'Nightmare' porting process drove Haak developer Blingame to cancel Xbox version

Indie developer Blingame revealed it had to kill the Xbox Series X|S version of its 2022 game, Haak, owing to a tumultuous porting process.

Over the weekend, the studio released a statement detailing how it spent “over 14 months” trying to bring its game to Microsoft’s console. That ended up being a “nightmare,” mainly owing to “many” alleged bugs in Microsoft’s Partner Center.

Last year, Baldur’s Gate 3’s Xbox Series X|S port hit a snag pre-release owing to the S console. Those issues were later resolved, but the two games indicate a potential larger issue with bringing titles to Xbox as a staggered release.

Porting games can already be tricky for various reasons. A lack of proper support from console makers cuts multiple ways, especially in the relationship between them and developers.

In Blingame’s case, it claimed the MPC’s bugs stopped it from registering an account, and that further issues with the support system made requesting help “impossible.”

“We informed ID@Xbox about our predicament,” the studio wrote, “but they were powerless to help. Apparently, it falls outside their scope of responsibility, and it seems to be a Microsoft issue.”

“We very much want to share Haak’s adventure with more players,” Blingame continued. “But development funds are extremely tight, and we can’t afford to wait any longer. We deeply regret this outcome, but we’ve truly done our best.”

In response to a comment on social media, the studio later called Xbox’s publishing process “the worst we have ever encountered. […] We have never faced such significant obstacles.”

Game Developer has reached out to Xbox for comment, and will update when a response is given.