Xbox opens ‘Starfield’ to PlayStation gamers in further blow to exclusivity

A gamer plays on a game at the Microsoft Corp. XBox stand at the Gamescon video games trade fair in Cologne, Germany, on Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (Alex Kraus/Bloomberg)

Microsoft subsidiary Bethesda said Tuesday hit space exploration game “Starfield” will appear on rival Sony’s PlayStation 5, effectively ending the practice of keeping some releases exclusive to Xbox consoles.

Only available on the latest-generation Xbox machines and PC since its 2023 release, “Starfield” was developed by the same Bethesda studio as hit series “Fallout” and “The Elder Scrolls”.

Bethesda Softworks’ parent company ZeniMax Media was bought by Microsoft for US$7.5 billion in 2021.

A similar buyout in late 2023 of “World of Warcraft”, “Candy Crush” and “Call of Duty” publisher Activision Blizzard was supposed to stoke purchases of Xbox hardware -- although Microsoft assured gamers that the “Call of Duty” shooter series would remain available on PlayStation.

But slumping sales of the tech giant’s Xbox Series X and S, released in 2020, have prompted Microsoft to change tack since 2024.

Some previously exclusive titles have been available more broadly as the company looks to recoup the swelling costs of developing high-end games.

In 2025, Microsoft said that the next instalment in its sci-fi shooter saga “Halo” would also come out on PlayStation, a first for the series.

Microsoft -- which has been selling successive versions of the Xbox for 25 years -- is not giving up on the hardware market.

Its gaming unit this month said it was working on a new console, dubbed “Project Helix”.

And the group’s former AI chief Asha Sharma has taken over the gaming division from previous leader Phil Spencer.

Microsoft has not named a release date for “Project Helix”, which Xbox vice-president Jason Ronald said will be capable of playing both PC and Xbox games.

The machine will offer “an order of magnitude leap” in graphics capability, Ronald promised, leading to “more realistic, immersive and dynamic worlds for players”.

Developer versions of the console will be made available to studios next year, he added.