It has been roughly a year and a half since Starfield was released for Xbox/PC and Phil Spencer denies that it will remain exclusive to those platforms. Starfield launched for PC and Xbox in September 2023 and went on to become yet another blockbuster game for Bethesda Game Studios (Elder Scrolls, Fallout). It has yet to be ported over to another console and as such, is a topic regularly brought up with the Microsoft CEO. “To keep games off of other platforms, that’s not a path for us, it doesn’t work for us,” shared Spencer in a brief interview with Destin Legarie.
Phil Spencer on Starfield exclusivity
— Destin (@DestinLegarie) January 25, 2025
Destin: "Can you solidify that Starfield is staying put for the time being?"
Spencer: "No."
Source: https://t.co/ccNXLG6GU5 pic.twitter.com/r6sfx9e193
Per Phil Spencer (transcribed by VGC):
“What we find is we’re able to drive a better business that allows us to invest in a great game lineup like you saw, that’s our strategy. Our strategy is to allow our games to be available. Game Pass is an important component of playing the games on our platform.”
Speculation that a PlayStation 5 version is in the works has been circulating for some time leading to rumors that port is on the way along with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and Halo: The Master Cheif Collection. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Phil Spencer denies that any game would remain off other platforms since he has repeatedly emphasized that Microsoft is open to bringing games to other consoles such as Sony’s PlayStation or Nintendo Switch.
Meanwhile, id Software’s DOOM: The Dark Ages is set to launch for Xbox Series X|S, PC, and PlayStation 5 via Xbox Game Pass, Xbox app, and Steam on May 15. The developers behind Doom were acquired by Microsoft in 2020 when it purchased ZeniMax Media in a deal reportedly worth $7.5 billion which also included Bethesda Game Studios, Arkane Studios, and MachineGames.