Configure Xbox Live Challenges in Windows Dev Center

Note: This topic describes the features available only with proper permissions. For details, talk to your account manager or another contact at Microsoft.

This topic describes the procedures for adding and changing challenges in the Dev Center service configuration for a title. Challenges are similar to achievements but can be unlocked only during a specified period of time. Like achievements, challenges are unlocked according to the logic you define in the service configuration. This logic is based on player stat values in the service, and the challenge is unlocked automatically when the player stats meet the specific requirements during the specified period of time.

For an intro to the Xbox Live service configuration, see Xbox Live service configuration. For an intro to data platform 2013, see How the Xbox Live data platform 2013 works.

Sections in this topic:

How challenges work in Xbox Live for Xbox One

Challenges are achievements available only during a specified period of time. For example, you might want to create an achievement available only on three consecutive days that begin and end at midnight. Because of the time limitation, this achievement would be considered a challenge.

Like achievements, challenges can be either visible (in the list of possible achievements) or hidden.

Configure a challenge

  1. Sign in with your account on Dev Center.

  2. Select your title, and go to Services > Xbox Live.

  3. Click the link to the Challenges page.

  4. On Challenges, create and manage the challenges for your title.

Create a challenge

  1. On the Challenges page, click the New challenge button. This will take you to the New challenge page.

  2. In the Challenge name field, provide the name to be shown to players. The maximum length of the string is 44 characters.

  3. In the Locked description field, provide the description to be shown to players when the challenge is locked. The maximum length of the string is 100 characters. If the Secret option is selected, then this description won’t be displayed in the list of achievements.

  4. In the Image icon field, provide the achievement icon that will serve as the visual representation (“badge”) of the challenge. Ensure that the icon is formatted as a PNG file and is 1920x1080 pixels in size.

    The icon will be visible to users. Xbox will automatically scale it to a thumbnail size when a user is viewing the list of the achievements, but selecting any individual achievement will set the icon as the background image. If the Hidden check box is selected, then the icon won’t be displayed in the list until the user unlocks it.

    While developing your title, you can click use placeholder image to use a default Xbox icon until your final art is ready to replace it.

  5. In the Promo icon field, specify the promotional icon. It must be 424x424 pixels in size and formatted as 1:1 PNG.

    While developing your title, you can click use placeholder image to use a default Xbox icon until your final art is ready to replace it.

  6. Under Time frame, specify the Start time and End time of the challenge. The challenge can only be unlocked during the period of time specified here. The end date can’t be later than three (3) months after the start date. Note that times are based on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

  7. Under How should the details be treated?, select from the following options:

    • Public
      Indicates that the challenge and its details are visible to all players.

    • Secret Indicates that the challenge and its details are visible only to players who have unlocked the challenge. This is useful for avoiding plot spoilers and rewarding players for experimenting.

  8. Optional: In the Challenge deep link field, specify the in-game location where players will be redirected to attempt this challenge immediately. For example, in ms-xbl-11aa99ff://default?trackId=18, 11aa99ff is the TitleId and default?trackId=18 is the code that your game will understand and use to redirect players to the desired location in the game.

  9. To grant an additional reward (art or in-game) for unlocking the achievement, do the following:

    1. Click the Add reward button.

    2. On the Achievement rewards page, select Art or In-game.

    3. In the Display name field, provide the reward’s name to be shown to players.

    4. In the Description field, provide the reward’s description to be shown to players. The description can’t be longer than 90 characters and should include details such as the reward’s duration (if applicable) and instructions for redeeming the reward.

    5. Perform the following according to the reward type you selected:

      • If you selected the reward type Art, then use the Art field to specify the art reward that the player will get upon unlocking the challenge. The reward must be 1920x1080 pixels in size and formatted as a PNG file. While developing your title, you can click use placeholder image to use a default Xbox image until your final art is ready to replace it.

      • If you selected the reward type In-game, then

        1. Use the Image field to specify an image that represents the reward that the player will get upon unlocking the challenge. While developing your title, you can click use placeholder image to use a default Xbox image until your final art is ready to replace it.

        2. Use the In-game value to specify a value or code passed to your game. Ensure that your game can use this code to unlock a reward.

    6. Click Add to add the reward to the challenge, or click Cancel to cancel and return to the New challenge page.

  10. Select an Unlock logic that will determine how a challenge will be unlocked:

    • Do something with incremental progress
      Select a single player stat. When the player stat meets the specified criteria, the challenge will be unlocked. Players will be able to see their progress towards unlocking of the challenge.

      To meet the criteria, a stat must be equal to or greater than the specified value. This does not apply to a stat configured with the min operator; such a stat must be less than or equal to the specified value.

    • Do multiple things, cumulatively
      Select multiple player stats configured with the sum operator. When all the player stats you selected meet the specified criteria, the challenge will be unlocked.

    • Min/max one of several things
      Select multiple player stats that have been configured with the max or min operator. When at least one player stat requirement is met, the challenge will be unlocked.

    • Do something once
      Select a player stat. When its instance is created as a result of triggering of a stat rule, the challenge will be unlocked.

    • Custom logic
      To create a complex condition for unlocking the challenge, click the Add stat button and add a stat condition to the current condition. To add a new condition clause, click the Add condition button.

      • All stats in a single condition clause must be of the same operator type and must meet the same criteria for satisfying the condition.
      • If the stats use the min or max operator, the clause uses the OR logic to meet the condition.
      • If the stats use the sum operator, the clause uses the AND logic to meet the condition.

      When all conditions are met, the challenge will be unlocked.

  11. Click Save to save the challenge, or click Cancel to cancel and return to the Challenges page.

Change an existing achievement or challenge rule

Important: After a title passes Final Certification, existing achievements in that title can no longer be changed or deleted.

  1. In the list of challenges on the Challenges page, click the Name for the challenge you want to change. This will open a page whose title is the name of the challenge.

  2. Make the changes to the challenge.

  3. Click Save to save the challenge, or click Cancel to cancel and return to the Challenges page.

Delete a challenge

Important: After a title passes Final Certification, existing achievements and challenges in that title can no longer be changed or deleted.

  1. In the list of challenges on the Achievements page, click Delete next to the challenge you want to remove.

  2. In the Confirmation dialog, click Delete to confirm the deletion; otherwise, click Cancel.