Recently, Bethesda Game Studios became officially part of the Xbox family. In this slogging post, we discuss whether Xbox will use Bethesda's acquisition to make its future games exclusive.  We agree to disagree. This Slack discussion by Jack Boreham, Nicolas Ng, Limarc Ambalina, JeffreyHarris-HackerNoon occurred in slogging 's official #gaming channel and has been edited for readability. Will Xbox make Bethesda’s future titles exclusive? I think that Xbox will make new Bethesda IP’s exclusive such as starfield but will make previous IP’s available to all platforms. Jack Boreham Mar 10, 2021, 1:53 AM I think that Microsoft would go all-in on exclusivity and make all future releases Xbox/PC exclusive. If Sony keeps making great first-party single-player exclusives, there's no reason why Microsoft would shy away from trying the same. Their consoles don't have many games going for them. Nicolas Ng Mar 10, 2021, 4:02 PM Jack do you mean exclusive forever or just like for 6 months? Or do you think they'll be "timed exclusives" like FF7 was supposed to be? Limarc Ambalina Mar 10, 2021, 4:04 PM Because never in my life do I think Bethesda would go for 100% Microsoft exclusivity. I'm willing to wager a majority of their sales for Skyrim were via PS3 and PS4. So doing so would be agreeing to lose a majority of your sales. Limarc Ambalina Mar 10, 2021, 4:04 PM For entirely new exclusives, I think they might go 100% exclusivity. But for old IPS such as the next elder scrolls, they won't, or it might be timed exclusives. Jack Boreham Mar 10, 2021, 4:45 PM Ahh for entirely new IPs that is completely possible. Whether it's a good business decision is not in my wheelhouse. But when I heard FF7 is a timed exclusive, I thought that as a bad idea. People have been waiting years for that game, and if it were solely on PlayStation 4, man fans are hardcore enough to buy a console to play that game. But maybe there's a piece of the puzzle I'm not seeing. Limarc Ambalina Mar 10, 2021, 4:47 PM I think maybe some select titles will, or they will be timed exclusive. Let's be frank. Game console exclusivity is not what it was in the 90s or 00s. Even if Microsoft owns Bethesda now, they can't just shut off all that revenue they would earn by releasing games on PlayStation 4 or even the Switch. JeffreyHarris-HackerNoon Mar 10, 2021, 5:01 PM Exactly what Jeffrey is saying; in the end, would that be a smart move for Microsoft either? Bethesda's revenue is now Microsoft's revenue, so they must decide if they will make all the money Bethesda loses in sales to other consoles by forcing people to buy their consoles to play Bethesda games. With the public's reaction to Fallout 76, I don't think that is likely. Limarc Ambalina Mar 10, 2021, 5:07 PM Although I agree with both of you, part of Xbox’s business model in the future is Xbox games pass. They want to boost the service, and it's where they are placing their bets in terms of revenue. It would make sense to put some exclusives on the platform to drive sales of this service. Despite the backlash, I still think people will buy the games and perhaps invest in games pass. That's why I'm slightly hesitant to agree they will be timed exclusive I think Bethesda games will be either fully exclusive or not at all. Jack Boreham Mar 10, 2021, 6:14 PM I think I agree with Jack on this. Xbox is going all-in on Game Pass, and they will do anything to make it as successful as can be. Mar 10, 2021, 6:15 PM I mean PlayStation in general, not PS5. JeffreyHarris-HackerNoon Mar 10, 2021, 6:26 PM Not just PS4, I mean, oops. JeffreyHarris-HackerNoon Mar 10, 2021, 6:26 PM That's even harder now, though. So this is what the future would be in that model. User: I want to play [New Bethesda IP], but it's not available on PS5...hmm, so I have to buy a USD $399 console to play this game. Microsoft: You should also try this subscription service User: But I just paid $399  to play this $80 game Limarc Ambalina Mar 11, 2021, 12:11 AM I know I'm cynical, but it just doesn't seem like it would work. Limarc Ambalina Mar 11, 2021, 12:12 AM But the great thing about games pass is that its available on pc and mobile, meaning you don't need to buy a new console. They want to make the service as accessible as possible for everyone. Thus, signing up for games pass due to exclusivity is now more enticing than ever. Its a business model I think they will utilise, and it will pay off. Jack Boreham Mar 11, 2021, 4:16 PM Ahh, so they are pairing games pass with cloud gaming allowing you to play next-gen games on moderate PCs? Limarc Ambalina Mar 11, 2021, 4:18 PM Yeah. I think you can download Xbox games pass right now on PC!! Jack Boreham Mar 11, 2021, 6:06 PM

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Will Future Bethesda Titles be Xbox Exclusives?

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