Xbox One Still Has Cloud Features for First Party Games, Committed to Digital in a “Big Way”

Microsoft Games Studios head recently addressed concerns about the company’s Xbox One policy, following the about-turn the company took two days ago when it announced that there would no longer be any periodic check-ins, region locks or restrictions on used games.

Regarding whether some of the features – like the 24 hour check-in and Family Policy – would still be included, Spencer replied with the following:

@B3DDO3 I’ll reply. Change today was about adding choice that gamers asked for. We still believe in digital in a big way.

— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) June 20, 2013

He also stated that there was still a commitment to Cloud features in first party games. So if the Drivatar feature in Forza Motorsport 5 impressed you, there’s a good chance it’s still there.

@Morgasm98 Yes, we remain committed to cloud features in our 1st party games.

— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) June 20, 2013

However, he wasn’t willing to comment on the same for third party devs (but only because he doesn’t oversee what publishers like EA and Activision are up to).

@LucchesiAlberto @Morgasm98 I don’t oversee third party games so my insight into what they are doing isn’t really any better than yours.

— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) June 21, 2013

Nonetheless, it’s interesting to see how Microsoft handles it. Despite a lot of the restrictions imposed, there were some rather unique upsides to the old policy. Stay tuned for more details as we see whether Microsoft’s decision to go with the majority choice will benefit it.