Since its launch in 2017, Xbox Game Pass has been a thorn in Sony's side, offering Xbox owners an array of top-class games for the cost of a $10 monthly subscription. The addition of 20 Bethesda games makes the service even more affordable, and while Sony has previously dismissed the idea of it becoming a direct competitor to the PS5, it appears likely that it may be rethinking its approach.

This is according to David Jaffe, creator of "God of War" and a former PlayStation employee for 14 years, who is quite connected to Sony decision makers.

In a video published on his YouTube channel, Jaffe said the company may be working on a "counterpunch to the game path" in a segment discussing Sony Interactive Entertainment boss Jim Ryan's vision at the company.

"I've said many times that the people writing Jim Ryan's obituary are premature. Because Jim Ryan owes no one, and Sonny owes no one."

"All I can say is, I know they're doing something. 'There will be a response to Game Pass. I don't know what that is.

The question is whether Sony will do something halfway or fully commit to the kind of superlative experience that Xbox Game Pass offers. Jaffe is less than clear on that point.

"Here's what I'm concerned about," Jaffe continued. If Jim Ryan thinks the proper response to Game Pass is backwards compatibility, emulating PS3 games, PS2 and PS1, and adding trophies, then that's what that patent suggests."

"It's not going to conflict with Game Pass so I would be like 'I don't think the guy has a clue' but I don't know if that's the case."

It's hard to argue with that; Xbox Game Pass includes many older games dating back to the original Xbox in 2001, some of which now work on smartphones, but it's an important attraction: on launch day, Microsoft-produced first-party Whether it's a new "Halo" game, a "Gears of War" game, or the next "Fallout" or "Elder Scrolls" game, Game Pass subscribers will have access to it on launch day as part of their subscription. as part of their subscription, they are guaranteed access on the release date.

In the past, Sony has seemed hesitant to follow this approach. In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz last September, Ryan argued that this was incompatible with the PlayStation business model. He said, "We're not going to go down the road of incorporating new titles into the subscription model. 'These games cost millions of dollars, $100 million or more to develop. We don't consider that sustainable."

Of course, that doesn't mean that Sony can't incentivize third-party studio games to join the subscription service, and Ryan's comments (if still current) refer only to "new titles" He is referring to "new releases" only. Sony has taken a more liberal and casual approach to older titles, even going so far as to offer 18 of the best PS4 games to early adopters of the PS5 under the banner of the PS Plus collection.

Hopefully, we will see something bold from Sony in the near future so that those who have been eyeing the Xbox Series X inventory will be forced to make tougher decisions about which console to buy this generation.