Xbox pulls Gears video with PS5 logo just 24 hrs after announcing exclusivity

The official Xbox YouTube channel recently removed a Gears of War: E‑Day video after it was discovered that the clip mistakenly displayed a PlayStation 5 logo.

In a brief segment of the Xbox Podcast’s deep dive on E‑Day, the team showcased a version of the latest trailer that incorrectly claimed the title would launch on Sony’s console.

On Sunday, Xbox officially declared that the upcoming Gears of War will be an Xbox console exclusive, marking a decisive shift away from its recent multiplatform release strategy.

The PS5 logo error in the podcast appears to corroborate rumors that the decision to make Gears an Xbox‑exclusive was made at the last minute by the studio’s leadership team.

Xbox’s marketing chief, Aaron Greenberg, has publicly refuted rumors that the decision to make Gears of War an Xbox‑only title was a last‑minute move. “I can confirm this is not true,” Greenberg said, adding that the information was deliberately kept within a tight internal circle before being shared with fans and at the showcase.

During a recent interview with The Game Business Live, Xbox’s new chief strategist, Michael Ball, outlined the rationale behind locking both Gears and the RPG Clockwork Revolution to the platform. “This is the start of a program,” Ball explained. “Players can expect a reliable pipeline that validates their historical investment in the Xbox platform, keeps them as Xbox players going forward. And everyone in the industry understands that exclusives are important to the growth and branding of that platform.”

With this move, Xbox signals a shift toward a more curated, platform‑centric approach, contrasting with the broader multi‑platform releases that have become industry standard in recent years.

Microsoft emphasized that the dual releases were a deliberate strategy to showcase a broader commitment rather than a single, commemorative event. By highlighting both titles, the company underscored that this initiative marks a significant milestone for the Gears franchise and its return to the Xbox ecosystem, rather than merely celebrating an anniversary.

Xbox clarified that the two newly announced console exclusives are “not timed exclusives,” indicating there are no current plans to port them to the PlayStation 5 platform.