Windows Phone is the Xbox Live portable, XBL titles account for 70% of all games revenue

We have a few bones to pick about Xbox Live in its current state and one of the biggest issues is the belief that games adorned with the Xbox Live branding and features perform better because they are given preferential treatment in the Marketplace. We never had solid numbers before but Microsoft's Marc Whitten revealed a few during a roundtable discussion with Pocket-Lint. Apparently despite Xbox Live games only accounting for less than 1% of all titles available in the games category of the Marketplace, titles that are adorned with those precious cheevos actually generate 70% of all revenue. Of course there are plenty of caveats to this statement that you have to take into account: the heavy advertising of new XBL games, the inflated price tags, and developers being forced to price their games lower due to customers seeing more value in Xbox Live enhanced apps.

Also in case you were holding out for a real gaming handheld with Xbox Live support, we don't think you're going to be seeing a super-powered PlayStation Vita competitor come to the market anytime soon. At least that's what we can assume from Microsoft's Dennis Durkin's comments about portable gaming, citing the Nintendo 3DS's recent stumble at launch:

“People have been asking for a long time about handhelds. It’s a really interesting time in that market. Look at the Nintendo 3DS, it’s been a slower start than analysts and others had expected, but it’s a super-competitive space. Any dedicated portable device like a camera, or a portable gaming device like the 3DS has a tough time.”

“They are very challenging markets as phones have got smarter, and we’ve chosen to make our bed around the phone instead and add Xbox Live services to Windows Phone 7 instead,”

So it's clear that Microsoft seems to be perfectly content with Windows Phone's performance with gaming so far, but how do you feel? Do you think that Xbox Live titles are really worth the extra cash? Would you rather see more indie developers receive some kind of Xbox Live enhancements too if you could get them for a comparatively lower price? Sound off in the comments below!

Source: Pocket-Lint