Thomas Mahler, the creative mind behind the beloved Ori series, has openly expressed his views on the current trend of platform exclusivity in the gaming world. Having founded Moon Studios, Mahler has worked on games that initially found homes on Xbox and PC, but never made it to PlayStation. Now, he’s making a compelling case against keeping games exclusive to one platform.
Why PlayStation Might Rethink Exclusivity
Recently, Mahler took to X with a detailed post commending Xbox leader Phil Spencer for adopting what he sees as the right philosophy for releasing games across multiple platforms. He revealed that Moon Studios joined forces with Take-Two for their upcoming project, No Rest for the Wicked, precisely because they aimed to reach a broader audience and not be confined to just one or two systems.
“In discussions with Phil over the years, I’ve pointed out how absurd it would be if certain DVDs only played on Sony players, while others required a Samsung player,” Mahler explained. “Gaming consoles have been catering to the same 100 to 150 million players for over 20 years now. To see real growth in the industry, we need to make content more accessible to everyone.”
Reflecting on the direction of the industry, Mahler stated he’d be taken aback if Sony didn’t eventually embrace a strategy similar to Microsoft’s, as both PlayStation and Xbox are largely alike in their offerings. However, he anticipates that Nintendo will continue to march to its own beat.
When asked about the ongoing console versus console debates, Mahler emphasized his belief in Xbox’s methodology, revealing that Moon Studios steered No Rest for the Wicked away from being a Microsoft exclusive in order to ensure it could hit PlayStation and Nintendo platforms as well.
We’d love to hear what you think about Mahler’s perspective. Do you agree with his vision for the future of gaming platforms? Let us know!
