Xbox is on the verge of achieving one of its greatest ambitions. The studio/publisher/manufacturer already has a huge influence on 2 of the 3 video game sectors: consoles and PCs (thanks to Windows, which also belongs to Microsoft). All that remains is the mobile territory (smartphones, tablets) to conquer. This victory is about to happen as Microsoft gives the release date of its store on iOS and Android.
It was during the Bloomberg Technology Summit that Sarah Bond, the president of Xbox, detailed the company's intentions. She says a mobile store is in the works and will be available for use as early as July 2024. She continues:
“We're going to start by bringing our own portfolio of games to [the Xbox mobile store], so you'll see games like Candy Crush or Minecraft appear in that experience. We're going to start with the web, and we're doing it because it really allows us to have an experience that's accessible on every device, in every country, no matter what happens and regardless of the policies of the stores at “closed ecosystem”.”
https://twitter.com/BloombergLive/status/1788701682131460200
As she explains, the store will initially include all first-party games from Xbox Game Studios. With the recent acquisition of Activision Blizzard, we should find absolute hits such as Call of Duty Mobile, Warzone Mobile, Warcraft Rumble, but also all the King titles like Candy Crush Saga. The firm will not be content with its own games, and will bet in the future on the franchises of partner studios that we already find in Game Pass or exclusively on Xbox.
Sarah Bond explains that Microsoft wants to build an environment that “truly extends to all devices – your identity, your library, your identity, your rewards travel with you, instead of being locked into a single ecosystem.”
A time for change
Gamers are no doubt aware that it is the DMA that allows so much freedom today in terms of competition on mobile platforms. This is a European law, which therefore does not concern the firm's main markets, namely Asia and the United States. Despite everything, this does not seem to disturb Microsoft, whose plans are international. Perhaps its actions will force these nations to adopt the necessary changes for better competition and greater openness of ecosystems for the benefit of users.
With the possibility of bringing its game store to smartphones, Xbox is ensuring a more secure investment when it comes to mobile gaming. This could therefore encourage the creation of new projects. During the trial of its lawsuit against Apple, Epic Games was supported by Xbox, which wanted to be able to monetize its cloud gaming services but also the Game Pass. We therefore imagine that these will be steps to be taken in the coming months.
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