Untitled Goose Game developer House House launched Big Walk, its multiplayer cooperative puzzle-adventure game, on PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch 2, PC, and Mac in August to critical acclaim. Since then, players have asked the studio to release the game on Xbox Series X/S, the only console absent from its launch lineup. Today, House House released an explanation stating that Big Walk is not on Xbox in accordance with the Palestinian-led BDS boycott against Microsoft.

"We have made the decision not to release Big Walk on Xbox, in accordance with the Palestinian-led BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement call to boycott Microsoft, and their designation of Microsoft Games (and Xbox) as a priority boycott target," the statement reads. 

House House later writes that it would love for players to experience Big Walk on Xbox, but notes that won't happen until Microsoft and/or Xbox have been removed as BDS boycott targets. 

BDS is an international boycott movement "for freedom, justice, and equality," and "upholds the simple principle that Palestinians are entitled to the same rights as the rest of humanity," according to the organization. BDS states that Israel is occupying and colonizing Palestinian land, discriminating against Palestinian citizens of Israel, and denying Palestinian refugees the right to return to their homes. The movement, which has been around since 2005, is inspired by the South African anti-apartheid movement and urges action to pressure Israel to comply with international law, which BDS says the country has been noncompliant with since 1948.

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