PS5 的《神祕海域》、《戰神》、《地平線》、《對馬戰鬼》、《最後生還者》、《蜘蛛人》等遊戲開始在PC平台上架。Xbox則在Windows 10和11上安裝Xbox和XGP，許多遊戲如《完美音浪》和《我的世界》都與PC共通，且大部分作品可以在電腦上進行存檔。此外，其旗下大作《盜賊之海》甚至能跨平台登入PS5。

雖然兩家公司採取相似的策略，但背後的考量卻不盡相同。主要原因在於3A遊戲的研發成本相當高，至少達1億美元，而其他IP大作的研發預算更是至少3億美元起跳，有些作品的整體投入包含宣傳費用甚至高達5億美元。而任天堂的《薩爾達傳說：曠野之息》和《王國之淚》的開發成本應落在1億美元區間。

隨著主機規格的不斷提升，遊戲開發成本也持續攀升。例如，早期PS2的經典遊戲《俠盜獵車手》的開發成本約為 1000 萬美元，PS3時代增至1億美元，到了 PS4可能達到3億美元，未來廠商可能需要投入至少5億美元在研發上。

廠商需要刺激主機銷售來販售更多遊戲。從PS2和 Switch的歷史來看，主機銷量的天花板大約在1億多台左右。在軟體開發成本持續增加的情況下，軟體開發商只能提高售價，但這樣的操作會讓玩家卻步；若降低價格則必然虧損，研發成本降低則會影響品質與口碑。

因此，索尼在這些因素的考量下，加上與電腦遊戲引擎大部分通用，只需要稍微修改及優化作品就能在電腦上遊玩。另一方面，玩家需要綁定PSN帳號才能登入，並由索尼掌控獎賞贈送及會員存檔。

微軟則在20多年前就企圖將Xbox與Windows系統整合，目前的DirectX已經領導PC市場。由於投資金額過大的遊戲很難回收成本，因此微軟願意將輕鬆小品的遊戲跨平台的放置於PS5上。

任天堂則沒有這種煩惱，擁有眾多成功的IP，除持續推出這些系列作品外還不斷重製舊遊戲，並將寶可夢和瑪利歐製作成電影，取得相當不錯的成績。瑪利歐樂園及周邊商品的吸金能力也相當強，徹底將旗下重要IP的效益極大化。

PS5 games like "Uncharted," "God of War," "Horizon," "Ghost of Tsushima," "The Last of Us," and "Spider-Man" have started to be released on the PC platform. Xbox, on the other hand, has integrated Xbox and XGP into Windows 10 and 11, with many games like "Hi-Fi Rush" and "Minecraft" being shared with PCs, and most games allowing save files to be transferred to PCs. Additionally, major titles like "Sea of Thieves" can even be played cross-platform on PS5.

Although both companies have adopted similar strategies, their underlying reasons differ. The primary reason is the high development cost of AAA games, which can be at least $100 million, while other major IP projects may require budgets starting at $300 million. Some projects, including marketing expenses, can even reach $500 million. For instance, the development cost of Nintendo's "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild" and "Tears of the Kingdom" is estimated to be around $100 million.

As console specifications continue to improve, game development costs also keep rising. For example, the development cost of the classic PS2 game "Grand Theft Auto" was about $10 million, which increased to $100 million during the PS3 era, and could reach $300 million for PS4. In the future, companies might need to invest at least $500 million in development.

Manufacturers need to boost console sales to sell more games. Historically, as seen with PS2 and Switch, the ceiling for console sales is around 100 million units. With increasing software development costs, developers can only raise game prices, which may deter players. Lowering prices would result in losses, and reducing development costs would impact quality and reputation.

Therefore, considering these factors, Sony, with its game engines largely compatible with PCs, only needs to make minor modifications and optimizations to make games playable on PCs. Additionally, players need to link their PSN accounts to log in, allowing Sony to control rewards and member save data.

Microsoft, over 20 years ago, attempted to integrate Xbox with Windows systems, and today, DirectX leads the PC market. Due to the difficulty of recouping costs for high-investment games, Microsoft is willing to release lighter games cross-platform on PS5.

Nintendo, however, does not face this dilemma. It owns many successful IPs and continuously releases new entries in these series while remaking older games. The company has also found success by adapting Pokémon and Mario into movies. Mario-themed parks and merchandise are also highly profitable, maximizing the benefits of its key IPs.

照片:產品官網