The upcoming Xbox Live Arcade version of indie hit Minecraft may mark the first time that Microsoft has allowed a developer to constantly update a title on the digital download service.
The Xbox Kinect-enabled version of the game was first announced at E3 2011, and is due for release later this year. The initial release will contain features that were seen in a beta version of Minecraft, and over time will be updated until it has the same features as the current PC version of the game.
Paddy Burns, chief technology officer at 4J Studios -- the company behind the Xbox version of Minecraft -- told Edge Magazine that he is currently in talks with Microsoft to allow for constant updates to the game, rather than each update having to be thoroughly tested as is usual with Xbox Live Arcade titles.
"Microsoft knows that to do a similar thing that's on PC where they constantly update it, that's a very difficult thing to do on Xbox because you have to go through the full tests," he explained.
"But they are quite keen to move towards that - they do see it as the future, so I think we might be the first to do constant updates."
However, he noted that the Xbox version will not be updated as regularly as the PC version was, with the plan to roll out new updates every two months.
If you made a game that was as successful as Minecraft, you would probably get special treatment too. Especially if you made the case that the special treatment is critical to the success of the game on that platform.
This is a really important update for the console manufacturers to make - we know that they are hesitant due to a desire to keep the game-playing experience on consoles simple, player-friendly, and reliable, but having the capability to update constantly via Steam and NOT having that on consoles actually puts console games at a disadvantage.
Admittedly, I wouldn't call "updating every two months" constantly updating. But I hope that Minecraft can serve as a good test case and this update policy becomes the standard going forward. It enables a lot of very interesting possibilities.
Admittedly, I wouldn't call "updating every two months" constantly updating. But I hope that Minecraft can serve as a good test case and this update policy becomes the standard going forward. It enables a lot of very interesting possibilities.
Also
Sorry to pop your bubble Jesse, FortressCraft now sold more than 500.000 and XBLIG is still being more or less ignored...
But if Minecraft manages to get an exception that would be great as we could then move from XBLIG to XBLA (if MS lets us).