
Update: Microsoft has since issued a response to this, which you can read elsewhere on Pure Xbox:
Original story: To the surprise of very few, it turns out Redfall was planned for PlayStation at one point. Then, Microsoft ended up taking over Arkane Studios, and the decision was changed to make the game an Xbox console exclusive.
That's according to a new interview conducted by IGN France with Redfall creative director Harvey Smith, who reportedly told the outlet that the takeover meant the PS5 version suffered an immediate cancellation.
Keep in mind the following quotes are Google Translated from French:
"We were acquired by Microsoft and it was a change with capital C. They came in and they said, 'No PlayStation 5, we're focusing on Xbox, PC and Game Pass'."
"It's not very serious, it's even a good decision I think. [It helps to] support Game Pass and have one less platform to worry about, one less complexity."
We don't know about you, but we expected this all along. The same scenario likely occurred with Starfield, as Microsoft made it clear a long time ago that Redfall and Starfield were going to become Xbox exclusives following the acquisition.
Obviously it's a different situation with Activision Blizzard considering that various regulators are concerned about Call of Duty in particular, but the same concerns haven't been as widely applied to Bethesda. Plus, don't forget that Microsoft still launched multiple Bethesda games on PS5 following the transaction, including Ghostwire: Tokyo and Deathloop.
Redfall, however, was clearly a game that Microsoft and Team Xbox wanted to keep for themselves.
What do you make of this? Let us know down in the comments section below.
[source fr.ign.com]
Comments 93
Surprised he was allowed to say that with what's going on. Quite straightforward.
Not going to lie, the push square community hoping redfall gets bad reviews is hilarious 🤣
@Kaloudz yeah they have a similar article on push Square. You can see in comments it's either "Phil Spencer is scummy" or "redfall will get 6/10" 🤣
Whilst I understand the reasoning behind making it exclusive, I would have still very much preferred a multiplatform release for both Redfall and Starfield. Have it launch day one on Gamepass and at retail for other platforms, this approach would have carried a lot more weight to Microsoft's mantra of more people enjoying their games and made their ABK takeover more of a formality with fans and regulatory bodies too - Just my thoughts 😀....
I already know what the comments at PSquare are going to look like
As well they should've. Arkane's games usually don't have huge financial success, even though they're multiplatform. Focusing on one less platform was probably the better business decision regardless.
I hope this and the Starfield situation put to rest the illusion that Xbox wants to put the games in the hands of as many players as possible.
Don't get me wrong, this is the logical thing to do when you buy a studio, but the lengths to which Xbox tries to communicate the opposite while keeping the games on their ecosystem is not a great look. Just own the studios you're buying and move on.
Given the train wreck this is looking like it will be (even with live service removed), I think only ps players got away lightly. Me im multiplatform so I tend to play stuff like this on Xbox as the 60 quid price tag is too much on ps5. Even though I stack. Stuff like Dead Space etc though that will come to EA Play very quickly so not worth buying it at retail.
Redfall and Starfield are not even out yet and I'm already eager to see what comes next from Bethesda 😀
I'm replaying Wolfenstein 2 and it's so good! I hope Wolfie 3 is coming soon.
@TheRealPaperKut they aren't as bad actually a lot of people there are neutral. There are a lot of ms haters though. Go have a butchers.
@Kaloudz That's very diferent, Deathloop was funded by PlayStation. Not honoring it wasn't an option.
@Magabro how will they top mein leiben though. Play it without pausing with only a knife on top difficulty without dying?
@Sol4ris Bethesda >>>> Activision Blizzard, so I don't really care about the ABK merger, Xbox already acquired the best publisher around.
Oh no, God forbid Xbox have any exclusives.
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@Bricktop33
Given the train wreck this is looking like it will be (even with live service removed), I think only ps players got away lightly
Not when they have great multi-year timed exclusives like Forspoken they didn't 😅. Seriously, if you see this as a train wreck you must have played only two games on PS5, GOW Ragnarok and the Demons Souls Remake 😉...
Agreed, on Bethesda being the best purchase, just in 2023 we will have had Redfall, Starfield and High-Fi Rush from the purchase. Let them release stuff from the Activision buyout, it will keep the money coming in for the XBOX brand.
@Chaudy I was originally reading a lot of push square and also was part of the comments there but the last year or so has seen a tonne of children coming on there. You can't have a level-headed discussion about games anymore, then again it's the internet 😅
@Sol4ris i own both ps5 and series x and I've been playing my ps3s and x360s lately because modern gaming is terrible so far. I've got resident evil 4 coming on ps5 (because Resi belongs on ps), and Hogwarts Legacy on Xbox. Apart from that, no I haven't played any exclusives apart from on game pass or ps premium. This looks like a bad copy of Left 4 Dead with the forced live service stuff making me want to avoid it even for free.
It's mind blowing, the double standards at PureXbox and PushSquare comments.. somehow it is ok when MS uses "for all the gamers" argument and then immediately goes back on it?
(At the same time it is not ok when Sony did/does the exact same thing)
P.S.
On PushSquare it's just other way around, objectivity is just a lost art..
But Phil said he doesn't want to take games away, doesn't like exclusives and wants everyone playing everything. Almost like Phil is full of BS and he's no better then Jim Ryan maybe even worse.
@TheGrizMan I know right.
@Chaudy Funny because the comments on the article regarding this over there aren't saying that so you're just lying to flame fanboy wars.
@Tasuki Same over here dude and same over in NL, all 3 sites are home to mega fanboys and toxic attitudes.
@Kaloudz N4G, man i used to go there YEARS ago, but that place is an utter cesspool.
@Bricktop33 This place is nowhere near as bad as Push Square, I litteraly have had staff call me a troll and delete my post when I post the truth. Even the articles they way they are written you can tell its all hard-core Sony fans written to just rile the hard-core Sony community. You can't have a decent conversation there.
There are a few users there that I can have a decent conversation there in the forums but usually that's interrupted by others who rather insult me because I don't think Jim Ryan is the God of the gaming industry.
So which is it? Xbox has no games/exclusives or they do? Certain "fans" need to make up their minds.
Folks, we'd appreciate if we could keep the chat focused solely around the topic in question rather than the differences between PX and PS's reactions to it!
Thanks for your understanding 🙏
@PcTV in fairness they put their games into the hands of a lot more gamers day one than PlayStation. The pc platform via steam or windows store, anyone with a semi decent internet connection and compatible TV/mobile phone and the entire Xbox ecosystem. Vs Sony - only ps5 owners and PS4 owners if you're lucky and the game is multi-generation. Microsoft are definitely allowing a lot more people to play their games day one than Sony.
@Bricktop33 What forced live service stuff are you referring to? Are you confusing the always online thing they’re removing with a live service game?
If you’ve got a link to the live service part can you link it? I’m not familiar with that.
@WallyWest Well yeah any site that is dedicated to one thing will get Megafans and such, that a given but not to the degree that Pushsquare does.
The only problem I have with NL is that alot of there fanbase tends to be on the young side and half the time I have no idea what they are talking about or why they are even bringing it up on a gaming site. Their forums remind me of the old message boards where people just talk about whatever they like rather then the subject at hand. It's not as bad as Push Square where I get called a troll and such but, it's just hard to stay on a subject there.
@Tasuki 100%.
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Sadly, the society and specially the internet these days are very toxic and negative. From serious business, like politics, to harmless stuff like videogames, every topic is hyperpolarized and there are two tribes yelling at each other. It's not fun to engage with platform agnostic communities like N4G anymore because everything becomes a console war. That's the appeal of sites like Pure Xbox for Xbox players and Push Square for Playstation players. To interact with like minded individuals, because we don't know how to interact with people with different tastes and opinions anymore. 😞
@FraserG Fraser comin' in clutch!
Them having the time to focus on the xbox and PC platform and make the game better is a win in my book. Keep it up Arkane!
@FraserG
Folks, we'd appreciate if we could keep the chat focused solely around the topic in question rather than the differences between PX and PS's reactions to it!
I'm sure folks would have no problem doing what you asked, however, reactions to articles like this one don't just happen in a vacuum hence why people share their opinions/experiences of/with different gaming sites 😉.
@Sol4ris That's fine and I understand why everyone likes to make comparisons with stuff like this, but we just don't want it to become a thread focused around bashing certain websites and/or their communities.
In other words, if you really feel the need to discuss different sites in regards to this topic, please make sure it's respectful and keep our Community Rules in mind. That's all I ask!
@Bricktop33 Except that Resident Evil 4 was a Gamecube exclusive at one point. I know RE4 Remake isn't on Switch, but, by your logic, RE4 deserves to be there, not PlayStation. 😁
On topic: I am just shocked that this was even said to the press given everything going on right now. This gives Sony a little more support towards its concerns with Microsoft pulling games away from PlayStation.
Somehow I sense this person is getting a little "talking to" right now.
@Cherip-the-Ripper Agreed. No one will be surprised this happened, only that he is speaking about it so openly and free of PR spin.
Frankly it's refreshing!
You dont buy a publisher to make its game multi format.
I know and accept this.
What is unacceptable is this constant narrative that this is not what they are doing.
When they were being looked at over the last acquisition, they argued that it wouldn't make financial sense not to deliver games for all consoles. We knew that was a lie and so its no surprise that it IS a lie, its just weird that they get away with peddling the same lie again.
You don't buy these companies to keep everything as it was, you are clearly looking for competitive advantage!
Yeah those PushSquare comments. Yikes. Love people saying it’s going to be another “failed attempt to be the next Left 4 Dead”. Maybe try reading a preview or two and realize it’s not anything like Left 4 Dead?
@Kaloudz
Never want any game to get bad reviews on any console, that creates less competition as well if games are bad on one console format.
You want all three to have top end games to keep each company trying really hard to get our hard earned cash in this testing times.
Ouch. Even if this was supposedly an open secret this isn't something that should have been said while the CMA are doing what they're doing. Not a great look no matter how you look at it and definitely not good with certain comments made. Will be interesting to see if this is bought up at all by any Authority.
Why would it be brought up to any authority? It had not been announced prior to acquisition, and had only been revealed after, and they quite clearly stated games would be exclusive on a case by case basis.
Unfortunately you knew the minute the interview was published it was going to be turned into a fanboy zone on both sides.
Each side is allowed to have exclusives, believe it or not.
I would argue game cases like Stellar Blade are even worse.
Playstation gamer here. It would be an issue if Phil Spencer would just shut up. He always speaks like he is giving games a bigger audience while taking it away from PS community. Just say that these takeovers are for bolstering gamepass/xbox (don’t lie).
(Thanks to Bethesda takeover I’m considering buying an Xbox eventually —> Elder scrolls is one of my favourite series).
@Sanquine
Personally, I think both MS and Sony execs should both just shut up. They both keep shooting themselves in the foot every time they talk.
I do like Phil more than Jim, simply because it seems Phil actually plays games whereas Jim Ryan is just a corporate bobblehead. But, when they talk as execs all I hear is blah, blah, blah.
@Magabro "we don't know how to interact with people with different tastes and opinions anymore"
YOU'RE WRONG TROLL!
Why would you even go on record and say that with everything going on with ABK?
This guy has got to be an absolute moron wow.
Bethesda was one of the greatest acquisitions ever.
@NeoRatt Totally agree, Jim is even worse.. he also loves double speak (we believe in generations…. I’m still waiting for true PS5 exclusives as everything will either go to PC or was developed with ps4 in mind)
@Kaloudz You're probably right but this ABK crap has gone on too long. I feel like it's a personal trial lol. Hope they just get it done with already.
@Kaloudz Lol, I'm not gonna lie but I am eagerly anticipating the comments on N4G when that happens.
I swear the people over there are the blindest Sony fanboys ever.
We're kinda fanboys too, sure, but on a site called PureXbox, not a third party multiplat website.
@Kaloudz
That’s were we maybe have a different opinion I’m not sure.
But I would gladly pay £22 per month if the big games released were top end AAA all masterpieces. Paying £11 and getting to try a game means absolutely nothing to me if in the next breath I’m gonna delete it, if it’s average.
I’m mainly a big AAA top end game player know a days and new games of course.
Now don’t get me wrong I will be delighted if Redfall is top end AAA and want it to be. The same for Starfield and joining in with other consoles BOTW2 and say Spider man 2.
That’s were my gaming is done now and let’s hope all those games live up to expectations.
@Kaloudz When Elder Scrolls VI drops it will be a glorious day. I had a conversation with someone on Reddit the other day and when they couldn't substantiate their arguments, they turned to personal insults.
They called Pentiment and Hi Fi Rush bad and then brought up Spiderman 2 better because of its high Metacritic.
I informed them that Hi Fi Rush and Pentiment had, in fact, higher Metacritic score than Spiderman.
But what gets me the most is that they called Starfield and Redfall a timed exclusive.
It's amazing how people still think these games will come to Playstation when it's been explicitly said that this is not the case.
Case-by-case. Is what it is. I don't think people understood the sit-down of (platforms where game pass exists).
It is what it is. I don’t have a problem with Playstation having exclusives, I don’t have a problem with Xbox having them. I do wish Xbox would be more forward about exclusivity, just come out and say yeah, 90% of games from our devs are gonna be Xbox console exclusives. Put it to bed and stop people being fake outraged. I do find the other sides reaction to things like this comical. The most elitist, entitled gaming community of the big 3, for sure.
@Kaloudz
I don’t mind sub as have GPU until March 2025 through deals.
Just want the games to be the best they can be and excel in every way possible.
I can’t see the point of years of hard work like Atomic heart, good game and probably sold a few, but definitely not many purchased sales.
When that game being developed a bit better could have been a masterpiece fps.
@Kaloudz For real, dude. Especially since we can play spider-man on Xbox.
Oh....wait....
@WallyWest Awwww somebody has Playstation.
@GuyinPA75 and a Series S and Switch because console loyalty is for broke kids.
@GuyinPA75 Fun fact Marvel approached MS first about making a SM game but MS turned them down, Sony weirdly were the 2nd choice.
@Sanquine While you can surely get an Xbox, I don't think you have to worry about Elder Scrolls 6 being only Xbox/PC.
And I think this should be mentioned again with this article. Didn't Phil say that "already established and cross platform released" titles wouldn't be taken away from other platforms? Brand new game IPs would be reviewed case by case. So here we have a new IP and Microsoft said "my germs!".
@WallyWest Fun fact, let's share stories that are years and years past and already common knowledge. Broke? I have spent more on games and consoles and have more consoles then you even know existed. Willing bet gaming decades before you even born.
@TheGrizMan lol I know right
Sony did the same to Stellar Blade but no gaming website have enough courage to tell readers that. It was announced as multiplatform game when it was still called "project eve"
@UltimateOtaku91 @PcTV @UltimateOtaku91
Not sure if this is bad practice? 🤷♂️At least I'm not sure why it would be an issue unless early trailers showed a PS logo.
@Scummbuddy no, we dont know that es6 will ne on playstation. They've committed to continuing to support existing games, like elder scrolls online will continue to get content on playstation. Theres been no confirmation about es6, everything is conjecture. Phil is purposely vague.
@Sanquine
But he has. When Bethesda acquisition closed, he clearly said the acquisition is about bringing exclusives to all platforms where GamePass exist.
People love to cherry pick his quotes, grab one liners and run with them and write articles with them out of context, but every time Spencer speaks about “more people playing games” he is either talking about CoD, or he is talking about games not being bound to a console, but instead giving consumers the option to play on phones or on PC. That’s all he always talks about when he goes on about playing in more places.
@Scummbuddy I am certain all he had said is existing games will be supported with DLC and patched., and that Elder Scrolls 6 won’t be on PlayStation or Nintendo consoles.
And if PlayStation would have bought Bethesda... Do we expect them to keep making the games in mid development for Xbox as well?? With the way they make their marketing deals usually involve some sort of exclusive content for PlayStation... I highly doubt they would be releasing any games for Xbox.
Xbox not buying their way out of the Ghostwire and Death Loop contracts and publishing those games exclusively for PS while making Xbox wait a year to get those games... That showed enough humility and respect in my book. I just have a real hard time thinking PS would have done the same.
@WallyWest
Seeing as you know your video games industry history so well (even though that Marvel news was a recent headline that is now widely known). Then you would realize that during that time Xbox had 5 studios but even out of those five most of those were dedicated studios to particular game franchises, like Halo Gears of War, etc.
Xbox would not have done a SpiderMan game justice the way Insomniac has.
So making it seem like Xbox made a bone head decision by not taking Marvel up on making that game, really their was no real decision. Xbox did not have the studio to even produce it at the time.
Things would be a lot different now, but even so, Xbox has made it clear how much they value actually owning the IP they are making games for.
That is why we do not have a Rise Son of Rom 2, because Xbox does not own the IP
@TheRealPaperKut I'll give you a clue. They mirror PureXbox comments for anything Sony.
To be honest its this sort of action that makes me not trust anything Phil says. Its all PR BS. If he wants to make games more available to everyone then stopping 100 million+ people getting access isn't the way forward. I really do not trust anything MS or he says as he has proven. And I'd equally not trust anything Jim Ryan says for the same reasons.
And most comments on here (and PS would be same of course) are not the joy of getting games but stopping millions of other people from being able to play games.
Do people behave similarly with Spotify vs Apple Music? If I listen to good music I tell my family/mates so they can listen to it and share the joy? I don't celebrate when I hear all Radiohead music has been taken away from Apple music so only me and my Spotify subscription can listen to it? Seems odd to me?
All this joy from people who used to be able to play Bethesda games but can now play Bethesda games, while millions of people who could play Bethesda game now can't. And that's where the joy comes from?
On topic - not yet excited for Redfall yet. Not sure why, although cannot wait for Starfield. Expecting that to keep me busy for a long time.
@GamingFan4Lyf the switch can barely run Pong yet alone Re4R. It is NOT a current gen console it is last gen in fact its pushing it to say it was even 8th Gen.
MS has clearly stated that they don't want to split up Communities of Gamers who enjoy playing with their Friends on whatever platform they enjoy playing on - that is ACTIVE ONLINE COMMUNITIES and want to grow those ONLINE Communities by bringing those games to as many people as possible.
Their 'Mantra' of bringing Games to 'More' gamers, including Single Player games is a Statement about them NOT limiting their Games 'purely' to the Xbox Console and ALLOWING gamers on PC/Steam or Game Pass Cloud on whatever platform they have to Access these games. In theory, EVERY gamer can play 'Starfield' if they have a Laptop, Tablet, Mobile etc - just because you 'can't' play on PS, doesn't mean you can't play at all without rushing out to buy an Xbox Console. When Sony buy a Studio, those games are ONLY on PS consoles.
Single Players, New IP's etc are the Games that MS want to use to encourage Gamers to buy into their Ecosystem. Want to play Starfield or Redfall, well you need to be part of the Xbox ecosystem. Want to play Minecraft, ESO, F76 or CoD, well you can play anywhere you want as you are all part of a 'big' online community of Fans of Xbox owned IP's to continue supporting, continue letting you all play together ONLINE etc etc - not splitting up Clans/teams because 'some' happen to be on PS for example...
Its so OBVIOUS!!
@BAMozzy yeah i think instead of cherry picking and running with headlines like a lot of people do they need to watch the entire interviews he has done in the past. He, indeed, did say that the Bethesda Acquisition was about bringing great exclusive games to platforms where game pass exists, the gameindustry.biz article about games being everywhere was about console/pc/cloud at the same time instead of segmented, and they aren't taking away games from places that specific game exists (like you mentioned, online games) which COD is, single player games i expect to be exclusive.
I think many just want to be ignorant to the fact and don't look into things, just run with headlines and clipped quotes WAY too much.
@Kaloudz When Sony is involved you can be sure something scummy is happening. If it's not Sony itself it's the toxic fanbase they've created. Personally after seeing what Sony is trying to do with the Activision/Blizzard acquisition, I could care less if Sony fell apart as a company. Not rooting for it, but I would definitely grab some popcorn and enjoy watching.
@Bricktop33 They are linked because they are all owned by the same company. Nintendolife, Pure Xbox, Push Square and Time Extension. So you get banned from one, you get banned from all.
@Kaloudz I use to own all three systems, PS, Xbox, and Nintendo, but what Jim Ryan has done over the MS/Activision I won't support Sony anymore until they get rid of that piece of *****.
@Kaloudz Yes. Your login info works across all 4 sites.
@Kaloudz And yes I agree with you on Jim Ryan as well. What shocks me is how many Sony fans support him just because he works for Sony. If he worked for MS or Nintendo and pulled the same ***** those same people who praise him now would be calling him on his B.S.
@Stoned_Patrol The fact MS just has studios dedicated to one series really shows how little they cared last gen. Say what you will about Sony but they let their Devs takes chances hence how we got Horizon, Ghost, Days Gone and such last gen. Also fun fact a Sony studio didn't make Spider-Man as Insomniac weren't owned by Sony when they made SM, in fact MS if they took Marvel's offer could have also had Insomniac make it. So congrats you defeated your own points.
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Stellar Blade was canceled for Xbox after their first trailer. So cry me a river. It’s not equal, but the amount of Sony exclusivity in the industry more than makes up for Bethesda games.
I’ll get my surfboard for the absolute ocean of tears.
@Kaloudz Just like I don't get I own a Playstation so I must hate on MS and Nintendo because it's cool amoung all my dude bros.
If a game is an exclusive to said system then oh I don't know buy the system and play it instead of talking ***** about the other console.
Going back I owned both a Nintendo and a Genesis so, I can play Mario and I can play Sonic. I owned both a PSone and an N64, both a GameCube and a PS2. I owned both a Wii and an Xbox 360. The only reason I didn't own a console is because there wast a game that piqued my interest on said console not because I wanted to look cool to my dude bros.
The only reason I won't get a PS5 now or, any Sony console now is because of Jim Ryan and his b.s. Once Sony gets rid of that piece of *****, then I probably will provided there's a game I want to play on it.
@Kaloudz I was lucky enough to have both, I got my SNES one Christmas and my brother and I were able to save our allowance money and get a Genesis a few years later. I remember the whole console wars of the 90s and kids on the playground where surprised when they asked me which one I liked more and I would say I like them both lol.
@Kaloudz Oh it was pretty fierce here at times, the famous Genesis does what Nintendon't, blast processing and all that.
The Master System was the Master System here though, it wasn't too popular. Sega didn't get big here in the US till Genesis and their aggressive ad campaign.
The reason it was called the Genesis here is because Megadrive was copyrighted by a computer company for a disc drive, so Sega had to call it the Genesis here to avoid a lawsuit.
@Kaloudz Yeah I will admit Genesis does sound alot cooler then Megadrive. Megadrive does sound like a part for a computer either that or a character from Transformers. 🤣🤣
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