A recent survey suggests that the Xbox One is the least popular platform for indie games developers. It’s true that indie games have always been more prominent on some platforms more than others. Traditionally the PC has always been the most popular and accessible platform to develop indie games but consoles might be catching in the past few years.
Xbox One Least Popular Platform Indie Games: PC Is King
A total of 61 developers participated in a survey conducted by GamesIndustry.biz at EGX Rezzed 2018. Results show that PC was the most popular platform amongst indie developers. 47.5 percent of them chose the PC as their platform of preference for releasing games. This isn’t surprising considering the sheer potential of the PC as an open platform compared to consoles which are limited in terms of both hardware and player base.
Xbox One Least Popular Platform Indie Games: Nintendo Switch Beats PS4
The Nintendo Switch was the second most popular platform with an impressive 32.8 percent. Despite launching a little over a year ago and currently having the smallest number of total players, the Switch seems to be the console of choice for indie games developers. The PS4 came in at a respectable third place, garnering only 11.5 percent despite the fact that the PS4 probably has the biggest player base compared to every other console out there.
Mobile platforms and the Xbox One managed to receive only 6.6 and 1.6 percent respectively, making them the least most popular choice of platforms. Although the survey didn’t reveal the reason for these low numbers, it’s probably due to the mobile market being dominated by free-to-play games and the Xbox One isn’t as accessible as the other platforms.
Some developers prefer the Nintendo Switch as it provides “biggest opportunity for indies right now.” More players are presumably purchasing more indie games on the hybrid console due to the limited library of first-party games currently available. Some chose the PS4 due to Sony’s continued support for indie games, especially with the company’s push for more VR games.
In other related news, Microsoft might change the public and games industry’s perception of the Xbox One as they gear up for their biggest E3 2018 yet. The company might also be preparing to support more Japanese publishers soon.
