Xbox has always openly shown its love for indie developers throughout its career. It even has a specific program aimed at helping indie game developers self-publish titles for Windows, Xbox One, and Series X/S, called ID@Xbox.
However, it seems the love doesn’t extend to every developer. An indie studio recently expressed its frustrations about Xbox pushing and stalling its requests to get the game up on the console, shocking many.
HAAK Developer Says Xbox Has Stalled It for Almost a Year
Blingame Studio’s HAAK is a Metroidvania-inspired 2D platformer released in 2022. An immersive Metroidvania-Platformer, you play as Haak, a mysterious wanderer on a quest to find a lost brother in a sprawling cyber-wasteland.
The game was a niche hit, and many have repeatedly asked the developers if it would be released on PS5 and Xbox, as it’s currently only available on PC. Blingame’s response was not what fans would want to hear, though:
HAAK may not be released on PS5 and Xbox. We submitted an application to Xbox 9 months ago, but it has never been approved. They don’t seem to take indie games seriously.
A fan responded to the tweet, stating that “Xbox loves indies” and tagged many members of its team to get any support for Blingame. The indie studio quickly responded stating it had been waiting for over eight months for approval to publish the game on the console and shared pictures.
This is why HAAK is not released on Xbox.
We submitted the application reviewing 8-9 months ago, and also contact Xbox via email many time, but ultimately did not receive any follow-up solutions.
We are sorry for that we cannot be able to bring our games to players on Xbox.😔 https://t.co/a8MkqEI7kL pic.twitter.com/wxfDz7Cj20— HAAK (@haakgame) February 26, 2024
According to Blingame, it repeatedly e-mailed the team regarding this issue, but to no avail.
Fans in the comments were upset on behalf of the indie developer and voiced their support, with many contacting the brand themselves in an attempt to help Blingame out.
I have contacted ID@Xbox many times before, but the final reply always asked me to wait. To this day, I am still waiting for their email.😔
— HAAK (@haakgame) February 26, 2024
One fan shared how another game they enjoyed went through the same ordeal, which doesn’t bode well for HAAK:
I’m sorry dude. They have no idea what they’re doing and always seem to drop the ball on this stuff. It’s also why I couldn’t get Night at the Gates of Hell upon release, because Xbox apparently hadn’t approved or contacted the developers back.
Adding to the count, another fan also shared how the developers of Axiom Verge faced the same issue, meaning this was probably a recurring issue.
Fans Furious at Xbox for Not Following Through On Promise
The gross negligence of HAAK by the billion-dollar company and the disregard for Blingame Studio’s plea was met with extreme frustration. Fans openly voiced their displeasure at what had gone down.
As an Xbox customer let me thank you for having tried. MS should be ashamed.
— ProteinePlus (@ProteinePlus) February 26, 2024
Another fan called out the supposed hypocrisy of the billion-dollar company.
thats incredible them saying they were supporting indie devs and avoid thats something like this happen was their main goal they tremendously fail.
— Jocelyn David(Allergic to ponies) (@MortalSub) February 26, 2024
The negative reactions toward the team’s move—or lack thereof—continue to pour in, and according to what’s being said, what happened to Blingame wasn’t a one-off occurrence.
The outpouring of fan support for HAAK signals good news for Blingame, but what about other indie developers? Maybe it’s time for ID@Xbox to reevaluate its system.
What do you think is the solution to this problem? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
