Starfield Helps Bring In Big Software Revenue For Xbox, But Can’t Help Hardware Sales

gameranx.com:

Over the last several years, numerous big-name video game developers and publishers have bought out other companies to try and bolster their game development ranks and ensure that gamers come to their systems to get certain titles. The money being thrown around to do such things has been in the double-digit billions, and it’s made many gamers’ eyes go wide in shock. For Microsoft, one of their biggest acquisition was getting Bethesda, which is one of the best developers on the planet in the eyes of many. Starfield was their most recent title and one that was exclusive to the Xbox Series X/S and PC, and Microsoft hoped it would deliver big numbers for them.

On the positive side, they were right on that front. The latest quarterly data for Xbox has been revealed, and it states that the gaming division profits for Xbox rose about 9% year-to-year, with services like Xbox Games Pass also getting a boost year-to-year. The reason for that has been largely attributed to Starfield, and it’s not hard to see why, given that it was the “big game” for Xbox exclusively in that period.

However, if you look further at the data, you’ll see “offset” via the hardware sales numbers:

Microsoft FY 2024 Q1:

Based on quarterly Xbox sales growth of 9%, its gaming division is at around $15.8B in annual revenue right now.

Compare that to $16.3B during the same time last year.

See the below chart over time, with estimated breakouts for its two categories as well. pic.twitter.com/MOKwyyZzQM

Yep, hardware sales for the Xbox Series X/S have dropped 7%, and it’s not that surprising to hear when you consider that the system doesn’t stack up to the PS5 in various hardware respects and doesn’t come close to the Nintendo Switch in software respects. Plus,