Microsoft is renewing its focus on PC games with game downloads available on the Windows 8 app store. The Verge has confirmed that 11 titles will be available in the store when Windows 8 launches, as part of an ecosystem Microsoft is developing to be more friendly to gamers and small publishers.
The confirmed games include Angry Birds, Ms. Splosion Man, Toy Soldiers, Hydro Thunder, Reckless Racing, Ilomilo, Rocket Riot, Full House Poker, Tentacles, Crash Course, and Wordament. Among those games, only Angry Birds stands out as a big name, but Hydro Thunder, Ilomilo, and Ms. Splosion Man are fairly prominent games released over the last two years on Xbox Live Arcade.
This isn't Microsoft's first attempt at providing a Windows marketplace for gaming. Microsoft's Games for Windows Marketplace offers a selection of Windows games online, but its lineup of titles and features pales in comparison to Steam's, which continues to be the biggest digital distribution service for games on Windows PCs. The new games service in Windows 8 will integrate more directly and take more features from Xbox Live than the Games for Windows Marketplace has done, and be part of the app distribution service Microsoft is folding into its upcoming Windows release.
Still, the launch lineup is puzzling and seems weak. While Windows 8 is a new operating system, Windows has long had a rich selection of games available in physical and digital media, and for just 11 games to be available through Microsoft's service seems disappointing, compared to the hundreds of games available through services like Steam, Impulse, and GOG.com. The games themselves aren't particularly compelling, with the selection seeming to consist of Xbox Live Arcade's last-year releases and Angry Birds.
For more information about Windows 8, see PCMag's hands on with the Developer Preview of Windows 8 and the slideshow below.