Question Microsoft PC Game Pass - Persistent game data through subscription lapse?

[Paperlantern]

I just signed up for the $1 trial month of Game Pass. I wanted to try Forza Horizon 4. My question is not really answered in all the FAQs about the Game Pass. If I play the game for a month, accumulating credits and in game achievements, cars, and items, what happens to those achievements and items after Game Pass expires? My hope is, they stay put so that the next time the game goes on sale and I want to buy JUST Forza Horizon 4 to play it again, my stuff will still be there. But does anyone know if that is actually what happens? I could see Microsoft just dumping user data after it expires.

They shouldn't, the stuff should all remain in the cloud and as long as i buy the game or resubscribe to game pass with the same account as before, my stuff should remain.

But does it? Can anyone confirm?

 

[quikah]

It depends on the game. Anything using Xbox Live will save everything to the cloud which will persist regardless of subscription status (this is a free feature of Xbox Live). Pretty much all first party MS games will use this (though Minecraft doesn't if I am remembering correctly). Forza Horizon uses Xbox Live, so for that particular game you will have all your stuff as long as you login with the same Xbox Live username.

Third party games can do this also on PC, but it is up to the developer to add it, many don't. You can see which games support it by looking at the capabilities section of the game listing, it will show Xbox Live if it saves to the cloud.

 

[Paperlantern]

Thank you for the reply, very informative, thank you. I'm new to Microsoft's stab at a "Steam-like" experience. So far, I honestly hate it.

This game does show XBox live, but I've never used Xbox Live, am I just automatically using it if i get into any of the multiplayer in the game i wonder? I'll fire it up now that I have a proper controller (that was another whole story, god forbid I don't have a MICROSOFT XBOX CONTROLLER), and check it out.

 

[JEDIYoda]

My experience has been you lose everything for that game if the subscription expires without you purchasing the game!
So sorry!!

 

[quikah]

I honestly don't remember if you need to do anything to setup an Xbox Live account. when you launch the game it should just use whatever account you login to the Xbox app with on PC.

My experience has been you lose everything for that game if the subscription expires without you purchasing the game!
So sorry!!

Obviously you cannot play the game anymore once your subscription expires, but your save data should still be there if you resubscribe or buy it.

 

[JEDIYoda]

I honestly don't remember if you need to do anything to setup an Xbox Live account. when you launch the game it should just use whatever account you login to the Xbox app with on PC.



Obviously you cannot play the game anymore once your subscription expires, but your save data should still be there if you resubscribe or buy it.

Did you read what I posted! Let me be more clear -- it has been my experience that you lose all award points etc....it you do not bbuy the game before the subscription expires! Now to be more clear thet even includes purchasing the game after the subscription expires...lol

 

[quikah]

Did you read what I posted! Let me be more clear -- it has been my experience that you lose all award points etc....it you do not bbuy the game before the subscription expires! Now to be more clear thet even includes purchasing the game after the subscription expires...lol

Yeah, but that is not how it is supposed to work. My experience on console with another game is that the savegame is there once the sub was renewed.

 

[Paperlantern]

Well now we have conflicting information.

JEDIYoda, so you have been in this scenario already and know that if the subscription expires, and you then purchase or resubscribe after a period of lapse, that the information and game data is gone upon logging back in? You have been in this situation and have first hand experience in this?

Quikah, I hope you are right, this is how I envisioned it working too, since thats how most Steam games work. But Ive never done anything "subscription" based before. The buddy of mine that got me into the game thinks it will save too, but he owns it.

 

[Paperlantern]

Did you read what I posted! Let me be more clear -- it has been my experience that you lose all award points etc....it you do not bbuy the game before the subscription expires! Now to be more clear thet even includes purchasing the game after the subscription expires...lol

Something must have went wrong then, because I let my subscription lapse, i couldn't justify $5 per month. I lost access to the game, but left it installed in case a sale showed up. I looked at the game pass again later and it was $1 again, so i renewed. All settings, levels, cars, points, money, everything, stayed in tact. I lost nothing. So I would imagine if i were to have purchased it as well, it would have stayed.

 

[Craig234]

I just looked at this, and wow it's a bargain - but I have all but one about of the dozens of very good games. Sheesh. The only one I don't have I saw is We Happy Few, and I came very close to buying that... But great deal for most people.