Microsoft, you might have noticed, now flags that its games are coming to rival platforms during Xbox showcases. It’s something we’ve seen in recent months as part of the company’s multiplatform video game push. For example, the recent Xbox Developer Direct included PlayStation 5 alongside Xbox Series X and S, PC, and Game Pass at the end of the Ninja Gaiden 4, Doom: The Dark Ages, and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 segments.
As recently as Microsoft’s June 2024 showcase, that wasn’t the case. There, Doom: The Dark Ages was announced for PlayStation 5 immediately after the Xbox event, although subsequent individual trailers did feature the PS5 logo. BioWare’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard was down as coming to Xbox Series X and S and PC, skipping the PS5 version. It was the same for Diablo 4 expansion Vessel of Hatred and Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows.
Sony and Nintendo continue to take a different approach. The recent State of Play showcase did not mention Xbox at all, even though it included multiplatform games. For example, the Monster Hunter Wilds segment finished with the release date and PS5 logo only. No word of PC, Steam, or Xbox. Sega’s Shinobi: Art of Vengeance was shown as coming to PS4 and PS5, even though it’s also coming to PC via Steam, Xbox Series X and S, and Nintendo Switch. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater and Onimusha: Way of the Sword were in the same boat.
Sony, clearly, is sticking to what’s worked for its gaming business for decades now, reinforcing its consoles as PlayStation’s point of interest. Microsoft’s well-documented change in strategy, however, has come with a corresponding change in marketing.
In an interview with XboxEra, Microsoft gaming boss Phil Spencer was asked directly about Xbox showcases featuring the PlayStation logo now.
Here’s the question:
Is this just hey, this is the band-aid off guys, there’s still going to be different decisions but this is the new era. Get used to the way things are going to be. How would you frame that to the community?
And here’s Spencer’s answer:
I think it’s just being honest and transparent about where the games are showing, and we actually even had this discussion last year for the June showcase, and by the time we kind of made our decision, we couldn’t get all of the assets done and it felt weird to have some of them in and some of them out.
But I just want to be transparent with people — for shipping on Nintendo Switch, we’re gonna put that. For shipping on PlayStation, on Steam… People should know the storefronts where they can get our games, but I want people to be able to experience our Xbox community in our games and everything we have to offer, on every screen we can.
And obviously not every screen is equal. Yeah, like there’s certain things we can’t do on the other closed platforms that we can do on open platforms, cloud — it’s different. But games should be the thing that we’re focused on. And the strategy that we have allows us to do big games, while also supporting our native platform from hardware to the platform and services that we have and that’s going to be our approach.
And I know it’s not what everybody else is doing, but I just believe games should be the thing that’s at the forefront. Maybe it’s because of how I’ve grown up in this industry. I came from building games. But I think the games are the things that I see growing in their strength in what we’re doing and it’s because more people can play. So yeah, I’m just trying to be open and transparent with people.
With this in mind, expect to see more logos for PS5 and, in the future, Nintendo Switch 2 in Xbox showcases. So, when Microsoft hosts its inevitable June 2025 showcase, perhaps then we’ll see the likes of Gears of War: E-Day, Fable, Perfect Dark, State of Decay 3, and of course this year’s Call of Duty with a PS5 logo alongside Xbox.
Just don’t expect Nintendo and Sony to follow suit.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
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