Xbox head Phil Spencer defends the ID@Xbox parity clause

The ID@Xbox parity clause that requires indie games to launch on Xbox One at the same time as on other platforms (unless they already have an exclusivity deal and, we imagine, a bunch of other legal red tape) is meant to make each Xbox One owner feel like a “first-class citizen,” according to Phil Spencer, head of Xbox. “I look at all the people who buy an Xbox, and they invest their time and their money in Xbox One, and, as millions of people obviously own Xbox Ones, I want them to feel like they’re first-class, because they are,” Spencer said earlier this week on The Inner Circle, an Xbox-oriented podcast.

Head of Xbox Phil Spencer has further elaborated on the purpose of Microsoft’s controversial indie parity clause, which requires that indie games launch on Xbox One at the same time as other platforms, saying it’s meant to make Xbox owners feel “first class.” “The thing I worry about is–because I look at all the people who buy an Xbox, and they invest their time and their money in Xbox One, and, as millions of people obviously own Xbox Ones, I want them to feel like they’re first-class, because they are,” Spencer said on The Inner Circle podcast. “When a third-party game comes out, it comes out on all platforms at the same time, and when indie games come out, I want them to come out and I want Xbox to feel like it’s a first-class citizen when an indie game launches. “So, for me, the parity thing is, if you own an Xbox One, I want to work for you to make sure that when great content launches, if it’s coming to Xbox and another platform, that you kind of get it at the same time everybody else does,” he continued.