Here's A Look At The Updated Xbox Studios Roadmap For 2025 & Beyond

I do wonder if Fable will make 2025. Lots of great games coming up.

I wonder if Fable will slot into the position Indy was in last year. If so, I can see it making the cut and an excellent game for me to lose many hours into over the holidays

With all the drama and debate that's gone on in regards to Xbox's multiplatform push lately, it's easy to forget that the first-party portfolio for 2025 is arguably looking better than ever - and it's already got off to a great start in recent weeks!

Exactly. I mean look at that list, and then look at the whole Game Pass list that includes day one third party games too. That's not factoring in 21 bi-weekly reveals yet to pass, and any reveals at upcoming events. I mean, even the developer direct only went up to Q2, leaving the second half of the year to be revealed (most likely) at the Summer Showcase.

Xbox has never been stronger IMO. It's looking absolutely amazing. Who'd have thought five years back that there'd be a time where Xbox had to delay its own games to make space for their other games lol.

On topic of the list above, I absolutely cannot wait for Fable, and (hopefully next year with a reveal this year) State of Decay 3!!

I know they said that they aren't trying to get PS gamers to switch (which is fine), but if I was seeing this as a PS only gamer and saw that list and I can get all these day one on gamepass...I'd be tempted.

Ninja Gaiden 4 being developed by a Xbox studio? 🤔

Nothing masively of interest this year, Fable might have legs but I can't see it landing in 2015 and I would still say its a coin toss as to if the game is any good. F1 was average But I personally felt the sequels lost interest as the time period moved forward. I have enjoyed the comedic tone of these trailers tho so hoping it lands on the side of decent.

For future releases Blade should be succesful providing its done well, it has the marvel tag whic will help but I worry it will land before the MCU film which would limited how aware of the character younger fans are. Elder Scrolls 6 is still probably a few years out but I am not convinced Todd has the ability to create something thats hold up to the earlier games.

The main "MS" game on the horizon for myself is WoW: Mist of Pandaria Classic but im not sure you can call anything pre War Within MS, even if they do now own Blizzard.

Is there no CoD in 2025?

Yawn, nothing we didn’t already know… wake me up when Avowed is here…. There is no way Fable releases in 2025 … just no space in the schedule for it to land until early 2026 - even if it is ready….

@LogicStrikesAgain Just published by them as far as I can see. Seems out of place on that list however if that the case.

EDIT: Isn't OD the same, Kojima game just publisher by MS

Just reminds me they really need to stop announcing these gases so damn early. Most of these upcoming games were literally announced half a decade ago or more lol

@LogicStrikesAgain

"Ninja Gaiden 4 being developed by a Xbox studio"? 🤔

Yeah, low hanging fruits and all that... By the way there are other games (listed) like OD and Towerborne which are Xbox Studios collaboration games, and it's perhaps similar with Ninja Gaiden 4 (there was an article on PX about how Tecmo was approached by Microsoft on trying to make the game happen, recently). But you probably already new all that....must be a slow news day over on Pushsquare....😉😅

We need to see something of the new Fable.

Elder Scrolls 6 listed under 2025??? 🤭😆😂🤣

@Kaloudz 100% this. I'm relatively new to the Xbox ecosystem (Series X being my first console), but I feel Game Pass gives me so much value. Not every game is one I'll play, but even just a few in the year and I've gotten my money's worth.

Best looking road map out of the big three by miles.
Actually do the others actually reveal much and have a road map nowadays.
They used to, but the others almost gone quiet and dare I say it dam well boring.

Really looking forward to playing fable this year 👍

@FraserG - thanks Fraser. I was hoping there would be but couldn’t remember if they’d said they were skipping a year.

Gamepass really is ridiculously good value - back in the day I’d have bought Avowed, Doom TDA, Fable and CoD2025 on release and may well have been tempted by South of Midnight and Outer Worlds 2 - and that’s without all the third party stuff like Sniper Elite, Atomfall, Wuchang Fallen Feathers, etc.

Announced games only - but still waiting to actually see or hear updates and information about some of these. Contraband, State of Decay 3 and Everwild in particular seem no closer than when announced.

Of course there is more to come - no doubt CoD for 2025 for example. At least maybe the 'Xbox has no games' conversation can be dropped now - they'll release more on Playstation than Sony will in 2025...

Not seeing the Starcraft logo at Blizzard’s Ongoing projects makes my Aiur hurt 😢

@FatGuyInLilCoat you have to factor in the cost of the console too though. £480 for Series X plus £540 for 3 years of Ultimate is £1020. So you would need to buy the equivalent of 15x £70 games on PS5 over those 3 years to make it financially beneficial - and not just any game but specifically those included in the Game Pass library. Realistically this is going to apply to a relatively small number of PS5 owners, only the top gaming enthusiasts.

@Cakefish Not sure why you are quoting RRP prices for an Xbox Subscription? Unlike Sony, Microsoft allow you to buy Digital Subscription and games from 3rd party's.
1 year of Ultimate Gamepass will cost you £92 so 3 years is £276 and Not £540 Lol.
Price for 3 years is from CDkeys for 4 x 3 months of codes x 4

Your also not factoring in a lot of PS5 owners will have a PS Plus tier subscription as well, you have to have a subscription just for cloud saves on PS5!! and there's No buying from 3rd party options.
So £70 each plus 3 years of subscriptions.

@Rog-X the average gamer isn’t going to be aware of the cheaper ways to access Game Pass though, we do because we’re enthusiasts. I’m not saying that the Game Pass factor won’t appeal to any PS5 owner at all, but that it’s going to be a relatively small number in the grand scheme of things.

And the evidence to back this up is actually already out there in the sales numbers of XSX|S; we can clearly see that Game Pass isn’t converting PS5 players into XSX|S owners en masse.

Avowed is supposed to be a solid game. I'm hoping South of Midnight turns out well, as well as Fable.

@Rog-X you can buy PSN store credit from those same sites and use those to pay for sub services or games. An extra step but the end result is the same.

Xbox has a good lineup of games coming and seems to be finally set up to release them at a decent cadence.

Not being funny though, but does this graphic really need to include all the previously released games, especially when that list includes such bangers as Bleeding Edge and Redfall, and Hi-Fi "it was successful by every metric but oops not successful enough for us to keep the studio open" Rush?

This is going to be very interesting. If everyone can get past gasp! Microsoft putting their games on other platforms, we'll be dealing with a pretty financially healthy Xbox, and a publisher in Microsoft who will carry a lot of weight in the industry.

@FatGuyInLilCoat buy a firestick...

@Sol4ris Trust me i get it, it’s actually meant as satire. I’ve been bombarded lately with comments saying games such as Death Stranding 2 and Lost Soul Aside don't count as first party games even though they are published by Playstation. I’m with you though, i’d classify these games as first party since Xbox publishes them and probably partly even funds some of them.

@armondo36 Everyone gets that. Thats not hard to get. But obviously thats not the way Xbox and a large part of their user base wanted things to have gone. Basically they’re saying they wanted to sell consoles but just couldn't, and now they have to put everything on Playstation because they’d rather have the 70% in stead of missing out on it.

It’s not that people don’t get that this is going to financially be a healthier choice, thats easy to see. But this path was their 2nd choice. Preferably they would have wanted to have grown their consoles and get the sales and profit a 100% for themselves. Now they have to pivot and its going to take a bit of a mental pivot as well for some of the user base to get to terms with this. But everyone will get used to it soon, that’s just how things go.

Weird that my comment saying how I was excited to play these games on my PS5 (as MS has confirmed their strategy to go multi platform) was deleted for “trolling/baiting”.

@Deljo yep, as long as you create a gamertag and subscribe to gamepass MS doesn't care how you do it. They'll still consider that joining their ecosystem since they are heavy into cloud

@LaurenceJ1987 Oh hey!! Wow you must be a young'n! Haha, my first console was wayyyyy back in the 90's O_o

Exactly. Of the usual 10+ games that are announced for the service each month (with the next batch for Feb coming tomorrow) there's usually at least a few that I will play - that I either would never have tried, or had to buy outright.

@FatGuyInLilCoat sorry, I completely misread your comment thinking you were a ps only gamer so I suggested a cheap entry. You're absolutely right though, ms doesn't care where the money comes from

While they don't all interest me besides South of Midnight and some like Fable/Perfect Dark may be hit or miss.

I really like this roadmap. Some I'd forgotten like Towerborne so I think they need to market it a bit better.

Contraband I wasn't sure and like Concord, War Thunder/Frame and more I get confused with the names.

But a good mix of big stuff, some others forgotten like Towerborne or Clockwork.

State of Decay 3, Everwild, E Day and probably others may do fair.

But a good mix, fair times of the year and such. I'm impressed. It's probably what many companies try to achieve or we think about as customers/company following types and go ah yeah that is for this period.

Mara/Toys for Bob's projects not surprised that far out.

Nintendo has their side covered. Xbox does now. Sony has third parties in-between and the third parties for the others in their own way.

@AlwaysPlaying Wake up ! Avowed is here and it's not terrible.

Xbox as a gaming company has become an actual green giant behemoth. Imagine for a moment that just in 2017 (before the aquistions starting in 2018), as in less than 10 years ago Xbox only had 5 first party studios. Even the likes of play ground games wasn't first party. Fast forward 8 years and between their first party studios and third party partner publishing Xbox hasn't just flipped the script, but they wrote a freaking fan fiction. I'd be laughed off the internet if I suggested this would be Xbox's lineup and that the vast majority of it is indeed first party.

I do so hate the console comparisons, but just putting it out there if the narrative is that Xbox "gave up" when they're investing this much in gaming (and I do mean investing; Zenimax and ABK weren't hostile take overs (Zenimax had been trying to sell for a while and nearly did to EA) Xbox just really benefited from a time when the games industry was overall on the downturn), then what is Playstation doing but embalming a corpse? I think we can go back and forth on our opinions of a multiplatform release all day, but financially speaking games cost more to develop, produce, and distribute than ever. Companies need to look for ways to grow and there's question if the console market on the whole is still capable of that. This is Xbox's lineup and I just can't help but compare it to Playstation who is staunchly on the other side of the line. From the latest state of play we see that third parties continue to release multiplatform. Playstation first party has largely been quiet with most insider leaks pointing to the canceled games and failed live service projects. I think Playstation will at least have to embrace same day PC or their output will continue to suffer.

As a gamer it's an interesting time, but I think that objectively in terms of games it's better than ever for all of us. Like regardless of what you think on Xbox's strategy they haven't consistently supported this many first party games ever and the quality has been fairly consistent so far as well (the last real flop being Redfall). 2025 on the whole really feels like a great year for gaming releases and I'd say this generation has felt like it's really started since 2023. Imagine getting a new Doom and GTAVI in the same year!

I'm also just going to take this line to call out to the fact that Xbox is now in a place where they can announce a new mainline Doom game in June 2024 and release it in May 2025. In the Xbox Era interview Phil Spencer spoke about having the content lineup where they can give all their studios the time they need to deliver the best game possible and that seems to be the case. I'll be a very happy camper if gone are the days of Xbox announcing a game still in the early concept stages with a CGI trailer like 5+ years early because they're desperate to stay relevant and have nothing big coming anytime soon.

@Kaloudz my first Xbox. Definitely not my first console 😀

Fable looks like a totally different game from the Lionhead Studios Halo that I loved, from the images that are out now.
I will play it because it is Game Pass, but I don't have high hopes for it.

Fable looks like a totally different game from the Lionhead Studios Fable I loved from the videos that are out now.
I will play it because it is Game Pass, but I don't have high hopes for it.

@LogicStrikesAgain back in the day, we used to call games published by platform holders but developed by external studios "second-party games". I like this.

I have to say, that's a terrible infographic:

First off, why put stuff on there that has already released? To bolster the selection? Or it that too cynical?

Secondly, it's so difficult to read. The colours and the background merge making it nigh on impossible to read in places...

@LaurenceJ1987 Ohhhh that's more like it haha! I just saw the 1987 so assuming that's your birth year, we're practically the same age lol.

@Kaloudz You have cracked the code of my user name and worked out my approximate age!

@LaurenceJ1987 Haha!! 1985 here Nice decade, eh?

@LogicStrikesAgain published

@OldGamer999 nintendo probably holding off till switch 2 full showacse along with games.

Sony so far got one of the driest years this gen. DS2 and yotei and while ghost is considered really good game, death stranding has always been very controversial. Not even mentioning its now not a sony studio and it will be timed exclusive.

@Cakefish interesting take but you can do it backwards. As a main Xbox + GP and money saved on GP goes to playstation and its exclusives. Old ones cost pennies on any sale, there are not many new ones so far.

This year alone so far you have roughly 10 games from $50-70 on GP. Also the online access that costs like another AAA game. Even if you are not interested on all these games (fair enough) you can download and try them. Doing that on a playstation costs you full price even if you drop a game in a hour. And there is no good refund system like steam or xbox.
So its hard to NOT save on GP with this method and eventually (sooner or later) you will pay off your PS and games for it.

Also calculating 3 years of GPU for full price is not correct. If you prepay several years you can utilize conversions or buy 3month cards from any retail store and those are usually have discounts too.
Another point is you can pay by month and call it a day which is also a good option.

@Millionski ahhh everyone is misunderstanding me! I’m not arguing from my own perspective. I’m describing it from the average PS5 gamer’s perspective. They aren’t going to be aware of the Game Pass discounts by converting prepaid Core - none of my brothers were aware before I told them, for example. Maybe some of them will use Google and stumble upon CDKeys for slightly cheaper Game Pass, but this certainly won’t be the majority or anywhere close to it. We’re all in the top 0.001% of gamers here in terms of engagement with - and knowledge of - the hobby. Very easy to forget this.

@Toot1st Funnily enough the comment after yours explains why i asked that question.

“death stranding has always been very controversial. Not even mentioning its now not a sony studio and it will be timed exclusive.”

I hear so many arguments that games Sony publishes don't seem to count cause they are not made by a Playstation studio.

Thats why i put my question mark at Ninja Gaiden being classified as an Xbox first party. But it was meant satirical. I’m just doing what some Xbox users seem to do, which is moving goalposts around.

Personally, i do consider games such as Helldivers 2, Death Stranding 2 and Lost Soul Aside, which are published by Playstation, to be first party. And i also consider Ninja Gaiden to be first party. I was just being a bit tongue in cheek and satirical with my comment. Just wanted to show the type of reasoning i usually get bombarded with when taking about Playstation first party output

I was serving in Bomb Disposal in 1985, @Kaloudz. Had been to the Falklands and was about to get married (for the first time!). Way to make me feel old, bud... 😂

@LegendaryLoot I’m ready and downloading … thanks for the wake up!

@Cakefish average ps gamer will never go to xbox. Thats been the case since xbox one flop 12 years ago. Period.
Even if doom and fable is exclusive, people who played on ps for generations and want to play gow and spiderman wont switch platforms.
Its where i totally agree with Spencer.

A good example is forza horizon series that was also perceived by everyone including playstation players as a real top tier xbox exclusive (before recent port announcement) and how many players bought a second box to play it? They wanted it but 99% sticked to their ps and call it a day.

Funnily enough as usual it does not work the other way around as local trolls assume xbox players who amassed libraries and played for 2 gens straight on their xbox, enjoy their GP will suddenly switch next gen to PS.
Again the assumption for some reason is xboxers are looking to exit all the time whereas most people who overcome the xbox one era and stuck with xbox will continue to do so.
Thats why I also dont think next xbox flops or sells considerably (like 50%) less than series.

@Kaloudz All the best people were born in the 80s and I won't hear otherwise...

@Millionski oh I agree with you. The comment I was originally responding to was saying how if they were a PS5-only gamer then Game Pass would be mighty tempting to get them to buy an Xbox. I was just trying to explain why for most PS5 owners that’s unlikely to be the case. Game Pass really appeals to the enthusiasts and/or people who are already in the Xbox community. The promising 2025 Game Pass lineup isn’t going to change that.

@LaurenceJ1987 So good are the 80s that Stranger Things is based there.

@Fiendish-Beaver Oh wow, really? Man, much respect to you dude! That's next level, truly! I bet you've got some tales!

I think there is some merit to what you say about people who have amassed a library of games not wanting to switch to the PlayStation, @Millionski. And I think that because that is part of my troubles with the direction that Microsoft are taking.

The way I see it, you have 3 types of gamers:

1. New Gamers: These are gamers that have never owned an Xbox or a PlayStation. Probabilities are, that they will buy a PlayStation over the Xbox (partly because finding one is proving increasingly difficult!). They will buy a PlayStation because that is what they will most likely be advised by a store salesman, and the probabilities are that their friends will already own a PlayStation. I make that assumption based on the fact that for every one Xbox out there, there are 3 or 4 PlayStations, so the odds do favour their friends being on a PlayStation and not an Xbox.

2. The Casual Gamer: Casual gamers have no brand loyalty, and will buy the console that they are advised to, and where their friends are. So basically, they're in the same bracket as the new gamer. Plus, we have to remember that the majority of gamers are just that, casual, so a good percentage will either be on the PlayStation, or have no issues swapping to it.

3. The Hardcore Gamer: The hardcore gamer (myself included) who has amassed a considerable library of digital games, and who frequents forums such as these. They are probably going to stick with the Xbox. I say probably because I'm not certain that is the case, and I can use myself as an example wherein I have a library of over 1600 digital games, and yet I am debating whether to stick with the Xbox. My thought process is that I get little use out of the Game Pass, and I can still keep my Series X, meaning I do still have access to my games. So, if Microsoft do move to putting all first-party games on the PlayStation, and do so within 3 to 6 months of them releasing on the Xbox, then I can wait that period of time, and happily game on a PlayStation.

3. The Ultra Hardcore Gamer!: These are gamers, such as myself that own all consoles. There are probably more PlayStation gamers that have an Xbox as their secondary console (most often the S) than there are primarily Xbox gamers that own a PlayStation that they use as their secondary consoles. I actually fit into the latter of the two, and I only play Sony exclusives on it. All third-party games, and obviously first-party Xbox games, I play on my Xbox. We often see people on these very forums that say they use an S as their secondary console, mainly for Game Pass, and to play Xbox exclusives. Thus, I don't think we can discount that, come the next generation, many will simply opt to buy a PS6, and forego the next Xbox, if Microsoft are porting all their first-party games at a reasonable cadence and in a timely manner.

The upshot is, in my opinion, that the next Xbox will probably only shift around half the units it has this generation, and that in turn does not bode well for the longevity of Game Pass, nor the possibility of there being another console after the next Xbox...

@Fiendish-Beaver I just don't buy it! I picked up a PS5 4 months ago after being xbox since xbox one, and having well over 100 digital games. PS5 had loads of great games I couldn't get anywhere else, so I got a PS5 to play them. Once there were over 20 PS exclusives I wanted to play, it was a no-brainer. Same reason I got a Switch to play Mario and Zelda (and to bowl!!).
Just having a couple of exclusive games won't tempt anybody from PS5 to Xbox, so just gears and Forza won't do it... but 10 games? 15 games? That's what it would need. And they finally had all the studios to make a go of it... But that opportunity is now lost. Too many mistakes in the past, not enough consoles sold, hence multi-platform.

@Ilyn lol, they are no where near the same price/VFM, even "when" they actually rarely have any store credit worth having.

@Ilyn Nope it's beyond just publishing, Microsoft have already said it's First Party.

https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpreview.redd.it%2Ftefqaqv7tuee1.jpeg%3Fwidth%3D955%26format%3Dpjpg%26auto%3Dwebp%26s%3Da47f252f7cf6e7144fb14e549ce31b355b3e6117

PS Store for Ninja Gaiden 4 (Microsoft corporation)
https://store.playstation.com/en-us/concept/10012110

@Rog-X The point is that you continually bring up that you can only get discounts on Xbox and it's not true.

You can buy store credit if you stop around for up 15% off at times and then spend that however you like. The VFM may not be the same but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist

@Ilyn The point I always bring up is, 'Sony locks you to their store for everything Digital Microsoft are completely the opposite they allow you to shop around via 3rd party.

Has it really been seven years since State of Decay 2?

What have I done with my life?

@LaurenceJ1987 @Kaloudz 1984 here my fellow 80s friends

@FatGuyInLilCoat Welcome to the club! Or should you be welcoming us given you have a year on me and I have 2 on them? :/

@Jark I know right? I'm super hopeful we see SoD 3 at this year's summer showcase.

@LogicStrikesAgain ok

I entirely agree, @Dimey. I foresee many people swapping next generation, but they won't be swapping to the Xbox. Everyone used to agree that exclusives sold consoles, until, that is, Microsoft decided to go multiplatform, and then suddenly we don't need exclusives.

People need to think back to why they chose their first console. Was it because it looked nice? Probably not. Was it because it was the same console that your friends had? Possibly (but then why did they choose that particular console?). Or was it because there was a particular game on it ( or several games) that you wanted to play that wasn't available elsewhere? Highly likely.

I often see people cite Game Pass as a reason to own an Xbox, but in the next breath they say they've been with the brand since the OG, or the 360. Well Game Pass wasn't a thing back then, so that wasn't the reason that you first opted for the console, was it! Yes, Game Pass maybe the reason you stick with Xbox, but it probably wasn't the reason you bought one in the first place.

Lastly, people also say, but I can play Avowed, or Gears of War, or Halo, or whatever on the Game Pass, that is why I choose Xbox. So, if these games are what you find so attractive about the Xbox, imagine if they were exclusive, wouldn't you then consider buying an Xbox in order to play them because they wouldn't be available elsewhere?

Ultimately, exclusives are absolutely a reason to choose one console over another, and we are currently heading in the direction of only one console having exclusives, so it follows that there is only one console most people will choose.

Lastly, I'm with you, I have bought both consoles every time. I started with the PS1, and then the OG Xbox, and have had every iteration since then. I use my PlayStation for the exclusives only, and play all third-party games (and Xbox exclusives) on my Xbox. However, if there are no Xbox exclusives, do I really need to fork out £500-£800 for the next Xbox? Probably not...

@Fiendish-Beaver 100% agree!

@Fiendish-Beaver "Lastly, people also say, but I can play Avowed, or Gears of War, or Halo, or whatever on the Game Pass, that is why I choose Xbox"

"But what are you talking about? Aren't Avowed, Gears, and Halo exclusive? Well, yes, they are exclusive to Xbox! The fact is that Xbox continues its case-by-case strategy and temporary exclusives for some. Absolutely no first-party game from Xbox studios has been released day one on other consoles, haven't you noticed? Or do you have another explanation for that too? All the games that were released day one on other platforms are historically multiplatform games and mainly come from Bethesda and Activision acquisitions. As for Xbox studio games, Sea of Thieves (8 years later), Grounded (6 years later), Forza Horizon 5 (not yet released on PS5 but will be more than 4 years later), Age of Empires and Age of Mythology the same, ....

If you think Forza Horizon 6, Fable, Gears E-Day, etc. will be released day one on other consoles, you are joyfully mistaken, you can capture my message. You didn't understand Xbox's strategy, but you're not the only one, don't worry. Xbox knows very well that these franchises create attractiveness to their ecosystem and then a few years later, when the game becomes aging, they make it profitable again, that's exactly what they are doing currently and that's exactly what they will continue to do!

When Xbox talks about 'everywhere,' they mainly mean PC and cloud; growth markets (PS is in decline). They don't need to release their big franchises day one on other consoles; Xbox, PC, and cloud are more than enough initially. No one, except Nintendo, makes permanent exclusives anymore. Even Death Stranding 2 will be released on Xbox, Silent Hill 2 will indeed be released on Xbox, etc. But who wants to play Fable or Forza Horizon 6 four years later? If you love the franchise, it's evident that it will attract players to Game Pass and to the Xbox ecosystem. It's just the beginning, Xbox is sweeping everything, and you don't see it coming.

Xbox is coming.. lool

I think that you have not been reading what I have written on this matter, @fatpunkslim. What I have consistently said is that the period of exclusivity between the Xbox and the PlayStation will do exactly what happened with Xbox and the PC, but at an accelerated rate.

So, to put it simply, when Microsoft began putting titles on the PC, they did so after there had been a period of exclusivity on the Xbox. Initially, there was a lot of consternation among the Xbox community. However, to start with, there were generally a year or two between launch on the Xbox, and then launch on the PC. Gradually though, that period of console exclusivity whittled away until there was no period of exclusivity at all, and it was just accepted by the Xbox community. The same will happen with Xbox and PlayStation. To start with, there will be a year or more, then six months or more, then three months, then day and date. The difference though, is that where this took maybe 5 years with the PC, it will be done and dusted within 2 years for the PlayStation.

As for E-Day, I actually think it will be a launch title for the Prime in 2026, and then a launch title for the PS6 in 2027/8.

Just watch, wait, and you will see...

@Fiendish-Beaver I don't agree with your comparison with the PC. PC gamers and console gamers are two different types of players. The PC does not compete with consoles, whereas two consoles compete with each other, which is the case between Xbox and PS. Furthermore, Microsoft has always made games on PC, even before making games on the Xbox console. There are even games that were released only on PC and never on the Xbox console. You see? The PC was there before consoles! Your hypothesis does not hold at all; you are only speculating, and the current situation totally contradicts you. That's not at all what Xbox is doing. People think Xbox's expansion strategy concerns PlayStation, but it is the last wheel of the cart. The growth is not there but in the PC and cloud market. For the rest, it's on a case-by-case basis and temporary exclusives. This is the reality. Your speculations don't exist, except in your head. Why wasn't Avowed released day one on PS5? Is it still too early? I bet you in 2 or 3 years you will continue to say the same thing, but it will still not be the case! Xbox has the upper hand; they are the ones who sell games. They have the choice. Nothing obliges them to release their big franchises day one on other consoles. They are largely profitable with Xbox, PC, and the cloud, which are markets with strong growth, unlike the PS5, whose sales have dropped by 35% in a year, and a PS5 Pro that sells less well than a PS4 Pro. Stop swallowing everything you read in clickbait articles.

Like I said, @fatpunkslim, this process will take somewhere between 1 and 3 years to complete. So yes, Avowed does not fall into that equation. Will it go to the PlayStation within the next year or two? Probably.

This June will be the telling point with Microsoft promising to show which games will be going to the PlayStation at the same time. The two questions that then follow are:

1. What will be the time differential? Will those games that feature the PlayStation logo be going day one, or at some point thereafter. And, if sometime thereafter, what is the maximum period of exclusivity on the Xbox before it then goes to the PlayStation. In other words, lets say they reveal E-Day's release date at this June's showcase, and it's coming to the Xbox on the 1st of August 2025. However the trailer also has the PlayStation logo, but no date it given for that release. So if they are revealing that it is going to the PlayStation, what is the maximum period between August 2025 on the Xbox and it's release on the PlayStation? 6 months? A year? More? Plus, let's say that E-Day does not have the PlayStation logo on it. Does that mean that it will never go to the PlayStation, or does it mean that it still will, but it falls outside Microsoft's 'maximum' period of time of exclusivity on the Xbox before it makes the transition to the Xbox. So maybe after 2 years, or more? Just to be clear, I am using E-Day as an example, although it is fair to say that the rumours are that it will launch on the PlayStation too at some point.

Lastly, if you follow the rumours that are currently circulating, Fable will be launching on the PlayStation the same day that it arrives on the Xbox. And that particular rumour is being said by a person with a proven track record, and who told us the date of the Switch 2 reveal before it even happened.

I don't follow clickbait. Never have. However I do listen to people in the know, and also make some educated judgements based on numerous sources. I'm often right, but can admit when I get it wrong, as I did with Starfield, which I believed would hit the PlayStation at the end of last year. Clearly that was wrong, though I do still believe it will move over in the not too distant future. ..

@Fiendish-Beaver We’re not going to agree on this. I base my arguments on reality, while you rely on rumors or hypothetical scenarios that may or may not happen in the future—we’ll see. For now, I’m the one who's right until proven otherwise, IF that "otherwise" ever happens!

If we listened to rumors, Starfield, Hellblade 2, and Forza Horizon 5 would have been ported to PS5 a long time ago. But reality is completely different: these are exclusive games. For how long? Based on the average time current games take to be ported, I’d say around 4 to 5 years—IF the game even gets ported at all, because it won’t necessarily happen.

That brings me back to my point: a timed exclusive is still an exclusive. A 4-year exclusive is still an exclusive. If you want to play a game, you don’t wait 4 years. So, in the end, the impact on the player is the same as with a permanent exclusive (a concept that only truly exists with Nintendo nowadays).

Do you really think Xbox needs PlayStation to sell Fable?

Fable isn’t a live-service game, has no history of being multiplatform, and hasn’t even reached its full potential on Xbox—let alone launched yet! People are overestimating its value. Microsoft wants to make as much money as possible, but they certainly don’t need the 1-3% of PlayStation players who might buy a British RPG without prior exposure to its unique brand of humor.

If anything, Fable will generate more revenue through Game Pass alone than it would from sales anywhere outside of PC. There’s a serious misunderstanding of game development economics and how much Game Pass actually brings in. Even if Playground Games spends $200 million on Fable—which is a high estimate for a non-licensed IP—spread over six years, that’s barely $30M per year.

Game Pass has been criticized for spending $1 billion annually on content acquisition (as if that’s a bad thing) while bringing in over $5 billion in gross revenue. Microsoft has committed to funding four exclusives per year, with some being smaller AA titles, meaning the total cost of these exclusives is unlikely to exceed 10% of Game Pass’s content budget.

By the time these exclusives launch, they’re already paid for—before selling a single copy.

The only thing that I agree with you on in your last comment, @fatpunkslim, is that we will not agree.

As I keep saying, I am prepared to admit when I am wrong, as I did in thinking that Starfield would be ported in 2024, though in that case I think the initial backlash was enough for Microsoft to delay the port. Still think it will happen this year though. Plus, as I keep saying, the process of day and date on both the Xbox and the PlayStation will be done and dusted within 2 years, 3 at the outside.

What I would say though is, if things are so, so rosy for Microsoft, why did they announce a PlayStation port of Indiana Jones? I mean, you say they made their money on the game before it even launched, so why port it? After all, Microsoft had already paid Disney a bunch of money to have it as an exclusive, so why port it after less than six months?

However, like I say, we won't agree, and the way I see it, people that display such fervour when worshiping at the altar of something (in this case Xbox) tend to end up with great disappointment, and in this instance, I really don't see it turning out the way you believe, but each to their own...