What you need to know
- April saw previously exclusive Xbox titles Sea of Thieves and Grounded launch on PlayStation 5.
- Download charts published by Playstation Blog today show that Sea of Thieves was the top downloaded game in Europe for April, despite only launching in the final week.
- Sea of Thieves made it to third most downloaded game in the US and Canada.
- Grounded also succeeded in breaking the top 10, hitting 8th in Europe and 9th in the US and Canada.
The expansion of Xbox-exclusive titles Sea of Thieves and Grounded to PlayStation 5 was certainly a controversial move by Xbox, but could it have turned out to be a successful one? Only time will tell of course, but early figures indicate that these games were at least received well by the PlayStation audience, as charts published by the PlayStation blog show Sea of Thieves at number 1 for most downloaded in Europe, and number 3 in the US, with Grounded also gathering some... erm, ground.
Top 10 downloaded games in April 2024 on PlayStation 5
The success of Sea of Thieves isn't a surprise, considering that back in March it was the number 1 most pre-ordered game on PlayStation. What is surprising is that it only launched in late April (30th for the Standard edition) and still managed to top the chart. With cross-play between all platforms, it's sure to significantly boost the player base.
Grounded which debuted on PlayStation on April 16 has entered the chart at number 8 in the EU and 9 in the US and Canada. A positive result for both multiplayer games.
Could the Xbox exclusive gamble be worth it?
In February, when Xbox confirmed during an "Xbox Business Update" podcast that it would be bringing some of its Xbox console exclusive games to PlayStation and Nintendo Switch, the news was incredibly polarizing. With some Xbox players believing it could result in a collapse in Xbox console hardware sales, and others welcoming the open gate approach to Xbox Game Studio games.
Pentiment and Hi-Fi Rush were the first titles to hit the PlayStation platform and both were warmly received, with Hi-Fi Rush controversly receiving a higher metacritic rating on PlayStation than on Xbox. Xbox Tax? Better performance? That's up for debate, either way, so far it looks like the four titles that have crossed the border into blue territory have done quite well for Xbox.
Whether this gamble works out in the long-term remains to be seen. It's certainly a volatile time for Xbox at the moment, as despite Hi-Fi Rush being a critical success, they've just closed Tango Gameworks and a number of other beloved studios and are reportedly considering more cuts and debating Call of Duty on Game Pass. With so many moving parts, it's difficult to know what direction Xbox is sailing, despite any short term gains like the Sea of Thieves popularity, we could, as fans, still be going down with the ship.
