Xbox Creators Collection goes live on Xbox One, Windows 10

Director of ID@Xbox Chris Charla join Larry Hryb (Major Nelson) to showcased the launch of the Creators Collection for the Xbox One and Windows 10.

Watch the video above to see the first games taking advantage of the new Xbox Live Creators Program. These games are now known as as the “Creators Collection“.

It also means that any developer can now publish their games on Xbox One and Windows 10. Indie devs will enjoy a simplified certification process with no concept approval required.

As you can probably guess, this new program allows for more indie games on the Xbox One. It’s very similar to what Steam did to the PC market by allowing aspiring developers to use its platform to reach a large audience.

All of the Creators Collection games are being developed as UWP – Universal Windows Platform. This is a”platform-homogeneous application architecture” created by Microsoft and first introduced in Windows 10. The purpose is to help develop universal apps that run on all of Microsoft’s paltforms (Windows 10, Xbox One, and Windows Phone). With it, devs won’t need to port their games ever again..

To put it in more simply: until now indie developers had to buy an Xbox One dev kit. Now they don’t have to. They can just design their game on a PC, and use the UWP to make it compatible with all the other platforms.

As can be seen with the new Xbox Dashboard, Microsoft is really pushing hard in order to re-brand the Xbox One X as a gaming platform. That’s contrary to the strategy they went for since the console’s launch. It seems that marketing the Xbox One as a “entertainment system” didn’t really go well with gamers.

Back to the games. Below you will find a list of some of the games that launched as part of the Creators Collection. The video is a short montage showcasing some of them.

Space Cat!, GershGamesLLC: Shoot your way past an onslaught of enemies and bosses. Collect weapon upgrades like missiles, bombs, laser beams and much more. GershGamesLLC is a group of young hobbyists that makes for fun on the weekends. (Xbox One, Windows 10)

Animal Rivals, Blue Sunset Games: Animal Rivals is an action-packed couch party game for one to four players. Drop into the game and fight for the Animalonia’s throne as one of the furry contenders in different mini-games and locations. Game itself presents a unique art style mixing the cartoonish looks and satire approach. (Xbox One, Windows 10)

Crystal Brawl, Studio Mercato: Gauntlet meets NBA Jam in Crystal Brawl, a 2v2 capture-the-flag local multiplayer game that melds fast action with MOBA-like strategy. Choose from a variety of characters with different abilities, with a notable twist: each character has a unique ability that alters the terrain. Experiment with different character combinations to uncover hidden strategies! Studio Mercato is an independent game studio based in New York City. (Xbox One, Windows 10)

Derelict Fleet, Bionic Pony: Derelict Fleet is a fast-paced space combat game. You are tasked with defending a refugee fleet as you travel the stars searching for a new colony to call home. Bionic Pony is a small indie studio based in Tampa, FL that started making Xbox Live indie games in 2010. (Xbox One)

ERMO, Nonostante: ERMO is a relaxing puzzle game featured with a calming and peaceful graphics. Immerse yourself in the landscapes and colors of ERMO and let you be carried away. You will learn the rules in a few seconds, but ERMO will catch you for hours. (Xbox One)

Block Dropper, Tresiris Games: Block Dropper is a fast paced, arcade style, 3D platformer. Try not to fall as you guide your character through the challenging single player mode or grab a friend to battle head to head in a local multiplayer Block Battle Arena. Tresiris is a small game studio based in Olathe, Kansas, who create fun and simple games with quality as their top priority. (Xbox One, Windows 10)

kubic, Pixel Envision Ltd: kubic is a relaxing optical illusion puzzle game based on M.C. Escher’s art, impossible objects and other geometric designs. The object is to construct the goal configuration from a number of pieces. (Xbox One, Windows 10)