Silly Speculation Alleges Sony May Have Signed Secret PS5 Exclusivity for Black Myth: Wukong | Push Square

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Game Science, the developer behind the highly anticipated Black Myth: Wukong, has already explained why the game will only be releasing on PS5 and PC on 20th August – but that’s not stopped bizarre speculation from spreading on social media. You may recall at Summer Game Fest, there was momentary outrage when the Journey to the West adaptation was only confirmed for Sony’s system and Steam, however an FAQ from the Chinese studio later clarified that it was taking additional time to “optimise” the Xbox Series X|S versions.

Monkeying around

Monkey magic

A new report from Windows Central has cast scepticism on the studio’s comments, however. A statement from Microsoft about the delay noted: “We can’t comment on the deals made by our partners with other platform holders, but we remain focused on making Xbox the best platform for gamers, and great games are at the centre of that.” The article then goes on to allege that if a PS5 money hat is involved, it would be “within Sony's interests to cast doubt over the Xbox platform by keeping details of the deal a secret”.

All of this has, unsurprisingly, prompted hysteria online. Some are accusing Sony of “secretly” stealing the title away, and preventing it from releasing on Xbox. Of course, a similar backlash occurred last year with Baldur’s Gate 3, until it later emerged that developer Larian Studios was having issues getting some aspects of the experience to run on the less powerful Xbox Series S. While no such thing has been officially confirmed here, it seems the most likely culprit.

It's much more likely than PlayStation signing a “secret” timed exclusivity arrangement, anyway. While there’s no doubt Sony enjoys a money hat, it’s often extremely transparent about the circumstances of said arrangements, usually revealing the duration of said contracts in the small print of any trailers. Similarly, it tends to put a lot of effort into marketing timed exclusives; Black Myth: Wukong’s release date was revealed at Summer Game