Xbox hardware sales slump, but Game Pass is surgingMicrosoft gaming revenue down year-on-year overall.Image credit: Microsoft News by Tom Phillips Editor-in-Chief Published on Jan. 30, 2025 Microsoft has announced mixed results for its latest financial quarter, with strong growth for Game Pass offset by the continued decline in Xbox hardware sales. Overall, revenue for Microsoft's gaming division was down seven percent year-on-year for the three months ending 31st December 2024, with a 29 percent drop in Xbox console sales largely to blame. But the quarter also saw a significant boost to Game Pass, which made more money in the last three months of 2024 than in any previous quarter, and also saw a significant uptick to its subscribers on PC.To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Xbox Developer Direct - four promising games also coming to PlayStation.Watch on YouTube"We are focused on improving the profitability of the business, in order to position it for long-term growth, driven by higher-margin content and platform services," Microsoft boss Satya Nadella said in a call with investors. "And we are delivering on this plan."All-up, Game Pass set a new quarterly record for revenue and grew its PC subscriber base by over 30 percent, as we focus on driving fully-paid subscribers across endpoints."It's clear that Game Pass subscriptions will have been boosted by Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's launch in October. The latest launch in Activision's long-running shooter franchise was the first to arrive on Game Pass on day one - provided you had PC Game Pass or Xbox Game Pass Ultimate on consoles.Indeed, Black Ops 6 saw more players in its first couple of months than any other game in the series to date, Nadella said.Its inclusion on Game Pass also does not appear to have dented its sales, either. Nadella also went on to praise the number of people who have so far played the brilliant Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.