‘Our Biggest Competition Isn’t Another Console’: Xbox Doubles Down on Multiformat After Halo PS5 Shock

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Releasing Halo: Combat Evolved on PlayStation 5 signals a major shift in Xbox’s business strategy.

The popularity of games like Gears of War Reloaded and Forza Horizon 5 hinted at this shift, but seeing Master Chief – a hugely important figure for Microsoft gaming – now linked with PlayStation is particularly striking.

Matt Booty, the head of Xbox game content and studios, recently told the New York Times that Xbox doesn’t consider the PlayStation 5 a rival anymore.

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He said:

We’re trying to connect with people based on their current interests. These days, our biggest challenge isn’t other gaming consoles—it’s competing for people’s time with things like TikTok and movies.

It’s true that Sony has the same challenges, but it doesn’t seem likely Microsoft will gain more users by releasing its games on competing platforms. However, Microsoft appears to be becoming less concerned with growing its user base.

Xbox, along with the game studios it has bought, wants to be a leading game publisher, and to do that, they need to release games on consoles with the most players – including the PlayStation 5.

This week, Sarah Bond, head of Xbox, stated that focusing solely on exclusive games is outdated, noting that the most popular titles are now available on multiple platforms.

PlayStation players will have even more to choose from, and Halo: Campaign Evolved is shaping up to be a massive hit. Its trailer has already been viewed millions of times on Sony’s social media platforms.

It’s going to be very interesting to see how this one is received in 2026.

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2025-10-26 10:06