Insider Gaming’s Tom Henderson, a well-known industry leader, claims that the next Doom game will be unveiled very soon at the Xbox Games Showcase.
On June 9th, the showcase will be live streamed and a Call of Duty Black Ops 6 direct will come right after. The game is expected to be the first new multi-platform release since Xbox’s much-rumored change in release strategy. It will reportedly launch on the PS5 on the same day as the Xbox release.
Xbox Fans Aren’t Happy About Xbox’s Shift in Strategy
While the lack of console exclusivity is a piece of great news for all potential players, some Xbox fans aren’t quite as happy.
LETS GO 😭😭 XBOX IS SAVED
— fourfive (@fourfivesix66) May 24, 2024
Their concern is that going multiplatform will negatively affect this game and its sales on the console, possibly leading to less hardware and software sales, and maybe even fewer game pass subscribers that would otherwise play this on Xbox rather than PlayStation.
The death of Xbox is
— Noir 浮世 (@madcap412) May 24, 2024
This could in turn lead to the game not being as profitable on Xbox consoles, which might lead to the studio being affected in some shape or form. Given their history of recent layoffs and studio closures, it’s definitely a concern that people can empathize with.
@Xboxp3 Phil if you want Xbox to be more of a success you gotta tighten the grip. Everything has to be exclusive. sony pays to have games skip Xbox. Think about it
— Interruption (@Interruption1) May 24, 2024
After all, Xbox did acquire these studios to boost its first-party portfolio after years of criticism and lackluster games. But their strategy has recently shifted to become a third-party published first, and a console-maker second.
I really want Phil to answer why having these types of games on PS5 and seeing the best console version not on an Xbox is great for long time Xbox fans.
— dancmc (@dancmc) May 24, 2024
The main reason for this new strategy seems to be due to a big decline in hardware sales this console generation. Although Xbox Game Pass has been faring well, it’s not enough to carry the entire Xbox brand in terms of yearly performance and revenue goals.
What Could This Mean for Xbox’s Console Exclusivity?
Xbox hasn’t had a definitive stance when it comes to exclusivity of their newest acquisitions – Bethesda and Activision Blizzard. Last year, Phil Spencer stated that they would approach the games on a case-by-case basis like they did with Starfield last year. The upcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will mostly definitely be multiplatform as well, and launch on both the consoles on the same day.
Earlier this year, both Hi-Fi Rush and Sea of Thieves launched on PlayStation. Sea of Thieves was made by Rare, which has been owned by Xbox since 2002. After this, industry analysts don’t doubt that anything is off the table.
Leakers have also shared rumors corroborating that the publisher is fine with even first-party games like Gears and Halo eventually coming to Playstation, as they move to focus more on being a publisher in a bid to do their own thing and not directly compete with Nintendo or Playstation as a console maker.
But even with the lack of console exclusivity, the publisher is still betting hard on Xbox Game Pass to be its big money maker. The next Call of Duty and Doom games, as well as everything else that is first-party, will still come to Game Pass on Day One, and this could be a big difference for a lot of players when they have to choose between either the Xbox or the PlayStation ecosystem.
What do you think of the first-party games coming to Playstation at launch? Let us know in the comments.
