Xbox
Xbox believes Game Pass can compensate for the loss of sales due to Starfield and Indiana Jones exclusivity
Microsoft is convinced that its subscription service will be able to recover the “losses” it’ll have by not releasing Starfield and Indiana Jones on PlayStation consoles.
Microsoft was clear from the beginning that Starfield and Indiana Jones - as well as the rest of Bethesda’s games - would be exclusive to the Xbox ecosystem when they managed to purchase them. However, they were also very clear that they would have to stop counting on the sales of both games on PlayStation consoles, which they estimated at around 10 million copies for each game. How were they going to make up for that? Xbox has estimated that the growth of Game Pass will be able to offset the “losses” derived from exclusivity.
As reported by IGN, According to CFO of Microsoft Tim Stuart, they thought that losing 20 million copies between the two games on PlayStation 5 could be offset not only by the growth of Xbox Game Pass thanks to this exclusivity, but also due to the increase in sales of consoles.
Microsoft completed the acquisition of Bethesda and its parent company, Zenimax, back in 2020, taking over other studios in addition to Bethesda Softworks, namely Tango Gameworks, Machine Games, Arkane Studios, and more. It was only the first step of a great expansion of Xbox Game Studios at the stroke of a checkbook, something that will also be completed with the acquisition of Activision Blizzard, who beyond Call of Duty will bring other series like Tony Hawk, Crash Bandicoot, and those belonging to Blizzard, such as Diablo, World of Warcraft, Starcraft, and Overwatch.
Indiana Jones, by the creators of Wolfenstein
Just a few weeks ago we finally found out that Indiana Jones would be exclusive to Xbox consoles. With the character on everyone’s lips again thanks to the recent Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, it is Machine Games, creators of the latest Wolfenstein installments, who are in charge of its development. There is still some time left before they’re ready to show something tangible from the game, but for now, it’s certainly become one of the most anticipated third-person adventures in the industry.