Castle Crashers dev: "indie console community would not exist as it does" without XBLA

Castle Crashers developer The Behemoth is one studio that knows the taste of indie console success. Studio member John Baez has championed Microsoft's marketplace for shaping the indie console scene as it exists today. Find out why below.

Speaking with OXM, Baez stated, "I think without a doubt the indie console community would not exist as it does today if Xbox Live Arcade had been dropped after the original Xbox iteration. No other console hardware manufacturer has had the success of downloadable games that XBLA has had, and many smaller developers have shared in that success."

Dave Voyles, co-organiser of the annual Xbox Live Indie Games Uprising also told the site, "I don't believe Microsoft was prepared for the success that it would see, both in terms of the number of devs who were on board, and the volume of people who would browse the marketplace.

"Before XBLIG, and even after, there has yet to be an easy avenue for independent devs to get work released without going through a closed platform or dealing with a publisher."

What is your take on Xbox Live's approach to the indie market? Don't forget hat Jonathan Blow's Braid was - in the eyes of many - the real turning point for indies on console platforms. Does Microsoft really seem to be doing enough to nurture new talent, or is XBLIG still tucked away in the creases of the Xbox 360's Metro panels?