Before Microsoft purchased the game’s developer Arkane Austin, a PS5 version of the upcoming Xbox-exclusive vampire shooter Redfall was already in development. Redfall will be exclusive to the Xbox One.
Harvey Smith, the game’s Creative Director, announced this during an interview with IGN France. During the conversation, he elaborated on the significant effects that Microsoft’s acquisition had on the game’s development, which ultimately resulted in the discontinuation of the PS5 version.
It was a change with a capital C when Microsoft acquired us. They came in and stated that there would not be a PlayStation 5, as the company would instead concentrate on the Xbox One, the PC, and Game Pass.
Since the time-loop style shooter Death Loop enjoyed tremendous success on PS5 as a timed console exclusive, Arkane had formed a productive working partnership with Sony. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the team wanted to keep working on the partnership with the release of Redfall before Microsoft nixed the notion.
Despite this, Smith considers Redfall’s exclusivity the best thing for the title, highlighting that it eased the pressure of the development process by having one less platform to focus on. Despite this, Smith considers the exclusivity of Redfall to be the best thing for the title.
Smith also cites Game Pass as a significant component and believes that it has the potential to play a significant role in Redfall becoming the most successful product the company has released to date. He says:
Game Pass currently has a large player base and, with 30 million users, has the potential to become our most popular game. I am trying to remember the precise amount of subscribers that we have.
Redfall will have a Day One release on Xbox Game Pass, meaning subscribers can play the upcoming game at no additional cost and without having to pay anything more. The video game has been marketed for a long time as a significant exclusive product for Microsoft, and it is scheduled for release on May 2, 2023, for both the Xbox Series and personal computers.
What are your thoughts on the fact that Redfall is being developed for the PS5?