A new analysis claims that Microsoft's Xbox has become the top games publisher in the world

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With almost half a billion in spending, Microsoft's multiplatform strategy is paying off for Xbox, at least according to this analysis.

Xbox Series X Controller
Still the best controller, though. (Image credit: Source: Microsoft)

Is Microsoft and Xbox the world's biggest gaming publisher? That's the case, according to at least one analysis.

There's been a lot of drama among the Xbox faithful over the past year, as Microsoft shifted away from software exclusives on Xbox consoles to a full-blown multiplatform strategy. Games that were previously Xbox exclusive on console, including Sea of Thieves, Grounded, and more, have gradually been making their way across to arch rival PlayStation. It has led to questions about Xbox's future, although the firm claims it is still aiming to deliver new Xbox hardware in the future. Only a couple of days ago, Xbox lead Phil Spencer said he wants Xbox hardware to compete on power and differentiation, which should stave off serious concerns for the time being.

If you're still not convinced about Xbox's strategy, perhaps this new report will help. An analysis from Ampere (via VGC) claims that in December, Microsoft clinched the world's biggest game publisher crown, seeing $465 million in spending through its products. That includes behemoth titles like World of Warcraft, Call of Duty, Minecraft, and Candy Crush Saga. The report credits Microsoft's multiplatform push for a large share of the victories, with 64% of the spending attributable to PlayStation's ecosystem via Call of Duty and the like. It would've been nice to learn how much of the spending was on Xbox and PC respectively, too, but Ampere didn't share those figures seemingly.

The analysis gives a shoutout to games like Fortnite and Marvel's Rivals, which saw significant successes over the Christmas period. However, I have to wonder just how accurate some of the data is when considering the global market. Ampere says that Microsoft was "comfortably ahead" of EA, who were in second place. Other analyses in the past have put Chinese firm Tencent far ahead of other publishers, owing in part to the firm's large home-field advantage, alongside its savvy investments in games like Fortnite and League of Legends. Tencent did get a shoutout for Path of Exile 2, though, which has been tracking well.

It's hard to say exactly how Ampere tracks some aspects of that data. To speculate, perhaps the firm doesn't consider co-owned Fortnite against Tencent's numbers. Either way, it's a feather in the cap for Microsoft potentially, whose ever evolving strategy continues to cause anxiety amongst its biggest customers. Xbox hardware has been tracking down quarter over quarter for a couple of years now, making gamers worried that developers may eventually start abandoning the platform.

Microsoft is planning to announce its FY25 Q2 financial results today, which may give us more data on exactly how Xbox is performing in a post-exclusive game world. Xbox Game Pass remains the best deal in gaming, Xbox Series X is the most powerful console, and Xbox Series S is the most affordable entry into current gen gaming. But, for whatever reason, consumers have so far shrugged their shoulders.

RELATED: Xbox fans are right to be sceptical of Microsoft's multiplatform push

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Jez Corden
Jez Corden
Executive Editor

Jez Corden is the Executive Editor at Windows Central, focusing primarily on all things Xbox and gaming. Jez is known for breaking exclusive news and analysis as relates to the Microsoft ecosystem while being powered by tea. Follow on Twitter (X) and Threads, and listen to his XB2 Podcast, all about, you guessed it, Xbox!

6 Comments Comment from the forums
  • fatpunkslim
    Windows Central said:
    An analytics firm has handed Microsoft the games publishing crown. With almost half a billion in spending, Microsoft's multiplatform strategy is paying off for Xbox, at least according to this analysis.

    A new analysis claims that Microsoft's Xbox has become the top games publisher in the world : Read more
    Where did you see that FY25 Q2 is a post-exclusive game world? Xbox has been making multiplatform games for years. Xbox's good results have nothing to do with a 'post-exclusive game world'; it's simply because of the acquisition of ABK and especially because of Call of Duty, which has always been multiplatform.

    There is absolutely no correlation; it's not games like Pentiment, Grounded, Hi-Fi Rush, or Sea of Thieves being available on other platforms that have made Xbox a top publisher.

    Do you understand what I'm saying? Or are you too stubborn to admit that you are clinging to nonsensical ideas associations?

    When Destin asked, 'Are all Xbox games going to PlayStation?' he said no, neither for all old games nor for all future games ('the things will look at how they do' = case by case). Why didn't he just say yes to such a simple question?

    1. Yes There will be more Xbox games on Nintendo and PlayStation
    2. No. It won't be all Xbox games
    3. Many games will launch on Xbox first, and then MS will decide if they port them to other consoles OR NOT

    To return to the topic, yes, of course, it's a good strategy to move towards more multiplatform games, but one doesn't prevent the other. There are also benefits to keeping exclusive games, they know it, and that's exactly what they are doing. Just look at the 2025 lineup, which is full of exclusive games (temporary or not, and even temporary, it's still an exclusive game).

    It's not just 2025 games, but here's a short list of exclusive games: South of Midnight, Stalker 2, Contraband, Avowed, Fable, Gears, Perfect Dark, State of Decay 3, Replaced, Everwild, Clockwork Revolution, 33 Immortals, ARK 2, Project Mara, .... And I forget many others. We're still waiting for the rumors that have been around for a year about Forza Horizon 5, Halo, Starfield, etc., supposedly coming to all platforms. Lots of rumors for not much in the end!

    Is this a post-exclusive game era? I don't think so!

    In reality, it's the platform with the most exclusive games in 2024-2025 behind Nintendo, and also the manufacturer with the most multiplatform games. They lead both strategies simultaneously; it's just that the media and even you like to repeat the same thing and see things always from the same angle, without looking at the other.
    Reply
  • fjtorres5591
    fatpunkslim said:
    Where did you see that FY25 Q2 is a post-exclusive game world? Xbox has been making multiplatform games for years. Xbox's good results have nothing to do with a 'post-exclusive game world'; it's simply because of the acquisition of ABK and especially because of Call of Duty, which has always been multiplatform.

    There is absolutely no correlation; it's not games like Pentiment, Grounded, Hi-Fi Rush, or Sea of Thieves being available on other platforms that have made Xbox a top publisher.

    Do you understand what I'm saying? Or are you too stubborn to admit that you are clinging to nonsensical ideas associations?

    When Destin asked, 'Are all Xbox games going to PlayStation?' he said no, neither for all old games nor for all future games ('the things will look at how they do' = case by case). Why didn't he just say yes to such a simple question?

    1. Yes There will be more Xbox games on Nintendo and PlayStation
    2. No. It won't be all Xbox games
    3. Many games will launch on Xbox first, and then MS will decide if they port them to other consoles OR NOT

    To return to the topic, yes, of course, it's a good strategy to move towards more multiplatform games, but one doesn't prevent the other. There are also benefits to keeping exclusive games, they know it, and that's exactly what they are doing. Just look at the 2025 lineup, which is full of exclusive games (temporary or not, and even temporary, it's still an exclusive game).

    It's not just 2025 games, but here's a short list of exclusive games: South of Midnight, Stalker 2, Contraband, Avowed, Fable, Gears, Perfect Dark, State of Decay 3, Replaced, Everwild, Clockwork Revolution, 33 Immortals, ARK 2, Project Mara, .... And I forget many others. We're still waiting for the rumors that have been around for a year about Forza Horizon 5, Halo, Starfield, etc., supposedly coming to all platforms. Lots of rumors for not much in the end!

    Is this a post-exclusive game era? I don't think so!

    In reality, it's the platform with the most exclusive games in 2024-2025 behind Nintendo, and also the manufacturer with the most multiplatform games. They lead both strategies simultaneously; it's just that the media and even you like to repeat the same thing and see things always from the same angle, without looking at the other.
    Last I heard, pre buyout, the poorly managed ABK was either the first or second games publisher in revenue depending on how you bookkept Tencent. Add Bethesda, Mojang, and XBS/XWP and it is hardly a reach to see XBOX as the top games publisher by revenue. If not now, within the next three years, assuming teams started after the acquisition take 5 years to deliver. A hundred properly managed studios, most of which have "always* been multiplatform, can literally flood the market beyond what any single platform can support.

    There was never a chance XBOX was going to drop 12 console exclusive games a year. On the other hand, Spencer has been quite clear they intended to provide 4 console exclusive per year and that is where we stand.

    He just said not all XBOX exclusives are going elsewhere.

    The man is open enough, why not take him at his word?

    He suddenly is a liar because he denies youtube clickbait?

    And that $500M number? Spencer and co must be risking laughter induced injury at the idea that $500M estimate for Dec is even a pale reflection of their reality.

    Seriously; december is traditionally the top selling month for games so even if the rest of the year matches it, you're only capturing $6B a year. XBOX is running at $15B! ABK alone used to do $7-9B. Plus Mojang. Plus ZENIMAX.

    As somebody once said, that number "doesn't mean what you think it means."

    And neither does the $500B number.

    Guys, you need better sources than some random leaking "industry insider" on the internet.

    The funny thing is the real storyline in gaming is being downplayed as Japan is purging the PlayStation upper ranks of the (mostly) European cadre that has been steering it into the ground. New Sony CEO, new PS CEO and CFO, all Japanese.

    4% profit margin (a third of " dying" XBOX, a quarter of ABK, and a sixth of NINTENDO) speaks loudly. The real fight for survival is not console counts but the profits. And Sony is lacking there.

    Just remember how announced they wanted to buy KADAKAWA only to find they didn't have the cash (or, surprisingly the credit!) for a $3B deal that made all the business sense in the world. Not after wasting $3.6B overpaying for Bungie. That is serious loss of face. No wonder today Sony has a new CEO.
    But that isn't news.
    Just like XBOX sucking money out of the PS installed base to fund their investment in XBOX games isn't news, somehow.

    No. The headline goes to an "analysis" that fails the test of publicly know data.
    Because internet memes trump hard news.

    Come on guys! Read the financial sites once in a while!
    Reply
  • Jez Corden
    bro, this is ampere, not some random "industry insider"
    Reply
  • CrashTest
    >Xbox Game Pass remains the best deal in gaming, Xbox Series X is the most powerful console, and Xbox Series S is the most affordable entry into current gen gaming. But, for whatever reason, consumers have so far shrugged their shoulders.
    We know why. Exclusive games. People buy gaming consoles for games, not bells and whistles. The Switch 2 will sell well, not because of the hardware or NSO, but because of Mario, Pokemon and Zelda exclusivity
    Reply
  • fatpunkslim
    @fjtorres5591 : "He just said not all XBOX exclusives are going elsewhere.

    The man is open enough, why not take him at his word?
    He suddenly is a liar because he denies youtube clickbait?

    You said it all! If we don't fit into the narrative decided by some, then we're ignored. Everything is good for clickbait, even if it means combining things that make no sense. We're not in the post-exclusive era, but in the era of misinformation, that's for sure!
    Reply
  • fjtorres5591
    Jez Corden said:
    bro, this is ampere, not some random "industry insider"
    Oh, really?
    100% accurate? Always?
    Then why not sell his "news" like Pachter?

    Just a rumormonger spreading the same old FUD.

    Now when are you folks going to address the *reason* for the ongoing industry reshuffling?

    What's it going to take? TENCENT buying out UBISOFT?
    SONY closing INSOMNIAC?
    $100 Games that aren't GTA?
    Reply