Have MICROSOFT Snagged Battlefield 4 as an Exclusive?

CVG are claiming that sources have told them that Microsoft could be partnering with EA for timed exclusives on the Xbox 720. The deal is expected to be announced at the Xbox 720 launch event rumored for April 26th. No details are confirmed at the moment, but it’s suggested that EA titles would be timed exclusives, as well as DLC.

The lack of EA presence at the Sony launch event could be seen to back this up, as normally EA are not one to miss a party. They’ve appeared at nearly every major conference in recent years and their absence at the PS4 event was quite noticeable. This rumor goes some way to explaining that.

The loss of exclusivity to Microsoft would be a big blow to Sony after news that Battlefield 4 has gone next gen. Sony pumped a lot of money into the Battlefield franchise with Battlefield 3, getting exclusive DLC and setting it up as the Playstation’s answer to Microsoft’s domineering Call of Duty exclusives. If Microsoft got both of these huge shooter franchises, Sony may struggle to pick up ground with the mainstream crowd that favor shooting each other in the face over gracefully sliding down sand dunes.

Dont fret though Sony fanboys, EA CFO Blake Jorgensen had this to say:

“It was more about timing of our own slate as well as trying to maintain a good balance of power with all the parties out there and choosing when to unveil certain pieces of software,”

“At the end of the day we are very excited about Sony’s platform. We feel there’s a huge opportunity there. The technical power on the platform is going to allow us to do a substantial amount of things that have never been done before.”

“I’d say, between now and E3, you are going to see a lot of stuff, and we are going to chose with our marketing teams when to announce.”

With the news that PS4 is essentially a PC and easy to develop for, it’s almost certain that this ‘exclusivity’ deal is merely timed and not permanent but who knows? If Microsoft go all out to secure the shooter crowd Sony could be left in a big lurch. Can Destiny and Killzone: Shadow Fall fill the gap despite the lack of presence of the two big shooters?

Expect to hear more at the Xbox 720 launch event sometime around the 26th of April, and prepare yourself for the shitstorm that is going to be this year’s E3.

Source: CVG