Starfield is Europe's biggest current-gen Xbox launch

Starfield screenshot in space
(Image credit: Bethesda Game Studios)

Starfield has had the biggest launch for any Xbox Series X|S game in Europe.

According to GamesIndustry.biz, Starfield has officially become the fifth biggest game launch in Europe of 2023 so far within its first week of launch, as well as securing the top spot as the biggest Xbox launch of the current generation. 

Bethesda's latest RPG is also the fastest-selling new IP of the year, but the report noted that Starfield was technically available a week earlier for those who purchased the Digital Premium Edition - meaning it had the advantage of a few extra days of sales. Also, while the game was available as a day-one release on Xbox Game Pass, the data from those playing via the subscription service isn't included here.

Still, the game's launch sales have beaten some of 2023's biggest games across other platforms, including Resident Evil 4 and Final Fantasy 16, but still falls behind other massively successful games of the year such as The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Star Wars Jed: Survivor, Diablo 4, and Hogwarts Legacy.

However, despite not beating other top sellers for games on PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch, Starfield has officially surpassed Forza Horizon 5, making it the biggest Xbox launch of this console generation across Europe.

Playground Games' racing game was released in 2021 and even days before its official launch, over one million players purchased the game to gain early access. Earlier this year, the game managed to achieve a massive milestone by hitting 30 million players, according to the game's Hall of Fame leaderboard, 18 months after release. 

On September 7, one day after Starfield's official launch and six days after launching in early access, Bethesda announced that the game had become its biggest-ever game launch. Within the short time period - a mere 24 hours after full release - Starfield had racked up six million players, beating the publisher's past launches of Skyrim and Fallout 4.

Looking to the future, the studio has already laid out its plans for future updates, starting with the highly-requested Nvidia DLSS support

For more, here's our list of the best RPGs, as well as the best Xbox Series X games to play right now.

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