Starfield will be "starting gun" for more first-party releases, Xbox says
Space race.
Xbox has said the launch of Starfield will be the "starting gun" for even more first-party releases on Xbox.
Speaking to Eurogamer's sister site GamesIndustry.biz at Gamescom, Xbox chief marketing officer Jerret West said he believes Bethesda's upcoming space opera is the "doorway" to more regular Xbox exclusives.
"I was sitting there watching the same [Starfield presentation] you were this morning and I was like... this is really the start of something that's going to then lead to Forza, then in 2024 as we go to Hellblade, and we think about Towerborne which is on the show floor, we think about Avowed, and we've got stories we haven't told yet as well, that are going to unfurl in 2024 and 2025," West shared, calling this lineup a "multi-year relay race of first-party titles" with Starfield the "starting gun".
West continued to discuss Game Pass, and the third-party support and relationships Xbox has with developers, saying it is "critically important".
"I think we are entering a period where this is the beginning of something that's going to be really special over the course of the next several years," he closed.
Xbox has seen many of its recent exclusive releases falter somewhat, with flagship series Halo's most recent offering - Halo Infinite - failing to really make any impact on the gaming landscape.
More recently, in May, Phil Spencer personally apologised for the failure of Arkane's Redfall, which was widely panned on its release earlier this year.
"I'll just say all up, there's nothing that's more difficult for me than disappointing the Xbox community," Spencer said. "I've been a part of it for a long time. I obviously work on Xbox, head of the business, have a lot of friends, get a lot of feedback. And just to watch the community lose confidence, be disappointed, I'm disappointed. I'm upset with myself."
Elsewhere, the exec had previously admitted that Xbox had been guilty of releasing games "too early" in the past.
With all that said and done, it seems like Xbox is now hoping to turn a corner.
For more on Xbox and its future, be sure to check out Tom's interview with Phil Spencer, where they discuss new hardware, price drops, mid-gen refreshes - and why the company won't ditch Series S.
And, if it's more Starfield you want, our Ed got to find out just how its story begins earlier this week. You can read more about how Bethesda's "irresponsibly large" game kicks off here.