On Wednesday, Xbox officially launched the long-awaited single-player campaign forHalo Infinite. It’s been years sinceHalo Infinitewas first announced at E3 2018, and even longer since the release ofHalo 5in 2015. Suffice to say, it’s a moment to be celebrated. The team at Xbox isn’t the only one celebrating the occasion, however. Out of respect for the effort and achievement behind the release ofHalo Infinite, PlayStation exec Shuhei Yoshida is also offering his congratulations.
In a message shared on Twitter byXbox marketing GM Aaron Greenberg, he confirmed that Yoshida sent over a gift congratulating him and the team for theHalo Infinitelaunch. It was perhaps a coincidence that Greenberg and Yoshida were attending the same restaurant on December 8. Coincident or not, Yoshida made the most of the occasion and sent over a bottle of french wine to Greenberg’s table with a short friendly note.
RELATED:PlayStation Exec Congratulates Phil Spencer on Forza Horizon 5 Launch
This is not an official congratulations from PlayStation, by any means. At most, it can be considered a professional gift from one executive to another. Yoshida is a veteran of the industry, however, and is certain to have known that it wasHalo Infinite’s launch date. He likely safely assumed that Greenberg and his party were celebrating the launch, too. As such, while there’s no direct messaging regardingHalo Infinite’s launch tied to the gift, it’s implied.
These types of interactions between major competitors like PlayStation and Xbox are rare, or at least rarely acknowledged publically. They typically come in the form of officially sanctioned messages on Twitter, like when PlayStation sent a messagecongratulating Xbox on its 20th anniversary. They are more common now than they were over ten years ago, at least, as the boundaries between gaming communities thin due to social media.
Yoshida is notably theex-president of Sony Interactive Entertainment Studiosand is currently running a program within the company that focuses on relationships with independent creators. To say that Yoshida has friends across the industry, in every company, would be a gross understatement. Casually sending over a bottle of wine to an associate is the least of Yoshida’s friendly efforts.
Don’t be surprised to hear Greenberg return the favor down the line, whether that involves running into Yoshida at a restaurant in the future or through a more marketing-friendly endeavor related to aPlayStation indie game launch. Sometimes a small effort can have a ripple effect, hopefully adding to the cordial relationship between PlayStation and Xbox developers and team members going long into the future.
Halo Infiniteis available now on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
MORE:Halo Infinite’s Success Is a Testament to the Good a Delay Can Do
