Microsoft Will Honour Deathloop & Ghostwire PlayStation Exclusivity
Earlier today, Microsoft announced their acquisition of ZeniMax Media Inc. and Bethesda for $7.5 billion; their largest video game deal ever. The acquisition brings all Bethesda games directly into Microsoft ownership, including franchises like The Elder Scrolls and Fallout. However, despite that change, Microsoft has confirmed that they will honour the existing PlayStation exclusivity deals for both Deathloop and Ghostwire: Tokyo. Future releases, however, may not come to PlayStation at all.
Deathloop & Ghostwire: Tokyo Will Remain PlayStation Exclusives
Deathloop and Ghostwire: Tokyo are both upcoming games in development at studios owned by ZeniMax Media; Arkane Studios and Tango Gameworks, respectively. More importantly, both will be launching as timed exclusives for PlayStation. These deals were made with Sony long before today’s acquisition. As such, Microsoft have confirmed that they will be honouring these past commitments, even though it means that the two games not coming to their own console for much longer.
However, the purpose of the Bethesda acquisition is obviously meant to boost Xbox’s range of first-party exclusives. As such, future Bethesda games may not be coming to the PlayStation at all. According to Microsoft, Bethesda games will now always launch on both PC and Xbox. However, they will only come to other consoles; “on a case by case basis”. This means that huge upcoming titles like Starfield and The Elder Scrolls VI could end up being PC and Xbox exclusives in some form or another.
Until now, Xbox’s next-gen exclusive offerings have generally paled in comparison to those of the PlayStation. (Especially after the delay to Halo: Infinite’s release date.) This new acquisition is a huge shift in this regard and could have a major impact on whether players invest in an Xbox Series X or a PlayStation 5. It remains to be seen how significant of an impact it will have on consumers. However, it certainly makes Xbox look far more competitive.