‘The Elder Scrolls 6’ exclusivity: Phil Spencer may have confirmed the obvious that it won’t launch on PS5

“The Elder Scrolls 6” is possibly still years away from its launch, but there is another thing that Xbox and Bethesda Game Studios need to address about the game. And Xbox head Phil Spencer may have already confirmed that the game will not be released on PlayStation.

Spencer was interviewed by GQ as part of the festivities for Xbox’s 20th anniversary. On the subject of Xbox exclusivity, the publication noted Bethesda’s next IP, “Starfield,” is already confirmed to only launch on Xbox Series X/S, PC, and platforms where Xbox Game Pass is available. GQ added that Spencer “sees the same for ‘The Elder Scrolls 6,’” which seems like a subtle confirmation that the game will not launch on any PlayStation system.

The Xbox added that making “The Elder Scrolls 6” exclusive to Xbox gamers is “not about punishing” those who only play on other platforms. “But in order to be on Xbox, I want us to be able to bring the full complete package of what we have,” Spencer said. “And that would be true when I think about Elder Scrolls VI. That would be true when I think about any of our franchises.”

Similar to what Spencer and other Xbox execs have been saying, Xbox-exclusive titles do not necessarily mean they are only playable on an Xbox console. Thanks to Xbox Game Pass, video game fans have other options to play new and old titles, especially with the Xbox Cloud Gaming. Following Spencer’s statements in the interview, “The Elder Scrolls 6” is very likely getting a day-one availability on Game Pass just like “Starfield.”

Since Microsoft announced it was acquiring ZeniMax Media last year, many video game fans are still coming to terms with what that means for the many popular IPs owned by the latter. While the subject of exclusivity should not have been that complicated following the acquisition, video game fans continued to speculate (or hope) that some games like “The Elder Scrolls 6” would still launch on consoles other than Xbox.

That hope may not be entirely unfounded, though. Before the GQ interview was published this week, Xbox and Bethesda had not provided a direct answer about the exclusivity of “The Elder Scrolls 6.” Spencer also told Bloomberg last year that they will review the availability of their IPs on other consoles “on a case-by-case basis.” But, in the case of “The Elder Scrolls 6,” it appears fans already have their answer.