Xbox Games on PS5 Is a Win for PlayStation Owners, Says Yoshida 1
Image: Push Square

Shuhei Yoshida, fresh from his departure from PlayStation after an illustrious 30-plus year career, has commented on Xbox’s decision to port its first-party games to PS5.

“I suspect Microsoft is the biggest publisher on PlayStation,” he laughed, as part of an interview with Sacred Symbols+ (paywalled). “Looking at the install base of Xbox, I think it’s natural to understand what they’re doing.”

Hardware sales of the Xbox Series X|S have been plummeting over the past few years, and its unprecedented acquisitions of juggernaut third-party publishers like Bethesda and Activision have left it scrambling for fresh revenue streams.

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“Microsoft looks like it’s been shifting its focus to Game Pass, which perhaps comes from the DNA of the company,” Yoshida observed. “They’re a software company; a cloud company. So, their products, like Office 365, are available everywhere – on Mac, on mobile, on Windows. They are probably hoping Game Pass will be available everywhere in the future.”

It’s unlikely Sony will ever allow Game Pass, in its current guise, on the PS5, as it would eat into its own subscription revenue and third-party game sales. However, a more curated version, similar to EA Play purely comprising Microsoft published games, could perhaps get approval from the Japanese manufacturer in the future.

“I think it’s a win for PlayStation owners,” Yoshida concluded on Microsoft’s decision to bring its games to the PS5. “They’re going to access to games they didn’t previously have access to.”

[source patreon.com]