A minuscule leap by a bold team of 24th-century interstellar pioneers might result in a giant leap—or downfall—for Microsoft, as the maker of Xbox prepares to launch its highly awaited video game, Starfield by Bethesda.
In this expansive cosmic saga, set for an Xbox release in September following multiple development setbacks, players are charged with fighting space pirates, navigating mysterious moons, building bases, and repairing their own starships. Microsoft provided an in-depth preview of the impending game at an event in Los Angeles on Sunday.
The debut of this game may be one of the most vital in the history of Xbox, as it aims to attract players with a marquee game that challenges Nintendo’s latest Zelda offering and PlayStation’s upcoming Spider-Man 2, per Mat Piscatella, a gaming industry analyst at Circana.
In a flagging market, Nintendo’s Switch console and Sony’s PlayStation have been taking the lead, bolstered in part by Hollywood adaptations of Nintendo’s Super Mario and the PlayStation exclusive Last of Us. Microsoft needs a successful game to enhance the sales of its Xbox consoles and its monthly game subscription service.
“Starfield could potentially match or surpass” popular games on rival platforms, largely due to the renowned pedigree of the development studio, noted Piscatella. “However, that ‘could’ carries significant weight.”
Much of the excitement is rooted in the previous commercial achievements of Bethesda Softworks, a Microsoft-owned studio that developed longstanding series such as Doom, Elder Scrolls, and Fallout. Bethesda touts Starfield as its “first fresh universe in over 25 years.”
At the time of Microsoft’s acquisition of its parent company ZeniMax Media for $7.5 billion in 2021, Bethesda was already deeply engaged in the development of Starfield. Indeed, Bethesda sought to trademark the Starfield name ten years ago and previewed the game in a concise trailer five years later in 2018.
Presently, Starfield finds itself intertwined with Microsoft’s intended acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the creator of Call of Duty. Sony has put forth antitrust issues regarding the $69 billion transaction, fearing that Microsoft may restrict access to some of Activision’s top games to Xbox only.
On Monday, the Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit to prevent Microsoft and Activision from finalizing their merger in the U.S.
PlayStation boasts its own exclusives — including top-selling games like Last of Us, the Marvel Spider-Man series, and several Final Fantasy games. Nevertheless, Sony has argued to antitrust regulators worldwide that Microsoft’s decision to make ZeniMax games such as Starfield and Redfall exclusive to Xbox demonstrates Microsoft’s capability and motivation to monopolize games it secures through large-scale mergers.
UK regulatory bodies are also acting to prevent the deal, though it has received approval in other jurisdictions, including the regulators of the 27-member European Union.
Microsoft’s ongoing struggle to finalize the Activision acquisition and boost excitement for its current game inventory is occurring during a lull in game sales following the peak of interest during the COVID-19 pandemic zenith.
April’s consumer expenditure on video games and hardware in the U.S. was at $4.1 billion, representing a 5% reduction from the previous year, as per Circana.
A dip in game revenue of 6% was partially balanced by a 7% surge in hardware sales, predominantly for the PlayStation 5 and Switch. This marked the most successful April for console sales since the 2020 sales boost triggered by the pandemic.
