The March 2024 Game Development Kit (GDK) is Available Now

Keeping our focus on delighting players and developers alike, the March Microsoft Game Development Kit (GDK) has been released. The key features and fixes highlighted in this blog post are just a handful out of dozens—a mix of improvements for both PC and Xbox development—that improve build or iteration times and deliver powerful tools to optimize your game development experiences. Many of these features are the direct result of developer requests. Thank you for the time, energy, and knowledge you've shared with us.

One of the standout features in this release is the introduction of the Rasterizer Ordered View (ROV) now to Xbox Series Consoles, a specialized resource type exclusive to pixel shaders. ROV enables Order Independent Transparency (OIT) algorithms, allowing developers to create realistic effects like wire fences, smoke, and colored glass more efficiently than ever before.

Additionally, we've integrated the "Record this" feature of XAppCapture into the User Library API, providing seamless recording capabilities for users directly from the console. This feature opens up exciting opportunities for gamers to capture and share their gameplay moments effortlessly.

Another noteworthy addition is the Azure PlayFab Telemetry Buffering for Delayed Transmission, which allows developers to buffer telemetry events for later transmission, reducing the risk of data loss during network disruptions.

We're also excited to introduce the Touch Adaptation Kit Editor Visual Studio Code Extension, empowering creators to customize touch layouts for Xbox Game Streaming directly within Visual Studio Code.

For a detailed breakdown of the March 2024 GDK Update, check out the full announcement. To learn more about how to use the GDK to develop games on Xbox and Windows, take a look at our public GDK documentation at aka.ms/gamedevdocs or experiment with our public version of the GDK at aka.ms/gdk. Finally, if you’re ready to start creating games for Xbox and Windows, join the ID@Xbox program at xbox.com/developers/id today.