Microsoft Store Increases Developer Revenue for PC Game Sales

More money will go to the developers.

On Xbox Wire, Matt Booty, head of Xbox Game Studios, shared insight into the company’s plans for their “PC gaming journey” from 2021 onward.

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Among the topics discussed including Halo Infinite’s performance on PC and the evolution of the Xbox app and Xbox Game Bar, the developer’s revenue share on PC was noted. 

Starting August 1, the developer share from PC game sales on the Microsoft Store will increase from 70% to 88%. 

Microsoft Store Increases Developer Revenue 

Microsoft is giving developers a bigger cut of revenue, announcing in an Xbox Wire post today that the percentage developers will receive will increase from 70% to 88% starting August 1.

“Game developers are at the heart of bringing great games to our players, and we want them to find success on our platforms. That’s why today we’re announcing that we’re updating our Microsoft Store terms for PC game developers.

As part of our commitment to empower every PC game creator to achieve more, starting on August 1 the developer share of Microsoft Store PC games sales net revenue will increase to 88%, from 70%.

A clear, no-strings-attached revenue share means developers can bring more games to more players and find greater commercial success from doing so.” 

The Xbox Wire post goes on to touch upon other PC gaming elements including how they introduced DirectX 12 Ultimate to PC (and Series X|S), paired with DirectX 12 Agility SDK. They’re also testing their Auto HDR tech “with over 1,000 DirectX-based games” and are bringing DirectStorage on Xbox to PC.  

And if you’re looking forward to playing Halo Infinite on PC, details were shared regarding things like cross-play and cross-progression. 

“Halo Infinite will support multiplayer cross-play and cross-progression when it releases later this year. That means if you’re playing on PC, you can play with your friends on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. It also means that your multiplayer customization and progress will follow you across all platforms.”

Halo Infinite will also support ultrawide and super ultrawide monitor support on PC. 

“We have been working closely with the PC community to ensure that Halo Infinite offers a premier PC experience, including highly desired features such as support for ultrawide and super ultrawide screens, triple keybinds, a wide variety of advanced graphics options and more.

We want to make sure that Halo is serving the PC community. We’re also using the cloud to make console gaming accessible on even more PCs.

While not meant to replace native PC gaming, Xbox Cloud Gaming allows Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members to play over 100 console games on a wide range of computers, from lower-spec, entry-level machines to older devices that otherwise couldn’t handle games that require more power.”

You can read the rest of the notes about Microsoft’s PC gaming plans for 2021 in the Xbox Wire post.

All in all, it’s nice to hear that developers will receive more revenue from their PC game sales on the Microsoft Store. Love it or hate it, the updated percentages bring the Microsoft Store more in line with the Epic Games Store which also gives developers an 88% cut of revenue. 

It’ll be interesting to see whether Steam updates their own revenue split to match the Epic Games Store and the Microsoft Store on PC. The PC gaming experience for games like Halo Infinite is also interesting to hear, and we’re curious to see how the game will perform both on PC and on the Series X|S once it’s released.

Until then, what are your thoughts? Are you happy to hear Microsoft has updated their revenue share for PC game sales? Are you looking forward to playing Halo Infinite on PC? Let us know on our social media channels including Facebook and Twitter!

Related: Knockout City Will Be Available On Game Pass At Launch


 


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Morgan Shaver
Morgan is a writer, metalhead, horror lover, and indie game enthusiast. When it comes to games, they love nothing more than to wax poetic about all the latest and greatest indies to anyone who'll listen. They're also a Tetris fanatic who's fiercely competitive in games like Tetris 99... and all games in general. But mostly Tetris. You can follow Morgan on Twitter @Author_MShaver