Tag: Indies
News Xbox Indie Showcase 2025 Announced For This Month, Game Pass Surprises Expected
In partnership with IGN
Ready for another Xbox showcase after the amazing Developer Direct in January? Well, you're in luck! It's been announced today that the annual Xbox indie showcase (otherwise known as the ID@Xbox indie showcase) will take place on Monday, February 24th at 10am PT / 1pm ET / 6pm GMT - and just like last year, it's being hosted...
Review Neon White (Xbox) - A Speedrunner's Heavenly Delight, Now On Game Pass
Look into the light
Neon White isn’t your average first-person shooter. It incorporates elements of speedrunning, parkour, card games and even some basic aspects of the visual novel genre to create a stylish single-player experience where you must kill every demon in sight to secure your spot in Heaven. You’ll take control of a demon-slaying...
Review Braid, Anniversary Edition (Xbox) - XBLA And Indie History Remastered
Wind back the clock
Braid is not only an important part of Xbox Live Arcade's history, but it’s arguably up there as one of the most significant indie game releases of all time – illustrating on debut the appetite for more niche and artistic experiences in a market that was at the time booming with blockbuster franchises. With this in mind,...
News Xbox Highlights Four Upcoming Releases At Special Indie Showcase
Two of which are coming to Game Pass!
Every now and again, the good folks at ID@Xbox treat us to a special invite-only event that showcases some upcoming indies, and recently we got to see some footage of four specific titles - two of which are coming to Xbox Game Pass! Those Game Pass titles are Botany Manor and Still Wakes The Deep, which as...
News Toys For Bob Has Reportedly 'Reached An Agreement' With Xbox On Its New Game
After revealing it was "going indie" last month
Last month, in a surprise announcement, the Crash Bandicoot and Spyro developer Toys for Bob revealed it would be "going indie" but would continue to "work closely" with Microsoft in the future. Now, according to a new "exclusive" from Jez Corden of
News Toys For Bob Is Becoming An Indie Studio, Leaving Xbox And Activision
It's already exploring a "possible partnership" with Microsoft
Just weeks after the news that Crash Bandicoot and Spyro developer Toys for Bob wouldn't actually be shutting up shop, the studio heads Paul Yan & Avery Lodato have now dropped some surprising news - revealing the team is going independent. This "opportunity" will apparently allow...
News Xbox Indie Developer Shares His Concerns Following This Week's Rumours
"I legitimately wonder if it's worth porting my next games"
The big topic of the week has been the rumours and speculation surrounding various first-party Xbox games jumping over to PS5 and/or Nintendo Switch, and we're not expecting to get any official details on this for a few more days. In the meantime, this gives everyone a chance to share...
News League Of Legends Developer Riot Games Lays Off 11% Of Its Workforce
New development under Riot Forge is also ending
Riot Games, best known for League of Legends, has today confirmed 530 layoffs globally, which is about 11% of its workforce. In a lengthy post on its official website, it explained how this decision was "critical" for the future of the company. It wants to return its focus to its core games and live...
News Xbox Is Investing In More Indie Games Than Ever, Says Program Director
"Independent creators have never been more important to Xbox"
We all know how important indie games have become to Xbox over the past decade, particularly following the formation of the ID@Xbox program back in 2013, and even though Microsoft will now be focusing a lot of attention on Activision Blizzard moving forward, it sounds like there are no...
News Publisher Thunderful Reiterates Positives Of Xbox Game Pass Releases
Enabling developers and creating "great business"
We've heard debates about Xbox's Games Pass model and how sustainable it is, but one company that's all in is The Gunk publisher Thunderful Games. In a new interview with Windows Central, Thunderful's Chief Games Officer (and former ID@Xbox guy) Agostino Simonetta has reiterated how this relatively...
News PowerWash Simulator Studio Unveils New 'Lightning-Paced' Action Adventure
Another Xbox Partner Preview
During Xbox's' Partner Preview' showcase one of the indies unveiled was Ikaro: Will Not Die. It's described as a "lightning-paced action adventure" featuring rogue-lite elements, and perhaps most interestingly it's being developed by the PowerWash Simulator team FuturLab. This "unique indie" is created in partnership...
News KeyWe, A Co-Op Game About A Mailroom Run By Birds, Is Coming To Xbox This July
Yes, you read that correctly
Update: We now have a release date! KeyWe is coming to Xbox consoles on August 31. Developer Stonewheat & Sons' animator Joel Davis shared some of his thoughts about the game in a press release. “We’ve set our heart on making a warm, lighthearted game that friends and families can laugh at and enjoy together...
News Over 2,000 Indie Games Have Now Been Shipped Via ID@Xbox
Program has paid out more than $1.5 billion in royalties
Microsoft's ID@Xbox program - which promotes independent games and allows developers to self-publish on Xbox One and Windows 10 - reached a major milestone this week. During episode 709 of the official Xbox podcast with Larry Hryb and Jeff Rubenstein, ID@Xbox director Chris Charla revealed...
Feature Editor's Opinion: Indie Game Promotion on Xbox One Has to Change
Evolution required
Back in the Xbox 360's heyday, Microsoft's Xbox Live Arcade was a stellar way to bring new titles to gamers. A platform within a platform, it appeared to have the full backing of the console manufacturer, with regular arcade-focused promotions and a dedicated area on the dashboard for people to find out about what was available...
News 1950's Sci-Fi Invades the Xbox One in Fortified, a Real-Time Base Shooter From Clapfoot Games
Earth comes under attack in spring 2015
Clapfoot Games – an indie outfit that has, up until now, developed only for mobile devices – has announced from PAX Prime that their upcoming base defense game, Fortified, will be headed to Xbox One in 2015. Fortified looks to borrow bits and pieces from the tower defense genre and third-person action...
Review Aqua Kitty - Milk Mine Defender (Xbox 360)
Nearly Purrfect
Aqua Kitty is a game about cats harvesting milk from the floor of the ocean. Turns out, it’s the only place left to obtain the delectable drink, and these kitties are so dependent on it that they’ll overcome their fear of something they despise even more than dogs – mass amounts of water. Mining operations are now fully...