Starfield will debut in September as a console exclusive on Xbox but in reality the situation could be different. There was a time when it was apparently close to being an exclusive release for PlayStation 5, or at least that’s what Phil Spencer, head of Xbox, declared.
As part of the lawsuit between Microsoft/Activision Blizzard and the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Phil Spencer confirmed that, before Microsoft bought ZeniMax, there was talk about the possibility that Starfield It won’t come to Xbox. In fact, there are reports, Sony and Bethesda came to have negotiations for it to be an exclusive release for PlayStation 5.
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“When we bought ZeniMax, one of our big motivations was that Sony made deals to DEATHLOOP and ghostwire and paid Bethesda not to release them on Xbox. So when we hear that Starfield potentially skipping Xbox as well, we couldn’t be in a third-place position that would fall even further behind,” Spencer explained.
The possibility that Starfield had some kind of exclusivity with PlayStation before Xbox bought ZeniMax is not unreasonable. After all, Sony paid to have DEATHLOOP and Ghostwire: Tokyo as temporary PlayStation 5 exclusives. In addition, it also got the exclusivity of final fantasy 16, a Square Enix release that was released this week. So, it is clear that it is part of their strategy for this generation and Starfield it would have been a very attractive target for Sony.
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Xbox bought Bethesda to remain “viable”
So, as Spencer explains, Xbox had to act to avoid falling behind and remain “viable in business.” This is why in 2020 it launched an offer to acquire ZeniMax and with this it became the owner of Bethesda and all its studios. Also, this is why they now want to close an agreement to acquire Activision Blizzard.
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Can you imagine Starfield like a PlayStation exclusive? Do you think Xbox acted appropriately to prevent its consoles from missing out on more Bethesda releases? Tell us in the comments.
Starfield will debut on September 6 for Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and PC. Look for more news related to him at this link.
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