Yes, The Outer Worlds 2 Is Another Xbox-Developed Game Heading To PS5

Good thing it'll be on Gamepass.

Exclusives are the only games I buy on consoles. And Microsoft doesn't seem too keen on those anymore.

More money for the others guys I guess.

Enjoyed the first one. I’ll probably get the second one on ps5, as that’s my main platform.

Zero issues with this decision.

Call me a "console warrior" but nobody can convince me otherwise that Microsoft is utterly destroying their own brand with these multiplatform releases. I haven't seen a single PS5 exclusive make the jump and I'm 100% sure that they never will. Sigh...
Anyway, I enjoyed the first one but from the sequel, I expect better companions and ROMANCES. Get with the modern times Obsidian!

Very dissapointing to see. Xbox needs exclusives now more than ever and they're just handing them to Playstation while getting none in return. When is Playstation going to start porting their games to Xbox?

Eurogamer's headline said it best: "The Outer Worlds 2 coming to PlayStation, as well as PC and Xbox, in 2025"

I guess this is the way of things now. I am considering switching to Playstation 6 when the next-gen arrives. But it's too early to say whether Microsoft's strategy is going to doom the hardware side for them or not. I'll wait and see.

PS5 is an Xbox now. Though XSX is not a PlayStation.

Microsoft’s ‘boiling frog’ strategy has worked. I’m not surprised and I don’t even care anymore.

All I ask for now is my entire digital XSX library to be made available on PC, with cross-save too. That’s all I care about now. Then I will be free to have Steam or PS6 as my main platform next generation, while still being able to access my archived Xbox library in future (without it being tethered to ageing XSX hardware that will eventually fail).

At least to pretend to care about Xbox by staggering the release. You know buy is dinner first lol

Xbox is gonna have to do alot to convince me to buy the next Xbox. Might aswell use that money upgrading my PC. I would save money on GP as I wouldn't need ultimate for day ones and I'll have access to the games Sony ports on PC too.

@UndyingInsurgent95 I doubt they'll do romance, not sure they've had a game with one in since Kotor 2 (and even then I was very minor compared to biowarès Kotor 1)

Good luck to them with the release. If it’s enjoyable like the first one then happy days.

Regarding Sony release, I think they are trying to work out which makes the most money. Day 1 gp/sony or day 1 gp and Sony 6month later

@Cakefish all I've wanted since they've started what seems to be a hardware death spiral is for my digital library to be safe on PC.

Imagine the Xbox's Microsoft could sell if they kept their exclusives exclusive in 2025?
Avowed
South Of Midnight
Doom
Fable
Outer Worlds 2

People would finally start to take note of Xbox and they'd turn that corner. Instead, PlayStation will get 3 of the 6 published games on day 1. Likely take their 30% cut and buy more PS5 exclusives to keep off Xbox altogether.

Make it make sense!

Not in the least bit surprising. I can't fathom how MS think this will benefit them. I've been Xbox for over 15 years, and recently got a PS5. Decisions like this validate that choice, doubt I'll turn the Xbox on again at this rate!

@Dimey they have the bean counters that will be working out what gives them the most money.

MS didn’t get so massive by caring about their users but by what will make them the most money.

Fair play to them for that.

@PsBoxSwitchOwner oh I don't doubt that, I just can't see the logic! I can't see how it doesn't hugely impact Xbox sales in the next generation, and people jumping ship also reduces gamepass subs.

I'm also emotionally scarred from Betamax, BSB squarial and Sega Dreamcast personal history haha

I am, as PlayStation gamer, really happy to see this coming to PS5! Although I haven’t played the first game yet, I had planned to do so nearer this releasing. Now I will be able to play them both on the PS5! Gamers win when as many of us are able to play games, but as it stands right now and probably way into the future, there won’t be a reciprocation of PlayStation titles on Xbox. I think that’s a shame, but also with the way Microsoft are doing things now, another generation and people probably won’t need Xbox consoles at all to play Microsoft’s games anyway..

Man this sucks, xbox starts putting out good games again and releases them on a rival platform. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot. Xbox is killing any hope of any competition with Sony.

@TheGameThrifter The thing is while they may shift a few consoles, they still won't shift enough. The momentum is to far gone. People have digital libraries in the PS eco system that they won't drop. Most are casual users who won't drop on a second console, others simply won't drop all the stuff they own to shift.

MS want to make keep making money and this is now the way they have to do it in the console space to get to their targets.

The reason Playstation isn't dropping games on Xbox is simple....they don't have to. Xbox (hardware wise) needs this more. I'm sure if this Kadokawa acquisition goes through, we may see some games stay multiplat. Sure Sony hasn't done that without being forced to, but maybe times will change. Stranger things have happened. Look at Xbox on PS and Nintendo. Who would've thought?!

You guys need to understand you are a vocal minority. Most Xbox users play Fifa, Cod and they don’t care about exclusives. Microsoft knows this and their strategy (money-wise) makes sense. PS5 is my main platform, but all I’ve played recently are Xbox games on Game Pass (via xCloud, my Amazon Fire Stick is my Xbox). I checked the release schedule for 2025: no Sony game picques my interest. Xbox is where I will enjoy my gaming next year. This year the most fun I’ve had came from BO6, Stalker 2 and Indy (on PS5 it was only Astro Bot). Enough said.

Wonder how many are gunna be selling there Xboxes this time 🤣🤣 no surprise as 1st was multiplatform so this is one of the few that makes sense🙂

@abe_hikura Then they shouldn't call it an RPG. Greedfall, one of my favorite AA games ever had romance, and that game had a fraction of the budget. No excuses for them to skip such an integral part.

As a consumer this is a great thing. Buy the game where you want to play it. 👏👏👏

I have all 3 of the big consoles but have very little reason to turn my Xbox on ever. I see they like keeping it that way

@UndyingInsurgent95 they says it's because they can't give it 100% what it deserves, I suspect its more a "don't want to"

@Cakefish Sadly all you're gonna get close to that are your play anywhere games.

Not a publisher in hell is gonna agree to give Microsoft PC keys for each Xbox games they sold with a PC equivalent. Nor is Microsoft gonna foot it given their borderline contempt for their own audience

@TheGameThrifter
Totally agree Xbox are in the best position to take Sony on now with all those games and studios and one day be king of the consoles.
Instead they wimp out with no fight and back bone.

It’s ok for me with GPU, but I would have totally rather taken the fight to Sony if I was Xbox.

Microsoft are making now effort to really sell consoles in the UK. No series x Black Friday deals about zero PR.
They have such an opportunity but letting it pass by.

The first was multiplatform, so the second is multiplatform, where's the surprise? With 3 times more studios than PlayStation, and 3 times more games produced by Xbox, they can very well create 1/3 of the games for multiplatform, and 2/3 for exclusives. The latest annual report and Matt Booty have already confirmed the importance of exclusive games, it remains a good balance.

Note that Obsidian is working on 2 games, Avowed and The Outer Worlds 2, one being exclusive, the other being multiplatform.

I’m ok with the series x console and games and GPU and what is going multi platform so far.
Like games that were originally multi platform like Doom or outer worlds 1.
The big but is if they start putting all games across like the original Xbox games.
Fable, Halo, gears Forza Horizon then that is the line over stepped and time to surrender the Xbox console.

If they are so determined to release their games on playstation...why not atleast give Xbox a year exclusive...they are giving people little reason to invest in Xbox in the future with how they are going

Good, I think exclusives are dumb. Everyone should be able to enjoy an artist's creation no matter what machine they decide to use. Artificial limitations in this society should not exist in this day and age. How are we ever going to get to the Future if we keep living in the past? I think Microsoft has the correct idea with Xbox. I think they are finally accomplishing what they set out to do with the original Xbox. There should just be a universal platform for all software to exist no matter what hardware you're deciding to use. The only deciding factor should be if the hardware you're using meets the minimum requirements for the software you're trying to use with it.

In an ideal World we would have only one computing platform for everything so creators of any kind of software could make one version of it and scale to whatever hardware you have within reason. Like I said meets minimum requirements. It would also be nice because I wouldn't have to have 15 damn boxes to do certain things. Instead I could have 15 different boxes because I like to have different form factors for different situations, but they could all accomplish all of the tasks that I have for computing.

It would be awesome to be able to play Xbox, Nintendo, PlayStation and whatever's left on PC games, movies, music, everything, as well as all computing software on one machine with the same operating system and ecosystem. They could very easily do it, it already works that way on PC basically. Just have different store fronts on one OS.

First game was multiplatform so I kind of expected this one to be as well. Doesn’t bother me.

You think they could have plugged the hell out of the Indy game in the UK, With PR, special console and bundle deals, advertising etc.
I mean there is always the Indy films on over the Christmas period as well.

That’s what I call some effort in getting your brand promoted and some momentum behind it.

I think you may well get the future that you are wishing for @ZYDIO. It will probably go something like this:

• Microsoft will continue to release homegrown games on the PlayStation.
• Microsoft will then release the NeXtBoX in 2026. It will dismally fail to sell because the platform will have been abandoned by many, many of its once loyal Xbox gamers.
• The PS6 will release and sell absolutely gangbusters.
• As the Xbox console withers, the number of Game Pass subscribers will fall so low that the Service becomes unviable and will cease to exist.
• The PS6 continues to sell absolutely gangbusters.
• 2030 (give or take a year or two), Microsoft will announce that they will cease making Xbox consoles, and they will become a fully third-party publisher.
• The PS6 continues to sell absolutely gangbusters.
• 2036 (give or take a year), the PS7 will release and this will be the only place you can play high-end games on a console.

So, I reckon 10 years (give or take a year or two) and you will get your wish... 😉

@Fiendish-Beaver Any chance you know next week's lottery numbers as well haha

I wish, @Ricky-Spanish...! 😂

This is why I got rid of my Series X when I got my gaming PC. Sure, I have a few games I'd have to rebuy on PC if the desire to replay a game ever hits (whenever they go on a deep discount, that is), but I don't regret my decision one bit!

The real kicker, I could feasibly get rid of my PS5, too! Pretty much every Sony game I am interested in (other than Astro Bot and Demon's Souls) I can or will have [official] access to on PC. I bet, if I wait a year, I can get Ghost of Yotei on PC.

For the games that aren't officially available...well...there are answers to that on PC as well.

I really don’t care that a sequel to multiplat game is going to PS5.

I care about the dumb double “this is an Xbox” ad. No one is playing these kinds of games on their phones and PC gamers will be the first to tell you PCs aren’t Xboxes.

They’ve lost the plot.

To all my PS switchers and xbox doom people: 2 fair points below.
1. The problem is you cant switch to PS5 now. Maybe if things change closer to next gen but for now a good half of games are still xbox exclusives. Avowed - no mention of ps5, its coming in 3 months. Starfield? Still exclusive for more than a year.
South of midnight and fable - no sign of ps5 so far.

2. I agree if all games are day 1 on PS guaranteed it can be lucrative to just buy PS. However assuming all these games are on GP its arguably cheaper to have both xbox + GP and PS. There are at least 6 xbox titles confirmed for 2025 - thats already $180 in savings if you pay full price for GP and not counting online access and well 400+ more games on the catalog.
If you have not noticed but there are not a lot PS 1st party games. They confirmed 1 AAA per year. So if you are interested in MS games to begin with, I see way more incentive to keep xbox+GP as main platform and buy Ps down the road for exclusives with money saved on GP

People completely miss the point that if you really play those games on GP its now cheaper to have xbox+GP and PS then buy xbox games on PS. Thats of course if you are interested in MS games to start with. I am saving at least 300-400/year on GP and I am not even hardcore gamer - thats PS + all exclusives in just 3 years.

Hopefully a ps5 launch means an actual physical release unlike Avowed

@Fiendish-Beaver Consoles will just be another way to play. I don't think they'll ever go away, especially with cloud gaming. I don't know why everyone is so against having more options. If when I buy a piece of software and my only option is in a digital only format, I'm going to want it accessible in as many places and ways as possible. These people that are getting upset about what Xbox is doing is completely unreasonable to me. Why would anyone want to limit where they can use their purchased software? To me that seems like those people are these weird fanboy, cultist, loyalist to a brand or a thing and that is really weird to me. I prefer platform agnostic software because I enjoy freedom. It also ensures that in the future my software will continue to be accessible and not rely on a specific piece of hardware to run. Like I said, I don't understand all these people wanting to artificially limit their access to their own software, it just seems weird to me. For example: look at movies and music, they work everywhere and they have apps where you can access them on anything. Gaming needs to get to the same place. I know that seems kind of weird, because you can only see certain content on certain apps and certain networks, but eventually those things go to other platforms and slowly but surely the exclusivity is going away with those as well. My point is, those things work on a wide variety of devices across multiple operating systems and ecosystems yet you can get the same content. The next step would be to not need multiple ecosystems, just one ecosystem on whatever device you choose you can access all of the same content.

I think also people are seeming to forget the Xbox and PC are blending together and going to become one thing soon, that's probably why a lot of developers are skipping Xbox yet bringing out on PC. Why would they develop a game for an ecosystem that's no longer going to exist once they convert everything Xbox to be compatible with PC? I'm pretty sure the next Xbox console is just going to be a PC with a software, whether it be an emulator or whatever way they want to do it to where it just runs Xbox games as well. From what I understand there's very little difference between the PC version and the Xbox version, so it's just making it easier on everybody.

The Xbox spiral of death continues and seems to be nonstop, MS announced a first-party game to PlayStation but yet again many third-party announcements from last night will skip Xbox and there’s an ever growing list of games that are not and may never get to Xbox, exactly the thing I feared when the first batch of games was announced and it’ll only get worse.

Personally my spending on Xbox this year is an all-time low, haven’t bought a single game or subscription with my money (only Rewards points) and I’ve already started to move my library to PS5 to move away from Xbox entirely next generation, the way Microsoft handles things our digital library will end up stuck on a dead platform and I’m just tired of dealing with their flip-flops, also thinking about building a PC but one thing is certain, I won’t ever get Microsoft’s hardware ever again.

@Fiendish-Beaver thats the most doom&gloom scenario I ve read so far. Good job!

I disagree.

1. console market is flat. Biggest selling console to this day is ps2…
What gangbusters sales we are talking here?

2. You are overestimating how many people will go to PS6 next gen. I would say the worst was xbox one gen where we actually saw exodus from xbox but now even with less exclusivity series is a better gen. People who did not switch back then will likely stay now.
Just a reminder forums like this are not representative of gaming population.
If people are happy with their box and sub, i defo see them staying further.
3. Man Its literally best time now with xbox and GP due to crazy line up from late 2024 all thru 2025 at least. Half of the games are not even confirmed to PS5. If they can keep the lineup of like 6 games or so each year - thats very strong. PS has way less 1st party output these days. We saw 2 games in 2 years. They still secure great 3rd party exclusives but some of those are also timed. They lost square enix and Kodjima as well.

3. Speculating about 10 years down the road is ridiculous. PC, mobile and cloud can potentially fully push out consoles by then. Who knows.

4. I have said this before. If you are active or semi-hardcore gamer and is interested in Ms games you can save a lot of $ with GP and use this $ to own PS to play those several exclusives per year. With MS releasing a good 5-6ish games a year - thats easily doable and you can have best of both worlds.
If you are initially locked in PS and fan of their games - you wont switch or buy xbox anyways.

@IOI which 3rd party games are skipping xbox from yesterday? Genuinely asking.

I am sure some people who are disappointed in xbox or just always looked at PS while sitting on xbox (for unknown reason) will go to PS6. I dont see it being dozens of millions and to the point where they abandon hardware.

Also your digital library is actually safest with MS as even if xbox dies, you will be able to access it on PC and cloud. By that time cloud tech will be better already.

@ZYDIO man its 30 or even 40+ people that cant accept new reality. I am not a fan of many things with MS and xbox but I dont think its even half bad as people say.
Moreover these “switching to PS” people are probably unhappy for a while with xbox and will switch regardless.

Also everyone ignores value factor of GP in this economy and when you have a solid pipeline of games like late 2024 or 2025 GP is just massive savings. You can allocate those to buying more multiplat day 1 or even PS and their exclusives. People just refuse to do the math so whatever

@Cakefish Same here. It's a real privilege to own all consoles and a PC at this stage in my life but also a headache. Ideally I'd like to have PC only if I'm patient enough to wait for console exclusives to eventually be ported over. Microsoft should definitely consider game preservation through their 'play everywhere' strategy by allowing us full access to our libraries on PC.

@Fiendish-Beaver Yup, this is the timeline we’re in and we just gotta accept it and cope with it.

For anyone who somehow still believes in Xbox lies just look back at Windows Phone and how it was slowly abandoned just after a big acquisition that was supposed to enable them to compete more, looking awfully similar to Xbox after the Activision buyout.

@IOI I really miss Windows phone. I still have them. I tell my Android phone everyday how much I miss my Windows phone.

@Millionski Not even Microsoft themselves spend that much time trying to defend their baffling decisions…

Okay, @ZYDIO, so here's the thing, if Microsoft stops making consoles, we all get to live happily ever after on the PlayStation, and you get to play all your games in one place? Right? Right! Except you don't! So what happens to the extensive Xbox library of games that you have built up once Microsoft stop making consoles? What happens when your existing Xbox console gives up the ghost and you can no longer play that extensive library? Indeed, if Microsoft withdraw from the console space, how long do you think they will enable access to all those games you have amassed? First-party? Yes, maybe you will be able to play them on a gaming PC, but that obviously entails buying a gaming PC in the first place, and that kind of defeats having all your games in one place, and is a lot bigger, and more expensive than a console. As for third-party games, if Microsoft withdraws from the console market, there's not a chance in Hell of you being able to play the ones you have already purchased on an Xbox on a PC. Microsoft are not going to cover that one, rest assured.

I am in no way a fan boy, although Xbox is my main console. Indeed, I own a Series X, a PS5, a Switch and a high-end gaming PC, so I really do have all bases covered. For the record, I have played 2015 hours on my Xbox this year, 401 hours on my PC, and 132 on my PS5. I've not switched my Switch on this year. Also, I have over 1600 digital games on my Xbox. That's a lot of games to lose access to if Microsoft pull the plug, and everything they are doing points that way albeit that it might take some time to get to that point. I have a lot invested in Microsoft making the right decisions, and I don't think that those they are making right now will lead to the utopia that you have in mind.

Lastly, just so you have an idea, my PC cost me £2600, and I have since upgraded the memory and graphics cared at a cost of a further £600. My PC can play [b]most[/i] games at 4K with all the bells and whistles. My point being, I keep seeing people talk about the NeXtBoX basically being a PC, but no one out there can build a PC that can match the PS5 Pro for £800, so anyone that thinks that a NeXtBoX PC will cost less than that, and do as much if not more is living in a dreamworld where they spend all day grooming their pink unicorns...

It is what it is. 🤷‍♂️

@Fiendish-Beaver I think you may want to reread what I wrote. It seems that you miscomprehended the entire thing.

What I'm saying about PC and Xbox blending together is that the Xbox consoles will just be PCs with an Xbox front end and there will be an Xbox app with an Xbox front end on the PC, so it will all be the same and it will be the exact same piece of software.

I believe that they also may open up to allowing other companies to make Xbox hardware spec'd PC's. Basically what I'm saying is that each generation of Xbox will just be a certain set of PC hardware for Microsoft and other manufacturers to make into a console for the TV, but the same software will also work on dedicated gaming PCs.

@IOI This is timeline that some upset people created in their heads based on the made-up fears.

Yeah I prob spent less time hating xbox in the comments and actually enjoy my time with xbox even that I own ps5. I am also not stuck in the ps3/x360 era and understand things are changing fast and not everything is about exclusives these days.

I may be all doom and gloom, @Millionski, mostly because I have lived more than 60 years and watched it all go horribly wrong time and time again, but at least you counter-balance me by holding a towel in anticipation of drying the Microsoft executives feet once they have stopped walking on water. 😉

I've said this time, and time again, but Game Pass is entirely subjective. Is it still good value if you play nothing on it?

This is a complete list of every game that I have bought this year:

• Prince of Persia
• Warhammer: Chaos Gate
• Oddworld: Soulstorm
• King Arthur: A Knight's Tale
• Dragon's Dogma 2
• Capes
• The Black Prince: Crown Wars
• Trine Enhanced Edition
• Trine 2
• Trine 3
• Trine 4
• Ghostrunner 2
• Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew
• Warhammer: Rogue Trader
• Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name
• Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
• Classified: France 44
• Clash: Artifacts of Chaos
• Divinity 2: DKS
• Shadows of the Damned: Remastered
• Atomic Heart
• Lies of P
• Life is Strange: True Colours
• Life is Strange 2
• The Hong Kong Massacre
• Dragon Age: The VeilGuard
• Aternum
• Baldur's Gate 3
• Space Marine 2
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Collector's Edition
• The Bannishers

Games played on the Game Pass:

• Hellblade 2

Now do you understand how Game Pass is subjective...

@Fiendish-Beaver let's not forget about pricing. Think the newest PS5's revision price is goofy?

Just wait until they don't have any competition.

@ZYDIO I still have my 1520.

Had the 920 but man that was dookie. And sure enough, happened when Microsoft started meddling their team too much.

@Fiendish-Beaver
About the same for me. I only have Gamepass because I have a couple years stacked up because it was cheap as dirt. I see no reason to re-up once it expires though.

Microsoft should definitely consider game preservation through their 'play everywhere' strategy by allowing us full access to our libraries on PC.

Really, @Millionski? Is that statement even remotely true, and not a complete fantasy?

Just one example, I have Dragon's Dogma 2 in my digital library on my Xbox (nestled neatly among a further 1600+ digital games). Will Microsoft enable me to play that on the PC..? Do you think the makers of the games will be happy for Microsoft to simply allow us to play our games on the PC free of charge? Will they not want us to buy the game again in the PC? Or do you expect Microsoft to compensate each developer for each third-party game sold, which will likely cost trillions?

Asking for a friend, @IOI ...

Totally agree, @InterceptorAlpha. If Sony is the only high-end console out there, then there is nothing to restrain Sony in pricing or profitability...

@Fiendish-Beaver

Some great crystal ball work there Sir. But I'm more interested in how much Sony will charge for their gangbuster selling consoles. Will they go for truly gangbusting prices, say £1200 for a PS6 and, £1800 for PS7?😉

@16BitHero @InterceptorAlpha @abe_hikura

I agree with you all. I am increasingly apprehensive of the console death spiral that I now see as inevitable at this point and I believe it’s Microsoft’s responsibility to ensure our digital libraries are not held hostage on hardware that they themselves have blatantly lost interest in. They must ensure a sustainable future for our digital libraries on PC. Third party publishers will no doubt kick and scream, but Microsoft knowingly and enthusiastically dug themselves into this hole so they just have to deal with the giant mess they’ve created.

@Fiendish-Beaver I mentioned multiple times IF you care about MS games and IF you actually play games on game pass. You can sub-unsub if you want limiting your spend. You can also buy GP for way cheaper if you know how. I see it bringing value very easilty. Of course if you blindly sub and never touch it its not worth it.

Let's do the math together:
From your list - lies of P, Indy and hellblade 2 was on GP. You could just buy an upgrade for Indy. Thats 8-9 months of GP right there.

If you prefer to buy all games, exclusives is the top reason for one platform or another and you dont care about MS games (can wait to be ported to PS or just legit not interested) => of course PS is better for you. Its just not necessarily the case with everyone else. Games are rather expensive for younger people + they are used to subs. In the end of the day platform should tailor to a specific need or player. You cant have an ultimate platform for all. It just feels like xbox is not good for YOU personally but I dont see how they are "pulling the plug" or "abandoning" us.

PC yeah it will depend on the "play anywhere support" - you are right here. its not like every game by default. However, you are scared about reality where xbox hardware do not exist - which is NOT there yet and for at least 10 years (this and next gen). As a minimum you will be able to stream your owned xbox games via cloud - they are pushing this hard today so in 10 years you actually will be pretty safe. I bet PS will do the same though as future is anyways in cloud and it can come faster than we think.

@InterceptorAlpha I have the 520 and 920. I really enjoyed both of them. That 520 is the best cheap phone I've ever had. Still runs like a champ to this day. Windows phones don't slow down over time for some reason. I really liked my 920 that's what I upgraded to from the 520. It was kind of heavy though. Excellent camera. My mom had the 1520. I still have all of those phones along with all my old cell phones just in a box somewhere. I come across the box from time to time and take them out and mess with them.

No, @Sol4ris. I think the PS6 will cost more than the Pro, but less than £1000, even if it is only less by a single penny. I think the NeXtBoX will be priced around the same, but with the pricing policies that Microsoft are demonstrating right now who knows what their upper ceiling will be. You only have to compare the Series console pricing this Black Friday compared to the PS5 to see that Microsoft has no qualms in stiffing any potential customers with no deals whatsoever! So who knows what they'll come up with in 2026? They may well have watched the sales of the Pro and decide that they can charge even more for a console that is superior to the Pro.

Sadly, I'll be 61 next week, and so may not still be around in the 2030's to see some of my predictions come true, but I'll do my best to hang on in there... 😉

@Fiendish-Beaver man you nailed it in the end stop worrying about this xbox stuff lol. wish you all the best!

First off, @Millionski, you missed out Atomic Heart when talking about games on the Game Pass, but as with Lies of P, I bought the games after they left the Service. And I bought the Collector's Edition of Indiana Jones (as I said in my post), and I am not aware of an upgrade path where you can buy the game digitally and then get a massive box in the post! The box, in which there is a World globe is two foot high! 😂 As I said, the only game I played on the Service was Hellblade 2.

Also, if you have ever read my comments before, you will know that I am in the top 100 in the World for Horde in Gears of War 5, which I play every weekend with a mate. In order to play with him, I need to have at least Standard continuously. I do in fact have GPU, but only because I also have a gaming PC, which then offers up options, even if I don't utilise them...

@Fiendish-Beaver the Trine games are fabulous! Underrated gems.

@Fiendish-Beaver

Fair points and I would like to add two more:
1. I still believe Microsoft will do one more hardware generation after the one they already talked about.
2. And this is important, I hear 61 is the new 49. So there is plenty time to witness Sony's and Microsoft's shenanigans in 2036. Happy birthday for next week!

@Cakefish I would add that while consoles exist and with their ever increasing adoption of PC architecture, there should be less excuses for not having backward compatibility and emulation.

I played the first one when it first came out on the PC, @16BitHero, so when I saw them in a sale a short while ago, it was an easy decision...

Yeah, I'm not sure about a subsequent generation, @Sol4ris, but that's still a way off right now, and is too far off to tell either way.

Thank you for the birthday wishes, though my body would tell you that 61 is the new 80! That said, my brain would tell you that I'm still a teenager... 😂

This is becoming a non-story, really. Both Sony and Microsoft have transitioned to an age where they release their games on their home console, then to a wider audience. Game Pass is the reason to choose Xbox if you want. If you don't that's fine too, you can simply purchase at full price. It's a win for everyone except for the various console warriors, and to hell with them lol

At least we had the 360...

I got an Xbox One for Forza Motorsport 5, which disappointed. Got a Series X for Forza Motorsport. Most buggy, unfocused and lacking game in the series! Nothing left for me with Xbox 🤷‍♂️

you see that computer at the top of the article? That is an xbox.

I don’t really see an issue personally. I understand that Microsoft bought Bethesda and people want their games to be exclusive, but we should have known that this isn’t going to happen — Microsoft has changed gears substantially. With that said, although the PlayStation is my main platform for gaming, I’ll still probably play this game on the Xbox due to it being on Game Pass day one. Ultimately, the question you have to ask yourself is this: Where do you want to play your games? There is no wrong answer (unless it’s an actual exclusive).

Lol at the doom merchants, Microsoft are well on the way to making their next console.
This game was obviously not going to be made exclusive as the first one was multiformat.
Wait and see how Microsoft make their moves in the future, they can stop supplying new First Party titles to 3rd party anytime the situation suits them, they will be the ones holding all the cards.

@TheGameThrifter xbox sells the games to the 60+ million ps5 users where they get a 70% cut. How does it not make sense?

@Cakefish it hasn’t worked because we need more competition with consoles having a different strategy / cultural impact which is huge with branding

Wah wah Xbox needs exclusive games, wah wah. Meanwhile Microsoft is rolling in record revenue and will be the industry leader in revenue next year. Business is business. Console wars are for people who don't understand business.

But why would we have to know that? Who cares? This is an Xbox site. If I want to know that, I will go over to Push Square. This crap is getting annoying.

@BacklogBrad It makes perfect sense. Selling the game to just your core audience limits your own success.

I don’t understand why people care so much, game pass is still the best deal and PlayStation will just give Xbox more money to make games and put more games in game pass. The only people who are complaining still care about the console wars, even Xbox doesn’t care about it anymore

People still seem to be mistaking the xbox "brand" for the plastic box by the TV. They are actually expanding the xbox brand greatly by giving everyone access to their games. Xbox games seem to be all anyone is talking about. Sony fans went from Xbox can't make games to hyped out for every xbox release. The "brand" is doing very well.

Steam is leading the way in this with the best desktop app available as well as a very good handheld brand. They also have a home console on the way. Why would anyone sell their Xbox for a Playstation when Steam is right there with so many great options? Xbox should be (and seem to be) striving for this future.

@Fiendish-Beaver 3rd parties really couldn't say anything about xbox store purchases being playable on pc since it would be the same xbox store that it was sold from. Has there been any fuss about Steam putting their 3rd party games on a wide variety of devices? They carried over those desktop pc purchases to many handhelds and have a home console of their own on the way. Developers aren't going to demand compensation because those home console players might have double dipped on switch, ps5, xbox.

Developers can't reasonably expect people to double dip on games. Those that do are an absolute luxury. They are grateful you bought the game anywhere and would be thrilled if you played your dragons dogma purchase from xbox on a pc.

Wow Microsoft doing the thing that makes them the most money 😱

Why is this still shocking to folks after all this time.

People in this comment section are talking like we're still in the mid 90's

I'm no industry expert but I can understand why Microsoft has to do things like this and change their strategy, they can't compete with Sony in console sales, the PlayStation brand is too strong so why keep fighting the same fight knowing your gonna probably lose?

So they are trying a new fight, maybe a bit dirtier but it may end up paying off in the end with the amount of rakes Sony have been stepping on lately. they didn't buy Bethesda and Activision for the sake of it, Microsoft want to be top dog and the fact that they own one of the biggest IP's in gaming (call of duty) and have taken one of Sony's biggest cash cows away in process puts them in that position. Why do you think Sony was so desperate to quash that deal?

"But they are giving up on their console" are they? The same console that has the majority of gamepass subscriptions, that console?

Y'know gamepass, that thing that is Microsoft's big play and where they are putting all their games that they have invested billions into, you think they are gonna throw away 30+ million gamepass subscribers?

Xbox consoles aren't going anywhere, watch and see.

@Millionski
I agree with Sony in some sort of limp mode with big first party AAA 1 per year and looking at Xbox studios and GPU. The smart savings is on GPU.

It’s funny how next year so far Xbox studios have 3 AAA for PS5, Doom, Outer worlds 2 and COD and Sony have one, Ghost of Y.

Sounds so weird when you type it like that and see it in reality.

It's a good opportunity to look at the theory that Xbox exclusive games tend to get overly low ratings from the media.
I'm looking forward to seeing how the ratings split with Avowed and actually playing both on Game Pass and seeing if the media react the same way.

The biggest game known for 2025 on Xbox (Avowed is there but seems more AA) and it's directly on PS5. It's fine since the first one was on PlayStation but after Indiana Jones this month and playing Flight Sim 2024 here and there why would I turn on my Xbox? A disc game here or there for a 3rd party release is likely all. Very few disc Xbox games these days so the dust might be collecting very soon.

I honestly feel like PX puts out these articles just to stir the pot. Lol. All the boohoo'ing over exclusives dying. 🙄🙄🙄

BTW, stop announcing your departure and just go. No one cares, least of all MS.

For the folks in the back, MS ACTUALLY MAKES MORE MONEY IF YOU DON'T BUY THEIR CONSOLE BUT END UP BUYING THEIR GAMES.

Stand alone consoles themselves are dying. We're likely to see one more generation, before they become hybrid portables. MS is making money hand over fist and doesn't care if you fork over money for a PS instead of an Xbox. They care that you either sign up for GP or buy their games outright.

MS is shifting to compete with Nvidia, Steam, and Nintendo. They don't care about Sony anymore.

I will say that the surprise would have been if Outer Worlds 2 WAS exclusive. It wasn't even a Microsoft game to begin with, and it released on everything to boot. Xbox continuing that is not a surprise.

"Home grown" games like Avowed are where my concern lies.

1 - this is not a major game, it's an AA short Rpg that was multiplat in the first entry. It's becoming clearer that many Xbox games won't come to other plataforms (since they don't want to kill the console), it's gonna be case by case.
2 - lol at the "why would I turn on my xbox then?"comments. Are you sincerely going to buy a game on another plataform if it's being offered day one on game pass?
3 - there's zero chance the Pc will have the Xbox digital library. First because there'll be at least one or two more console generations. And second because there is a major licensing issue due to it being a different plataform, with a different store (Xbox store is not windows store), not to mention the backward compatibility and emulation problems. It's different from steam with the same store and the same hardware (Pc), just using a different format. They already did what they could: Cloud + play anywhere and that's it.
4 - this is the most logical strategy. If they're putting their games on another plataform is to sell and make money, and the best time is the launching period. An Xbox game being relesead after 3,6 or a year after on PS would either sell much less and hurt the brand/sales the same way.

Thanks again Satya, RIP Xbox

Existing IP so makes a lot of sense imo. To me, Indy was the weird one!

Although software is/are the money maker(s) and exclusives do attract new players, but that said, compared to the others, they are maybe too far back to profit from those exclusives?

I hope they will have a special feature next-gen. This ports/multiplats probably pay for Game Pass. How to keep players that aren't interested in Game Pass is another question?

Excellent news! More people get to enjoy the game.

I disagree, @BacklogBrad. Third-party games bought on the Xbox Store are bought for the console, not the PC, and that is why they are not already available via the Xbox Store on the PC. They are not purchased as 'Play Anywhere' titles, they are bought specifically for the Xbox console. Microsoft would need to negotiate different contracts with the developers for them to be 'Play Anywhere' titles.

Also, games bought on Steam, etc. maybe playable on different devices, but they are still played via Steam, etc. The Store fronts remain the same (i.e. where the game was bought), they can just be accessed on a handheld device. It's much like how the Rog Ally can enable you to play Xbox games; it's still the same Store, just a different device, though truthfully, I don't know if that includes being able to access third-party games that you have bought on the Xbox Store on a home console.

@Fiendish-Beaver maybe you didn't see the recent xbox ads. Xbox is not just a plastic box anymore. Anything with the xbox app is an xbox. Games purchased on the Xbox store will eventually be playable where ever the Xbox store. It's literally the same situation.

Developers don't care and shouldn't care. You bought the game, mission accomplished.

So will steams upcoming home console not be able to play the games purchased on pc? Of course they will playable. Why are we still pretending that there is a difference between pc, console and handheld anymore?

I currently own 40 games on XSX. I can access merely 9 of them on my PC. That’s 77.5% of my XSX library unavailable on PC. This is unacceptable. If Microsoft wants to radically change direction, fine, but they must realise that by insisting that PCs are Xboxes that this generates new expectations from customers. Namely, that I can actually play my Xbox games on my Xbox (PC). Anything short of this exposes the blatant lie that PCs are Xboxes now.

“Oh you only have 31 games missing” I hear you say. “That’s nothing just rebuy them all on hefty discount via Steam sale and quit moaning”. Sure I could do that in most cases (though some backwards compatible titles aren’t available on PC), but what can’t be replaced is the literally thousands of hours of playtime, progress, and achievements all locked up in those save files.

Previously multiplatform games should remain multiplatform. IF the Kadokawa deal goes through then Elden Ring should also remain a multiplatform series.

To start with, @BacklogBrad, I suggest that you read the comment by Cakefish that sits directly below yours.

If you take the Steam Deck as an example, you can play a game that was not bought on Steam, though the process of doing so is far from simple, and includes finding the appropriate files in what is a far from straightforward operating system. There is also the issue that you actually cannot play every game that is available through Steam itself. Games are labelled as being Steam Deck ready, and the vast majority will not necessarily play that well if not approved. The same is absolutely true of games imported from elsewhere. Also, you cannot play Xbox games from the Microsoft Store on there either.

Lastly, this issue of Play Anywhere is an important one. Obviously, Microsoft allow their games to have that capability, and whilst they have this whole (stupid) everywhere is an Xbox advert going on, the truth is that it's far from perfect, at the moment, and does only relate to Microsoft produced games (something that Microsoft omits to mention in the adverts).

Contracts are agreed with publishers for their games to be sold on the Xbox home console. They are not written up to include Play Anywhere. That may change in the future, but to do so will cost Microsoft because whilst you might think that a Developer is chuffed that you bought the game, they'd be even happier if you bought the game two times in order to play it on the PC as well, and happier still if you bought it again in order to play it on the PlayStation. Each purchase increases their revenue, so having you locked to a particular store front is totally advantageous to them, and for them to forgo possible further revenue through the means of additional sales, they would expect Microsoft to compensate them, which I highly doubt Microsoft would agree to as it would cost them billions, if not trillions over time...

@Fiendish-Beaver no, 3rd party would not expect or require compensation if the xbox app made the games available. Just like when cloud becomes available for your entire digital library, devs will not be expecting additional money because you are now playing them on a device that has other store fronts.

Developers want their games available to as many people as possible. The xbox store being available and playable benefits them.
They do not and should not expect anyone to double dip.

Personally, I feel like the strategy of Game pass being the only reason someone would buy a Xbox over a ps5 isn't a good one. Ps5 has a somewhat decent subscription service, a good amount of games especially considering the much larger library of PlayStation developed titles. They also have, while not a ton, a good amount of exclusives. Xbox hasn't been able to compete with PlayStation visa vi exclusives ever since Gears of War and Halo left their golden eras. However, now Microsoft's relentless purchasing of studios is starting to pay off, with games like Stalker 2, Indiana Jones, Avowed, Outer Worlds 2, Doom the Dark Ages, and Starfield. If all of those games were exclusives, Xbox would already be on its way to genuinely competing with PlayStations lackluster lineup, however, since only a few are, we have no exclusives still.

What you're saying makes no sense, @BacklogBrad. If we take what you're saying and run with it, I can buy a GTA5 on the PlayStation and play it on my Xbox, or on Steam or on Epic, and Rockstar Games will be more than happy with that! So why is it not possible? Why can I not buy GTA5 on the Xbox and play it on the PC using the Microsoft Store? The answer is simple, and covers both scenarios, the Developers are delighted that you bought the game on the Xbox, but, er, if you want to play it on your PC, you'll need to buy it again. Sorry about that, but, you know how it is, business and profits.

The only reason we can buy Gears of War on the Xbox, and play it on the Microsoft Store is because Microsoft permit it, and even then, it does not cover every first-party game. Not every first-party Xbox game is playable on the PC. Microsoft use the Play Anywhere tag on certain games in order to attract gamers from the Xbox into PC gaming, and vice versa. Microsoft see it as a good business strategy.

As both I, and Cakefish, have said, if you access Xbox on a PC, you can only see some of the first-party games that you own, and none of the third-party games. Indeed, there are games available on the Microsoft Store that you can only play on the PC. Basically, Microsoft are choosing to do this, and it is entirely unrealistic of anyone to think for one moment that Developers will do the same out of the goodness of their heart. Even games like It Takes Two, which famously allows one person to buy the game and then invite another to play it, does not allow that same game to be accessible on both the PC and the Xbox. I should know, I had to buy the game twice; once on the PC, and then again on the Xbox.

I get it, in an ideal world, you would buy a game once, and then be able to play it where you like, but we live in a far from ideal world, and developers will not be indulging us in this manner...

@Fiendish-Beaver you don't seem to understand. The playstation store is not available on xbox (yet)and the xbox pc app would be available separately from steam so how would that work? Sony, however, is rumored to be working on a pc launcher that would have cross entitlement to playstation consoles. Everything you purchases on one would be playable on the other. This is literally the future. I guess if you want to deny it feel free.

We are entering the era of the storefront.

This idea that developers think average consumers are going to buy their games multiple times is pretty wild. 99% of gamers are not ever double dipping. If that's what's required to make it in this industry, it's toast. But that's not reality. They won't care if your xbox purchase works on the xbox app of your pc or phone.

I cannot for one moment believe that Sony are working on such a product, @BacklogBrad. Think about it for one moment; if Sony were to enable a launcher that allowed all games bought on a PlayStation to also be played on a PC, and Xbox were to do the same, then what would happen? No one would buy a console. Everyone would buy a PC. Why? Because you would be able to play EVERY SINGLE GAME (leaving Nintendo out of the equation for the moment) on a PC. What would be the point in consoles? All that would happen is people would buy all third-party games on Steam because they are all cheaper there, and then only buy those first-party games that were only available through Xbox or PlayStation launchers. Sony and Microsoft would lose something like 99.9% of sales, because their first-party content only accounts for 0.01% of games made.

If consoles continue their pricing in the way of the Pro, and you are looking at £800 for the PS6, and £800 for a NeXtBoX, then why spend £1600 on two consoles, when you can spend that and get a gaming PC that will play everything?

I've not seen any rumours stating that Sony are going down this path, and I'll only believe it when I see it because to do something like you suggest is effectively going to see their gaming division commit suicide. And this brings us back to why Microsoft won't have third-party games bought on an Xbox playable on a PC, because if you have a PC then you will be buying third-party games via Steam where they are cheaper. It literally makes no sense for them to enable this. Microsoft want you to buy third-party games through their Store, not buy them elsewhere...

@Fiendish-Beaver @BacklogBrad While I think a Playstation PC launcher is believable and likely considering how fast Sony are porting their games to PC, I don't believe that cross-purchase would apply to every 3rd party game. Xbox Play Anywhere has been around for 8 years now and 3rd party support for it is still limited.

@Fiendish-Beaver that's the idea. You the consumer and them the publisher would not be restricted to a plastic box. Xbox cant be more clear that this is their strategy. They would still be selling games through their app. Imagine how much more potential there is for selling games when you are selling to pc and mobile players as well as your console players. (Obviously there is work to be done to make that transition work currently but 3rd party contracts are not the sticking point. They would welcome their games being more available)

Playstation (and xbox/nintendo) is currently at a major disadvantage to steam because the steam purchases are freely usable on a ralidly expanding handheld market, laptops, pc, soon to be pcs disguised as home consoles, cloud services like gforce now, etc. Playstation purchases can only be used on the current Playstation and that sucks. It sucks for me a ps5 user and it sucks for Playstation to be missing out on sales to the versatile steam platform.

@Grumblevolcano the idea is that play anywhere designations wouldnt be needed in the future. The purchases would just work in the app whether you were on the console or pc.

This is likely what that newly formed team within xbox is working on. They were given the mission statement of future proofing the xbox digital library. I think the rumors of next gen xbox being fully pc based are likely true.

Skimmed your guys conversation and mostly agree with you but this is false.

The reason people will continue to buy Playstations is the same reason they currently buy them. PlayStation consoles are heavily subsidized by Sony so they get a console holder license fee and now in the digital age they are also getting most of the store fees for every game sold on their consoles. PC will never compete with PlayStation on price. People wouldn't even pay the release price of the PS3, they aren't going to switch to PC in any real numbers because some more games are available. More games have always been available on PC. To the average console gamer/family, game availability is a nothingburger compared to double or more money for the same power hardware.

That's totally fine! The first game was released also everywhere, Xbox, Switch, PC, PS. I liked the first game alot, so i don't see any problem here that more people are going to buy and enjoy the second one, neither i will enjoy the game less if people on other platforms buy and play the game. Xbox has such a great lineup of games which it doesn't make any financial sense to keep all games exclusive anymore. I can't keep up anymore with the games i want to play that coming to Gamepass and to Xbox in general. On the other hand i see that Sony's first party roadmap looks very dry also for 2025 and that PS fans seem more interested on the Xbox games now, since i see more and more PS fans being lately very active on this website.

My comment was badly worded, @Jenkinss, but was primarily meant for those of us that buy both an Xbox and a PlayStation, which is why I mentioned both companies in my comment. That is why I mentioned the combined cost of £1600, as that is a reasonable entry point for a PC capable of playing games in a decent quality...

To be honest, @BacklogBrad, I don't think either of us are going to convince the other, and the proof can only come when we actually see it one way or the other (though for the moment, I am right! 😂).

As for your belief that the NeXtBoX will be a PC in all but name, I am inclined to agree with you, though just how good it is compared to a quality gaming PC is entirely another matter. I think it will still have limitations because to get a decent quality gaming PC, the starting point is a minimum spend of £1600. Mine cost me £2600, and since I bought it 8 years ago, I have added more than £600 worth of improvements. My friend has an absolute beast of a gaming PC that cost him £4600 outright this year, so true PC gaming, with the aim of playing everything in 4K with Ray Tracing, etc. can be very costly. Thus, I'll be surprised if Microsoft can produce anything that is truly capable whilst keeping the cost reasonable, and I don't think they will be willing to swallow much in the way of loses.

I have heard that it is possible that Microsoft will be introducing a new operating system that is not Windows based, and also that the NeXtBoX will have Steam on it, though again, how that will work I don't know, because if they have Steam on their system, then people will not be buying third-party games on the Xbox Store because games are cheaper on Steam. So that particular rumour makes no sense to me, but I'll guess we'll see in 2026...

I just don't understand some of the viewpoints in here.
It was expressed very recently by Phil that nothing is off the table when it comes to porting games to other systems. Some posts appear to have missed that news...
While some might continue to have their needs met by GP, there are many people who prefer to own their games. As Forza 4 disappears forever this week, it's a timely reminder that you cannot count on GP to always deliver even first party titles. If you genuinely want to play a title for years to come, you need to buy it (as I just did, despite owning it on steam already).

@Fiendish-Beaver there is no way Steam's home console will cost anywhere close to $1600. Just like the top tier of steam deck, rog ally, lenovo legion go dont.

The cost of a pc is kind of a mistaken issue that console users cling to. For instance, you only put $600 into it in 8 years, remarkably close to the cost and lifespan of a console. A ps5 pro cost more than that and im sure your upgrade was more noticable. You don't need to upgrade the case, power supply, storage, etc everytime so its a big upfront cost but manageable upgrades. Since your pc plays everything xbox and ps5 plays (and much much more), it's not a bad or outrageously expensive option to just go with a pc instead.

How do you find gaming on a PC these days, @BacklogBrad. Although I have had a gaming PC for 12 years, I'm not particularly competent on them. When I first started getting games to run properly was often a nightmare, and I ended up hating the experience. Indeed, in the last 3 or 4 years, the only game that I have played on my PC was Baldur's Gate 3 and Rocket league, and because I couldn't get BG3 to run smoothly, I had to buy a new graphics card and more (better) memory.

Once BG3 was running smoothly, the experience was fine, so my stance of not gaming on a PC has softened, and I might be tempted to game there in future. It's just that when things go wrong, I'm at a loss as to how to sort them out...

@Fiendish-Beaver I prefer gaming on a pc. I didn't mention it in the previous post but the no membership fee for online play is huge. $80+ per year in savings compared to consoles.

I very rarely run into an issue with getting a game to run. I usually spend about 10-15 minutes optimizing the game at the initial boot then it is good to go. I enjoy the tinkering but in most cases it would run decent enough on default.

Good to know, @BacklogBrad. Thank you. Can you game with someone who is playing on an Xbox without having Game Pass yourself? The friend I play Gears 5 with does not have a PC so he would continue using his Xbox. I'm just wondering whether I would still need to have Game Pass...