PS5 May Not Be Hurt by Microsoft’s Acquisitions
Industry analyst Michael Pachter was recently interviewed and he claimed that Microsoft’s recent acquisition of ZeniMax Media won’t impact PS5 sales much, beyond a couple of million gamers who switch platforms in the next-generation of consoles. Michael Pachter plans to get both the PS5 and the Xbox Series X, but fans who aren’t able to get both will definitely be split on the consoles with the ZeniMax acquisition. Xbox fans can expect to see more ZeniMax Media titles on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, including a back catalogue of titles that aren’t currently on the service.
“I’d say if you want to play new games from Bethesda, you’ll have to buy an Xbox, or sign up for Game Pass, which is cheaper,” said Michael Pachter. “Clearly Game Pass works, so if you’re playing on PC, you can get Bethesda games that way. But if you’re a PlayStation fan, you’re not going to be able to play new Bethesda games on there… Microsoft suddenly has at least as many appealing titles as Sony does… I think 2-4 million players who would otherwise have owned PlayStation will now own Xbox.”
When talking about the upcoming Elder Scrolls VI, Michael Pachter predicted “it’s coming out in the next few years, and that will be exclusive to Xbox. So that’s a system seller. It won’t put them ahead of Sony, but it will definitely shift a few million people from PlayStation to Xbox. And to be honest, I’m more of a PlayStation prospective purchaser over Xbox myself, but my number 1 and 2 games of all time are Bethesda titles, and probably five in my top 15.”
Will you be getting an Xbox Series X/S for Bethesda or id Software games? Do you think Microsoft’s acquisitions will impact PS5 sales? Let us know in the comments below!