Is Starfield coming to PS5 or PlayStation?
No, Starfield is not coming to any PlayStation consoles, either at launch or in the future. As a brand-new franchise from Bethesda Softworks, now a part of the Xbox family of studios, Starfield is exclusive to Xbox consoles and Windows PCs. This isn't likely to change any time soon, although other Bethesda games are still supported on PlayStation, like The Elder Scrolls Online and Fallout 76.
Starfield is a major Xbox console exclusive
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Most gamers won't be surprised by the contents of this article at all, but if you're here it's because you're looking for definitive information. The Elder Scrolls and Fallout, two legendary RPG franchises from the master developers at Bethesda Softworks, are available across Xbox, PlayStation, and Windows PC platforms. Will Starfield, the first brand-new franchise from the studio in over 25 years, continue the trend of multiplatform support?
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No, and there's a pretty simple reason why — Bethesda Softworks, and the rest of the Zenimax Media family, are now a permanent part of Xbox. While existing Bethesda games like The Elder Scrolls Online and Fallout 76 continue to enjoy complete content and feature parity across all platforms, including PlayStation, future games from the various Zenimax studios will mostly like exclusively release on Xbox and Windows PC.
Starfield is the perfect example of this. A completely new IP with no history on other platforms and a high-profile single-player title that doesn't rely on massive concurrent player counts for multiplayer, Starfield is built to be an Xbox console exclusive. This means it's only launching on Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC, with no reason to believe it'll ever come to other platforms like the PS5 or previous PlayStation consoles.
While there may have been a PlayStation version of Starfield in the works much earlier on in its development, it's never going to see the light of day. Starfield, and any future entries in the franchise, will be exclusive to Microsoft's gaming platforms. That's not to say other Bethesda-published titles can't still release on PlayStation, as Xbox has repeatedly stated that it'll consider exclusivity on a "case-by-case" basis. If a new entry in a franchise has a strong history on other platforms or could heavily benefit from cross-platform support, it can absolutely still happen. Starfield just isn't that game.
Play Starfield on Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC
It'll undoubtedly be disappointing for long-time Bethesda fans with PlayStation consoles, but it's the simple truth of the matter. Still, Starfield isn't launching exclusively on Xbox consoles... It's also coming to Windows PC via Steam and the Microsoft Store on day one. Even if you don't own an Xbox Series X|S console, you can still explore the hundreds of worlds in Starfield via a powerful gaming PC.
Even better, Starfield's AAA $70 price tag can be sidestepped by playing the game through Xbox Game Pass, PC Game Pass, and Xbox Cloud Gaming. As an Xbox studio, every game from Bethesda Softworks will come to Microsoft's value-driven gaming subscription service from day one, making it easy to access all the latest and greatest Xbox exclusives without needing to buy every game at full price.
Starfield officially releases on Sept. 6, 2023, and is now available to preorder. If you preorder the Premium Edition, you can get up to five days early access alongside some other in-game goodies. Starfield may not be coming to PlayStation, but it's still shaping up to be one of the best Xbox games of the year, as long as it can deliver on its ambitious promises to be one of the most in-depth, expansive RPGs of all time.
