PlayStation Stumbles in Latest State of Play, But Can Xbox’s Greed Save It?
Xbox Has More Games Set for PS5 in 2025 Than Sony Does (So Far)
The latest PlayStation State of Play, which aired this Wednesday in an hour-long YouTube stream, was a shocking reminder of the PS5’s current struggles. Sony laid its cards for 2025 on the table and unfortunately they don’t seem to have much in their hand so far. The showcase underscored a major weakness in Sony’s current lineup: there are no new first-party games ready to go.
Even a quick glance at the comments section on the YouTube livestream video tells the story—fans were not happy.
Fans went OFF in the comments
A Lack of First-Party Titles
Why is this happening? That’s anyone’s guess. Is it the aftermath of Sony’s attempted pivot to “12” live service games before seemingly reverting to their bread-and-butter single-player narrative adventures? Is this a result of Concord flopping? We know it cost Sony $400M, but is it costing players future games? Or are they just strategically saving money by letting third-party publishers fill the void while they coast as market leaders (aka the Valve strategy)?
Whatever the case, fans expected glimpses of rumored and highly anticipated titles like Death Stranding 2, Ghost of Yotei, Bloodborne, Wolverine, and more—but this week they got nothing but a cold shoulder.
Sony Through a “State of Play” Show, But Didn’t Even Bother to Show Up
Instead, the showcase was heavy on third-party titles, featuring Monster Hunter Wilds and Borderlands 4. And while some of those games looked okay, the only notable Sony-published PS5 titles shown were a Days Gone re-release (yet another PS4 port), Lost Soul Aside, and Housemarque’s Saros, which isn’t slated to arrive until 2026.
Is the PS5 Just a “PS4 Victory Lap”?
Sony continues to push the PS5 as the home of remasters and ports that no one asked for. Just look at the recent lineup of re-releases: Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018), The Last of Us Part I, The Last of Us Part II, Horizon Zero Dawn, Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection, Ghost of Tsushima: Director’s Cut, and now Days Gone. While Days Gone is a fantastic game that deserved better than it got at launch, this endless cycle of remakes and remasters is exhausting for fans hungry for new experiences.
Is Sony porting Days Gone a cash-grab: of course.
Will I buy the upgrade for $10 on day one: also of course!
Where Are the Games? Xbox Is Bringing Them
After the February 2025 State of Play, Sony’s first-party output for 2025 looks undeniably weak. But in a surprising twist, Microsoft is stepping in to fill the gap—by bringing its own games to PlayStation.
In fact, Microsoft currently has more confirmed games coming to PS5 this year than Sony does. Xbox is set to release Forza Horizon 5, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Doom: The Dark Ages, Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, Age of Mythology: Retold, The Outer Worlds 2, and Ninja Gaiden 4 on Sony’s platform.
While Microsoft’s decision to go multi-platform will undoubtedly boost its bottom line financially, it also raises an existential question: why buy an Xbox if you can play all of its biggest titles on PlayStation? By putting exclusivity on the back burner, Microsoft runs the risk of making its console business irrelevant and they are doing it at the worst time possible.
In a moment where Sony appears to have made an unforced error, Microsoft could capitalize on it by holding back games, but instead they hare helping fill the gap in Sony’s 2025 release line up.
Not only does Xbox’s strategy of “get more money now, but pay with console sales later” hurt their future bottom line, it also risks losing current Xbox fans. No doubt longtime Xbox fans—who bought into the ecosystem expecting exclusives—are starting to feel betrayed by a company that is working hard to put itself out of business.
The Industry’s Strange New Landscape
Sony, once the undisputed king of first-party exclusives, now appears to be coasting. Meanwhile, Microsoft, historically very committed to keeping games locked to its ecosystem, is becoming one of PlayStation’s biggest content providers. It’s a bizarre reversal that few could have predicted just a few years ago.
As it stands, PlayStation is struggling to give fans compelling reasons to own a PS5 beyond its library of remakes, while Xbox’s push toward multi-platform publishing could inadvertently help keep PlayStation afloat. The gaming industry has never been more unpredictable—and it’s only a matter of time before we see which strategy pays off.
Ultimately, both of these strategies from Xbox and PlayStation stem from corporate greed. Sony’s reluctance to invest in new first-party titles and Microsoft’s aggressive push toward third-party publishing are both about maximizing profit, not necessarily about providing the best experience for gamers.
Lately, in the console wars, it seems the biggest loser isn’t PlayStation or Xbox—it’s the consumers.
What do you think? Sound off below and let me know!
