"Xbox Games Outshine PS5 in Sales: Oblivion, Minecraft, Forza Horizon 5 Lead"

Microsoft's multiplatform strategy is clearly paying dividends, as evidenced by their successful launches on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC. Sony's PlayStation blog post for April 2025 highlighted the top-selling games on the PlayStation Store, showcasing Microsoft's dominance in the U.S., Canada, and Europe.

In the U.S. and Canada, Microsoft titles swept 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. Similarly, in Europe, Forza Horizon 5 led the pack, followed by The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered and Minecraft.

*Clair Obscur: Expedition 33*, backed by Microsoft for a day-one Game Pass launch and featured in Xbox showcase broadcasts, also ranked highly on both charts. Additionally, *Call of Duty: Black Ops 6* from Microsoft-owned Activision and *Indiana Jones and the Great Circle* from Microsoft-owned Bethesda made strong showings.

This success underscores a simple truth: quality games, regardless of their origin, will top sales charts. It's no surprise to see these titles perform well on PlayStation, especially given the anticipation for Forza Horizon 5 on PS5, the enduring appeal of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, and the viral popularity of Minecraft, boosted by its record-breaking movie.

Microsoft's new normal includes expanding its reach, as evidenced by the announcement of *Gears of War: Reloaded* for PC, Xbox, and PlayStation in August. The iconic *Halo* series, once an Xbox exclusive, seems poised to follow suit.

Last year, Microsoft's gaming chief Phil Spencer emphasized that there are no "red lines" in their first-party lineup when considering multiplatform releases, including Halo. In an interview with Bloomberg, Spencer stated that every Xbox game is a candidate for multiplatform distribution. "I do not see sort of red lines in our portfolio that say 'thou must not,'" he remarked.

Spencer's strategy is driven by the need to increase revenue for Microsoft's gaming division, particularly after 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."

### Xbox Games Series Tier List

Xbox Games Series Tier List

Former Xbox executive Peter Moore told IGN that 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.

"I mean, you just got to go, yeah, should it be kept? It's a piece of intellectual property. It's bigger than just a game. And how do you leverage that? Those are the conversations that always happen with, how do you leverage it in everything that we would do?"

"It's had its ups and downs, but look, Xbox wouldn't be what Xbox is without Halo. But yeah, I'm sure those conversations are happening. Whether they come to fruition, who knows? But they're definitely happening, I'm sure."

Microsoft faces potential backlash from hardcore Xbox fans who feel the console's value is being diminished by the lack of exclusives and Microsoft's marketing strategy. Losing Halo to PlayStation could provoke further discontent, but Moore believes this won't deter Microsoft from making strategic business decisions.

"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."