Project Spark going fully free on October 5
Project Spark Transitioning to Free Incubation Engine
On October 5, Project Spark will be rolling out its biggest update and platform change. This update overhauls many Project Spark systems and areas. The biggest change is a shift from a free-to-play model to a free and open creation platform. What does that mean? This will automatically unlock previously paid downloadable content for new and existing Project Spark users. Microsoft will pivot from producing DLC and active feature development to encouraging more user generated content and opening the Project Spark experience.
Project Spark’s goal has always been to empower creativity. We’ve been an incubation engine for ideas from epic to artistic and we plan to continue doing so. Project Spark inspires and empowers over 200,000 creators who have shared tens of millions of custom objects, behaviors and experiences. Every day we see anywhere between 300 and 400 new games being uploaded on our platform. Our support of these creators and our communications with them will continue in an open, free and collaborative environment.
In light of these changes to a fully free model, all players who have purchased Project Spark digital content on or after July 28, 2015, purchased a retail disc and activated it by product key redemption on or after July 28, 2015 or have a remainder balance of purchased in-game tokens will be entitled to Microsoft Store credit equivalent to their money spent. Microsoft Store credits will be awarded automatically to all users within 30-60 days after October 5. If you have additional concerns, we have a full FAQ on our refund process.
Additionally, today’s released content packs are our last planned DLC. With a total of 46 released packs and 2,000+ assets, we feel like we’ve gotten to a good place with our content offers for creators. This also means that we will no longer create episodic adventures, including future Conker’s Big Reunion episodic content. We’ll leave it up to you to continue his story in whatever ways you want, and we can’t wait to see what you create!
Alongside these larger changes, Project Spark will roll out a number of different content, updates and features to further unlock and amplify your experience. The new Project Spark Title Update, arriving on October 5, will include features like:
• The maximum terrain limit in creations has been doubled (on top of Massive World Builder)
• The maximum prop limit in creations has been increased by 500 (on top of Massive World Builder)
• 200+ new assets will be added in game, including a dragon, goblin warlord, bog biome and a set of new primitive building blocks
• Each creator will now have a total of 100 Upload Slots for their creations
• UGC ranking will be based on downloads and favorites, instead of upvote/downvote ratings
• The Project Spark Marketplace has been removed
• The Project Spark Tour and Treasure Trove have been removed
• Achievements have been revamped for players and creators
For more details on this announcement and the upcoming Project Spark update, read our full release notes and content breakdown.
projectspark.com