Starfield overtakes Skyrim and Fallout to become Bethesda’s 'biggest game launch of all time'

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has inadvertently shared his opinion on the issues modern AAA games are dealing with - revealing he thinks publishers are "milking" their successful IPs and "struggling" to find new ones. 

Game Pass has become central to Microsoft’s gaming efforts ever since its introduction, driving the company to a much more platform agnostic approach. Interestingly enough, however, PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan doesn’t seem to be a big fan.

Earlier this year, Microsoft announced that it was raising the subscription prices for Game Pass and Game Pass Ultimate in all markets except the US, Japan, Chile, Brazil, and Columbia, and as many may have expected, it looks like it won’t be the only price hike we’ll see for Microsoft’s subscription service.

Square Enix and Xbox have announced that the popular RPG Octopath Traveler 2 will be heading to Xbox and Windows early next year. The HD-2D RPG has already sold over four million copies on Steam, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch since February. Our very own Eric Van Allen scored Octopath Traveler 2 a 9 for its lively world, engaging combat, and fluid progression.

Microsoft made a number of announcements during its Xbox Digital Broadcast at Tokyo Game Show 2023, most of which revolved around Japan and Japan-inspired games and updates. Xbox boss Phil Spencer and Head of Xbox Creator Experience Sarah Bond talked about the importance of the Japanese market. "Japan will always have a special place in my heart for pioneering innovative ways to play, from the Game Boy, to PSP, to the Switch," Spencer said.

Microsoft has recently suffered perhaps its biggest ever leak in the games industry, having accidentally uploaded unredacted documents as part of its legal proceedings with the FTC. In the process, several new details have emerged, including the company’s plans to release a cloud hybrid next-gen Xbox console in 2028, a mid-gen Xbox Series X refresh that’s apparently in the works, a new Xbox controller that will have haptic feedback, Bethesda’s whole slate of upcoming titles, and more.

Microsoft has very visibly gone on a spending spree over the past decade, buying up more than a dozen development studios through acquisitions of ZeniMax Media, Obsidian Entertainment, Double Fine Productions, InXile Entertainment, and others. Microsoft hopes to soon close its $68.7 billion buyout of Activision Blizzard.

It looks like The Elder Scrolls 6 won't be releasing until 2026 at the very earliest, and our PlayStation pals are likely going to be missing out entirely.

By Andrew Webster, an entertainment editor covering streaming, virtual worlds, and every single Pokémon video game. Andrew joined The Verge in 2012, writing over 4,000 stories.

From the looks of it, legendary development studio id Software is working on a new version of its proprietary game engine - id Tech 8.

Having already surpassed Skyrim and Fallout by becoming Bethesda’s biggest launch to date - with over six million players, according to the developer - Starfield has now smashed another of its predecessor’s records.

Have you had a chance to play it yet?