News: Microsoft's latest offering brings game development to the masses.
At the conclusion of their Gamefest 2006 presentation, Chris Satchell, general manager of the Game Developer Group at Microsoft, announced that Microsoft XNA Game Studio Express will be available by the end of the month, with final software available by the end of the year.
XNA Game Studio Express is a developer toolset for simplified design and creation of games using Microsoft's XNA standard. The toolset itself will be free, but by paying a $99 fee to join a "creators club", budding games developers will be able to "build, test and share their games" across Xbox Live.
According to Microsoft, "This represents the first significant opportunity for novice developers to make a console game without a significant investment in resources." Microsoft also said that anyone with a Windows XP computer will be able to use Game Studio Express to create Xbox 360 and Windows XP games.
"XNA Game Studio Express will ignite innovation and accelerate prototyping, forever changing the way games are developed," Satchell said. "By unlocking retail Xbox 360 consoles for community-created games, we are ushering in a new era of cross-platform games based on the XNA platform. We are looking forward to the day when all the resulting talent-sharing and creativity transforms into a thriving community of user-created games on Xbox 360."
With the announcement of these new tools, many colleges that offer game development programs have pledged to teach the new toolset. University of Southern California, Georgia Tech College of Computing and Southern Methodist University Guildhall are among the 10 schools that will add XNA Game Studio Express to their course offerings.
"Great game ideas are incubating in the minds of students everywhere," said Michael Zyda, director for Gamepipe Labs at the University of Southern California. "With XNA Game Studio Express, Microsoft is investing in these next-generation innovators, creating the canvas for dreamers to express their powerful game ideas. In incorporating XNA Game Studio Express and Xbox 360 consoles into our Gamepipe program, USC will be able to better provide game studios and publishers around the world with a newfound wellspring of talent and opportunity. It's ingenious."
But the real question is, by making the Xbox 360 a semi-open platform, how will Microsoft control the flood of games on the Xbox Live Arcade? Presumably, the $99 creators club fee will give Microsoft some measure of quality control over the available offerings, but we shall see.
I for one can't wait to dig in to the games offered by the XNA "user-created community."
