Xbox exclusives Sea of Thieves and Hi-Fi Rush may be coming to non-Xbox consoles sometime this year.
Sources speaking to Game File’s Stephen Totilo claim the free-to-play pirate game is being looked at for the PlayStation 5. Notably, it’d be the first time an Xbox game came to a PlayStation console.
As for Hi-Fi Rush, rumors over the weekend claimed a marquis Xbox game would arrive on the Nintendo Switch. The rumor alleged a “critically acclaimed” title would jump from Xbox to a rival platform.
Tango Gameworks’ title became a natural candidate due to its consistent popularity last year. The claim grew when noted leaker lolilolailo appeared to confirm it would be the future Switch game.
With its one-year anniversary a few weeks away, a Switch port for Hi-Fi Rush would make for an attention-grabbing headline, particularly if it also releases on the same day.
At time of writing, it’s unclear if both games would come to the opposite system later on. When asked by Totilo about Thieves specifically coming to PS5, an Xbox representative declined to comment.
What does Xbox want to do with its first-party games?
Previously, Xbox ported Ori and the Blind Forest and its sequel to the Switch after their respective Xbox debuts. Likewise, Minecraft has remained multiplatform since Microsoft bought Mojang in late 2014.
If Microsoft is porting one or both games over to rival consoles, it further reflects how system exclusives are losing their luster for it and Sony.
The latter studio has also changed its stance on exclusives in recent years, porting Marvel’s Spider-Man and Days Gone to PC years after their initial release.
Xbox already sells its first-party games on Steam releases, furthering their availability on PC through Xbox Game Pass. Expanding that to other consoles just builds on that strategy.
It does throw into question what Microsoft’s larger plans are for its first-party titles. One can’t help but ask why even it fought so hard to make exclusives out of Redfall, Starfield, and the upcoming Indiana Jones if there’s a possibility they come to PlayStation.