Exclusive Insights: Bethesda Executive Reveals the Incredible Benefits of Making Starfield an Xbox Exclusive

Bethesda’s Head of Publishing Pete Hines has provided a reason for why Starfield being an Xbox exclusive is actually a positive thing. Despite some gamers pushing for the game to be brought to the PS5, it is highly unlikely to happen, and there are a few reasons behind this decision.

The main reason is the fact that Bethesda, the game's developer, was acquired by Microsoft in March 2021. Prior to the acquisition, it was expected that the highly anticipated new IP would be released on both Sony and Microsoft consoles, and there were even rumors that Sony wanted Starfield as a timed PS5 exclusive. However, everything changed after the deal was finalized, as a leaked E3 2021 trailer revealed that the game would only be available on Xbox Series X/S and PC.

Microsoft is facing obstacles in its attempt to finalize the acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The company is currently embroiled in a legal battle with the FTC, which is seeking a preliminary injunction to temporarily halt the deal. As part of the ongoing hearing, key executives, including Pete Hines, the Head of Publishing at Bethesda, have been summoned to testify. Hines expressed his personal support for making Starfield an exclusive game for Xbox consoles.

Not having to worry about the specific requirements and differences between two console ecosystems has greatly increased the efficiency of the development team. With only one platform to focus on, quality assurance can conduct more rounds of testing. For instance, Hines gave an example of assigning 100 testers to an Xbox build instead of splitting them between two platforms.

If Starfield had been developed for both PS5 and Xbox simultaneously, testers' attention would have been divided, resulting in fewer issues being identified and slower progress. This would have led to longer development time and increased costs. In fact, Head of Microsoft Studios, Matt Booty, previously stated that Starfield will have the fewest bugs compared to any other Bethesda game, and this may be attributed to its Xbox exclusivity. However, Hines also expressed his concern about the disappointment of PlayStation fans regarding the exclusivity announcement.

Starfield is currently available on various platforms, including PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

Source: Polygon