Couple fun bits of info I gathered by talking to devs and such at X019. Some of this is probably known but here you go:
- Age Of Empires IV is currently aiming a 2021 release. It's been in active development for about 3 years. The Age Of Empires 3 remake is currently planned for mid-2020.
- Minecraft Dungeons started as a 3DS game, and as the game grew in scale they figured they'd bring it to all systems instead. Crossplay and KB+M support are planned but they are not set in stone yet. Game is worked on by a relatively small team. It'll launch for 20 bucks and will have a special edition for 30 which contains the two big DLC packs they will release after launch. If the playerbase is there they are planning to support the game long-term. They are always looking at new ways to bring people the Minecraft experience by pushing it towards other genres, so there's good chances of seeing other such projects in the future. The design philosophy behind the game is offering a game for any kind of playstyle: hide a lot of secrets and extra content for those who want to play it slow and explore everything, but also allow Diablo-esque hardcore rift runs. Game is a lot of fun, I have very high hopes for it.
- An indie dev I managed to talk to confirmed to me how Game Pass contracts work, albeit clarifying that it's different for every game. Devs get money upfront (which we knew) for their game to appear on Game Pass, and if the game meets certain results (again, it depends on the kind of game what numbers it needs to hit) the devs get further money for that too. So a sleeper hit like Human Fall Flat probably saw the devs get money upfront, then get a steady influx from Game Pass as well alongside the advantages of the increased sales the more visibility brought them. Definitely a win-win.
- KartRider: Drift is gonna have a closed beta in December. Full game will be a F2P release, first on Xbox One, early 2020. The game launches with a lot of customization options but that will be how the game's gonna be monetized post-launch, with seasonal content, limited skins and whatnot.
cool