XBox Live Indie Games is Like a New Retro Console

[+wongojack]

I've dabbled in the indie games from time to time, but lately took the time to look up reviews and really play A LOT of trials. The indie game scene on Xbox 360 has more titles than some retro consoles and many of the games are openly inspired by recognizable retro titles.

 

While there are a lot of turds in there, that is true with any console. At least with this one, you can try every game and most cost only $1 (max $5).

 

Its a bit of a time commitment, but I'd encourage everyone on this site to explore some of the top rated titles and appreciate the little niche that XBLIG carved out. Some particularly retro friendly titles to investigate would be Decimation X, Ghosts of Tarr-Minos, and the licensed titles Manic Miner 360 and Jet Set Willy 360. However, there are tons more in various genres - many have received positive mentions on this site.

 

Seems like the best site I've found for organizing info about XBLIG is xboxindies.com

 

Can anyone tell us what the XBLIG scene is like on XBone?

[moycon]

Can anyone tell us what the XBLIG scene is like on XBone?

I'll let you know Friday!

[HammR25]

Are there actually XBLIG games on the XBone yet? Seems a little early for that.

[+wongojack]

XBLIG library on XBone? Is it there?

[Tickled_Pink]

Not really. At the moment Microsoft insist that devs (like me) apply for a full-on development kit through their ID@Xbox scheme. It is a scheme to allow Indies (generally larger teams with a decent portfolio) access to development kits but games developed under ID@Xbox are sold within the same marketplace as AAA games from what I can see.

 

In a way, I hope it stays that way when Microsoft do finally open up the platform (which they've promised to do) to smaller Indies. Separating Indie titles away from the main marketplace devalues them. There was a lot of crap on XBLIG, no doubt about that, but there were some gems.

[+wongojack]

Not really. At the moment Microsoft insist that devs (like me) apply for a full-on development kit through their ID@Xbox scheme. It is a scheme to allow Indies (generally larger teams with a decent portfolio) access to development kits but games developed under ID@Xbox are sold within the same marketplace as AAA games from what I can see.

 

In a way, I hope it stays that way when Microsoft do finally open up the platform (which they've promised to do) to smaller Indies. Separating Indie titles away from the main marketplace devalues them. There was a lot of crap on XBLIG, no doubt about that, but there were some gems.

 

Yes - having it separate made it hard to find and meant the best games sorta stayed hidden, but I loved XBLIG as an easy to access platform for devs when it first started. Microsoft was actually the cool system to have your indie game on for 15 minutes there.

 

Latest XBLIG that I bought and played was LaserCat. It cost $1 and was short, but it was totally worth it. If you want a fun platformer you can finish on a Saturday afternoon - buy it.

[cimerians]

It was cool but many devs also flocked to other platforms like mobile and Steam (where they can sell thousands of copies).

 

I liked it a lot cause there were some cool gems on there but it makes sense what MS is doing now.

 

I really miss the Game Room....wish that would have evolved into something.

[HammR25]

I might have bought more Indie games if they had more sort options. They should have had most popular games by month, year, and all time instead of just all time. That was my main gripe with it.

[MrMaddog]

I got some Indie games on my 360, they're great for quickie type action if you don't feel like putting long hours into a Triple A title.

 

As for their being something like that for the Xbone...I guess after the Windows 10 update you could play $1 games from the Microsoft Store which was what MS should have done in the first place. I rather see more original stuff from bedroom coders than lame ports of existing mobile games....

[Tickled_Pink]

Yeah, Windows 10 is going to unify the whole Microsoft ecosystem. A game written for PC should work on Windows Phone and Xbone. It's not going to be that simple, though. Although the Xbone is essentially a repackaged PC, mobiles are not going to run on x86 architecture. So this Universal apps thing actually means that they'll share the same framework. It's been around for a while on PC/mobile but what this is going to mean is that Visual Studio will come with Xbox One project creation functionality built in - probably.

 

Microsoft have announced that they will open up Xbox One to more Indies when they release the Xbone SDK.

[+wongojack]

Even though I kind of want an Xbone, I still haven't bought one. The Windows 10 integration is pushing me to make the move. Even though we haven't seen much on it yet, I think the promise of more integration is enough to tip the scales and get me to make the purchase.