On the eve of the Xbox Series X pre-order launch, Microsoft dropped a bombshell: the acquisition of its main rivals ZeniMax Media and Bethesda This means that Microsoft now has complete control over where "The Elder Scrolls," "Fallout," "Doom," "Wolfenstein," "Dishonored," and more will be played in the future

Immediately, there were question marks about what this would mean for PS5 owners Is this the end of Bethesda in PlayStation? Now Xbox boss Phil Spencer clarified Microsoft's position a bit more

While Spencer reiterated his initial position that games will be offered on other consoles on a "case-by-case basis," he told Yahoo Finance that gamers "should feel it's a great investment in what they can experience in the Xbox ecosystem" But it was his final line that should concern Sony fans" We want the Xbox ecosystem to be the absolute best playground, and we think the availability of games is absolutely part of that"

So what does this mean? Well, first of all, it's an extremely cautious statement that doesn't rule anything out: imagine a scenario where the PS5 outperforms the Xbox Series X by a ratio of 10:1 Would Microsoft's insistence on exclusivity prevent the new studio from making money? And here's some precedent: Minecraft, despite being owned by Microsoft, is supported on a wide range of systems, including PS4

But obviously, it would be surprising that Microsoft would invest $75 billion in a studio and continue to publish its games on rival systems And Spencer implicitly acknowledges this in his comments The availability of games obviously matters in terms of which hardware people ultimately buy At the very least, it is not hard to imagine a Bethesda game being sold exclusively on the Xbox and then on the PS5

Just to confuse matters further, the publishing change will not happen overnight The contract doesn't end until the second quarter of 2021, and with so many of Bethesda's projects for PS5 already underway, it would be foolish to cancel now

"Deathloop" is the company's next big title and a PS5 launch exclusive; Ghostwire: currently a PS5 and PC exclusive, "Ghostwire: Tokyo" will probably launch as planned, but depending on the terms of the deal, it could eventually Ghostwire: Currently exclusive to PS5 and PC, Ghostwire: Tokyo will probably launch as planned, but may eventually lose its exclusivity depending on the terms of the agreement

But then what about The Elder Scrolls 6, Fallout 5, Dishonored 3? Well, don't be surprised if those get a big "Only on Xbox" sticker on them For anxious PS5 users, it may be time to consider buying an Xbox Series S as a backup machine