Microsoft first unveiled its indie development program for Xbox One in August, and the company now says the first games will arrive in the next few months. Speaking to Edge, ID@Xbox director Chris Charla says Microsoft has 32 studios working on titles for the company's Xbox One console, with games arriving early next year. "I think it will be early in the New Year, in the first three months," says Charla. "I would say closer to the third month."

The games are currently being worked on, but many have been in development for months according to Charla. "Some developers started developing for Xbox One, others already had games in development and are working on Xbox One versions. I would say they’re at all stages of development, honestly." While some ID@Xbox developers are still waiting for access to the development tools, Microsoft is planning to expand the program up the platform with a focus on attracting game players that can create their own games using Project Spark.

Apps to follow indie games

Sony's PlayStation 4 certainly has a head start with indie game developers, but Microsoft's plans have been attracting attention. In interviews with The Verge, several developers expressed a newfound enthusiasm for the Xbox One after Microsoft initially failed to provide many details on how it would support indie games. The new ID@Xbox program may also inspire Microsoft's app plans for the console. The software maker is waiting to see how ID@Xbox pans out before attempting a similar effort to attract app developers. With original programming launching on Xbox in the first half of 2014, alongside new indie games, Xbox One owners will have access to some rather unique content in the coming months.