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Microsoft has released free developer tool, XNA Game Studio Express and game developer community, XNA Creators Club, to allow amateurs to create and share their own video games.
XNA Games Studio Express 1.0, a framework for creating games using the C# 2005 Express Edition and Microsoft .NET Compact Framework, incorporates libraries of 2D and 3D rich content that can be applied to games. XNA games can be played on the Xbox 360 itself or a Windows XP PC, after downloading the development tool package. The tool is available free of charge, but users have to subscribe to a service, in order to share the games they create. Microsoft says it aims to reach untapped creative minds and enable anyone to affordably build and play their own game ideas on Xbox 360 systems for the first time.
Microsoft has also launched ‘The XNA Creators Club’, on Xbox Live Marketplace for $49 for a four-month subscription, or $99 for an annual subscription. Both subscriptions will provide users with access to game assets from Microsoft and key supporters such as Turbo Squid Inc., along with information, specialized starter kits, samples and technical product support.
Greg Canessa, group manager of Xbox Live Arcade at Microsoft said, “Xbox Live Arcade has opened up a wealth of new publishing opportunities for established and independent developers alike, so it made perfect sense to also extend this privilege to hobbyists and amateur programmers. We have a tremendous opportunity to shine the spo tlight on up-and-coming talent through the ‘Dream-Build-Play’ contest, and we can’t wait to share their creativity with our gaming community around the world.”
The Dream-Build-Play contest aims to offer an opportunity for the global gaming community to showcase its talent, and also offers a chance for the winner’s game to be published on Xbox Live Arcade. The “Dream-Build-Play” contest, due to be launched in January, will be open to XNA Game Studio Express customers on Windows as well as those on Xbox 360 through the XNA Creators Club membership.
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