Dependable independents

Microsoft’s plan to open up its console ecosystem to a wider pool of game developers emerged just two years after the original Xbox launched. And it began with a disc in the post. When the Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA) service launched in 2004, interested players had to request the software from Microsoft. That approach would blossom considerably further, of course, in the Xbox 360 era – something with which Chris Charla was all too familiar. At the time, he was working as a producer at Backbone Entertainment, bringing arcade classics such as Joust, Defender and Robotron: 2084 to XBLA. He soon found himself on the other side of the table, however, joining Microsoft as XBLA portfolio director in 2010, where he quickly realised the company could be doing more to spotlight the work of smaller developers.
As a result, in 2013, ID@Xbox was born with Charla at the reins as programme director. As the service marks its tenth anniversary, it has been part of the launch of over 3,000 games, and paid out $4bn to independent developers. Now, in advance of his keynote at this summer’s Develop Conference in Brighton, Charla tells us how ID@Xbox has evolved, and where it might be headed next.
What motivated the move from XBLA to ID@Xbox a decade ago?
Esta historia es de la edición July 2023 de Edge UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición July 2023 de Edge UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar

DREAMS OF ANOTHER
Pondering existence with help from an assault rifle

CREATING HAVK
How a modest team of Dubliners elevated the art of game physics

Holding on to the past
How is Japan's Game Preservation Society doing in its mission to preserve its own future?
State of Playdate
As its second season of games arrives, we catch up with the little yellow handheld that could
VENBA
How a small team of Canadian developers came together to cook up a storm

Changing tide
Develop prepares for celebratory looks at the past mixed with uncertain glances to the future

COLLECTED WORKS SAM LAKE
Talking parallel dimensions with the would-be novelist who accidentally became the public face of Remedy

Concrete Genie
Filling in the gaps between art and puzzle design

A NEW PEAK
Following on from the wild success of Untitled Goose Game, House House returns with a multiplayer open world unlike any other

HEART MACHINE
Inspired by personal trauma, driven by early success, an indie gem searches for stability