As a PC, Xbox Series S, and Nintendo Switch owner, it's rare that I feel left out when a new game launches. You might have noticed I left the humble PS5 out of that list, but almost five years on from the console's launch, I've yet to fold to the FOMO and purchase one of my own – despite vowing to do so in the past.
It boils down to one fact: console exclusivity as we once knew it is well on its way out. I suppose it also helps that I happen to be patient, perfectly content to have waited it out for Marvel's Spider-Man 2 and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's eventual PC launches last month before cashing in on the hype experienced by PS5-goers over a year ago. But that's just it. Almost every PlayStation game I've ever wanted to play – bar Bloodborne, of course – has eventually made its way to one of my other platforms-of-choice. Staggered PC releases allow for a period of console exclusivity rather than a lifetime of it, benefitting not only developers and publishers keen to rake in more audiences, but those of us less urgent to play the newest games as soon as they hit shelves. It speaks to a change in how publishers are approaching sales, no longer relying on exclusives to sell consoles, but prestige points instead. Maybe that's why Nintendo is hanging in there – what would the Switch 2 be without its exclusives, after all?
Levelling up the playing field
The "console wars" are well and truly dead, but I'm still waiting for lingering bad attitudes to follow suit. It stands to reason that console exclusivity, while still intrinsic to the existence of separate publishers at all, can be taken as more of a punishment than a privilege when they encourage us to "pick a side." Thanks to eventual PC launches, I never feel the need to.
It hasn't always been this way. Historically speaking, exclusives encouraged gamers to purchase specific consoles or forego entire game franchises completely – take my favorite PS2-exclusive Resident Evil game, for example. There's always been a degree of brand loyalty about it, but at the end of the day, we knew what we were missing. With each new console came a meaningful technical improvement – and many people might've bought a PS2 just to have a DVD player. But as tech leaps become far less dramatic from generation to generation, it's hard to argue against the fact that this divide between platforms has morphed into all-out bullying in recent years, separating fans into camps of unquestionable allegiance to companies over the actual games they publish. Personally, I'm over it, and you should be too.
PC gaming offers a peaceful reprieve. There seems to be very little value in permanent console exclusivity in 2025 because there are simply so many games to choose from. The competition for our attention is rife, incentivizing publishers to cast wider nets than ever by way of delayed (yet much appreciated) PC ports. As a result, I never feel punished by not being able to play the latest PS5 game, and nor do I feel that Sony is trying to punish me for not buying its console. I can simply go through my Steam backlog, or make use of Xbox Game Pass, or replay Baldur's Gate 3 for the billionth time while I wait. Meanwhile, the once Xbox-exclusive Forza Horizon 5 is coming to PS5. Square Enix is looking to broaden its platform horizons with Octopath Traveler. This paradigm shift indicates that publishers have recognized the largely hit-and-miss return investment of targeting new players through exclusives; it's just not as lucrative as simply giving the people what they want, when they want it.
The competition for our attention is rife, incentivizing publishers to cast wider nets than ever...
I'd sooner pay $60 for a PC game than shell out $500 for a console I'll use once a year. But I have two big exceptions to that rule in mind here: GTA 6 and Nintendo. With GTA 6 reported to be a console exclusive for PS5 and Xbox Series X, its status as a global phenomenon is likely to give PC stalwarts a nudge in the gamepad direction – even if it does end up "normalizing" the $100 price tag. Similarly, the humble Switch is the only way to get your hands on Nintendo-exclusive IPs like Zelda Tears of the Kingdom and the best Mario games. With many upcoming Switch 2 games almost certain to follow that trend, the hybrid handheld's popularity seems to be here to stay. These two outliers don't change my views on how permanent platform exclusivity is less necessary than ever. Rather, it provides some variety – and in Nintendo's case, tradition.
Variety really is the crux of it all. That, and player choice. Gamers don't lose anything when their favorite games launch on other platforms. It shouldn't devalue your love of the PS5 to know that Death Stranding finally made its way to Xbox four years later. The industry's moneymaking moves are constantly evolving – and if it allows more people to play more games, the slow death of console exclusivity could benefit the many and the few.
Check out all the upcoming PS5 games I won't be playing for at least one year - though I'm keen for you to.
