Following last year's announcement of Microsoft's intent to acquire Bethesda's parent company Zenimax Media, the big question has been as to whether the games would still be allowed on non-Microsoft platforms.
While we've known for some time that Ghostwire: Tokyo and Deathloop are both to remain timed-exclusives for PlayStation as per earlier contracts, Xbox boss Phil Spencer has given the company's most definitive answer yet.
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New Bethesda Games Will Be Exclusive To Platforms 'Where Game Pass Exists'
“We have games that exist on other platforms, and we’re going to go support those games on the platforms they’re on,” the Head of Xbox explained.
“There are communities of players, and we love those communities and we’ll continue to invest in them, and even in the future, there might be things that have either contractual things or a legacy on different platforms."
“But if you’re an Xbox customer, the thing I want you to know is this is about delivering great exclusive games for you that ship on platforms where Game Pass exists, and that’s our goal. That’s why we’re doing this, that’s the root of this partnership that we’re building, and the creative capability we’ll be able to bring to market for Xbox customers is going to be the best it’s ever been for Xbox.”
Got all that? So games that are already out on other platforms will see continued support, but any further titles (presumably including the likes of Starfield or the next Elder Scrolls), will be exclusive to Xbox Game Pass and systems it exists on (so, Windows PC and Xbox consoles).
It's perhaps exactly what many had expected (it seems surreal to think Microsoft would spend $7.5 billion on Bethesda just to keep churning out games for PlayStation), but it's certainly nice to have some final clarification.