Bethesda's Indiana Jones game was originally planned as a multiplatform release but is now a confirmed Xbox exclusive, according to Bethesda's own Pete Hines.
In the first Microsoft vs. FTC court hearing, Hines confirmed that Bethesda originally had a deal with Disney to release its Indiana Jones game on multiple platforms, presumably including PS5, but the FTC revealed the deal was amended after the studio was acquired by Microsoft.
FTC lawyer questioning Bethesda's Pete Hines confirms that Disney had a deal for an Indiana Jones game that'd be for multiple consoles. Hines confirms. FTC says deal was amended post-acquisition to be Xbox only for consoles.June 22, 2023
We've been speculating on whether the new Indiana Jones game would be an Xbox exclusive since it was announced shortly after Microsoft had already revealed its intention to buy developer Bethesda Game Studios. For that reason, it's not entirely surprising to hear Xbox plans to get its money's worth and release the game as an Xbox console exclusive.
Multiple outlets with reporters in the FTC vs. Microsoft courtroom, including The Verge, are also saying the Indiana Jones game will be available at launch on Xbox Game Pass. Again, not a huge shocker if the game's now being planned as an Xbox exclusive, but it's good to have confirmation regardless.
With the FTC's ongoing lawsuit now in the courtroom phase, Microsoft and Activision are just beginning to confront their biggest obstacle yet in the $70b acquisition, which has already faced significant headwinds including the UK's formal block. The buyout did notch the approval of the EU, and Microsoft plans to appeal the UK's ruling, but needless to say there's a long road ahead to full completion, which Microsoft originally aimed to get done by the end of the month.
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