Xbox Live Indie Section Gets New Features and Less Restrictions

Microsoft has decided to make a few changes to the restrictions imposed to the developers that have been releasing games on its Xbox Live Indie section. It now allows them to create titles with bigger sizes, price them lower, and release more of them from their account.

The Xbox 360 console draws in a variety of gamers thanks to its variety of offers, from triple-A exclusives, to special downloadable titles and even independent games that are supported and promoted through initiatives like the Xbox Live Indie Uprising.

Now, in order to make things that much easier and attract even more independent developers, Microsoft has announced a series of changes that will be made to the Indie games section of Xbox Live, with quite a few restrictions being raised to allow for a better experience.

“Welcome to 2012! We’re eager to see what our developers have in store for Xbox LIVE Indie Games in the coming year and to kick things off we have an exciting announcement regarding some changes to App Hub that make it a good time to be an Xbox LIVE Indie Games developer,” Microsoft revealed.

Among the changes, we have things like an increased maximum file size, now at 500MB, the possibility of releasing even more games from a single developer account, or the ability to put lower prices on bigger games, so check them all out below.

Higher maximum CCGAME size

Since the start of Xbox LIVE Indie Games, CCGAME bundles submitted for Xbox LIVE Indie Games were limited to a maximum size of 150MB. We’ve heard all the great feedback on this subject and today we are pleased to inform you that developers are now able to submit CCGAME bundles up to 500MB through App Hub for publishing on Xbox LIVE Indie Games.

New limit for 80 point games

Another area we’re adjusting today is the requirement that titles larger than 50MB be priced at either 240 or 400 points. After raising our maximum size we’ve decided to also raise this limit. Starting today you can apply the 80 point price to any game with a CCGAME size under 150MB, which is three times the current limit of 50MB.

More titles per developer

The last change affects a fewer number of developers, but we still believe it’s an important update. Originally developers were limited to just eight titles on Xbox LIVE Indie Games. When Creators Club became App Hub, we raised the limit up to ten. We’re happy today to let you know that we’re again raising this limit up to twenty titles per developer.

Considering more and more great indie games are appearing on the PC, thanks to its more flexible nature, these changes should help make the Xbox 360 a more attractive option for studios that have just started making games.