Microtransactions and DLC plans for game creation engine dropped.
Microsoft has announced that the next update for Project Spark, releasing on October 5, will see the Xbox One game making sandbox become a fully free product, unlocking all downloadable content for all users. The change will come just two days shy of the anniversary of its official launch.
Going forward, the Project Spark team will shift its efforts away from the production of additional content and new features, which sounds an awful lot like, “no more Conker’s Big Reunion episodes,” to me.
Others might be more upset that they recently spent cash on Project Spark. Likely anticipating such a reaction, Microsoft will be issuing refunds (in the form of Microsoft Store credit) to customers who purchased digital goods or activated retail discs on or after July 28th of this year. Any purchased in-game tokens remaining in a users balance will also be refunded. This credit will be applied to user accounts within 60 days following the transition.
The update will make other significant changes, easing some limitations in the system. The terrain limit has been doubled, the maximum number of props increased by 500, and all users will have 100 upload slots for sharing their games. More than 200 assets are being added as well.
Microsoft did not explicitly state a reason for the change, though one might surmise that it hasn’t been a runaway financial success just on the basis of this pivot. Their announcement includes a quote from Rahul Sandil, the product’s Head of Acquisition/Engagement, which states a user population of “over 200,000 creators”, which hardly seems enough to keep a behemoth like MS in for the long haul.
Source: Xbox Wire
