Portal
As an example:
Saints Row sold 2.1 m* - exclusive to Xbox
saints row 2 sold 2.4m* on Xbox but also 1.51 million on pS3.
1.51 m extra sales is not to be scoffed at, and probably well worth the extra development costs, resources, and possible time delay. When games like Battlefield 3 can rack up huge sales over its predecessor, it does make a good case for the potential benefits from not being tied to one system.
Whether you agree or not that it would be silly of Microsoft to release some of its exclusives, we have to remember that Microsoft are in the business of software development, and should have the resources to develop or buy up more studios to create original and exclusive titles. In light of this, here's five franchises that could benefit from being multi format.
Gears of War
Gears of War is Probably the most controversial but, EPIC aren't solely tied to Microsoft whereas the Gears contract is. Whilst possibly a system seller, when compared to the huge potential sales it could have on multiple systems, then there's a lot that could be gained for both Microsoft via licensing the franchise, and Epic for developing it. Those worried about the Xbox's losing one of its key players need not worry as there's still the massive Halo.
Analyst Michael Pachter, said in the past that the Gears of War series could have been even bigger if it had also been released on the PS3 gaining a possible 3-4 million extra sales. He even went so far as to say that perhaps Epic regretted the decision to stick with Microsoft - although since Pachter's remarks, Epic refuted his suggestions. The reality is, as a multi platform release, Gears has the potential to be as strong as Call of Duty given the right push.
