Phil Spencer Confirms Bethesda Game Exclusivity

In a roundtable discussion celebrating Bethesda joining Xbox Game Studios, Phil Spencer finally gave a clear answer about whether or not future Bethesda games will be exclusive to Xbox. The answer is one that’s sure to upset many players though.

“So obviously I can’t sit here and say every Bethesda game is exclusive because we know that’s not true,” Spencer said. “There’s contractual obligations we’re gonna see through, as we always do in every one of these instances. We have games that exist on other platforms and we’re gonna go support those games on the platforms they’re on. There’s communities of players, we love those communities and we’ll continue to invest in them. And even in the future, there might be things that have either contractual things or legacy on different platforms that we’ll go do.”

“But if you’re an Xbox customer, the thing I want you to know is this is about delivering great exclusive games for you that ship on platforms where Game Pass exists. And that’s our goal, that’s why we’re doing this. That’s the root of this partnership that we’re building, and the creative capability we will be able to bring to market for Xbox customers is gonna be the best it’s ever been for Xbox once we’re done here.”

It’s a pretty clear cut answer that Phil gave, even if it does still leave a bit for people to question. Just how many Bethesda games are there with other contractual obligations? We already know that Deathloop and Ghostwire: Tokyo will remain PS5 timed exclusives, but what about the newly announced Indiana Jones game or Starfield? There’s also the comment he made about titles that have “legacy on different platforms.” Does this mean games like The Elder Scrolls or Fallout that have been on other platforms for years and grown large fanbases with them?

These are things that we don’t know right now. But the overall message is hard to misunderstand. If you have a device that supports Xbox Game Pass, you will be able to play Bethesda games in the future. So unless Sony or Nintendo allow the subscription service onto their platforms, fans on those consoles will not be getting their games very soon.

Xbox owners and Game Pass subscribers can celebrate the Bethesda acquisition with 20 new Bethesda games joining the service tomorrow. Some of the titles include Dishonored, The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, and Fallout: New Vegas.