Bethesda’s first new IP in 25 years, Starfield, is currently the hot topic in the gaming community. Ever since its announcement, the game has been highly anticipated, and its Early Access has created quite some headlines. The long-awaited sci-fi RPG’s official wide release date is September 6, 2023, for Xbox and PC.
While it is exclusive to Microsoft devices, some Sony gaming enthusiasts are still wondering if it will ever come to the PlayStation 5.
Following the announcement of the game, Microsoft spent $7.5 billion to acquire ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda Softworks, in 2021. However, the acquisition means that the long-awaited space ARPG is exclusive to its PC and Xbox and will not be available for PS5. The decision for such a big deal came for the game upon hearing that Starfield was said to be an exclusive to PlayStation.
Why Is Starfield Not On PS5?
Microsoft’s huge $7.5 billion acquisition deal of Bethesda’s parent company, ZeniMax Media, was a huge reason behind getting Starfield’s exclusivity. With the deal, Microsoft also promised that Redfall will also be their own exclusive and will not be available for PS5.
The Xbox’s CEO, Phil Spencer, was concerned that Sony was going to make Bethesda’s space epic a PlayStation exclusive and skip Xbox.
“The discussion about Starfield when we heard that Starfield was potentially also going to end up skipping Xbox, we can’t be in a position as a third-place console where we fall further behind on our content ownership, so we’ve had to secure content to remain viable in the business,” said Spencer.
Will Starfield Be On All Consoles?
Starfield is just one of several new releases published by Bethesda Game Studios that will be Xbox-exclusive. However, it is being questioned whether the game would be available for other consoles or not.
Unfortunately for a few gamers, it won’t come to PS5, PS4, or any consoles, as of now. While it may be heartbreaking news for all the Play Station gamers, they won’t be getting their hands on Starfield unless they’ve also got access to a PC or Xbox console.
Why Is Starfield An Xbox Exclusive For Microsoft?
The comment by Xbox CEO Phil Spencer seemed to be aggressive and painted Sony as a hostile competitor. In his testimony, he revealed that Sony has captured 30 percent of the revenue that they make on their platform.
“Every time we ship a game on PlayStation. Sony captures 30 percent of the revenue that we do on their platform and then they use that money among other revenue that they have to do things to try to reduce Xbox’s survival on the market.”
Xbox CEO Phil Spencer.
Following the same competitive spirit, the company decided to make Starfield an Xbox exclusive for Microsoft. Phil Spencer acknowledges that in their competition with Sony in over two decades, they have failed to do that effectively.
With all that, it seems to be impossible that the game would be available on PS5 due to the rivalry. However, if the users are looking into Starfield backgrounds and starting skills for your character or sketch out ideas for Starfield ship customization, Xbox and PC are their only options.
The game has been positively received by many upon its launch, and it does seem to reaffirm Spencer’s decision to acquire such a big deal.
Let us know what do you have to say about the hype around Starfield, and do you think it deserves all the attention?
Comment down your thoughts, and stay tuned for more updates.
