game development

For gamers around the world with accessibility needs, the Xbox Adaptive Controller is now available at Link Removed and Link Removed for $99.99. Xbox Adaptive Controller “The Xbox Adaptive Controller is a product that was ideated and pioneered with inclusivity at its heart,” writes Gabi...

We’ve come a long way since we launched DirectX 12 with Windows 10 on July 29, 2015. Since then, we’ve heard every bit of feedback and improved the API to enhance stability and offer more versatility. Today, developers using DirectX 12 can build games that have better graphics, run faster and...

Windows 10 Fall Creators Update provides a developer platform that is designed to inspire the creator in each of us – empowering developers to build applications that change the way people work, play and interact with devices. To truly fulfill this platform promise, I believe that our developer...

When we launched the Dream.Build.Play 2017 Challenge in June, we had big plans for not just a contest, but a way for indie game developers to connect with each other and show off their skills and experience. We didn’t set out to replace existing communities, but maybe we could create a little...

Back in March, we revealed the Xbox Live Creators Program. Today, we’re excited to announce that any developer can now directly publish their games to Xbox One and Windows 10. We’ve already had some great games published during the preview program (check out the list below!), but there’s always...

For some apps (especially games) it is not uncommon for the app to get into a state where it needs to restart – perhaps after a license update, after installing downloadable content, its caches have become corrupt or unwieldy, or for any other reason where the app needs to refresh state from...

Link Removed Phil Spencer, Head of Xbox, discusses the Xbox One family of devices, including Xbox One X, at the Xbox E3 2017 Briefing on Sunday, June 11, 2017 in Los Angeles. (Photo by Casey Rodgers/Invision for Xbox/AP Images) ICYMI: Link Removed Today marked a milestone Xbox E3 Briefing as...

At Link Removed last week, the Windows Store announced new capabilities to reach more customers, improve your productivity and promote and monetize your apps and games, including: Offering your games to Xbox One users Updating your Store listings faster via import/export Releasing new games or...

Anyone following the excitement around virtual reality and augmented reality over the past year is aware of the anticipation surrounding Microsoft’s new Windows Mixed Reality headsets. You understand that a rapidly expanding mixed reality market is just waiting for developers like you to get...

Link Removed James Cameron’s 1984 film The Terminator introduced many science-fiction idioms we now take for granted. One of the most persistent is the thermal head-up-display (HUD) shot that allows the audience to see the world through the eyes of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s T-800 character. In...

Link Removed Today at GDC we announced the launch of Xbox Live Creators Program, starting with an Insider Preview that gives any developer the opportunity to publish Xbox Live-enabled games on Windows 10 PCs along with Xbox One consoles. The Creators Program provides game developers access to...

Link Removed Here are some of the highlights of his post: “Introducing the Xbox Live Creators Program: Xbox is kicking off things this year by announcing the Xbox Live Creators Program, which empowers anyone to rapidly publish Xbox Live-enabled games on Xbox One and Windows 10 PCs, in a...

The platform game genre has undergone constant evolution, from its earliest incarnations in Donkey Kong and Pitfall to recent variations like Flappy Bird. Shigeru Miyamoto’s Super Mario Bros. is recognized as the best platform game of all time, setting a high bar for everyone who came after. The...

Here’s something any would-be game developer who wants to find a good monetization strategy needs to know. The psychology of gaming is weird. I have a friend who hates to pay for games. Her favorite kind of games are the freemium ones that make their money off of in-app purchases. Basically, you...

In the last post, we introduced you to a video series from Bob Tabor that teaches the fundamentals of C#. In this post, you’ll learn how to put those new (or re-sharpened) C# skills to use as we explore UWP (Universal Windows Platform) development in the Windows 10 Development for Absolute...

We’re excited to announce our partnership with GameAnalytics, a powerful tool that helps developers understand player behavior so they can improve engagement, reduce churn and increase monetization. The tool gives game developers a central platform that consolidates player data from various...

Over the next few months, we will feature game creators who are making games using the Unity game development platform. We’ve partnered with the Made with Unity program to showcase some of the amazing, talented game developers out there and how they use Surface to make their games come to life...

Augmented Reality is a way to connect virtual objects with the real world, making it possible to naturally interact with them by use of mobile devices like phones, tablets or new mixed reality devices like HoloLens. Vuforia is one of the most popular Augmented Reality platforms for developers...

Continuing what we started during the “App Dev on Xbox” event, today we are making available yet another app experience – Atmosphere. In this blog post, you will learn how to get started building great 2D and 3D experiences with Unity and XAML, how to open up your app so other app developers can...

The age-old act of ventroquilism sees a puppet move its mouth while the controlling ventriloquist speaks without moving their lips – pretty impressive! The underlying technique has the ventriloquist “throwing” their voice in a joint audial and visual illusion. Enter Spatial Audio, a set of...