Microsoft admits it bought Bethesda to keep Starfield from becoming a PS5 exclusive

The hearing that confronts Microsoft in front of the FTC over the purchase of Activision Blizzard provides us with very valuable information. Today was a big day because Phil Spencer, the director of Xbox, stepped in to answer questions from the regulator. One of them is related to Starfield and causes a lot of talk.

The biggest revelation comes with the purchase of ZeniMax, which owns Bethesda, for which Microsoft shelled out $7.5 billion in 2020. that Redmon opened the wallet.

According to Phil Spencer (via edge), Another reason behind Bethesda’s purchase is that they found out that Sony was in negotiations for exclusivity. Starfield.

We must remember that Starfield is by far the most promising and long-awaited game on the Xbox platform.

However, when it was announced in 2018, most of us felt that it would be available on all platforms. Then it seems that Sony wanted to get Starfield offer it as an exclusive addition to your catalogue.

“When we acquired ZeniMax, one of the impulses was that Sony made a deal for death loop And ghost wire. They paid Bethesda not to release those games on Xbox. So when we hear this Starfield Also, it could potentially see Xbox overtake Xbox as the third-place platform that we can no longer fall behind in terms of content ownership. So we needed to get content to stay sustainable in the business,” Spencer said.

Darts vs Sony, next Starfield

The manager also noted that for many years they were forced to redouble their efforts with their partners in order to be able to deal with PlayStation exclusivity agreements. “We had a lot of work to do with a lot of partners given our competitive position with the market leader,” Spencer added.

Another startling statement that the Xbox director left us concerns Sony’s alleged methods of suppressing Microsoft in the video game industry. Spencer said the Japanese company retains 30% of the games they distribute on the PlayStation platform, such as mine craft. Subsequently, use this profit to hurt the Xbox:

“Every time we release a PlayStation game, Sony takes 30% of the revenue we make on their platform, and then they use that money to try and diminish Xbox’s survival in the market. We are trying to compete, but, as I said, over the past 20 years, we have not been able to do it effectively.”

Phil Spencer.

For now, yes, Sony has yet to make a decision on the matter. It is already a fact that Starfield It won’t be on PS5, but it definitely will. death loop And ghost wire Yes, these were temporary exclusives of the Japanese console. As the hearings continue, we will certainly have more information on how these companies have taken action in recent years to protect their interests.