Phil Spencer, the Head of Xbox, expanded on Microsoft’s plan for unified gaming across Windows 10 devices. At the Game Developers Conference today, Spencer revealed they will be pushing more tools and support into developers’ hands. Chief of these will be the Xbox Live SDK being made available to the broad developer community. Previously only a number of selected partners had access to these tools.
The SDK will allow access to the majority of Xbox Live services currently available on the Xbox One. Additionally, Microsoft will be introducing a new tier of Xbox Live that will allow smaller developers to engage online with the Xbox Live community.
Key to this will be the unified Windows 10 Platform. Microsoft aims to have one core operating system across all PCs, Tablets, Phones, and of course the Xbox One console. The Universal App Platform will allow developers to create a single project targeting all the devices in the ecosystem.
The Universal Development Center will be a developer portal to build and deliver games to the Windows store. Providing easy game submission and update capabilities to developers, the center will also provide integrated metrics to understand game performance. These improvements in platform and tools should allow for a reduction in publishing overhead.
For the average consumer, the biggest piece in this announcement will be the ability to cross buy. If you purchase content on one of your devices, you will now have it on all of your connected Windows 10 devices. Additionally, Spencer announced that all wireless gaming accessories moving forward will be cross compatible between Xbox One and Windows 10 PCs. Microsoft will release a wireless adapter later this year for PCs to be able to use current controllers.