There can be only one (format)
During their E3 conferences Microsoft and Sony trumpeted the vast number of next-gen console exclusives they'd managed to secure. They showed footage of games running on PS4 or Xbox One, and told us that X game is coming to PS4 / Xbox One in 2013.
However, which of these games are genuine, 100% exclusives? And which ones are just console or timed exclusives? Weve had chance to look at every next-gen game shown at E3 so far, and weve divided them up according to the purity of their exclusivity. Is Xbox One really the only place you can play TitanFall? Is Kingdom Hearts 3 definitely PS4 exclusive? The results may surprise you
Xbox One AAA, first-party exclusives
Forza 5 (Published by Microsoft, Developed by MS-owned Turn 10)
Halo 2014 (Published by Microsoft, Developed by MS-owned 343 Industries)
Killer Instinct (Published by Microsoft, Developed by MS-owned Rare)
PlayStation 4 AAA, first-party exclusives
Killzone Shadowfall (Published by Sony, Developed by Sony-owned Guerrilla Games)
Drive Club (Published by Sony, Developed by Sony-owned Evolution Studios)
Knack (Published by Sony, Developed by Sony Japan)
InFamous: Second Son (Published by Sony, Developed by Sony-owned Sucker Punch)
Xbox One AAA, external developer exclusives
Quantum Break (Published by Microsoft, Developed by Remedy)
Sunset Overdrive (Published by Microsoft, Developed by Insomniac)
PlayStation 4 AAA, external developer exclusives
The Order 1886 (Published by Sony, Co-developed by Ready At Dawn and Sony Santa Monica)
Xbox One downloadable and indie exclusives
D4 (Developed by Swery65)
Below (Developed by Capybara)
Black Tusk Studios game
PlayStation 4 downloadable and indie exclusives
Transistor (Developed by Supergiant Games)
The Witness (Developed by Jonathan Blow)
Oddworld New N Tasty (Developed by Just Add Water)
Rays the Dead (Developed by RagTag Studios)
Octodad: Dadliest Catch (Developed by Young Horses)
Secret Ponchos (Developed by Switchblade Monkeys)
Mercenary Kings (Developed by Tribute Games)
Counter Spy (Developed by Dynamighty)
Galaxy (Developed by 17-Bit Games)
Xbox One console exclusives
Minecraft (Developed by Mojang, Available on PC and Mobile)
TitanFall (Developed by Respawn, Coming to PC)
Project Spark (Developed by Microsoft Games Studios, Coming to PC)
PlayStation 4 console exclusives
Dont Starve (Developed by Klei, available on PC)
Outlast (Developed by Red Barrels, coming to PC)
Final Fantasy XIV (Published by Square Enix, available on PC)
Xbox One genuine, 100% third-party exclusives
Dead Rising 3 (Published by Capcom, Developed by Blue Castle)
Other games shown at Microsoft or Sony press conferences
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (Published by Konami, confirmed for Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360 and PS3)
Kingdom Hearts 3 (Published by Square Enix, announced for PS4, but exclusivity was not mentioned at the show)
Final Fantasy XV (Published by Square Enix, announced for PS4, but exclusivity was not mentioned at the show)
Destiny (Published by Activision, confirmed for Xbox One, PS4 and Xbox 360)
Mad Max (Developed by Avalanche, confirmed for PS4, Xbox One, PC, Xbox 360 and PS3)
The Elder Scrolls Online (Published by Bethesda, confirmed for PC, PS4 and Xbox One)
Battlefield 4 (Published by EA, confirmed for PS4, Xbox One, PC, PS3 and Xbox 360)
Assassins Creed IV: Black Flag (Published by Ubisoft, confirmed for Xbox One, PS4, PC, Xbox 360 and PS3)
Watch Dogs (Published by Ubisoft, confirmed for Xbox One, PS4, PC, Xbox 360 and PS3)
NBA 2K14 (Published by 2K, confirmed for Xbox One, PS4, PC, Xbox 360 and PS3)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (Developed by CD Projekt, confirmed for Xbox One, PS4 and PC)
The best of the rest
So, there you have it. Neither console can boast quite the bonanza of true exclusives as you might expect. In truth, the game line-ups of both machines are very, very similar. We deliberately didnt include the likes of Mirrors Edge 2 or The Division because they werent shown at either Microsoft or Sonys conferences. However, the quality of games coming to both machines is seriously high, so the player--no matter what format they choose--is the winner here.
In the meantime, why not browse through some of our other E3 articles? Want an overview of everything from the Sony conference? Or maybe you need to know what happened when Microsoft held its own E3 show? Weve got you covered.
