Like PlayStation and Nintendo, Xbox offers various prominent exclusives. In the stacked lineup of 2023, Hi-Fi Rush stood out as the best of the gaming giant’s first-party offerings, but recent rumors suggested that it would soon be released on the Nintendo Switch.
Subsequent rumors led to speculation about Xbox going third-party altogether. False information and speculation have spread like wildfire all over social media, but looking at Xbox’s history, it is clear that this won’t be the case.
Why it matters: Exclusivity, while less important for Xbox today, is still a core focus of its gaming business in 2024 and beyond.
1. Xbox is not
going 3rd party2. Xbox will keep making hardware and exclusives giving you incentive to invest in their ecosystem
3. HiFi on Switch doesn’t mean Gears 6 is going to Coleco Vision
4. rumors are not facts pic.twitter.com/fiLmH4UbV9
— Parris (@vicious696) January 13, 2024
While the rumor about Hi-Fi Rush and Sea of Thieves heading to other platforms is surprising, this is not something completely new for Xbox. In the past, exclusive games like Ori and Cuphead have arrived on other platforms.
In 2023, Minecraft Legends was released on PlayStation and Nintendo Switch. Therefore, Xbox has been known to release specific games on rival platforms as it sees fit, invalidating the rumors about a wholly third-party approach.
While some might not necessarily agree with Hi-Fi Rush going third-party, this does not mean other games will follow suit. As Parris from Kinda Funny Games explained, this does not, in any way, mean Gears 6 will launch on PlayStation and other platforms.
A game like Hi-Fi Rush should resonate with Nintendo’s audience. Vibrant and colorful games are the bread and butter of Nintendo’s business, so this gem will find more success on the platform.
As for Sea of Thieves, more players are always welcome for a live-service title. However, for games like Indiana Jones and Gears 6, we fully expect Microsoft to skip rival platforms.
In 2024, exclusivity is about a balanced and careful approach. Recent years have shown gaming giants like PlayStation deviating from their strict rules of exclusivity, porting numerous games to PC with varied success.
Only Nintendo has remained firm in its commitment to a single ecosystem around the core hardware, but this could also change gradually with the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 this year.
