The Game Business Show Whatever happened to Xbox Project Moorcroft?
Mar 12, 2026
Ben Porter, Newzoo director and industry data expert, and Guy Richards, ID@Xbox head supporting indie developers. They unpack why Project Moorcroft pivoted to demo support and how Project Helix aims to unify Xbox and Windows. They discuss Game Pass opportunities for indies, Newzoo’s surprise market shifts like PC overtaking console, pricing sweet spots, regional growth, and evolving playtime trends.
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Indie Success Measured By Realistic Milestones
- ID@Xbox measures success by developer-scale milestones, not only blockbuster revenue, valuing 100k–200k sales for small teams.
- Guy Richards notes many indie hits (Expedition 33, Hollow Knight Silksong) come from ID@Xbox and Day‑One Game Pass opportunities expand reach.
Build Once Ship Everywhere With Project Helix
- Project Helix aims to let developers build once and ship everywhere across Xbox devices and PC to reduce friction.
- Guy Richards emphasizes that a unified ecosystem (console plus PC plus handheld/cloud) increases reach and lowers dev costs for multi-platform launches.
Use Cloud And Smart TV To Reach New Markets
- Meet players where they are: support cloud, handheld and smart TV to reach markets without console hardware.
- Guy Richards points to Samsung/LG/Hisense partnerships enabling Xbox access in Japan, Brazil and India via cloud.