According to GameSpot, Xbox Game Studios head Craig Duncan explained the inconsistent release strategy for bringing Xbox games to PS5, using Playground Games’ titles as an example. Forza Horizon 6 will hit PS5 after its Xbox launch, while the Fable reboot is planned for a same-day release on both platforms. Duncan chalked this up to “development realities,” team size, and resource limitations that exist when projects begin. He admitted Xbox has been “inconsistent” but stated the goal is to be more consistent while ensuring each game is the best it can be on its respective platform. The report also noted that delayed ports can still be hugely successful, citing Forza Horizon 5’s PS5 port which reportedly sold 5.1 million copies.
The Resource Excuse
So, the official line is that it’s all about resources. “Because teams are only a set size,” Duncan said. Basically, they can’t do everything at once for every platform from the jump. And on the surface, that makes sense. Game development is hard. But here’s the thing: this feels like a post-hoc justification for a strategy that’s clearly been evolving—or maybe just plain messy—in real time.
Think about it. If “reaching as many players as possible” is the core tenet now, why wouldn’t you plan for a multiplatform launch from the very inception of every new project? The difference between Forza and Fable suggests that, until recently, the internal mandate wasn’t clear. One team got the memo early, the other didn’t. Now they’re stuck playing catch-up with ports, which is its own massive resource drain. It kind of undermines the whole “we plan this from the start” idea.
Consistency Is A Choice
Duncan says they’re going to “try and be more consistent.” I think the key word there is *try*. There’s no firm commitment to day-one releases on PlayStation or even a clear rubric for what gets a simultaneous launch. That optionality he mentions? It sounds a lot like hedging their bets. Maybe they’re still testing the waters to see which games move the needle on revenue without cannibalizing their own ecosystem.
And look, the financial incentive is undeniable. 5.1 million copies of Forza Horizon 5 on PS5 is a staggering number. That’s pure, high-margin revenue from a platform where they have no hardware subsidy to worry about. When numbers like that are on the table, “resource allocation” suddenly becomes a very solvable problem. You hire more people. You adjust timelines. Money talks.
The Platform Dilemma
The most genuine part of Duncan’s comments is about wanting games to “be the best that they can be for that platform.” Using the DualSense features for Sea of Thieves is a good example. But this creates a weird tension. Is Xbox a hardware platform, a game publisher, or both? If the best version of an Xbox game is on a PS5, what exactly is the point of the Xbox console itself?
They’re walking a tightrope. They want the software sales and the brand reach of a third-party publisher, but they still want to sell Xbox Series S and X consoles. You can’t really have it both ways forever. Every day-one release on PS5 makes the Xbox hardware a harder sell. Every delayed port just trains PlayStation players to wait a year for a cheaper, potentially patched version. It’s a messy transition, and this “resource” explanation feels like a way to gloss over that much bigger, more fundamental strategic confusion.
