When Xbox chief Phil Spencer came onto the PC Gamer E3 it was something many PC gamers just dismissed due to the lack of support Microsoft has shown in the past for PC gamers.
Spencer acknowledged this and said “There have been times in our past where Microsoft has lost our way with PC gaming”, opening admitting they knew this was a problem however he also mentioned that gaming is “critical” for Microsoft and the overall success of the Windows OS.
Microsoft, for those who are less aware, is the owner of PC’s most used operating system being Windows. They also own Xbox and in recent years have been more focused on the console as a platform, essentially leaving the PC gaming scene alone for other developers, such as Valve, to take over. In recent years only a handful of games from Microsoft have been on PC.
Spencer wouldn’t confirm how many games would be coming to PC but that they wanted to give developers a choice due to some games being more suited to certain platforms and controls.
He did however say that there are plenty of opportunities for cross-platform play between the Xbox One and Windows users which is a certainly positive attitude for them to be taking towards PC gaming, even if it is a little bit late.
Windows 10 is due for a July release and will be free to all Windows users in the first year. It is through this OS that most of the new ports will be available, Spencer said that having everyone on one version of Windows “makes it easier for everyone developing games” which suggests Microsoft will not be making any port backwards compatible for older versions of Windows.
Phil Spencer announced during his time on stage that several previously XBox exclusive games will be coming to the PC including Killer Instinct and Gears of War: Ultimate Edition plus some other originally ‘Xbox exclusive’ games that were announced at E3.
Microsoft also announced at E3 that they are working with both Oculus and Valve to ensure that Windows supports their VR headsets which is no doubt to encourage more Windows users to upgrade to Windows 10.
What game(s)/ franchises do you want to see ported to Windows 10? What would need to be ported for you to consider upgrading to Windows 10? Let us know in the comments below!