If you woke me up one day and said, "Hey, do you want to buy this obscure but fun indie from a random game store on your Xbox?" I probably would have laughed in your face. Or maybe sat down and talked about platform exclusivity. However, Phil Spencer, Microsoft's CEO of Gaming, shares how this idea will become a reality.
Phil Spencer wants Steam, Epic Games Store and more on Xbox consoles. Can it work?
In an interview with Polygon at the annual Game Developers Conference, Phil Spencer discussed his desire to remove the console's closed ecosystem. Historically, consoles have only allowed you to buy games from their storefronts. This applies to all major players such as PlayStation and Xbox. Phil Spencer wants to change this closed nature of consoles.
When asked if he thinks stores like the Epic Games Store and Itch.io could come to Xbox, he was very receptive. Spencer further mentioned that console gamers would benefit from the same level of freedom that PC users have and see "real value in that." Given its history as a Windows company, it won't surprise anyone if Xbox allows other game stores on its platform. This should effectively help them boost the stagnant Xbox sales.
He also claims that in the past console manufacturers would subsidize the cost of hardware through game sales, but that is no longer the case. The console market is not growing, as more players move to PCs and handhelds. Opening up the platform and scrapping exclusivity will therefore help in the long run.
