Microsoft has announced that every Xbox One can be used as a developer kit. This is a move away from the Xbox 360, which required developers to go through an outside publisher to move their games on to the console.
In an announcement to Game Informer, Microsoft said:
Our vision is that every person can be a creator. That every Xbox One can be used for development. That every game and experience can take advantage of all of the features of Xbox One and Xbox LIVE. This means self-publishing. This means Kinect, the cloud, achievements. This means great discoverability on Xbox LIVE. We’ll have more details on the program and the timeline at gamescom in August.
This change comes from the multiple developer’s outrage over Microsoft policies regarding indie titles. Now it will allow more freedom to devs without them being required to jump through so many hoops, and give support to indies similar to the offerings of the Playstation 4. However, this feature will be released during 2014.
While more details will be coming in over the next few months, it has many perking their ears up. Microsoft has shown they are willing to change, especially if there is money to gain from their changes.
In the mean time, I hope this change will allow for a better indie game offering than was available through the 360. Maybe there will be a way for users to browse games in development and even test them to give feedback to the developers.
