25 years ago, gamers would walk through a real-life video game library at their favorite rental store to find something new to play, and for $20.00 you could rent two or three games and that was more than enough.
In 2025, the same amount of money can be used to purchase a video game subscription that offers hundreds of games, and former Bethesda boss Pete Hines says these services create a lot of tension for creators.
The video game industry has evolved immensely in every facet, and subscription services like Xbox Game Pass, PlayStation Plus, and Nintendo Switch Online are some of the most popular ways for gamers to get new games.
In a recent interview with Kirk McKeand from DBLTAP, former Senior Vice President of Global Marketing and Communication with Bethesda, Pete Hines suggests these services aren’t fairly compensating game creators.
Former Bethesda Boss Says Subscriptions Create Tension For Creators
It’s no secret that the video game industry has become a very complex, fiercely competitive environment, and developers have endured waves of studio closures and layoffs in recent years.
Studios have been restructuring in an attempt to adapt to an ever-evolving era of AI, micro-transactions, DLCs, and subscription services, and Pete Hines hints that, in terms of subscriptions, creators might be getting the short end of the stick.
The former Bethesda lead explains that «if you don’t figure out how to balance the needs of the service and the people running the service with the people who are providing the content – without which your subscription is worth jack sh*t – then you have a real problem.»
There are always two sides to the story, and in this case, there are three: the gamers, the developers, and the subscription services. While it’s hard to argue with getting hundreds of games for under $20, and the subscription model is proven to be profitable, the question becomes: how does this affect the people making the games?
While there is a great deal of value in the exposure games get when being added to a subscription service alongside hundreds of games, including the most highly-anticipated titles, the sentiment that video game subscription services are terraforming the videogame landscape is also shared by former head of PlayStation Studios, Shuhei Yoshida.
«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,» said Yoshida.
Bethesda
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