Xbox is apparently working with Finnish developer Mainframe on its cloud-based massively multiplayer online (MMO) title codenamed Pax Dei.
This was first mentioned by Windows Central reporter Jez Cordon on The Xbox Two Podcast, when he said “Microsoft is working with a studio in Finland, or at least I’ve heard, called Mainframe on making a cloud native game.”
“I have no details about that,” he added, “it could be tied up to one of the codenames that I do know about the project info for, but that is what I’ve heard, that they are looking to make these sort of cloud-native games.”
This was then supported by a report from Jeff Grubb at GamesBeat, where he wrote that the same has been confirmed to him “through independent sources”. According to Grubb’s report, cloud-native means that players can access the game through any device, with him giving the example that players could resource farm whilst on their mobile phone at work, and then take on missions or raids from a PC or console.
“Key Xbox figures are also excited about Pax Dei because of its value in highlighting hurdles with cloud-based development,” Grubb adds. “The hope among those at Microsoft is that Pax Dei can create an opportunity to set up best practices for this kind of game.”
The idea of a cloud-first title, playable on Xbox consoles, PC, and mobile, certainly lines up with the current approach of Microsoft to have Xbox Game Pass be the primary driver of its ecosystem, where players can access games easily via cloud streaming, or download them on other at home devices.
The Mainframe website does confirm that the studio is working on a “cloud-native MMO”, but not other details have been made clear as of yet.
Grubb concludes that this is also to lay the groundwork for the rumoured Xbox and Kojima deal, which is apparently still being finalised.
In other news, it turns out that Suda51 was approached to make a Deadpool video game “over a decade ago” by Activision when they held the rights to the character.
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