Now that Square Enix’s new IP Forspoken was recently delayed until January 2023, it stands reminding that the game will be a PS5 console exclusive for quite a while.

While one would assume that Sony would have taken the traditional, one-year exclusivity deal with Forspoken will actually be PS5 console exclusive for two years, meaning that Xbox players who are looking forward to playing Forspoken will have to wait until at least 2025.

Timed exclusives are not a new concept in gaming, most have taken this approach to help build a healthier install base for their console. However, Sony and Microsoft have been taking a much different direction with exclusivity this console generation.

While Microsoft appears to be lifting almost all exclusives in order to push systems like Xbox Game Pass on PC, as well as building partnerships with Sony and Nintendo, Sony has gone another direction and appears to be doubling down on timed exclusives, especially with companies like Square Enix.

Final Fantasy XVI is just one of the many games that will be timed exclusive on the PlayStation 5, but even that deal will only be for a single year.

In comparison, when Microsoft purchased Zenimax and Bethesda, they chose to honor the exclusivity deals that were put in place to have Deathloop and Ghostwire: Tokyo remain one-year exclusives on PlayStation as well.

Forspoken is launching on January 24, 2023 across Windows PC (via a Steam, the Microsoft Store, and the Epic Games Store) and PlayStation 5.