Starfield will not remain exclusive to Xbox, Phil Spencer hints

Summary

In an interview, Phil Spencer is asked if Starfield is guaranteed to be exclusive to the Xbox console.
Spencer says no, and that there is no way any game will be ported to other consoles.
This comes after numerous rumors that the Bethesda game would be coming to PS5.

Early last year, there were rumors that Xbox would port Starfield to PlayStation 5. This received a lot of attention, to the point where many were waiting for the announcement. However, one of the speakers backtracked on this and said he was wrong and that the game wasn’t “destined” for PS5.

Now, almost exactly a year later, it looks like Starfield could be coming to PS5 after all. In an interview with journalist Destin Legarie, Xbox boss Phil Spencer was asked whether Starfield will “stay put” for the time being. His answer was a definitive “no”, as he emphasizes that no game is ruled out for a multi-platform release.

Starfield is not a guaranteed Xbox console exclusive

Phil Spencer reaffirms that no game is excluded from Xbox’s multiplatform strategy

“There is no reason for me to shut down any match and say this match is not going anywhere [where] it would find players where it would have business success for us,” says Spencer. “Our strategy is to make sure our games are available. Game Pass is an important part of playing the games on our platform, but keeping games from other platforms isn’t an avenue for us.”

Legarie then asks Spencer about fan concerns, as many are less than optimistic about Xbox’s focus on Game Pass, rather than securing console exclusives. In response, Spencer admits that Xbox’s identity “will evolve”, but states that it has “always been that way”.

The arrival of Starfield on PS5 would certainly be a huge milestone in Xbox’s new strategy. Before the game’s release in 2023, it was one of the most anticipated games to be banned from the PS5 and Switch, and from day one it was also dropped on Game Pass. However, it looks like this wasn’t enough to beat PlayStation at its own game, as Xbox is now focusing on selling Game Pass subscriptions and making its games available elsewhere.