Xbox Games Outsell PS5: Oblivion, Minecraft, Forza Top Charts

Microsoft's multiplatform strategy is clearly paying dividends, as evidenced by their successful launches on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC. Sony's PlayStation blog post for April 2025 confirms this, highlighting the top-selling games on the PlayStation Store.

In the U.S. and Canada, Microsoft's titles dominated the PS5's non-free-to-play download chart, with The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, Minecraft, and Forza Horizon 5 securing the top three spots. A similar trend was observed in Europe, where Forza Horizon 5 led the chart, followed by The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered and Minecraft.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, backed by Microsoft for a day-one Game Pass release and featured in Xbox showcase broadcasts, also ranked highly on both charts. Additionally, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 from Microsoft-owned Activision and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle from Microsoft-owned Bethesda made notable appearances.

These results underscore a simple truth: quality games, regardless of their origin, will top the sales charts. It's no surprise that these titles performed well on PlayStation. The PS5 community eagerly awaited Forza Horizon 5, a stellar addition from Playground Games, which launched in April to much anticipation. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered satisfies the ongoing demand for Bethesda's immersive worlds across PC and console platforms, while Minecraft continues to soar in popularity, boosted by the viral success of its movie.

This trend marks a new era for Microsoft, which has recently announced Gears of War: Reloaded for PC, Xbox, and PlayStation, set to release in August. It seems increasingly likely that Halo, once an Xbox exclusive, will follow suit.

Microsoft's gaming chief, Phil Spencer, reiterated last year that there are no "red lines" in their first-party lineup when considering multiplatform releases, including Halo. In an interview with Bloomberg, Spencer stated that every Xbox game is a candidate for multiplatform distribution. "I do not see sort of red lines in our portfolio that say 'thou must not,'" he said.

Spencer's multiplatform strategy is driven by the need to boost revenue for Microsoft's gaming division, especially after the monumental $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. "We run a business," Spencer noted in August. "It's definitely true inside of Microsoft the bar is high for us in terms of the delivery we have to give back to the company. Because we get a level of support from the company that's just amazing and what we're able to go do."

"So I look at this, how can we make our games as strong as possible? Our platform continues to grow, on console, on PC, and on cloud. It's just going to be a strategy that works for us."

Xbox Games Series Tier List

Xbox Games Series Tier List

Former Xbox executive Peter Moore told IGN last year that discussions about bringing Halo to PlayStation have been ongoing at Microsoft. "Look, if Microsoft says, wait, we're doing $250 million on our own platforms, but if we then took Halo as, let's call it a third-party, we could do a billion… You got to think long and hard about that, right?" Moore explained.

"I mean, you just got to go, yeah, should it be kept? It's a piece of intellectual property. It's bigger than just a game. And how do you leverage that? Those are the conversations that always happen with, how do you leverage it in everything that we would do?"

"It's had its ups and downs, but look, Xbox wouldn't be what Xbox is without Halo. But yeah, I'm sure those conversations are happening. Whether they come to fruition, who knows? But they're definitely happening, I'm sure."

While this strategy may provoke backlash from hardcore Xbox fans who feel the console's value is being diminished, Moore believes that Microsoft will not be deterred from making strategic business decisions. "The question would be, ultimately, is that reaction enough not to make a fundamental business decision for the future of not only Microsoft's business, but gaming in itself?" Moore said. "Those hardcore are getting smaller in size and older in age. You've got to cater to the generations that are coming through, because they're going to drive the business over the next 10, 20 years."