It appears that Microsoft are planning to change their tact when it comes to self-publishing on Xbox 360.
The platform holder has drawn criticism for its stance towards indies and self-publishing in recent weeks, but it seems as though the company are planning to announce a change of direction that should please indie devs and fans alike.
In a statement posted on Gamasutra, it was revealed by the studio FarSight that Microsoft is planning on relaxing publishing restrictions on Xbox 360 and Xbox One, allowing them to bring back their title Pinball Arcade to XBLA (the game's original publisher went bankrupt, and the publisher's license agreement was then revoked by MS).
Microsoft responded to the claims with the following statement: "We have not announced any changes to our publishing policy for Xbox 360. We look forward to sharing more about self-publishing on Xbox One at Gamescom."
However, despite claims to the contrary, the original post suggests that a significant policy shift is on the way: "Microsoft has just announced that indie developers (like FarSight) can now self-publish on Xbox Live Arcade instead of being required to find publishers for their games."
According to the statement from FarSight, the new changes will be put in place sometime in August. Microsoft confirmed that indie self-publishing would be coming to Xbox One last week.