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[Vawn]

I keep hearing certain people state that 95 or 99% of the best games are on everything, so exclusives don't matter.

After looking through my own collection, I noticed of all the games I play, more than half are exclusive to one platform. And those were usually the BEST games.

As an example, I took the latest top 25 games per platform from IGN.

PlayStation 5
God of War
The Last of Us Part 2
Bloodborne
The Witcher 3
Persona 5 Royal
Grand Theft Auto V
Horizon Zero Dawn
Marvel's Spider-Man
Control
Uncharted The Lost Legacy
Red Dead Redemption 2
Ghost of Tsushima
Resident Evil 2
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
What Remains of Edith Finch
Ratchet and Clank
Overeat has
Final Fantasy VII Remake
Dreams
Tetris Effect VR
Yakuza 0
Apex Legends
Monster Hunter World
Nier Automata


Nintendo Switch
Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Super Mario Odyssey
Fire Emblem Three Houses
Luigi's Mansion 3
Mario Kart 8 Delux
Splay the Spire
Steamworld Dig 2
Dead Cells
Celeste
Super Mario Maker 2
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle
Diablo III
Stardew Valley
Xenoblade Chronicles 2
Pokemon Sword and Shield
Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze
Splatoon 2
Monster Hunter Generations
Wargroove
Hollow Knight
Astral Chain
Link's Awakening
Captain Toad Treasure Tracker
Ring Fit Adventure


Xbox One
Red Dead Redemption 2
Inside
Grand Theft Auto V
Forza Horizon 4
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Apex Legends
The Witness
Devil May Cry 5
Sunset Overdrive
Rise of the Tomb Raider
Metal Gear Solid 5
Gears 5
Titanfall 2
Assassin's Creed Odyssey
Resident Evil 2 Remake
Cuphead
Doom
Monster Hunter World
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
Dark Souls 3
Halo Master Chief Collection
Ori and the Blind Forrest
Overwatch
Dead Cells
Firewatch

EDIT: This is not taking into account PC when speaking of exclusives.

Do you believe almost all the best games are multi-platform? Why do you think this narrative is pushed?


Added Top 50 Metacritic Games

1. Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii, 2010) – 97
2. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch, 2017) – 97
3. Red Dead Redemption 2 (PlayStation 4, 2018) – 97
4. Grand Theft Auto V (PlayStation 4, 2014) – 97
5. Super Mario Odyssey (Switch, 2017) – 97
6. Mass Effect 2 (Xbox 360, 2010) – 96
7. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Xbox 360, 2011) – 96
8. The Last of Us (PlayStation 3, 2013) – 95
9. The Last of Us Remastered (PlayStation 4, 2014) – 95
10. Red Dead Redemption (Xbox 360, 2010) – 95
11. Portal 2 (Xbox 360, 2011) – 95
12. God of War (PlayStation 4, 2018) – 94
13. Batman: Arkham City (Xbox 360, 2011) – 94
14. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (3DS, 2011) – 94
15. BioShock Infinite (PC, 2013) – 94
16. Pac-Man Championship Edition DX (Xbox 360, 2010) – 93
17. Divinity: Original Sin II (PC, 2017) – 93
18. Super Mario 3D World (Wii U, 2013) – 93
19. Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty (PC, 2010) – 93
20. Persona 4 Golden (PlayStation Vita, 2012) – 93
21. Persona 5 (PlayStation 4, 2017) – 93
22. Mass Effect 3 (Xbox 360, 2012) – 93
23. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (PlayStation 4, 2015) – 93
24. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii, 2011) – 93
25. Rock Band 3 (Xbox 360, 2010) – 93
26. Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (PlayStation 4, 2016) – 93
27. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (Switch, 2018) – 93
28. Inside (Xbox One, 2016) – 93
29. Forza Horizon 4 (Xbox One, 2018) – 92
30. God of War III (PlayStation 3, 2010) – 92
31. Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (PlayStation 3, 2011) – 92
32. Bloodborne (PlayStation 4, 2015) – 92
33. Celeste (Switch, 2018) – 92
34. Super Street Fighter IV (PlayStation 3, 2010) – 92
35. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (PlayStation 4, 2015) – 92
36. Undertale (PC, 2015) – 92
37. Fire Emblem: Awakening (3DS, 2013) – 92
38. Divinity: Original Sin II – Definitive Edition (PlayStation 4, 2018) – 92
39. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (Wii U, 2014) – 92
40. Journey (PlayStation 3, 2012) – 92
41. Xenoblade Chronicles (Wii, 2012) – 92
42. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Switch, 2017) – 92
43. The ICO & Shadow of the Colossus Collection (PlayStation 3, 2011) – 92
44. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Blood and Wine (PC, 2016) – 92
45. LittleBigPlanet 2 (PlayStation 3, 2011) – 91
46. Overwatch (PC, 2016) – 91
47. Bayonetta 2 (Wii U, 2014) – 91
48. Forza Horizon 3 (Xbox One, 2016) – 91
49. Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers (PC, 2019) – 91
50. Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age – Definitive Edition (Switch, 2019) – 91

Top 50 Metacritic Games
Bolded console exclusives

26 Console Exclusives / 24 Multi-console games

PlayStation - 12
Nintendo - 12
Xbox - 2

 

[diffusionx]

Do you believe almost all the best games are multi-platform?

Yes.

I also think those lists are edited in such a way to highlight exclusive games on each platform, which is fine.

 

[Musky_Cheese]

Xbox itself is multiplatform. A number of the PS titles are going Multiplatform. That leaves only Nintendo...

So yes. And as a PC player, I am happy.

 

[Night.Ninja]

I guess the best sellers are multi platform

 

[AV]

Those lists really mean jack shit when they're from the same (bad) source and for whatever reason The Witcher 3 is the best multiplatform PS4 game, but the fourth best multiplatform Xbox game..? Below Inside?

Regardless, the list demonstrates that it depends on the platform. Nobody buys a Nintendo console without the specific intention of playing Nintendo games, conversely Xbox barely has any exclusives to play, but it does okay. And something like PC is so unique that you'll never really see a LOT of PC games on consoles.

It's just an unanswerable question.

 

[Vawn]

Xbox itself is multiplatform. A number of the PS titles are going Multiplatform. That leaves only Nintendo...

So yes. And as a PC player, I am happy.

This is not counting PC (obviously there would be no green entries otherwise)

 

[The Cockatrice]

Oh boy... At the top of my head, best games ever made: Mass Effect Trilogy, Witcher 3, Divinity Original Sin 2, Arkham Trilogy, Doom 2016 and Eternal, and so on. What critics consider their best games ever made does not equal what the majority of gamers consider the best games ever made. Also theres no narrative. It's a moral thing to release a game on multiple platforms so everyone can enjoy your game.

 

[Knitted Knight]

It's just a narrative. No need to read more into it than that. Agenda pushing one way or the other will always happen depending on the topic at hand. Human condition.

Majority of the best games I've ever played are exclusives. There are multiplats in there too but definitely not anywhere near that ratio - nowhere close.

 

[Hobbygaming]

I think people that say that, aren't satisfied with the exclusives they are getting IMO

 

[jigglet]

Define "best"? I don't play campaign games. I literally didn't finish a single non-Nintendo campaign on my XB or PS this generation. I only play PvP games, and many of the best are indeed multi-platform.

 

[Musky_Cheese]

This is not counting PC

 

[jshackles]

Those lists really mean jack shit when they're from the same (bad) source and for whatever reason The Witcher 3 is the best multiplatform PS4 game, but the fourth best multiplatform Xbox game..? Below Inside?

Regardless, the list demonstrates that it depends on the platform. Nobody buys a Nintendo console without the specific intention of playing Nintendo games, conversely Xbox barely has any exclusives to play, but it does okay. And something like PC is so unique that you'll never really see a LOT of PC games on consoles.

It's just an unanswerable question.

Yeah - this is list is kinda shit. Control is a top PS4 (PS5 as stated in the OP?) game but doesn't even make the list on Xbox One? Same with Yakuza 0 and Neir Automata? Yet other games like Witcher 3, RDR2, and GTAV show up on both lists but in a different order.

It's easy to make a broken argument if you have a broken source list.

 

[Aceofspades]

When I saw Xbox list:




I Laughed

 

[GHG]

The first party games are differentiators.

They are supplementary to 3rd party games (which make up the bulk of the sales on all platforms) but they play a key role in swaying people in one direction or another when it comes to deciding which console they will buy.

 

[FromDuskTillGameOver]

As an example, I took the latest top 25 games per platform from IGN.

 

[Stuart360]

I dont think people are saying 95% of the best games are mutiplatform. What they are saying is 95% of games released are multiplatform, which is true.
Its just a counter to the people that say how important excusives are, when they only make up about 5% of games released over a full year.

 

[Angel of BOOM!]

Do you believe almost all the best games are multi-platform? Why do you think this narrative is pushed?

I think there are both awesome exclusives and multi-platform games. I certainly do not buy into the adage that 95% of the top games are multi-platform. What does top mean anyway? Top sellers? Top rated? If it's top-seller then, of course, multi-platform is going to have an advantage.

Surely nobody can argue the benifit there is for a platform holder (Nintendo - Sony) to have a number of top, top exclusive games on their platform. They're a massive differentiator. They help to sell consoles. I can imagine that the only people who'd want to undermine that theory are those that are invested in a platform with fewer strong exclusives.

 

[SportsFan581]

Do you believe almost all the best games are multi-platform? Why do you think this narrative is pushed?

I believe many of the best games are often first-party, but I spend most of my time playing third-party. I think that's the way it works out for a lot of people.

I have a lot of experience with Hitman or TombRaider, etc. every title in the series might not be the GOAT, but I'll probably play them all.

 

[MiguelItUp]

A lot of big sellers are multi-platform, a lot of them also happen to be some highly praised games. That being said, there's definitely some incredible exclusives out there, and it's been that way for decades. As a primarily PC player, I welcome multi-platform with arms wide open, haha. However, I'm always rooting for solid console exclusives, because if they're good enough I'll bite and get the console.

 

[BlueXImpulse]

Looking at the list it's clear Sony is in a league of their own. Playstation has at least one exclusive each major "competitor" want to kill them for. For PC it's Bloodborne. For Nintendo it's Persona 5. For Xbox it's Spiderman. But there is no title on any other platform that Playstation fans consistently call for. There's a huge difference in quality between the games made by Sony or are exclusive to the platform and everyone else. It's sad to see.

 

[Rikkori]

It's a very subjective issue because it depends on 1) how you feel about each game & 2) how many games you play. I can tell you it's definitely true for me, had a Pro but quickly sold it off due to how little I ended up caring about the exclusives. I never really had a console before but it certainly did nothing to make me want to get another one.

Besides, don't forget BC. I'll take the ability to play modded Mass Effect trilogy alone over every single console-exclusive. Enhanced classic games is way more important than some decent new exclusive.

 

[skneogaf]

This generation playstation exclusives were absolutely amazing, previously they were only as good as the competition.

2779 games are on ps4 and only 74 are exclusive games and only half of that are worth mentioning.

Its why it's a hard choice because if the xbox series x is more powerful then the 97 percent of all games (that's if next generation has as many games that is) are better on the more powerful xbox series x.

In my opinion ps5 for exclusive games and xbox series x for everything else may be the best option.

Both consoles are always the way to go.

 

[Damigos]

Almost every game of the year the last years is an exclusive. So, no, the best games are not multiplatform

 

[Optimistic Gamer]

PlayStation 5
Grand Theft Auto V
Red Dead Redemption 2
Apex Legends
Monster Hunter World

Xbox One
Red Dead Redemption 2
Grand Theft Auto V
Forza Horizon 4
Apex Legends
Gears 5
Titanfall 2
Monster Hunter World
Dark Souls 3
Halo Master Chief Collection
Overwatch

Not a lot of exclusives left if you eliminate Single Player games.
Yet these are the games that keep people engaged for a long long time. That's why they (imho) are more important.

No need to explain to me how often you played through the last of us 2, Ori and god of war.

 

[Vawn]

I dont think people are saying 95% of the best games are mutiplatform. What they are saying is 95% of games released are multiplatform, which is true.
Its just a counter to the people that say how important excusives are, when they only make up about 5% of games released over a full year.

95% of the games are shovelware mobile ports that barely even one realizes exist. It's the best hames that matter, not the quantity.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

Normie narrative.

I think we should enjoy what we like and don't chase after the biggest, flashiest games that squeeze their way onto every system.

 

[Aion002]

It matters because Nintendo and Sony games are enjoyed by many.

It doesn't matter because Xbox games are not so much enjoyed.

It's a matter of the point of view.

If you only play CoD or Madden, surely you won't give a shit about a Mario or Uncharted.

This speaks volumes for some people.

 

[wolffy71]

I look at it as time spent on a game. What scores a better game, Cod with warzone or BOW? Even tho one has a way better single player, I've spent countless hours playing mp with friends on the other. So its easy to call cod the better game, by far. Most of these games are available on multiple plats.

 

[jakinov]

What is "best" is subjective. If anyone says what you are saying they are saying then think it as them voicing their opinion. A lot of the most played games though are not exclusives. Which is why for someone who subjectively likes multiplayer games more, to them the "best" games are multiplatform because they are more likely to enjoy COD, Battlefield, Fornite, Pubg, Apex, etc.

Exclusives do matter because they build hype, brand, etc. and individual games drive console sales to some extent. In the greater scheme of things, most games sold are not exclusives. For every exclusive game the vast majority of the console owners don't own the exclusive. You'd have to assume that anyone buying a console for an exclusive game only buys 1 exclusive game (unless used games trades are really high) only for every console purchase (which is probably not the case) for every console purchase to have been driven by an exclusive game.

The "narrative" that you need exclusives or the console will fail or exclusives matter most isn't great either. The PS3 had a lot of exclusives but most of them didn't sell nearly as well as PS4 ones do today. The PS3 still sold over a hundred million units. People buy consoles for all kinds of reasons. 360 barely had exclusives the last few years, still sold relative well and the ones they did sold less than half as much as PS4 exclusives sell today.

Exclusives matter but not as much as people think. Everyone should strive to have them but there's a shit ton of reasons why people choose consoles.

 

[Bo_Hazem]

Credit to EliteSmurf

 

[ResilientBanana]

Is it Odd that I can't play Microsoft games on non-Microsoft platforms? Some would say that's fairly exclusive.

 

[Kokoloko85]

Lol what PC exclusive games are there anymore? Indies?

Gone are the days of Duex Ex, Kingpin, Noone lives forever, Morrowind, the odd games and tons of shooters plus RTS games that only belongs on PC.
PC fans brag about RDR2 and AC on high setting now lol. If your only gaming on the PC, your missing out on Tons of amazing games.

Thank god for Nintendo and Playstation. My favourite games outside of Darksouls have mostly been console exclusive In the last 12 years.

Gaming would be nowhere near the same if it wasn‘t for my PS4 and Switch so hell no to 3rd parties and non exclusives making the best games.....

 

[TGO]

Isn't 5 of the highest rated games of all time exclusives?

 

[Tschumi]

You make a good point. 90-odd percent of games are multi platform = hyperbole. Fair enough. I mean anyone saying anything is 90-odd percent the case is making a pretty bold statement~

 

[Birdo]

Top Selling games of 2019.

Multiplats in RED. Exclusives in BLUE:

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2019
2. NBA 2K20
3. Madden NFL 20
4. Borderlands 3
5. Mortal Kombat 11
6. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
7. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
8. Kingdom Hearts III
9. Tom Clancy’s The Division 2
10. Mario Kart 8
11. Grand Theft Auto V
12. Red Dead Redemption II
13. Minecraft
14. FIFA 20
15. Anthem
16. Pokemon Sword
17. Resident Evil 2 2019
18. Luigi’s Mansion 3
19. Days Gone
20. New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe

 

[Hunnybun]

The big majority of games I play are exclusive. IMO, on average they're much better. I think the fact that they can target just a single platform helps achieve a higher quality, and of course they're usually backed by the platform holder so have great production values.

The only exceptions I can think of this generation are RDR 2, Doom and Doom Eternal, and RE7. I own a few others from cheap sales but have never played them.

 

[Fbh]

Sure.
But as with most stuff , "best" is always subjective and up to individual taste. What metric do we use, sales? user scores? metascore?. I mean GTA V has a 97 metascore, positive user scores pretty much everywhere and sold a gazillion units, and yet I don't like it.

To me personally yeah, exclusives matter. I'd say at least a third of my favorite games from both this and last gen were exclusives.

 

[FromDuskTillGameOver]

Top Selling games of 2019.

Multiplats in RED. Exclusives in BLUE:

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2019
2. NBA 2K20
3. Madden NFL 20
4. Borderlands 3
5. Mortal Kombat 11
6. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
7. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
8. Kingdom Hearts III
9. Tom Clancy’s The Division 2
10. Mario Kart 8
11. Grand Theft Auto V
12. Red Dead Redemption II
13. Minecraft
14. FIFA 20
15. Anthem
16. Pokemon Sword
17. Resident Evil 2 2019
18. Luigi’s Mansion 3
19. Days Gone
20. New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe

if u ignore days gone, exclusives only matter for nintendo

 

[Hendrick's]

Multiplats are always the biggest sellers and most played games. Does that make them the best? Depends what you mean by best. For me, I typically enjoy multiplats more than exclusives, but that's just my taste.

 

[Three]

Top Selling games of 2019.

Multiplats in RED. Exclusives in BLUE:

1. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2019
2. NBA 2K20
3. Madden NFL 20
4. Borderlands 3
5. Mortal Kombat 11
6. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
7. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
8. Kingdom Hearts III
9. Tom Clancy’s The Division 2
10. Mario Kart 8
11. Grand Theft Auto V
12. Red Dead Redemption II
13. Minecraft
14. FIFA 20
15. Anthem
16. Pokemon Sword
17. Resident Evil 2 2019
18. Luigi’s Mansion 3
19. Days Gone
20. New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe

Top selling by platform or top selling? Because if it's just top selling you would expect multiplatforms to sell more seeing as the install base is up to 6 times as large.

 

[Thugnificient]

Now do that for the top 100 games.

 

[Krisprolls]

Yes.

I also think those lists are edited in such a way to highlight exclusive games on each platform, which is fine.

The list proves the opposite of your opinion, but don't let the facts stop you.

 

[Krisprolls]

Looking at the list it's clear Sony is in a league of their own. Playstation has at least one exclusive each major "competitor" want to kill them for. For PC it's Bloodborne. For Nintendo it's Persona 5. For Xbox it's Spiderman. But there is no title on any other platform that Playstation fans consistently call for. There's a huge difference in quality between the games made by Sony or are exclusive to the platform and everyone else. It's sad to see.

Obviously. That's why Gamepass isn't that great when you think about it : you will never get the best games, since most of them are exclusives to other platforms anyway. When time is the limiting factor, not money, you're better off just buying the best platform and the best games. That's why Sony is so successful.

 

[Guilty_AI]

I think 95% of lists like this one are bullshit.

 

[martino]

because if you want to know if something is relevant to a market you don't look at subjective niche user or reviewer quality perception but sales.
i'm sure a top 25 list about it is different and that exclusive is equal to the money they bring to sony (~20% last quarter)

 

[Birdo]

if it's just top selling you would expect multiplatforms to sell more seeing as the install base is up to 6 times as large.

It doesn't matter to publishers. Multiplat always = more revenue.

Exclusives only matter to platform holders.

 

[Three]

It doesn't matter to publishers. Multiplat always = more revenue.

Exclusives only matter to platform holders.

That's obvious but I think this thread was making the point that it matters to the consumer who owns the console, in which case publisher revenue is of no relevance to them.

 

[Birdo]

That's obvious but I think this thread was making the point that it matters to the consumer who owns the console, in which case publisher revenue is of no relevance to them.

Unles you own every console, you don't gain anything from exclusives.

You will always be missing out on something.

 

[Three]

Unles you own every console, you don't gain anything from exclusives.

You will always be missing out on something.

Incentive to buy that console? Maybe better games, more funding or tailored to the console if it is exclusive? (which seems to be what the OP is suggesting).

OP is saying that the better games and the ones he/she buys are exclusive games.

 

[Birdo]

Incentive to buy that console? Maybe better games, more funding or tailored to the console if it is exclusive? (which seems to be what the OP is suggesting).

I guess it's just me, but I find that mindset anti-consumer.

It ends with us having to spend more money on extra hardware.