After Sony made ripples in the games industry by throwing its weighty supported behind independent developers, Microsoft is catching up to its long-term rivals by offering indies a foothold in the XBLA marketplace. We speak to developers releasing their games through ID@Xbox to find out more about the scheme.
A few months back, we saw Microsoft unveil 25 titles that will be published by its ID@Xbox program, the first big announcement the program has offered since its inception back in August 2013.
This is the first (and loudest) pro-indie move Microsoft has made for a long time, and is much needed following the hardware/software giants seemingly inaccessible and unfriendly Indie stance at last year’s E3.
Even back in the 360 days, Microsoft has never been seen as indie-friendly as its Sony rival (who tend to grab the indie exclusives, often to great acclaim – Spelunky, Transistor and Nidhogg to name just a few).
At the Game Developers Conference 2014, though, Microsoft set out on a campaign that seems dedicated to righting the wrongs of its past, showcasing 25 titles that are ready to launch across the Xbox brand, and promising 250 more independent developers had been courted for the ID@Xbox program.
Developers that sign on to the scheme are promised full access to all the developmental tools unique to Microsoft – achievement support, Kinect and SmartGlass compatibility – in exchange for signing a parity clause that guarantees either platform exclusivity to Microsoft for a while, or same-day launches if the game is multiplatform (Microsoft is keen to state the parity clause is signed on a game-by-game basis, but generally speaking, the outlined system above seems to be the most common).
While this makes sense from Microsoft’s perspective – it doesn’t want games released on its consoles coming out later than its rivals, that means categorically less sales – it’s not always beneficial to the developer: different platforms require different focuses, and whilst the Xbox One and PS4 are similar to develop on, they’re not identical.
Consequentially, it might be beneficial for indies to stagger their releases as they work out the best way of releasing their games for each console – a strategy which Microsoft’s parity clause could render impossible.
Sony don’t offer such restrictions to independent developers that want to publish their games on PSN, but Microsoft is resolute in its position with ID@Xbox, claiming the support and unique features it offers to smaller developers outweighs the supposed price of the parity clause.
“Microsoft has bent over backwards to help us,” explains Born Ready Games’ Jamin Smith, “we’ve not been forced to take advantage of features that wouldn’t fit the game, and we’ve just been able to make the game the best that it can be.”
Strike Suit Zero – Born Ready’s first game published through the program – was one of the first ID@Xbox games released, so it’s reassuring to hear that Microsoft aren’t forcing developers to use Xbox-exclusive hardware, even when that’s a facet of the ID@Xbox program that the publisher is so keen to promote.
Martin Brouard, executive producer at Frima Studios – the developer behind the Xbox One’s upcoming Chariot – was keen to show his support for Microsoft, too: “So far [working with Microsoft] has been a great and smooth experience. The ID@Xbox team has been very responsive, proactive even. We can honestly feel their excitement for Chariot as well as the other indie games that are part of the program.”
Australian developer Blowfish Studio has been working on Gunscape – a game that is practically Mincecraft meets Quake – and managing director Ben Lees explains “Microsoft has been great to work with and has helped to achieve whatever’s been needed… even if we did have some issues getting the [Xbox One development kit] into Australia!”
“ID@Xbox is still in its early days, so there are a few hiccups here and there, but overall we are really happy with how fast things are happening for us, and ID@Xbox staff have been fantastic,” explains Mel Kirk of Zen Studios, whose Castlestorm: Definitive Edition is headed to the Xbox One soon, courtesy of ID@Xbox.
What Kirk says is potent – the program is still in its early stages. Whilst the overwhelming response we’ve received when asking about the program has been positive, there’s still an uncertainty about the permanence of ID@Xbox (Sam Abbot, of Compulsive Games – the studio behind Contrast – also claims “there’s a lot of learning, on both sides, going on!”)
The as yet unnamed 250 developers that have climbed on-board with the scheme promise a little longevity, but – for the average independent studio – seeing a general release on the Xbox Live store still seems like a strong commitment.
Where the PSN has a dedicated outlet for indie games – as well as incentives to release them through its runaway success of a scheme in PS+ – the Xbox One doesn’t. Rather, all releases are offered through the same store – the umbrella Xbox Live store – and there’s no option to filter out indie releases from their triple-A peers.
This issue is divisive, though, with some developers thinking it will put them on equal footing with the triple-A behemoths and others thinking it’ll put them on the back-foot when gamers compare titles on the store.
Blowfish Studio’s Ben Lee is against the idea, considering that perhaps a specialist indie hub is a better way to go: “I think [keep indies separate] might be a smart move, at a time when Valve is ending Greenlight and the other App Stores are completely open, it could be a good time to do the opposite and to have a lightly curated Indie game hub. With discoverability always being an issue, having this specific hub would also help the Indie games find their audience.”
Zen Studio’s Mel Kirk is in agreement – saying that “[Microsoft’s] level of marketing support and store exposure will really show us all how committed [Microsoft] is to the indie community.”
It’s hard not to compare the marketing strategies on digital platforms to Steam – the PC distribution service has galvanised this generation of game-making, and was largely responsible for bringing the spotlight upon the indie scene to begin with.
Between Greenlight’s eventual demise and the open nature of submission to the platform, Steam has laid the groundwork for both Sony and Microsoft –PlayStation has evidently taken lessons from Steam (notably in its open and pro-active approach to courting indies), so Microsoft would be well-advised to pay attention to how Steam markets indie games specifically, and apply lessons learned to a console-based context.
“More discoverability options for titles is super important and as the number of releases increases virtual shelf space always become a problem,” explains Frima Studio’s Martin Brouard.
“Therefore a well curated indie game hub would be great to promote titles to a specific audience. However, indie titles should not be relegated to indie sections only and should also be featured prominently on the main console stores. Indie games should be enjoyed by everyone.”
It’s refreshing to note that Microsoft is keen to support indies as much as their rivals, and the ID@Xbox program is a strong and pertinent step in the right direction if Microsoft is intent on keeping up with Sony (who have thus far dominated the hardware arms race).
After U-turning on initial hardware policies – this month saw the announcement of a Kinect-less Xbox One – and disregarding their initial stance on always-on DRM, the microcosmic indie revolution happening within Microsoft’s offices could prove to be the most important U-turn they’ve made yet.