Starfield is the "starting gun" for first-party Xbox games
"This is the beginning of something that's going to be really special," Xbox CMO says
The launch of Starfield is the start of a "multi-year relay race of first-party titles," Xbox has told GamesIndustry.biz.
Speaking at Gamescom, where the company has been showcasing the sci-fi RPG extensively, Xbox chief marketing officer Jerret West said the Bethesda game marks the start of a prolonged period of regular new Xbox exclusives.
"This is, in my mind, the doorway, almost like a starting gun, to what I think is going to be a multi-year relay race of first-party titles," West told us.
"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.”
Xbox has struggled for consistency with its first-party titles over the last 18 months. 2022 featured few exclusive releases, while its most notable game so far this year, Redfall, was reviewed poorly. However, the firm’s summer showcase in June was received positively from the media.
West continued: "This very much feels like the starting gun for this relay pass that's going to take place over the next couple of years. So as a marketer, I'm super excited about that. And then if you layer in also, Game Pass and the third party relationships that we have... Our third party support that rolls into Game Pass – but also is just on our platform – is critically important too. So 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."
You can read our full interview with Xbox's Jerret West on this page.