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Indie Developers Will Be Able To Self-Publish On Xbox One
In a report on Game Informer, which has now been confirmed by Microsoft, the restrictive policies that do nothing but hinder indie developers looking to bring their games to the Xbox One will be removed. After reversing their unpopular policies surrounding the console’s previously required Internet connection and restrictions on trading and loaning the games we buy, Microsoft has pulled another 180 — another Xbox One-80, if you will — that should make indie developers very happy.
Sony currently allows developers to self-publish their games on the PlayStation 4, but until now, the same wasn’t true for the Xbox One. Details after the jump.
This change in policy means developers will be able to seek digital distribution without the aid of a third party publishing partner, or by pairing up with Microsoft.
“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,” said Xbox chief product officer Marc Whitten. “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.” Microsoft confirmed in a statement on these pending changes to their game policies.
It sounds like indie developers might matter to them after all.
Under these new guidelines, devs will be able to set the price and release date of their games, rather than having both chosen for them by Microsoft or a publishing partner.
Their certification process has also been tweaked, allowing for a 14-day turnaround on approvals to submitted games, to make sure they’re free of game-breaking bugs or terms of service violations.
Getting an Xbox One dev kit will be easier, too. Every retail console will be capable of acting as such. This feature won’t be available when the Xbox One launches this November, but Microsoft plans on implementing it at a later date.
I hope we get a ‘making of’ documentary that follows the development of the Xbox One, because I think it’d be a fascinating watch.
Since Microsoft is essentially re-writing the Xbox One platform, how many petitions is it going to take to ship this baby with a headset?
Have a question? Feel free to ever-so-gently toss Adam an email, or follow him on Twitter and Bloody Disgusting.
We have the Jason Universe to thank for the recent return of Jason Voorhees, with the short film Sweet Revenge and Jason’s arrival in Dead by Daylight helping to bring the hockey mask-wearing horror icon back into our lives. What else is planned, you ask?
In a chat with Variety this week, Jason Universe’s Robbie Barsamian teases that everything we’ve seen up to this point is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Jason’s return.
“We’ve been busy behind the scenes laying the foundation that everyone is finally starting to see come to life, but this is just the tip of the iceberg,” Barsamian teases.
“We have a thrilling lineup of new projects that we can’t wait to share more details on soon.”
Barsamian also notes during the chat with Variety, “We want to give fans fresh takes on what they love most about Jason and continue to expand his world in authentic ways that resonate with horror fans today.” One of those expansions will take the form of the upcoming Peacock and A24 series “Crystal Lake,” which stars Linda Cardellini as Pamela Voorhees.
“The Crystal Lake TV series will take fans back in time to tell the story of how Pamela Voorhees came to be the mother of all slashers,” Barsamian tells Variety this week.
“Crystal Lake” premieres October 15 on Peacock.
Callum Vinson (“Chucky”) is playing young Jason in “Crystal Lake,” which will tell the origin story of the masked slasher who has stalked the grounds of Crystal Lake for decades.
Last year, the Jason Universe team had teased that a new movie and a new video game are top priorities for the near future. But at this time we have no updates on either front.
Stay tuned for more from the Jason Universe.
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