The 2023 Xbox and PC RPG Starfield from renowned The Elder Scrolls and Fallout developer Bethesda has been in the spotlight quite a bit recently, as the game officially made its way to PlayStation with an April 7 PS5 launch and also introduced the Free Lanes content update as well as the Terran Armada story DLC.
Its PS5 release marked the end of the space exploration title's Xbox console exclusivity, and naturally, many have wondered how Starfield has performed on Sony's PlayStation now that it's finally come to the platform. Early estimates suggested disappointing results, but a new report indicates that it may be doing quite well on the new system after all.
That report comes from none other than Mat Piscatella, the senior director and video game industry advisor of the well-respected market research firm Circana. On BlueSky, Piscatella commented that Starfield was the top-selling game in the US during the week it came out on PS5 in.
"Starfield was the best-selling video game of the week in tracked physical & digital US full game dollar sales during the week ending April 11th. It's the first time Starfield has led the weekly US best-selling titles chart since week ending Sept 2, 2023," he wrote. "The PlayStation 5 version of Starfield released on April 7th, coinciding with the Free Lanes and Terran Armada content updates."
Starfield was the best-selling video game of the week in tracked physical & digital US full game dollar sales during the week ending April 11th.It's the first time Starfield has led the weekly US best-selling titles chart since week ending Sept 2, 2023.Source: Circana Retail Tracking Service
— @matpiscatella.bsky.social (@matpiscatella.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-04-20T21:01:16.070Z
That's a pretty impressive feat for a game that came out three years ago and didn't hold a place in the game industry zeitgeist for long; though it reviewed positively with most critics, Starfield proved to be very controversial with players, to the point where it ended 2023 with a "Mostly Negative" rating (it's now at "Mixed"). Its Shattered Space expansion wasn't met with much of a better reception.
Many criticized Starfield for being as wide as an ocean — or a universe, I suppose — but as shallow as a puddle, with very little engaging content to enjoy outside of its main story and handful of hub worlds. Free Lanes and Terran Armada expand the game's offerings a bit, but Bethesda was clear that they don't represent a "Starfield 2.0" overhaul of some sort. This isn't a Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty situation.
With that in mind, I find it hard to believe that this new surge of sales might have come from new players on Starfield's existing platforms of Xbox and PC. It makes far more sense for them to come from PS5 users curious to check out one of the biggest Xbox games in recent memory, especially now that it has more content than it ever has (though it's still not enough in the eyes of many).
Thus, this report suggests that Starfield may be seeing more success on PS5 than was originally believed, though ultimately there's no way to be sure of that without more platform-specific sales data. Regardless, no matter where the sales are coming from, Bethesda's RPG is enjoying quite a boost right now. It's available for $41.99 on Loaded — a nice discount from its usual $49.99 price — and also on Xbox Game Pass.
Do you believe that Starfield's recent sales surge has come as a result of its PS5 release, or do you think it's explained by Xbox and PC players checking out the RPG now that it's been updated substantially? Let me know in the comments, and vote in our poll about Xbox exclusivity as well. It's a hot topic, and one Starfield is very relevant to.
Join us on Reddit at r/WindowsCentral to share your insights and discuss our latest news, reviews, and more.
