Forza Horizon 5 Dominates PS5 Sales in 2025—Even Though It’s an Xbox Game
The Best-Selling PS5 Game of 2025 Is Surprisingly an Xbox Port
It turns out that the top-selling PS5 game so far in 2025 isn’t a PlayStation exclusive, but Forza Horizon 5—originally an Xbox exclusive racing game from 2021. Microsoft’s strategy of expanding beyond its own platforms is clearly paying off, with millions of PlayStation players enjoying this open-world racer.
- Forza Horizon 5 leads PS5 sales with 3 million copies sold
- It beat popular titles like Monster Hunter Wilds and Assassin’s Creed Shadows on PS5
- Microsoft continues to port Xbox exclusives to PlayStation, sparking mixed reactions
- Timed exclusives and cross-platform releases are becoming the norm
Forza Horizon 5 Tops PS5 Charts
According to data from the Alinea Insight newsletter, Forza Horizon 5 has sold 3 million units on PS5 since its release on that platform in April 2025. This puts it ahead of other big names like Monster Hunter Wilds, which sold 2.9 million, and Assassin’s Creed Shadows with 2 million copies.
While Monster Hunter Wilds and Assassin’s Creed Shadows lead overall sales across all platforms based on Circana’s latest data, Forza Horizon 5 still ranks in the top 20 games overall. Considering it’s been available on PS5 for only a few months, those numbers are impressive. A recent 25% discount might have helped boost sales even more.
Microsoft’s Cross-Platform Play Strategy
Forza Horizon 5 isn’t the only Xbox game making its way to PlayStation. Microsoft has also ported titles like Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, Sea of Thieves, and Grounded. This approach isn’t entirely new—Minecraft has been platform-agnostic for years—but it’s stirring debate among fans who still care about “console wars” and exclusivity.
Some Xbox owners might feel frustrated knowing their favorite exclusives are now available elsewhere. However, the strong sales show there’s a clear demand for these games outside the Xbox ecosystem. More players enjoying a title doesn’t take away from the experience original fans had.
What’s Next for Xbox Exclusives on PS5?
Not all big Xbox exclusives have jumped to PS5 yet. Titles like Starfield and Avowed remain Xbox-only for now. But with Microsoft executives openly stating their goal to bring games to “as many screens as possible” (source), it wouldn’t be surprising to see more Xbox hits on PlayStation in the future.
This trend isn’t unique to Microsoft either. PlayStation has also released timed exclusives like Death Stranding on other platforms years after launch. Plus, Xbox still holds advantages like Game Pass, which isn’t available on PS5.
In the end, the era of strict exclusivity seems to be fading, with cross-platform availability becoming the new normal—except maybe for Nintendo, which still plays by its own rules.
