Xbox boss Phil Spencer has once again hit out at the idea of platform-exclusive video games, arguing that the very notion of them are "counter to what gaming is about".
Spencer's comments came while defending the Xbox Series X's apparent lack of exclusives during an interview with Gamesindustry.biz. Discussing Microsoft's strategy for next-gen, he confirmed that Xbox will continue to eschew the idea of games that can only be played on one system.
"As a player, you are the centre of our strategy," Spencer explained. "Our device is not the centre of our strategy, our game is not the centre of the strategy. We want to enable you to play the games you want to play, with the friends you want to play with, on any device."
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It's been clear for some time that Microsoft's ultimate goal is to pull away from platform-exclusive titles. The last few years have seen former exclusives like Cuphead come to Nintendo Switch, while the vast majority of first-party Xbox titles have also been launching on PC the same day they hit console.
"Gaming is about entertainment and community and diversion and learning new stories and new perspectives," he added. "And I find it completely counter to what gaming is about to say that part of that is to lock people away from being able to experience those games.
"Gaming is bigger than any one device, and that is something as an industry that we've embraced all up as we bring more and more players in. I think it's vital to the role that gaming can play on the planet."
It's already possible to play all first-party Xbox One games on day one on PC or console via the Xbox Game Pass program, and it sounds like Microsoft will only continue to find news ways to make its games as accessible as possible to as many players as possible. I certainly can't find fault with that plan, and look forward to seeing how Xbox grows as we head into the next generation of consoles.
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While developers under the Xbox Game Studios banner will continue to put out new entries in Microsoft-owned IPs like Halo, gears Of War, Forza, and Fable, the company's new strategy means you won't need to have an Xbox Series X to play these games. That's not to say you'll be able to play Halo Infinite on a PlayStation 5, but the net has been widened considerably.
Topics: PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X