It’s been a torrid couple of days for Xbox fans, as, followinganother round of layoffs at Microsoft, several first-party projects have been cancelled,a studio has been shuttered, and morale is at an all-time low atanother prominent studiowithin Xbox’s ecosystem.
There’s only been a morsel of good news amid all the chaos of the last week:Helldivers 2is coming to Xbox next month. Helldivers 2’s arrival on Xbox is the first example of a PlayStation-published title coming to the Xbox Series X/S.
The original Death Stranding was released on Xbox Series X/S, but this release was handled by 505 Games, not PlayStation.
End of an Era?
Over the last few months, Xbox has been porting some of its first-party games to PlayStation 5, such as Sea of Thieves, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and Hi-Fi Rush.
Helldivers 2’s arrival on Xbox could be a sign of things to come, as the rivalry between the two companies appears to have cooled. There’s also speculation that Helldivers 2 was a “trade” for Gears of War: Reloaded, which is releasing on PlayStation 5 the same day as Helldivers 2 releases on Xbox. This is all conjecture, however.
Arrowhead’s creative director, Johan Pilestedt, feels very positive about the move, saying Helldivers 2 on Xbox is a “sign of unity” between the once fierce rivals, Xbox and PlayStation.
“Super excited about Helldivers 2 coming to Xbox,” he writes. “For me, it’s a sign of unity, and I hope the new recruits will be treated well by the experienced divers in the community.”
PlayStation has yet to comment on Helldivers 2 coming to Xbox, and it’s unclear whether this is a sign of things to come or if each game will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Despite its arrival on Xbox, Arrowhead is not planning on bringing Helldivers 2 to Game Pass,according to the studio’s community manager.
There’s a chance we could be leaving the era of exclusivity as studios are beginning to shift towards multiplatform strategies. Square Enix, once synonymous with PlayStation, has expressed interest in moving away from PlayStation timed exclusivity.
