Something odd this way comes. Death Stranding Game Pass release has been officially announced, complete with Sony Interactive Entertainment trademark and logo slapped onto a trailer hosted on the official Xbox website. However, the game isn’t actually headed to Xbox despite all the platform branding on the trailer. It’s headed to the PC version of Game Pass, meaning only Windows 10 and 11 players will be able to play it.
Will Death Stranding Game Pass for Xbox ever happen?
special delivery pic.twitter.com/GRTxRbDPEu
— PC Game Pass (@XboxGamePassPC) August 19, 2022
Many people have been comparing the case of Death Stranding Game Pass to MLB The Show, the latter of which was forced onto Xbox Game Pass and rival platforms by IP owner MLB. However, this isn’t a similar deal. Sony actually owns the Death Stranding IP as evidenced by the trailer and screenshots released by Microsoft. What appears to have happened here is that PC publisher 505 Games and Kojima Productions struck a deal with Microsoft to release Death Stranding on Game Pass. Kojima has previously indicated that Sony has given him some freedom to operate how he wants, and he’s always expressed his desire for his games to be on PC as well.
So why isn’t Death Stranding on Xbox? That’s because as IP owner, Sony would have ensured that it remains PlayStation console-exclusive. If recent developments are any indication, the company has no qualms about its games landing on PC or PC subscription services. So if you’re hoping for an Xbox release, we wouldn’t advise holding your breath.
In case you’re wondering if this is the rumored Kojima/Microsoft collaboration, then probably not. Kojima does have some secret projects in the works, which could be for multiple platforms.
In other news, it looks like Helldivers 2 is finally happening, and Elden Ring has topped 16.6 million copies worldwide!
