Talking Point: Could Sony 'Block' PlayStation Games On An Xbox Handheld?

If they did this... MS would retaliate by releasing Halo on PS5 with exclusive maps.

I don't see the incentive for sony to attempt to block them. More sales is more sales.

If anything it can be the bridge of the gap for the fangirls that can't handle the idea of games being sold everywhere. They would technically still be "just" steam games where the 30% or whatever goes to valve.

Nah I don't see it happening. MS will put Steam on Xbox and based on the above intelligent exchange, there's little Sony can do. Steam isn't going to block nothing to please Sony either.

They have no reason to block it, it's just a PC at that point. Console war over. The minute they try to make a console something that it's not, it really doesn't matter. No one is going to buy some weird, complicated hybrid machine. Most console gamers buy a console for a reason, and PC gamers buy PC's for a reason. Why would they buy a fixed PC?
This thing is going to do Wii U numbers and maybe that's what MS wants?

I can't see how Sony could do this without breaching their agreement with Valve.

I'm sure that Microsoft have studied the contract in place to make sure that PlayStation games will be part of the deal by default.

I think they could, but tbh it wouldn't really matter. Everyone is talking about how we can finally play Playstation games. Sony doesn't even have that many games on Steam to begin with.

The REAL!!! benefit to being able to play Steam games is that we don't have to wait for 3rd party exclusivity to end. Silent Hill 2, Final Fantasy VII Remake and XVI, Death Stranding 2, Stellar Blade, these will all be playable on Xbox. I don't know why everyone is so obsessed with Sony when we will be able to enjoy Capcom, Konami, Square Enix, and the tons and tons and tons of studios that are going to be coming out of China and South Korea.

@Utena-mobile Basically Phil Spencer is slapping an Xbox logo on a PC from these rumors, Xbox owners at ANY time could have bought a PC to play these games lol

IF she does such a thing. It will mean that that the company suffers from pettiness and has psychological problems

@TheGameThrifter Lol, that's true. But I guess I'm still hoping that the next XBox has a really cool operating system that can not only play our past Xbox games, but also be open enough to install Steam games.

But tbh, I don't know much about computers, which is why I still play on consoles. lol.
😅

@TheGameThrifter Not exactly. It wont be a PC. It will have a light version of Windows only with specific APIs that let you install things from microsoft store and other stores. It will cost way less than a pc that can play the same games.

I dont know how all these things work, so i may be way off here. But i’m guessing if Steam is the main store used on this upcoming Xbox branded PC handheld, then MS doesnt get a cut from each sold game, right? So what is their play here? Do they expect to make money from the hardware sold? Didn’t the SteamDeck only sell like 3 million devices or something? I’m so confused by this move

@Flugen Well I'm dubious because companies like Microsoft sell us subsidized consoles. A Series X likely would have cost us $700-$800 without it being subsidized.

Which basically means they make the money up from software sales, subscriptions like paying to play online and microtransactions.

How can they get these things if they have PC stores on their platform? Which means how can they subsidize the cost? Steam games are far cheaper than Xbox games. You don't have to pay to play online with Steam or PC. How will Microsoft make that money up? They get $0 from 3rd party game sales on Steam. $0 from 3rd party microtransactions from Steam.

@themightyant seconded on the GFN thing, hosting on a cloud server is totally different to a Steam licence. Silly comment from Jez.

Article thoughts: I fall into the "it's not worth it for Sony" camp. If they release a game on Steam then it's fair game for a MS console that allows Steam. They don't release AAA single player stuff day and date with PC anyway so it doesn't really change their strategy, and if more players have access to steam in console form, then it's more money for Sony.

For MS I think it's just about providing a great all-in-one product that markets Xbox games and UI to people. It's mindshare for long-term sustainability rather than trying to steal Sony customers. Speculation, but I'd say looking at hardware sales (or shipping numbers as should be more accurately used!) the PS community is pretty happy with PS products, and will continue to be even if MS puts out a worldie console hybrid.

@themightyant My thoughts exactly. I dont think Sony would mind this device (2025) to have Playstation games on it, since it’s basically a Steam handheld.

I’m still baffled by what Xbox is trying to accomplish here. This would be like Xbox creating a handheld with the Playstation store and call it an Xbox, while the revenue of every game sold on it would go to Playstation and their respective developer/publisher in stead of Xbox.

I will admit however, that my ignorance regarding how all of this works might cause me to be overlooking something here

It will depend on how “PC”these Xbox handhelds systems will be.

If it’s like a full-fat Windows running on the backend with a custom UI (think Big Picture Mode in Steam), then allowing Sony to block a game just because the plastic housing of this handheld PC says Xbox on it looks incredibly unlikely - and very petty on Sony’s part, really.

If it’s still very console-like in backend architecture that just happens to run Steam games via some kind of VM layer that can play approved PC games from Steam, then I can see Sony getting away with it.

@themightyant Microsoft will already be putting their games on Switch 2 for years by then. Their handheld isn't a threat to anyone.

@GamingFan4Lyf the rumours last week were that the next Xbox gen (was it also Jez and/or Tom Warren?) was going to use WIN32 which is the PC x86 architecture environment. Quite how that plays from an optimisation perspective I don't know, but my guess is that they're done at driver level next gen for Xbox, similar to how a handheld PC APU can be used

@themightyant spot on. It looks to me like the next gen for Xbox is unified UI for PC and "console" (whatever that may be!)

No way in hell that the new hardware from MS ships playstation numbers, but it won't need to. It'll just be a different option to those who prefer a full fat desktop experience. I'm very excited for it.

Are people forgetting how petty Sony is? They paid, for years, for games not to be on other consoles. They are anti-competition.

@TheGameThrifter There is an "economic war" about letting alternative stores on every kind of platform. EPIC started it vs Apple and won. Google is on court for this too.

I wont be surprised if on PS6.. (later on Switch 2), New XBOX etc , Steam, XBox Store, Google Play Store, Nintendo Store etc will have a presence FORCED BY LAW.

Could they? Maybe.
Would they? Probably not.
If the reports on the handheld are accurate, I just don't understand why they would at all. They didn't block their games on Steam Deck or any other PC handheld, so I don't think they would here. If anything I'd imagine they'd be happy about this sort of thing. This handheld has a chance to be the most mainstream PC handheld, thus giving Sony more people to sale their games too. I also really doubt it would cause people to buy it over a Playstation, cause they're very different devices. It's honestly a win-win for everyone.

Steam is heavily rumored to be making a "console" version of the steam deck. Im betting that triggers another new market race like the handheld pc. I wonder what Sony and the people who claim that pc is "different" from the console world would think of that scenario where dozens of consoles can purchase and play playstation "console exclusives".

This "Xbox" handheld is just a handheld PC with an Xbox sticker on anyway, so I doubt Sony will care too much, especially when they only port their bigger games to PC after they've exhausted the bulk of their sales on their own console anyway. And let's be honest, this thing won't be selling in big enough numbers for Sony to take notice either

@RZ-Atom I’d say paying developers to make exclusive games, to entice people in buying your platform isn't petty, it’s just called business.

Also, a bit ironic you say that, seeing as MS arguably started this practice of aggressively making 3rd party exclusivity deals during the 360 era

No, they’re not going to block their games from Xbox branded Windows handhelds. That would be pretty ludicrous honestly.

This is absurd. What next, Sony potentially blocking Xbox consoles being played on Sony TV’s? lol

@Flugen I wouldn't say it's an economic war. But more an anti consumer war. Unfortunately the US lawsuits did little to change the status quo between Apple & Google. The EU has had more luck changing the tech industry over the last 30 years & again recently with the Digital Markets Act. Which named both Apple & Google as gatekeepers. This allowed the EU to force them both to open up to competitors.

Ms: share your games.

Sony: no.

Ms: fine. We'll get steam.

And if Sony wants to stop their entire ps to pc movement, then they can pull their games from steam. But having valve not make sony's games playable on certain "pcs" will not be possible.

@LogicStrikesAgain They're all guilty, some more than others. Let's not forget that the only reason why Sony is in the game business because of spite.

Sony are not exactly releasing a lot of current gen PS5 AAA exclusive titles (it's been just 1 a year for years now) and getting games like COD, Indiana Jones, Forza Horizon and the new Doom etc can only be good news for them, I don't think they want to spoil things it would not be in their interest.

My guess is they put out a statement saying they are going to fight this and then just quietly enjoy the increased sales.

I would just love to have a world where I can have a console-like experience from a box under my TV that can access all stores and allow me to buy what I want.

I think this will be the future of gaming whether Sony likes it or not and this is the first step towards that.

Selling bespoke console hardware will be an irrelevant business after next gen.

I think that there will be a PS7, @SMJ, but not a PS8. I'm 90% certain that there will be another generation of Xbox consoles (the Prime), but there most definitely will not be another generation from Microsoft after that, unless we count PC's, which is another kettle of fish. If, and it's a big if, Microsoft enjoy some success with the Prime, then they maybe tempted to delve further into the PC market, but I have considerable doubts as to how successful the Prime will be as it is being described as a 'Premium' console, which likely means it will come at a premium price too. Premium in terms of console price, that is. However, I suspect that the price will either exclude, or put off, many people that would usually buy Xbox, and will be of no interest whatsoever to the PC crowd because no way is the Prime going to be anything to shout about when it comes to a decent PC. The Prime maybe a sort of budget entry point into the world of PC gaming, but unless it comes with a hefty price tag of £1500 plus, it isn't going to be something that your PC user will be interested in.

All that does make me wonder just who the Prime is aimed at because it is either going to be a really expensive console, or a very poor man's PC...

@Fiendish-Beaver Absolutely there will be a PS6 and Xbox Prime. I really don't see why anyone would want to make a bespoke piece of hardware after that.

Let's say that the PS6 releases in 2027. Given the 7 year time on the market for the PS5, that would mean potential launch of 2034 for the PS7. By that time I believe that neither Sony or Microsoft will want to spend the billions of dollars it takes to create bespoke hardware.

This next Xbox is the first step towards that goal as it will unify platforms and store fronts into one easily accessible ecosystem.

@SMJ I think it’s likely there will still be consoles after the PS6 generation, unless streaming with very low latency becomes widespread and reliable by then.

I do think the future, whether that’s the PS7 or PS8 generation or beyond, will eventually be cloud streaming. And that future, similar to tv streaming, will be a battle of content. And if Sony doesn’t act and acquire some important ips, developers or publishers for itself, it could seriously affect its future position in gaming

I’m getting tired of the pessimistic attitude of a lot of people, let’s just take one step at a time

@LogicStrikesAgain I'm not even talking about streaming. Companies will only get away with streaming only if consumers allow them to.

PS6 and Xbox Prime will be digital focussed consoles (with optional disc drives) and after that I still think we'll have the option to "buy" games digitally.

@SMJ I didn’t say you were talking about streaming, i was just giving you my take on the future of consoles 😅

Unless streaming with low latency becomes widespread and reliable, there will still be a need for some sort of hardware and processor to store and play those games on locally, even if it’s all digitally

I am not sure Sony can but more importantly there is no incentive for them. A decent chunk of xboxers will go to PS next gen or PC anyways.
Xbox lost console war and no one cares anymore.

On top of that if next xbox is pc-based, pricing will be high and likely higher than ps6 as well there is no point in subsidizing the box with steam and competitive stores on it, free-online and cheaper tier of GP (PC Gp is $12 vs GPU $20).

I would bet next pc-xbox will be like 799 min vs 599-699 for Ps6 (yes I believe next gen could be even cheaper than ps5 PRO as PRO is just cash grab that fanboys allow and not intended to sell in droves)

also, i don’t think sony would go that far just to spite xbox

@Millionski, I understand that you don’t really care about what microsoft does, but i rather be flexible, and besides do these companies care about our console wars nowadays anyway?

@VeganHerpes “ But having valve not make sony's games playable on certain "pcs" will not be possible.”

Valve doesn’t necessarily control what hardware a game can and can’t be ran on… If Sony want their games to be not playable on HWID relating to anything “Xbox” they can. We had games and game modes made exclusive to Intel CPUs before.

@BacklogBrad

"I don't see the incentive for sony to attempt to block them"

If Sony felt that it was detrimental to their console sales, no matter how small, then that is incentive enough and they absolutely would block PS exclusive games being played on Xbox via Steam.

Regardless, I don't believe Steam will ever come to a dedicated Xbox console. That's just a pipedream.

@LogicStrikesAgain

"Also, a bit ironic you say that, seeing as MS arguably started this practice of aggressively making 3rd party exclusivity deals during the 360 era"

A fact that your more "dedicated" Xbox fan chooses to conveniently forget.

@LogicStrikesAgain “i dont know how all these things work, so i may be way off here. But i’m guessing if Steam is the main store used on this upcoming Xbox branded PC handheld, then MS doesnt get a cut from each sold game, right? So what is their play here?”

So does Sony get a cut when they sell a game on Steam? Yes they get 70% and Steam gets 30%, why would MS not get 70%?

If Sony could manage it, I'm certain PC gamers would make a functional workaround in less than a week. It's just a money sink waiting to happen, they would have to block around their contract with Valve and in a way that doesn't also block the non-Xbox portables that can already play those games.

@HonestHick Of course they get a cut when they sell their own games. I’m talking about every other game sold on it that isn’t a Xbox game. Would they still get a cut from Steam for those? Does Asus get a cut for every game sold on their device?

This would render their own Xbox store useless. And they wont even make money on the games sold on it, except for the Xbox titles. I’m just trying to make sense of their strategy.

Edit: Since you mentioned “Playstation leaving money on the table” to me over at PushSquare. What do you think about MS leaving money on the table here if they integrate Steam?
I’m sure you can see that earning a 30% cut on all games sold, and a 100% for your own games, in their own store, will always be better than making 0% on all 3rd party games and only 70% on your own games.

Btw, i’m not saying this is how it will work, thats why i said in my comment that i might be way off here. Honestly, i’m just trying to make sense of it all

@LogicStrikesAgain couple things here. Yes they will make 70% on steam on 1st party titles plus they will have GP Subs, of course they will still have their own store like they do now along with Steam and maybe even Epic giving players choice. Now i think more people would prefer Steam, so yes MS losses some sales on its own store, however it offset’s some of that by making money off PS and Switch stores. Is that enough? I don’t know cause this thing has lots of curveballs as to what it looks like and how they go about it. But PC is about choice and it looks like they want to give players those options on this device. Phil said it in an interview he would like Steam and other store fronts alongside Xbox store fronts. There is a lot to learn here still. But making money on 2 other platforms is something alongside owning windows that Sony and Nintendo can not do. After all this console looks to be trying to take advantage of it’s strengths and not just making a direct console that get’s overlooked by PS consoles. I will say this, this next Xbox is a console reveal that i will be most looking forward to learning about maybe more than any other one in the history of consoles as it has a lot to unpack.

@HonestHick “Now i think more people would prefer Steam, so yes MS losses some sales on its own store”

Honestly, i think they will lose pretty much all, or definitely the majority of sales to Steam, not just some.

But yeah, i’m also interested to hear more about this console, i skipped out on Xbox for the first time this gen, but i’m still open for them to convince me to buy an Xbox again next gen

@LogicStrikesAgain i am not sure if all with go to Steam as many casual players will likely use the MS store they already know. Maybe MS gives a good incentive to use its store over Steam. These are the things i still can’t get my head around as well. But having the options is a BIG win for gamers as a closed ecosystem console experience for years has gotten to a point of being bad for the consumers.

I could never skip a Xbox console generation cause the Xbox controller for me dog walks the PS controller. Those thumb sticks on PS for shooters are just awful.

whether Sony could potentially block PlayStation games from appearing on there.

I can absolutely see Sony blocking games, especially if the rumoured Xbox handheld materialises . This, after all is a company that money-hated Squeenix to the point that FF7R is still not on Xbox platforms half a decade later.

Interestingly what this piece also shows is how entrenched some Sony fan(boys??) really are about exclusivity and the giddy feeling they get knowing only people with a certain plastic box can play some games....

I still think that if they want to block them then they will 100% be able to, even if it ends up being a bit underhanded. That said I think all this steam talk simply relates to the Asus Handheld they are badging as an Xbox and I can't even see it doing that well. At that point why bother blocking it as its going to have zero impact when the Ally / Deck already exists.

For the next main machine I would say Steam is just a pipedream people are latching on to.

@Ilyn

"For the next main machine I would say Steam is just a pipedream people are latching on to."

Yep, exactly as I said above. A pipedream. One that folk are latching onto in the hope that it's a "fix all" solution for Xbox

The reason that Sony will make a PS8, @SMJ, is because you only have to look at this current generation to see that they can sell multiple times the number of consoles that Microsoft sell without having made an effort this generation. Next generation will be worse still for Microsoft and for the disparity between sales with Sony's PS7 console. And, because the PS7 will sell so, so heavily, particularly when compared to the Prime, Sony will go again with the PS8 and basically will be seeking to be the only 'high-end' console that is not a PC. The alternative is that Sony drop out of the market, and accept just 70% of revenue from sales on the PC, and accept that they will get nothing from sales of third-party DLC and microtransactions. Sony will simply not do that. Indeed, so sure of that am I, that I would even put money on their being the possibility of a PS9, but I won't because I probably won't be here to collect my winnings... 😉

PlayStation blocking this would not be an attack on the the consumer not on Xbox. It would be the most blatant anti consumer move of all Time.

I entirely agree, @Dalamar73. I think that the Xbox loyalists are looking at their Xboxes in its death throes and are seeking to explain it away by saying that this is the direction the industry is heading in. In doing so, they are completely overlooking the fact that the PS5 is doing so well. So well, that Sony will have only be looking to improve marginally with the PS6, and not be looking to feature match the Prime because they know that people will buy the PS6 regardless of how many songs the Prime can sing...

@Fiendish-Beaver

"I think that the Xbox loyalists are looking at their Xboxes in its death throes and are seeking to explain it away by saying that this is the direction the industry is heading in"

That is exactly what is happening here. I saw it all before with Sega Dreamcast. Granted MS are financially better off than Sega and can come out pretty good as a software publisher, but the level of denial, damage control and outright spin on display from the Xbox loyalists, as you put it, regarding dedicated hardware is very much the same.

I don't own a PS5 nor have I any interest in buying another PlayStation console so I've no dog in this fight, but I've no delusions about the fate of Microsoft's long term future in the dedicated hardware business - ie: there isn't one.

Y’all really think that if Sony can do it they wouldn’t? Of course they 100% would.

I’d even go as far to say if Steam doesn’t allow Sony to blacklist the Xbox PC device they would come up with their own launcher (not compatible with that device obviously) and even delist their games off Steam to force new players to use Sony’s launcher. Sony is THAT petty.

And what would be Microsoft’s response? To launch Gears of War E-Day day one on PS5 🤡

I do have a dog in this fight, @Dalamar73. Two in fact. I own both an X and a PS5, though my PS5 rarely gets used and my X gets used every single day. I also have well over 1600 digital games in my Xbox library nearly all from the One and current generations. So, I would by lying if I say that this saga does not hurt me, but at least I won't be surprised by the final outcome because I can at least see the writing on the wall.

My question is do I invest in the Prime, or do I stick with my gaming PC instead. When it comes to my PC, I don't enjoy gaming on it. Indeed, I have played just two games on it in the past 4 years (Baldur's Gate 3, and Gears Tactics before either came to the Xbox). I just don't enjoy the hassle that comes with PC gaming, and I honestly believe that the majority of people you see say that they will just go PC next time round have no idea how troublesome PC's can be when compared to gaming on a console...

@Fiendish-Beaver

PCs certainly have their downsides and I say that as an avid PC gamer of many a year, however the positives massively outweigh the negatives. I game on consoles, I like consoles, but I don't like the limitations that come with. PC gaming offers me a freedom consoles never could and never will.

It's all down to personal preference, so I guess you just got to go with what you're comfortable with. That being said Xbox gamers who have invested heavily in the ecosystem are going to have a few decisions to make looking ahead. I stopped buying any games a little while back for my Series S and, like my 360, took it offline so I'm not hooked into said ecosystem any more so it's not an issue for me but yeah I don't envy you, mate. Tough decisions ahead.
On the plus side at least you already have a gaming rig so don't have to fork out for that initial, expensive layout if that's the route you decide to go.

@Dalamar73 you are clearly a ps fan boy. There is no defending trying to stop a gamer playing there game they have brought off steam on one of there devices they own just because it is an Xbox device. That is an anti consumer move if they do it. I play on PC Xbox switch and ps by the way. If Xbox does this PC hybrid I don't think Sony will do that any way because that would not effect Xbox it would effect the consumer and likely drive some consumers away from sony

If it's possible for them to hard-block anything at all, then that means these handhelds won't be open platforms, which makes them more like consoles rather than PCs.

Otherwise, it would technically be possible for Xbox to pick and choose which PC games you may install on their custom OS, but should it be an open platform that would mean you could simply put SteamOS on it, for example. Of course, then you would lose the advantages of a handheld Xbox/Windows.

@TheGameThrifter Well, the reasons why people buy consoles or PCs are not set in stone. If people buy consoles because they are perceived as more simple or plug and play, then PCs that are perceived as simple and plug and play will be bought for the same reasons. And PCs come with extra advantages so might as well have those.

I don't know how many of us there are but I always leaned heavily towards PCs simply because not dealing with its slightly more complex nature over consoles wasn't worth losing all its upsides to me, and I have a strong conviction that hardware should not be restricted/closed-platform once sold to someone. And "simple" PCs like the Steam Deck eliminate the somewhat more complicated nature of getting started with PC gaming, being as console-like as possible with all the advanced open PC stuff never needing to be touched by casual players.

I am fairly sure that consoles as we know them will eventually die out and everything will just be a PC, with pre-installed software being the main differentiating factor. Which is ultimately better for the industry because in the past companies have been competing via exclusive games. If we can play any game, anywhere, that means they will have to compete on hardware instead and better services.