An exclusive video game is a game only released on one platform. Often these are First Party games directly from the hardware manufacturer.
A new term, the so called "console-exclusive" games, was introduced mainly because many Xbox and Xbox 360 products are also (often later) releaed on the PC. Some people argue now, that these titles are somewhat exclusive too - console eclusive as they are only on one console - because the PC is not a direct competitor to the consoles. You could say the same with handheld and console games.
Another possibility is a "Timed-Exclusivity". Here a game is first released on one platform and later on (an)other. Famous example is Resident Evil 4, that was first released on the Gamecube, nime months later on the Playstation 2, another 17 months later on the PC and another three months later on the Wii. As mentioned above - not only at Microsoft - it is pretty common to release a game a few months later on the PC, so you could describe these titles as time and console exclusives.
High profile exclusive games typically provide a greater hardware boost compared to a high-profile cross-platform game.
Best selling exclusive games[]
- Mario series
- Gran Turismo series
- Wii Play
- Wii Fit
- Super Smash Bros. series
- Halo series (also on PC)
- Zelda series
- Tomb Raider 1+2 (also on PC)
- GoldenEye 007
- Pokemon series
- Metal Gear Solid (also on PC)
- Nintendogs (different versions)
- Brain Age series
Note: List not complete. Get figures from [1]