Microsoft's multiplatform strategy is clearly yielding impressive results, as demonstrated by their strong performance on the PlayStation 5, in addition to Xbox Series X and S and PC. This success was confirmed by Sony via a PlayStation blog post detailing the top-selling games on the PlayStation Store for April 2025.
In the U.S. and Canada, Microsoft titles dominated the top three spots on the PS5's non free-to-play download chart: The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, Minecraft, and Forza Horizon 5. A similar trend was observed in Europe, where Forza Horizon 5 led the chart, followed by The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered and Minecraft.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which Microsoft supported with a day-one Game Pass launch and featured in Xbox showcase broadcasts, also ranked highly on both regional 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 sales charts.
What does this indicate? High-quality games from Microsoft are not only topping sales charts but are also performing exceptionally well on PlayStation. The PS5 community eagerly anticipated the launch of Forza Horizon 5, a testament to the demand for Playground's exceptional racing game. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered continues to satisfy the Bethesda fanbase across both PC and console platforms, while Minecraft's popularity has surged even further, boosted by the viral success of the Minecraft movie.
This trend represents the new normal for Microsoft, which recently announced Gears of War: Reloaded for PC, Xbox, and PlayStation, set to release in August. It seems increasingly likely that Halo, once an Xbox exclusive, will also transition to other platforms.
Last year, Microsoft's gaming chief Phil Spencer emphasized that there are no "red lines" in their first-party lineup regarding multiplatform releases, including Halo. In an interview with Bloomberg, Spencer stated that every Xbox game is considered for multiplatform distribution. "I do not see sort of red lines in our portfolio that say 'thou must not,'" he remarked.
Spencer has articulated that Xbox's multiplatform strategy is partly driven by the need to increase revenue for Microsoft's gaming division, especially following the $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. "We run a business," Spencer said 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 told IGN that the possibility of bringing Halo to PlayStation has likely been a topic of discussion at Microsoft for some time. "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 emphasized that Halo is more than just a game; it's a significant piece of intellectual property that Microsoft must consider how to leverage effectively.
Moore also acknowledged the potential backlash from hardcore Xbox fans, who are already feeling that the Xbox brand is being devalued due to a lack of exclusives and Microsoft's marketing strategies. However, he suggested that such reactions might not be enough to prevent Microsoft from making strategic business decisions that benefit the future of their gaming business 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 said. "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."
