Both Sony and Microsoft have demanded “exclusive content” for their versions of the game ever since Microsoft’s first Xbox. Third party publishers got around this primarily by giving each platform the equivalent of launch DLC (a single platform-exclusive skin or weapon or something) in order to obey the letter of the law. This was also similar for other console-specific hardware that platform demanded we support, like the Playstation Move controller. Developing a title to ship on the Xbone with its Kinect requirement was little different.
ALTMost third party publishers want to devote their development resources to systems and content that is reusable across platforms because that’s the best return on investment, so console-specific stuff like Kinect support is usually whatever is the least resource-intensive while still sufficient to pass certification. The lowest bar for this usually meant something like the Kinect could be used to navigate menus via voice commands or via hand motions. That was what it took to pass MSFT cert and could usually be done fairly quickly by an engine programmer, so that was what many games ended up doing. Since it was low-investment, it usually didn’t affect development much at all.
[Join us on Discord] and/or [Support us on Patreon]
Got a burning question you want answered?
- Short questions: Ask a Game Dev on Twitter
- Long questions: Ask a Game Dev on Tumblr
- Frequent Questions: The FAQ
