Sony is preventing four (4) games from coming to Xbox. Earlier in October, Microsoft replied to the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). It stated that Sony permanently blocked famous titles from reaching the Xbox console.
These titles include the Final Fantasy VII remake, Final Fantasy XVI, Bloodborne, and Silent Hill 2 Remastered. Microsoft also responded by making three (3) Bethesda games exclusive to the Xbox and PC.
“In addition to having outright exclusive content, Sony has also entered into arrangements with third-party publishers which require the “exclusion” of Xbox from the set of platforms these publishers can distribute their games on. Some prominent examples of these agreements include Final Fantasy VII Remake (Square Enix), Bloodborne (From Software), the upcoming Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix), and the recently announced Silent Hill 2 remastered (Bloober team).” – Microsoft.
A Quick Recap
Let’s do a quick run-through of what’s happened to bring you up to speed. Microsoft announced that it would acquire Activision Blizzard on January 18, 2022. Activision has one of the most famous games — Call of Duty.
However, multiple third parties saw this as a threat to the video game market. Names like the Federal Trade Commission and UK’s CMA made attempts to investigate further. This investigation is also due to Microsoft’s bold action having the potential to harm the competition.
Sony joined in on filing for an inquiry mainly because the acquisition by Microsoft could significantly hurt them. Furthermore, it is due to the Xbox Game Pass being a direct competitor of the PlayStation Plus.
Where Is Sony Making The Games Available?
The deals with third-party publishers exclude Microsoft from distribution. However, they did intend for the Final Fantasy VII (FFVII) remake to be a timed exclusive for PlayStation 5 (PS5). They also hoped that it could make its way to the Xbox.
What’s interesting is the clause in the arrangement intended for the game’s PC version. It is also available on Steam, but not for the Xbox. Furthermore, Final Fantasy XVI (FFXVI) will launch on June 22, 2023, as a PS5 exclusive.
However, the title might eventually make its way to the PC. Square Enix has a six-month exclusivity deal but has yet to confirm if the game can be on the PC. Yet, they stated in the agreement that FFXVI is available on other platforms.
What Can We Expect?
With Sony’s bold move, Microsoft decidedly released a statement defending the acquisition of Activision Blizzard. In that statement, they announced making a few games from Bethesda Softworks Xbox exclusive.
The games include titles like Starfield and Redfall, alongside another unnamed title. They plan to make them exclusive on the Xbox and Windows. However, Microsoft stated its willingness to continue supporting multiplatform Bethesda games.
These Bethesda games include Fallout 76, The Elder Scrolls, and Minecraft. However, we have no updates regarding the third game Microsoft plans to make exclusive. We can only assume it might be the sixth title of The Elder Scrolls franchise.
We’ll let you know more once we have updates. If you want to read other articles, go to our website. You can also follow us on social media to stay updated with news about esports and gaming.
