Microsoft threw a bit of a curveball earlier this week when it announced that the Xbox One would allow for self-publishing, and that all units would be able to function as development kits – meaning that, in theory, anyone with enough drive, time, and money can put their game on the service.
Now it seems that Microsoft may have yet another curveball: the ability to self-publish will reportedly be coming the Xbox 360 as soon as next month.
The news came by way of a newsletter from developer FarSight, which stated that Microsoft’s policy shift on the Xbox 360 means that their project, The Pinball Arcade, could finally be put back on Microsoft’s XBLA service on Xbox 360 hassle-free.
“Microsoft has just announced that indie developers (like FarSight) can now self-publish on Xbox Live Arcade instead of being required to find publishers for their games,” the newsletter reads, as reported by Polygon .
“This means we can bring The Pinball Arcade back to the 360 ourselves, and also opens the door to an Xbox One version of The Pinball Arcade in the future!”
Microsoft hasn’t confirmed FarSight’s news, however. In response to a query from Kotaku , a representative had this to say: “We have not announced any changes to our publishing policy for Xbox 360. We look forward to sharing more about self-publishing on Xbox One at Gamescom.”
News that Microsoft would be opening up the Xbox One to developers came as a big surprise to developers and gamers alike, and gave the company some much-needed momentum after lukewarm reception from the public after its E3 press conference. There are still several key details that Microsoft hasn’t touched on yet, such as revenue share, but we likely won’t be hearing more about that until Gamescom at the earliest.
Microsoft’s event at Gamescom kicks off on August 30, and the company is expected to make a few new reveals at the event – including, as the representative noted, more details on self-publishing on the Xbox One.