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PlayStation is launch a new initiative which allows publishers and developers in most parts of the world to receive both a companion PS5 dev kit (dev kit), as well as a PS5 test kit to aid in their game creation efforts. The company says it’s trying to lower the barrier of entry for indie game developers hoping to release their work on PS4 and PS5 consoles.
The kits will be provided on a loan basis, and the countries included in the rollout of this new program include the United States and Canada, Europe and the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, as well as most of Asia.
To be eligible, potential developers or publishers will need to register as a partner on the PlayStation Partners Website. Applicants must be a legal entity such as a corporation or corporation. In Europe, applications from individual entrepreneurs are also accepted.
Read: How digital distribution and game prices are costing developers
The PlayStation development hardware loan program finally brings the company into compliance with the protocol already in place by Microsoft. Developers who want to publish games on Xbox consoles can already receive two console dev kits for free.
Additionally, consumer Xbox consoles can also be activated as dev kits, by downloading the Xbox Dev Mode Activation App.
Either way, PlayStation’s move is good news for indie developers looking to leverage PS4 and PS5 userbases when developing and launching their projects.
Many indie games are primarily built with the PC platform as their first priority, and given the great similarities between the Windows and Xbox console environments, we understand that the process of ensuring a game can run on a console Xbox is relatively simple.
Recently, we’ve seen several notable indie games launch on PC and Xbox first, with PlayStation versions only coming later. The gate of death and Rogue Legacy 2 are notable examples that have arrived on Xbox that did not seem to have any type of arrangement to appear exclusively.
We hope that the ability for developers to receive a PS5 dev kit will change that, and that more upcoming indie games can reach a wider audience at launch, with simultaneous releases across all platforms.
