Xbox appears to have halted all Game Pass agreements with external developers as part of its ongoing restructuring. Former Modern Wolf CEO Fernando Rizo and Arrowhead Studios CEO Shams Jordani revealed on The Business of Video Games podcast that multiple third-party studios had their negotiations abruptly cancelled despite being in advanced talks.

Rizo described industry conversations at an Italian trade show where developers learned their potential Game Pass deals were cancelled without warning. He suggested the company is reconsidering its subscription strategy, noting that recent agreements like Caboodle's might represent some of the final partnerships before this shift.

New Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has emphasized expanding Game Pass into more price-sensitive markets, which could explain this strategic pause. The move follows recent changes including removed day-one Call of Duty access paired with subscription price drops.

This suspension signals Microsoft's potential pivot toward an Xbox-only Game Pass tier or unified subscription model. For gamers, fewer third-party titles could diminish the service's value proposition, while developers lose a key distribution and revenue avenue during an already challenging period for Xbox studios.