If you needed any more reason to understand why Xbox are launching their games on more platforms, look no further than the PlayStation 5 charts.
Over the last few weeks we have seen Gears of War: Reloaded, the remaster of the 2006 original reach the top of the pre-order charts. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle came to PlayStation in April and sold faster on Sony's hardware than on Steam or Xbox (credit: Alinea Analytics) - though it did launch Day One in to Game Pass on Xbox.
Though the biggest success of them all is Forza Horizon 5. In new sales analytics also from Alinea Analytics, Horizon 5 tops the sales charts on the platform this year. With 3m sales, it beats out 2nd place Monster Hunter Wilds, in what is an incredible achievement for a game that originally launched on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S in late-2021.
Forza has also outsold other big new releases of the year including the excellent Assassin's Creed Shadows, Elden Ring Nightreign and many people's GOTY front runner, Expedition 33.
Xbox's mission to bring more games to more players took a significant turn earlier this year when they started bringing big hitters like Forza to PlayStation. Call of Duty is also part of the Xbox business and will continue to launch on PlayStation hardware.
In a sign that Sony may be alert to the success of Xbox's multiplatform strategy, Helldivers 2, a Sony first-party game is launching on Xbox Series X/S next month. Whether this will be the first title which makes the jump to the "˜green machine' remains to be seen. But with game development costs spiraling and the industry becoming more risk averse in general, broadening markets to more gamers on other platforms may become the norm. What is for sure, Forza Horizon 6 will absolutely be Day One on PS5.
Are you surprised to see Forza's incredible success on PlayStation? Did you pick the game up since it moved to PS5? Let us know in the comments below and stick with GSC for all your Forza and gaming news.
