How Microsoft will use trending to make 'a rational marketplace' on Xbox One

On Xbox One, games are games are games. That means indie games and retail games will all appear under one Game Store. Chris Charla, director of the...

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On Xbox One, games are games are games. That means indie games and retail games will all appear under one Game Store. Chris Charla, director of the ID@Xbox program at Microsoft, said that consumers have become much more savvy today, which removes the need for differentiation between smaller and larger games. "We think consumers understand the value proposition between a $15 game and a $60 game," he said at IndieCade. "We think that the games that are coming from the ID@Xbox are rad enough that any other studio in the world can ship."

However, with every Xbox One eventually able to become a devkit, there's the potential for the Xbox Game Store to become overwhelmed with titles, much like the App Store or Google Play. Charla says that there are a number of built-in features that will prevent that from happening.

First up, there will be "light concept approval" for games on Xbox One. That means there will be "no fart apps" on Xbox One, even if you try to self-publish one. There's also plans for curation to create "a rational marketplace where good games get seen by lots of people."

There will be ways to sort content on the Store, of course, using rather standard methods: "Most Popular," via release date, sorted alphabetically, etc. However, Charla is most excited to show games that are "trending." These aren't games that are simply popular. Instead, this information is based on "how many of your friends are starting to play this game."

Self-publishing on Xbox One will be a bit more restrictive than on other platforms. For example, Microsoft won't allow devs to set their own prices on games. Developers will be able to offer a "wholesale" price, but Microsoft will ultimately determine the final price that appears on the Store. In addition, developers won't be able to set their own release dates. "We're going to work with you to set the right release date," Charla said, but "we don't want ten games of the same genre on the same date."

Andrew Yoon was previously a games journalist creating content at Shacknews.

From The Chatty
  • reply
    October 3, 2013 4:45 PM

    Andrew Yoon posted a new article, How Microsoft will use trending to 'a rational marketplace' on Xbox One.

    On Xbox One, games are games are games. That means indie games and retail games will all appear under one Game Store. Chris Charla, director of the...

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      October 3, 2013 4:52 PM

      By the time there are units sitting on the shelf, MS will be winning this war, much to the chagrin of a small minority

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        October 3, 2013 4:53 PM

        Seriously. Xbone has Halo, Forza and other awesome games. RIP ps4, dead before it could even compete.

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          October 3, 2013 4:56 PM

          RIP PC and PS4!

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            October 3, 2013 4:57 PM

            I'm throwing my PC right now, I'm always on my android phone, so it's useless.

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              October 3, 2013 5:11 PM

              Yeah, I've always thought PC gaming was terrible. I mean, you can't even play Halo or Forza on it.

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              October 3, 2013 5:12 PM

              Shirif watches garbage truck pull away with his rig. He walks inside and opens up chatty. HL3 has just been announced. Entire dwelling detonates from rage. Gaben smiles.

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                October 3, 2013 6:15 PM

                Why? He can just play HL3 on console.

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                  October 3, 2013 6:16 PM

                  Exactly why I'm getting an xbone.

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          October 3, 2013 5:20 PM

          Well lets not starting sucking each others dicks quite yet, I think PS4 will do fine but for all the doom Sayers, the Xbox1 is far from dead, neither is the PC (Im upgrading my PC to play BF4, which im currently enjoying the beta of, I mean shit I want to to be able to aim and shoot people not auto aim and turn slowly)

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            October 4, 2013 10:04 AM

            Psh. Sony doesn't have all of the cool TV and pop music shows that the Xbox has. Do you nerds still actually play video games? I'm watching Breaking Bad on my Xbox, it's gonna be so cool. PS4 is going down. No one wants to play some stupid games unless they're taking a dump and even then I prefer to watch Pepsi advertisements featuring Justin Bieber which I can do with SmartGlass. It's gonna be awesome.

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            October 4, 2013 10:06 AM

            so wait, you're saying that all platforms will do fine and be worthwhile in the end?

            GET OUTTTTTTTT

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              October 4, 2013 10:14 AM

              People were too busy hoping to dear god that the xbox would fails lololzolol ps4 rules roverer I LOVE JAPANESE PPL!!!

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          October 3, 2013 9:17 PM

          GT% has sold more copies than all Forza games combined, and Halo 4 from 343 is pretty mediocre. No new Gears in site. XBO seems kind of dead on arrival except for the hardest of fanboys.

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          October 3, 2013 9:36 PM

          [deleted]

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            October 3, 2013 9:38 PM

            Agree on that, felt like a retread and lacked a certain heart to it. But I absolutely loved the Cortana/Chief story arc. That's genuinely intriguing to me.

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        October 4, 2013 11:01 AM

        finalspartan??

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      October 3, 2013 5:08 PM

      Who says 'rad' anymore?

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      October 3, 2013 6:37 PM

      Sound good to me.

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      October 3, 2013 6:54 PM

      SOOOO geeked for my XB1! C'mon Nov. 22!

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      October 3, 2013 11:55 PM

      [deleted]

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      October 4, 2013 1:34 AM

      So if we want next gen fart games we have to buy a PS4?

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      October 4, 2013 11:39 AM

      'Trending' will be used to show a huge chunk of adverts, too.

      The control over price and release date is also kinda crappy. A bad price can kill a game, and MS will want their cut to be substantial enough so they will probably end up pricing things poorly, plus European pricing will just be laughable.

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