The Creators Program has been in a soft launch state for a few weeks, following its initial announcement at GDC 2017. And now it's rolling out in full to developers everywhere and anywhere.
Developers submitting titles to the Creators Program won't have to adhere to the strict quality rules of ID@Xbox or higher. Instead, devs from all walks of life, whether they're simply students, hobbyists, or smaller studios seeking full independence, they will all be able to publish their titles as easily as developers can publish apps to Windows 10. There's also no concept approval in the Creators Program, which should lead to some interesting, perhaps, insane games.
In the Creators Program, access to the Xbox Live APIs are limited. There won't be any achievements or Xbox Live integration, but devs will get access to Game Hubs, Clubs, and algorithmic promotion on Microsoft's various app stores. For the full list of pros and cons, head over here.
There will also be developer workshops at flagship Microsoft Stores in New York and Sydney to help people get up to speed with building games for the Creators Program.
Microsoft says that this approach gives Xbox the best of both worlds; the full openness of Windows as a platform, and the curated quality core Xbox gamers expect.
The Creators Collection is available on the Xbox One store as a button under "Addons" near the top. And it should appear as a dedicated "Collection" on the Windows 10 Store some time soon.
The Creators Collection could lead to a wider adoption of the Universal Windows Platform as a delivery method for games, as the Xbox Live Indie Game Store on the Xbox 360 shuts down next month.
