Today at the Game Developers Conference Microsoft revealed the first 25 indie games coming to the Xbox One via the ID@Xbox program. Get ready for a wave of great games including a few I’m especially excited about, Super Time Force from Capybara Games and Guacamelee Super Turbo Championship Edition from DrinkBox Studios.
“Since we first announced the program in August, we’ve been working closely with developers to bring a diverse array of independent games to Xbox One,” ID@Xbox director Chris Charla said in the announcement. “Our goal is to make the process as easy as possible so developers can focus on what matters most: creating the games you’re beginning to see today!”
Microsoft initially took some serious heat for it’s lack of indie support when the Xbox One was first announced, but they’ve been making some huge strides in creating a new indie market that is widely accessible on their new console.
Below is a just a taste of what’s coming to the Xbox One in terms of indie games. Microsoft mentioned that an additional 65 development teams have partnered with ID@Xbox, bringing the total number of studios creating games for the Xbox One beyond 200. It’s safe to say that this list will rapidly grow in the coming months, but for now here is every confirmed title:
- 1001 Spikes by Nicalis
- Calibre 10 Racing Series by Bongfish GmbH
- CastleStorm by Zen Studios
- Chariot by Frima
- Chuck’s Challenge 3D by Niffler
- Contrast by Compulsion Games
- Divekick Addition Edition + by Iron Galaxy Studios
- Forced by BetaDwarf ApS
- FRU by Through Games
- Guacamelee Super Turbo Championship Edition by DrinkBox Studios
- Gunscape by Blowfish Studios
- Habitat” by 4gency
- Hyper Light Drifter by Heart Machine
- It Draws a Red Box by Other Ocean
- Nutjitsu by NinjaBee
- Pinball Arcade by FarSight Studios
- Q.U.B.E. Director’s Cut by Toxic Games
- Riptide GP2 by Vector Unit
- Roundabout by No Goblin
- Sixty Second Shooter Prime by Happion Laboratories
- Spectra: 8bit Racing by Gateway Interactive
- Strike Suit Zero by Born Ready Games
- Super Time Force by Capybara
- The Last Tinker by Mimimi Productions
- Wulverblade by Darkwind Media
This is already a pretty impressive list, but it’s really exciting to know that a wider variety of games will be available on our Xbox One consoles. This program opens up a lot of possibilities for the indie scene and their playability on more accessible platforms.
I was lucky enough to try several of these titles of IndieCade 2013 and you all should be super excited for Super Time Force, 1001 Spikes, Strike Suit Zero and Guacamelee if you haven’t already played it on the other platforms.
What's Your Tag? 
Strike Suit Zero is the one I’m most excited about. Colony Wars meets Zone of Ender sounds like a delicious combination.
It is nice to see that the small business publishers are starting to grow a bit more on the platform. Strike Suit Zero already did alright for itself on Steam, but this just furthers it’s audience. Hopefully those who own Xbox Ones will be receptive to a lot of these.
I’m a huge fan of Steam, but sometimes I prefer waiting for these indie games to slowly make their way to consoles. I’m a console fiend, so if I can find it on my Xbox, chances are that’s where I’m getting it.
I’m with you on this one. Steam is nice and you can rarely beat their prices, but I’m a console guy. It’s like eating comfort food.
It just feels so natural to play on a console. To me, PC gaming is slightly more tedious and typically less comfortable.
Habitat sounds like it could be pretty interesting.
Don’t really know much about any of them though, but its good to see some indie games incoming!
Yeah I definitely need to do a little more research for most of these games. Who knows? Maybe they’re a few indie gems coming our way.