Google Play Pass update shows it’s still alive

Over a year ago, Google finally launched its response to Apple’s Arcade subscription service. Going beyond just games, however, Google Play Pass also gives access to productivity and utility apps as well. Unlike Google’s other apps and services, however, Play Pass doesn’t always make it to headlines after its initial launch. Some might have the idea that the subscription service has quietly disappeared into the background but the company’s latest update tries to convince you otherwise.

Google Play Pass celebrated its first birthday a few months ago but Google curiously didn’t make a big fuss about it. Although it has been relatively silent compared to other products, Play Pass admittedly grew slowly but surely, a growth that Google is now proudly sharing at the start of the year.

Play Pass is now available in 42 countries which, though quite a large number, is really just a fraction of the global market. Last year saw its roster of apps also grow by 300, a good part of it deemed to be approved for kids’ use. In the past month alone, Google Play Pass gained 59 titles, all of them games.

Of course, Google is promising that a few more are coming, including Giant Dancing Plushies and Figment. If those don’t sound familiar, don’t worry, you probably aren’t alone. While the subscription does give access to some better-known games like Evoland, the majority of the more than 500 games and apps there might not have even made a blip on Android users’ radars.

Many users might take that situation and knock Google Play Pass off, especially in comparison to Apple Arcade. Then again, Google Play Store itself is full of apps that don’t exactly make headlines. That said, the entire point of Google Play Pass is to increase the exposure of otherwise unknown apps without paying for each and every one of them.