Microsoft's multiplatform strategy is clearly paying dividends, as evidenced by the successful launches of their games on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC. Sony's PlayStation blog post for April 2025 highlighted the top-selling PlayStation Store games, with Microsoft titles dominating the charts in both the U.S./Canada and Europe.
In the U.S. and Canada, the top three spots on the PS5 non-free-to-play download chart were secured by Microsoft games: The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, Minecraft, and Forza Horizon 5. Similarly, in Europe, Forza Horizon 5 led the chart, followed by The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered and Minecraft.
Notably, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, backed by Microsoft for a day-one Game Pass launch and featured in Xbox showcase broadcasts, also ranked highly on both charts. Additionally, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 from Microsoft-owned Activision and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle from Microsoft-owned Bethesda made significant appearances in the charts.
This success underscores a simple truth: quality games, regardless of their origin, will top the sales charts. It's no surprise to see these titles perform well on PlayStation, especially given the anticipation surrounding Forza Horizon 5's launch on the console. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered has satisfied the demand for Bethesda's signature gameplay across platforms, while Minecraft's popularity has surged further with the viral success of its movie.
Microsoft's shift to multiplatform releases is becoming the new norm, as evidenced by the recent announcement of Gears of War: Reloaded for PC, Xbox, and PlayStation, set to launch in August. The iconic Halo series, once an Xbox exclusive, seems poised to follow suit.
Phil Spencer, Microsoft's gaming chief, has emphasized that there are no "red lines" in their first-party lineup when considering multiplatform releases, including Halo. In an interview with Bloomberg, Spencer stated that every Xbox game is a candidate for multiplatform distribution, driven by the need to generate more revenue for Microsoft's gaming business, especially after the $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
"We run a business," Spencer remarked in August. "It's definitely true inside of Microsoft the bar is high for us in terms of the delivery we have to give back to the company. Because we get a level of support from the company that's just amazing and what we're able to go do. So I look at this, how can we make our games as strong as possible? Our platform continues to grow, on console, on PC, and on cloud. It's just going to be a strategy that works for us."
Former Xbox executive Peter Moore, speaking to IGN, suggested that discussions about bringing Halo to PlayStation have been ongoing at Microsoft. He highlighted the potential financial benefits, noting that if Halo could generate significantly more revenue on other platforms, it would be a compelling business decision.
"Look, if Microsoft says, wait, we're doing $250 million on our own platforms, but if we then took Halo as, let's call it a third-party, we could do a billion… You got to think long and hard about that, right?" Moore explained. He acknowledged the iconic status of Halo within the Xbox ecosystem but emphasized the need to leverage such intellectual property across all possible avenues.
However, Microsoft's multiplatform approach risks alienating hardcore Xbox fans, who are already expressing dissatisfaction with the perceived devaluation of the Xbox console, the scarcity of exclusives, and Microsoft's marketing strategies. While bringing Halo to PlayStation might provoke further backlash, Moore believes Microsoft will prioritize business decisions that benefit the future of their gaming division and the industry as a whole.
"The question would be, ultimately, is that reaction enough not to make a fundamental business decision for the future of not only Microsoft's business, but gaming in itself?" Moore pondered. "Those hardcore are getting smaller in size and older in age. You've got to cater to the generations that are coming through, because they're going to drive the business over the next 10, 20 years."
