No Man’s Sky, from developer Hello Games, has become an unlikely source of anticipation for gamers. The space exploration title wowed audiences at Spike VGX 2013, pushing a unique gaming experience with vibrant, original visuals. December's gameplay trailer made would-be players even more excited, showing off a number of worlds and modes of transportation.

There is one snag for some gamers, however, as No Man’s Sky is set to launch as a PS4 console exclusive. Although Hello Games has stated a desire to bring the game to PC in the future, the chance of a Xbox One release looked pretty slim. Given Microsoft’s strict launch parity policy, which means that Xbox must have first or equal rights to a game’s release date or no Xbox release at all, No Man’s Sky looked destined to reach console players solely via PS4.

There may be a chance for No Man’s Sky to make it to Microsoft’s flagship console, however. Chris Charla, the director of ID@Xbox, has recently said the he “would love to see” No Man’s Sky on the Xbox One. Charla was speaking on The Inner Circle podcast, and revealed that a workaround for the launch parity clause could be found if Hello Games wanted to discuss a Xbox One release.

The comments seem to contradict the previous Microsoft party line, particularly when Hello Games has made No Man’s Sky’s release schedule well-known for some time. Charla did explain a little further about how the space exploration title could make its way onto the Xbox One. He stated that ID@Xbox is willing to find a middle ground with developers who would find sticking to the launch parity policy difficult. “When we talk to developers, we try to be really transparent,” said Charla.

Charla’s comments continue the trend that sees Microsoft’s launch policy grow softer and softer. Although Phil Spencer has previously stated the policy has to stay in place to make Xbox One owners feel “first class,” Charla has recently made it clear that the publisher is not as strict as it first appears. Apparently, Microsoft is more than willing to reach a compromise when developers are struggling with either time or financial constraints. It appears that a situation with resource management will not cause a game to lose out on an eventual Xbox One release.

At the moment, No Man’s Sky is still a PS4 exclusive, and those looking to play the title at launch will have to own Sony’s console. As of yet, details about the game are still fairly thin on the ground. No Man’s Sky certainly looks impressive, and the game’s huge universe looks ripe to explore, but it remains to be seen just how well this translates into an impressive gameplay experience. There are sure to be more finite features revealed for this highly anticipated title as the game gets closer to launch.

No Man’s Sky is expected to release in 2015 for PS4, with a PC release to follow at a later date.

Source: The Inner Circle