XBox One Patch Released Today Improves TV Function

Microsoft is launching its first XBox One system update today, less than a month after the console’s release on November 22. This patch comes in response to a number of glitches found early on, and is said to be the first in a long series of updates set to come early in 2014. This update also updates the exciting TV feature of the One, which should become a progressively larger part of the XBox ecosystem over time.  This update showcases the console’s automatic update process, and devices that are on standby will likely get the patch without owners intervening at all.  All system owners not on standby today will be required to install the update after the grace period ends on Thursday, December 12.

Microsoft Backs Indie Xbox One Developers

Reports initially suggested that the new Xbox One would mean the end of independent, self-publishing game developers, but Microsoft’s Xbox chief says that the One will have an indie-friendly program. Thus far there are more details that need to be released before the extent of the program can be determined, but Don Mattrick insists that Xbox will foster an independent creator program. In his interview with Kotaku, Mattrick praised the success of games like Minecraft, and insisted that he remembers his days as an indie developer, and wants to foster that type of community at Xbox. For now, it’s all talk, but we will soon see how seriously Microsoft takes Mattrick’s words of support.