Earlier today, rumors hit the Internet that Microsoft was going to do a 180 on their previous restrictive game publishing plans for their Xbox One console. Now Microsoft has confirmed that it will indeed allow for game developers to publish their own titles for the console, without the need for a first or third party game agreement, but stopped short on offering the specific details.
In a statement sent to Kokatu, Microsoft Xbox exec Marc Whitten is quoted as saying:
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. 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.
Whitten's statement would also seem to confirm the rumor that Microsoft will be able to turn any of the Xbox One retail units into hardware development kits for the console for the purposes of beta testing games.
Gamescom is the massive games convention and trade show, which last year had over 200,000 attendees, that will be held this year from August 21-25 in Cologne, Germany. Microsoft has already announced it will be exhibiting at the show, which it skipped in 2012. it would seem likely that Microsoft will use Gamescom as their next major station for the Xbox One announcement train.
Source: Kotaku | Image via Microsoft
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