In the 30 years of video game development, the art of making console
games has been reserved for those with big projects, big budgets and
the backing of big game labels. Now Microsoft Corp. is bringing this
art to the masses with a revolutionary new set of tools, called XNA
Game Studio Express, based on the XNA platform. XNA Game Studio Express
will democratize game development by delivering the necessary tools to
hobbyists, students, indie developers and studios alike to help them
bring their creative game ideas to life while nurturing game
development talent, collaboration and sharing that will benefit the
entire industry.
During his keynote presentation today at Gamefest 2006, a Microsoft
game developer event hosted by Microsoft in Seattle, Chris Satchell,
general manager of the Game Developer Group at Microsoft, announced
details of the new technology, which will be broadly available this
holiday season. XNA Game Studio Express will be available for free to
anyone with a Windows XP-based PC and will provide them with
Microsoft’s next-generation platform for game development. By joining a
“creators club” for an annual subscription fee of $99 (U.S.), users
will be able to build, test and share their games on Xbox 360™ and
access a wealth of materials to help speed the game development
progress. This represents the first significant opportunity for novice
developers to make a console game without a significant investment in
resources.
During his keynote, Satchell talked about academic institutions that
are lining up to include XNA Game Studio Express in their course
offerings. Also showcased was the work of key XNA supporters Autodesk
Inc. and GarageGames. Through the Microsoft XNA relationship with
Autodesk, the leading provider of 3-D authoring software, game
developers and enthusiasts can now more easily incorporate content into
XNA Game Studio Express via Autodesk’s FBX file exchange format.
Joining Satchell on stage was Mark Frohnmayer, president of
GarageGames, who showcased ports of its next-generation Torque tools
and technology over to the XNA Game Studio Express platform.
XNA Game Studio Express Opens Up Game Creation to the World
By providing an integrated, seamless development environment based on
Visual Studio Express and .NET that simplifies the integration and use
of game content, XNA Game Studio Express makes game development easier
to accomplish for smaller projects, strongly increasing the chance for
great game ideas to make it out of the concept stage and into the hands
of gamers everywhere.
The XNA Game Studio Express beta will be available Aug. 30, 2006, as a
free download on Windows XP, for development on the Windows XP
platform. XNA Game Studio Express will give anyone with a Windows
XP-based PC access to a unified development tool that liberates the
creation of great Xbox 360 and Windows XP-compatible games, providing a
new alternative to the existing multithousand-dollar development kits
that many console games require. The final version of XNA Game Studio
Express will be available this holiday season.
“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.”
Not only will XNA Game Studio Express turn the community into creators,
but a second XNA toolset geared toward game development professionals
is scheduled to be available in spring 2007, fundamentally changing the
way commercial games are developed.
The Beginning of the Game Developer Revolution
From students at colleges, universities and high schools of the future
to the proverbial “guys in the garage,” Microsoft XNA Game Studio
Express will liberate anyone with a great game idea to create titles
for Xbox 360 and Windows XP simultaneously. More than 10 universities
and their game development schools — including University of Southern
California, Georgia Tech College of Computing and Southern Methodist
University Guildhall — have already pledged to integrate console game
development and XNA Game Studio Express into their curricula for the
first time, and Xbox 360 will be the only console at the center of all
coursework.
“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.”
In addition, GarageGames, technology provider and developer of one of
the most successful Xbox Live Arcade titles, “Marble Blast Ultra,” has
migrated both its Torque Shader Engine and new Torque Game Builder 2-D
visual game designer over to the XNA Game Studio Express platform.
“The GarageGames mission has always been to provide top-tier
technology, tools and community to independent and aspiring game
developers,” said Josh Williams, CEO of GarageGames. “We are excited
that Microsoft is demonstrating leadership by taking the revolutionary
step of opening up game development for Xbox 360 to hobbyists and
students. In aligning our tools and technology with XNA Game Studio
Express, we’re helping even more individuals with the creativity and
drive to make video games bring them to life on both Windows XP and
Xbox 360.”
Gamefest 2006
Microsoft leads the industry in helping game developers make amazing
games for Xbox and Windows. Today and tomorrow, Gamefest 2006 will
feature nearly 100 sessions for game developers, producers and
publishers to grow their skills, introduce them to new development
techniques and deliver powerful tools to build the best games possible.
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