Since joining the company eight years ago, Agnes Kim has been working to expand the global market, especially in emerging markets in East and South Asia. She has visited and communicated with developers in each country, and through support for game development technology and publishing, she has increased the number of games that can be played on the "broad Xbox platform" that encompasses game consoles, PCs, and the cloud. She currently spends her days busy traveling between the United States, Korea, Asia, and China.
When I asked her how she perceived the current Asian game market , she replied, "It's very diverse, and it's not something that can be lumped together." For example, in China and Korea, there are many young gamers who play with friends and have a lot of free time.
India is known for its mobile games, while Indonesia is known for games like Toge Productions ' Coffee Talk series and A Space for the Unbound , but it is actually a region with a wide variety of titles.
"That's why communities and developers rooted in the local culture are so important," said Agnes Kim. In order to expand the market while catering to diverse cultures and tastes, it is not enough to simply increase the "gamer population" through subscriptions and sales, but it is essential to revitalize the entire ecosystem, such as collaborating with developers who are familiar with the local culture and growing together.
As a "stepping stone for the long term," they are providing Game Pass, which allows users to play a large number of games for a monthly fee, and at the same time providing technical support and publishing support to developers through ID@Xbox (an indie game support program provided by Xbox).
These activities are, of course, based on Xbox Play Anywhere , Xbox's basic strategy that aims to allow games to be played "anytime, anywhere, regardless of platform". However, Agnes Kim also said, "We will not force this strategy on developers, but rather it is a flexible option."
In other words, just because a game is released on the Xbox platform with the support of ID@Xbox, there are no restrictions such as Game Pass or cloud gaming support. In fact, the five titles introduced at the Xbox Asia Developer Sessions are scheduled to be released not only on the Xbox platform, but also on Steam and other platforms.
The Xbox Asia Developer Sessions have focused on developers from Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, and Korea, which have been relatively unfamiliar so far, but this does not mean that Japanese and Chinese developers are being neglected. Individuals and teams developing PC games in Japan can not only receive support by utilizing the ID@Xbox program, but may also be able to promote their works to the world through online sessions and real events.
At the end of the interview, Agnes Kim said, "We believe that by continuing to expand Play Anywhere, we can grow the ecosystem and reach more players," emphasizing that Xbox's basic strategy is unwavering.
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