Games once considered console-exclusive to the Xbox platforms are now appearing on the PS5 and Nintendo Switch.
Console wars have a long and stories history, dating back in the minds of many to Nintendo’s SNES facing off with the Sega Genesis. The current console generation, made up of the Microsoft Xbox series, the Nintendo Switch and Switch 2, and the Sony PlayStation 5, is often seen as less contentious. But it has remained very competitive between the console makers.
Microsoft has now seen to a change of tactics that has the global technology company bringing even its most protected intellectual properties to the consoles it once competed directly against.
There are many reasons why Microsoft is bringing console-exclusive Xbox games to the PS5 and Switch. The PS5 in particular is an attractive destination for many Xbox games, as the Xbox and PS5 run comparable hardware and thus make for easy game ports. Conversely, the Switch’s less powerful hardware requires more concessions and more work, though the release of the Switch 2 has brought Nintendo’s latest console offering more in line with its Microsoft and Sony cousins.
It was long considered an inevitability by some in the industry that Microsoft would one day retreat from making video game consoles to focus on games and its Windows PC efforts. The decision to drop exclusivity could be a further hint towards that outcome.
The move isn’t as landscape-shifting as it once might have been. These days, Xbox and PS5 games alike all tend to make their way to the PC, allowing players to experience games no matter their console-exclusivity so long as they have a PC of sufficient hardware strength.
Console production isn’t necessary the most profitable of Microsoft’s ventures. Making games is still a definite priority for the company, and its acquisitions of such prolific game developers as Activision-Blizzard and Bethesda have made that very clear.
But being in the video game business doesn’t require console production. And that’s especially true when there’s so much emphasis on the PC as a platform, a market that Microsoft already has largely squared away with its nearly ubiquitous Windows operating system.
Several games have already made the jump from being Xbox exclusives to releasing on other video game consoles, and there are a few that clearly stand out as being among the best.
Xbox release date: November 2022
PS5 and Switch release date: February 2024
Pentiment asks players to break out their detective hats in a murder mystery for this medieval adventure game. It takes place in 16th-century Bavaria with a 2D style that lends a unique visual aesthetic to the proceedings.
In 2023, Pentiment won both the Immersive and Interactive Peabody Award and Best Narrative at the 23rd Game Developers Choice Awards. It’s no surprise that such an acclaimed game would eventually get a PS5 and Switch port.
Xbox release date: March 2018
PS5 release date: April 2024
Released initially as an exclusive for the Xbox One, Sea of Thieves is still very popular with over 40 million players involved. It’s easy to see why – who doesn’t want to be a pirate earning their reputation and scrounging up booty? Players must take care of their ship, trade at outposts, and battle with anyone who thinks they’re more worthy of pirated loot.
The game is a multiplayer standout and now supports crossplay, making it even more attractive to players across a range of platforms. Whether a player has an Xbox One, XBox X|S Series, or a PS5, there’s now a way to adventure the high seas with friends.
Xbox release date: September 2022
PS5 and Switch release date: April 2024
Players who want to play a cross-platform co-op game need look no further than Grounded. In this survival setting, between one and four players are shrunk to the size of ants and need to survive a backyard world of hostile insects and more.
Survival elements must be considered throughout the adventure, incluindg food and water, dangerous creatures lurking behind tall blades of grass, and the effort to eventual return to normal size. Living a bug’s life is no easy thing.
Xbox release date: November 2021
PS5 release date: April 2025
Forza Horizon 5 is one of the most recent additions to the line-up of Xbox exclusive games to port over to other consoles. Considered by many to be one of the best Xbox games, Forza Horizon 5 launched to over 10 million players within the first week of its release and won several awards for its advanced racing gameplay and fine visuals.
The racing game stands out for a few reasons. First, the map is huge and full of variety, containing active volcanoes, lush jungles, long beaches, and more. It also has fun mini-games to divert players from the litany of races, and on the technical side it was the first game in the series to introduce ray tracing and new advanced weather systems.
Xbox release date: December 2024
PS5 release date: April 2025
Fans of Indiana Jones get to see and play a brand new adventure in the franchise with the release of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. From a first-person perspective, players must stop the Axis Powers from harnessing a strange occult power through a trademark combination of combat, discovery, and puzzle-solving.
For a narrative game, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle also grants a lot of freedom. Its levels have multiple ways available to reach their goals as well as sandbox areas like Vatican City. Collecting Adventure Books also grant permanent boosts, further motivating players to explore each and every nook and cranny in this expansive game.
With Xbox exclusives now confirmed for the PS5 and Switch, gamers are speculating about which games could see ports next.
NateTheHate has claimed that Halo: The Master Chief Collection will be coming to PS5 and the Switch 2, as will Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024. Other games possibly making the jump to the PS5 include Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, Age of Mythology, and Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2.
Microsoft has stated that there are “no red lines” when it came to migrating Xbox exclusives to other platforms. Popular release Avowed could even be up for grabs, provided other the console receiving the port has the appropriate hardware.
Interestingly, most of the confirmed games don’t involve the Nintendo Switch 2 despite its greater power. Nintendo would almost certainly like to see more popular games brought over to its console so that it’s not so reliant on first-party efforts, but there still seems to be more work to do on that front.
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