Xbox boss Phil Spencer says there are "no red lines" preventing Microsoft games releasing on PlayStation, but it's too early to make decisions about Halo on PS5

Halo Infinite
(Image credit: Microsoft/343 Industries)

Xbox boss Phil Spencer says there are no "red lines" banning certain Microsoft games from being released on PlayStation, but it's too early to make decisions about tentpole franchises like Halo.

Speaking to Bloomberg, Spencer said that "the ball is moving in the right direction" when it comes to more open game platforms. "This idea of open platforms, where users have more choice, creators have more choice, you see the momentum, right?"

Pushed for specifics, Spencer says that he's pleased with the results of Microsoft's first games to come to PlayStation and Nintendo Switch - earlier this year, Sea of Thieves, Pentiment, Grounded, and Hi-Fi Rush made the jump, while Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will launch on PS5 a few months after its Xbox release despite original plans to the contrary. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, while also now a Microsoft game, got the multiplatform release that CoD fans have come to expect over the years.

Microsoft does seem hesitant to lift the lid on bringing more of its games to PlayStation, especially those that are its major franchises. Spencer said that "I do not see [...] red lines in our portfolio that say 'thou must not'" take certain games or series multiplatform, but Bloomberg reports he also said it was too early to make any kind of decision on that front relating to the next Halo game.

We don't know much about that Halo game beyond the fact that it's been in development in some form for about 2.5 years now. In that time, however, Halo Infinite developer 343 Industries underwent a major rebrand to become Halo Studios, beginning what it said was a new chapter in the series' history, following the prior work of both 343 and Bungie.

Our list of the best Halo games is dominated by Xbox - but for how long?

Ali Jones
News Editor

I'm GamesRadar's news editor, working with the team to deliver breaking news from across the industry. I started my journalistic career while getting my degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick, where I also worked as Games Editor on the student newspaper, The Boar. Since then, I've run the news sections at PCGamesN and Kotaku UK, and also regularly contributed to PC Gamer. As you might be able to tell, PC is my platform of choice, so you can regularly find me playing League of Legends or Steam's latest indie hit.