Microsoft’s Gamerscore and Achievements program has been remarkably successful, with people going so far as to pay for additional Achievements. Still, there seems to be uneven support for the program from game developers. Now, Microsoft is moving to standardize the program so that gamers can expect a more uniform experience. A post on the Gamerscore blog lists some of the changes to the program.

First, base points will be standardized for game titles. A retail disc-based game is required to have 1,000 Gamerscore available; Live Arcade games are required to have 200 Gamerscore. Microsoft says that this base score can come in a combination of regular and add-on content as long as the add-on content is free. Game publishers will also have the option of adding another 250 Gamerscore to disc games from paid or free content as well. By standardizing the program, it seems Microsoft is strongly encouraging developers to think about Achievements when developing the program and further differentiate Xbox 360 titles from their counterparts on competing systems. Hopefully, any Achievements added in the new program won’t be superficial tack-ons to meet a points goal.