Skipping E-Day PS5 was a last minute decision

Xbox will be releasing exclusives again this summer with Gears of War: E-Day. It feels like this decision was made hours before the news was released to the public. But that doesn't seem to be the case at all, at least according to one of Xbox's vice presidents.

With less than 24 hours left until Sunday's Xbox Showcase, reports have emerged that plans to launch E-Day on PS5 have been scrapped. These reports were confirmed to be true when Idei held a showcase. Retailers have lined up PS5 listings for new Gears games ahead of the showcase, with some even apologizing for giving false hopes to those looking to play E-Day on PlayStation.

Xbox removes E-Day video containing PS5 logo

More evidence has emerged to suggest that this was a reckless decision by Xbox, as the PS5 logo is visible in a new E-Day video posted during the Official Xbox Podcast. Apparently whoever edited the scene didn't notice, but thousands of viewers did before Xbox quickly removed the video.

Despite all the evidence, Xbox VP reacted to claims that E-Day's exclusivity was locked in at the last minute, denying the facts. In response to The Verge's Tom Warren, who suggested that the PS5 logo was confirmation that Xbox canceled the PS5 version of E-Day just days before the showcase trailer was released, Greenberg claims he's known about the decision for the past month.

“Hi Tom, I can confirm this is not true. We have only limited knowledge of this news to a very small internal group.” Greenberg answered. When asked specifically which part of Warren's post was untrue, Greenberg explained, “It's not true that it was a last-minute decision.”

Warren pressed Greenberg further, asking whether a decision had been made at the last minute before Sunday's showcase and, if so, when. “I found out about these exclusives roughly a month in advance,” Greenberg confirmed, noting that Xbox's changes have progressed quickly since Sharma took on the platform's CEO role, but that the company feels “rejuvenated.”

A PS5 version of E-Day exists somewhere.

Whether the final call to keep E-Day on Xbox was made a day or a month ago, it's still not a good look that there was still evidence of a PS5 version right before it and its exclusivity confirmed even days later. Especially when the latter is trying to convince its player base through official marketing that they aren't making blind decisions based on what people are yelling at you on social media.

As of now, the only Xbox exclusives meant to be moving forward are E-Day and Clockwork Revolution. Xbox boss Matt Booty attempted to explain how exclusive picks will be handled amidst the chaos, as there doesn't seem to be any discernible pattern. Booty confirmed that multiplayer and live service games will continue to be available on other platforms and that other games will be judged on a case-by-case basis. This may be why Hellblade sequel Senua is coming to PS5.