcade, Google’s service is free of ads and in-app purchases, but nothing special here. It simply provides access to other popular games that you would normally have to pay for separately.

You might be surprised to find out that Netflix includes mobile games as part of any Netflix membership. Don’t get too excited—there are over 80 titles to choose from, some not so special and some really fun. Learn how to play Netflix games for yourself.

Game Streaming Services

GeForce Now vs. Amazon Luna

Microsoft and Sony have ways to stream games from the Internet to your PC, console, tablet, phone, or laptop, but there are few dedicated services that focus entirely on this game streaming business model.

Nvidia’s game streaming service is a little different. Requires a strong Internet connection (at least 50 Mbps at the highest quality) again you must bring your own games. It can connect to your Steam or Epic library, but not all games are supported. This is one of the easiest ways to play the latest games with great graphics if you don’t have a flashed PC (graphics cards are still hard to come by). There’s a limited free tier that lets you play on the basic rig for up to an hour, but you can pay $10 a month ($50 a year) for the Premium service for a decent setup that offers 1080p at 60 frames per second for up to six hours. , or $20 per month ($100 for six months) for an RTX 4080 graphics card for 4K gaming at 120 fps for up to eight hours.

Luna controller.

Image: Amazon

Amazon is a game streaming service similar to Google’s ill fated Stadia. Luna is divided into channels: The Luna+ channel costs $10 per month and includes a wide variety of games in different genres, but the Ubisoft+ channel costs $18 per month to access a large number of Ubisoft games, such as. Assassins’ Creed. There’s a party game channel called Jackbox for $5 a month, and if you’re an Amazon Prime member, you can play a selection of arcade games for free. Works on Windows PC, Mac, Fire TV, Fire tablet, iPad, Chromebooks, and phones. You can use a Luna controller to play, an Xbox One or PS4 controller, or a keyboard and mouse.

This is Amazon’s nascent service, and it’s weird. There’s not enough here to justify an Amazon Prime subscription ($15 a month or $139 a year), but if you already have it, it’s worth a look. You can get in-game loot from other popular games, free game downloads, free DLC, and free Twitch subscriptions (subscriptions to certain Twitch streamers).

Sadly, Google’s Stadia is closed. The service ends completely on January 18, 2023.

Other

Humble Choice, EA Play, and Ubisoft Plus

We have another type of membership from Humble, and other game publishers have decided that their catalogs are large enough to be offered as subscription services (although many of their titles are available through the services we’ve already advertised).

Courtesy of Humble Bundle

Unlike the other game subscription services on our list, Humble Choice’s $12-a-month membership gives you access to a new mix of casual and indie PC games every month that you can keep forever. You also get access to the Humble Games Collection (a curated library of interesting indies) and exclusive discounts. And 5 percent of every Humble Choice membership is donated to Humble’s featured charity of the month.

Pay $6 per month or $40 per year and you get access to EA titles like FIFA 23, Madden 23, Mass Effect Legendary Editionagain Titanfall 2 on Xbox, PlayStation, or PC. You can replay select new releases up to 10 hours before launch, gain access to in-game challenges and rewards, and get a 10 percent discount on game downloads, Season Passes, and DLC. The Pro tier for $17 per month or $120 per year upgrades you to premium game plans. For most people a Game Pass subscription makes a lot of sense.

Note: EA Play is included at no additional cost as part of an Xbox Game Pass PC or Game Pass Ultimate subscription.

For $8 a month you can play Ubisoft’s library of about 50 “Classics” on your PC. If you want new releases on launch day, premium editions, DLC, and in-game rewards you have to upgrade to Premium for $18 a month, which also lets you play select games on Xbox or in the cloud on Luna. This service feels pretty expensive for what you get, so it’s actually for Ubisoft fans who can’t live without all the premium editions and extras.

Note: You can play over 50 of Ubisoft’s best games with Sony’s PS Plus Extra and Premium subscription services.