Microsoft’s acquisition of Bethesda/ZeniMax can be seen as a direct answer to Sony’s first party strength. It should also be seen as an investment on their Xbox Game Pass platform, which is considered by the company as its future, and more importantly, the future of the industry.
With Microsoft wanting to put Game Pass on every screened device available in the market today, it is easy to wonder that if Microsoft doesn’t do well in this upcoming generation in terms of hardware sales, perhaps, the Xbox Series X will end up being the last console that is made by the company.
Phil Spencer shut down any doubts about the future of Xbox hardware on a recent interview.
“I’m in control of the experience and I think gaming is going through that same transformation, which is why as you say, if you’re a Game Pass subscriber you can now play your great games on our Xbox console, on your PC or now on your Android phone via streaming. In terms of future hardware, absolutely I think we’re going to see more console hardware down the road. Just like in video, just like in music it’s not that streaming has cut off device innovation. I think we’ll continue to see that and that’s absolutely what we’re planning for.”
Spence goes on to reinforce the importance of Game Pass to the entire next gen experience whether it is on the xCloud (android), PC, or on Xbox consoles.
The question about how its new found ownership of Bethesda/ZeniMax would affect the cross-platform viability of games like The Elder Scrolls 6, did present itself towards the later half of the interview.
Phil Spencer, once again confirmed what we have long suspected, Microsoft did not invest 7.5 billion dollars purchasing those studios (and its internal IPs) to have those games appear on PlayStation consoles.
The company wants to sell Xbox consoles, and most of all, Game Pass subscriptions. The way to do that, is to entice gamers to subscribe to the service by offering premium exclusive content with the subscriptions.
The Elder Scrolls franchise appearing on PlayStation platforms doesn’t fit the “Exclusive” content goals of the company. After all, while you did see Horizon Zero Dawn on PC, you won’t see it on Game Pass, or Xbox consoles.
“Xbox Game Pass is the flywheel that we are feeding there (by acquiring Bethesda/ZeniMax).We have over 15 million subscribers now for Game Pass, and it continues to grow across Consoles, PC, and now Streaming to Phones. We want to make sure that subscribers to Game Pass feel like they have a consistent set of games to go play. In terms of where games will show up, our commitment is that our games will show up in Game Pass and on PC and on Console (Xbox), and be available on xCloud (Android). Other platforms will be taken on a case by case basis. We want the Xbox ecosystem to be absolutely the best place to play.
There you have it. Want the next Doom, or the next Fall Out, or the next Elder Scrolls? If you don’t have a competent gaming rig on your PC, Xbox Series X/S is the only other way to go, unless you want to play on Android Phones.