Xbox 360 User Created Games

[Thermal]

Microsoft is planning on making it possible for hobbyist/Indie game developers to develop XBox 360 games by using the XNA framework. The managed framework (uses .NET) will alow developers to design games for the PC, and then optionally sign up for a $99 per year subscription to run it on your XBox 360. I personally think this is a great start, and I can't wait to start playing around with the Beta that comes out on Aug. 30th.

So anyone else planning on using the XNA framework?

 

[Mirage]

Do you know what type of documentation is going to be released with this? That does sound like it could be a very good thing, but I'm confused as to how the porting will work.

Will the games have to be designed for PC and then ported to 360, or will there be a system that allows the games to be created on a 360 environment on the PC?

 

[Thermal]

From what I understand it works similar to how developers do it. You first download the XNA framework on your PC, and you start developing your game. Once your a subscriber to the 99$ service, you can download the XNA framework for the Xbox 360. From there, you'll have the option to remotely compile to the XBox 360. The subscription will give you access toother things as well, such as resources that will speed up your development.

Since the game will be managed, it'll be similar to how Java works. You write the code on the PC, and both will be able to run the game as long as they have the .NET runtime and XNA libraries installed.

XNA FAQ

 

[unrealphantasy3]

is the XNA framework what most developers use on 360? Sounds like a pretty sweet deal, especially for someone who wants to make a high-quality game but isn't actually in the industry. specially for just $99 a year. don't own a 360 and personally don't plan on owning one, but i'll definitely be keeping an eye on the framework and the scene that develops around it as time progresses.

 

[Thermal]

I don't think it is the same Development kit that most developers use, since most developers prefer to write in native C\C++. Managed code is much more easier to write since there are normally huge libraries to help you out, and you don't have to worry too much about the lower level details like memory management. The development kit will come in two flavors, XNA Game Studio Express (noncommercial) and XNA Game Studio Professional (commercial). I'm not sure how these two differ.

 

[unrealphantasy3]

so the XNA framework offers managed code, which the devs prefer not to use, am i right?

 

[Thermal]

Actually after reading a bit more about it, the XNA framework is what professional developers use to develop games on the 360. The major difference is that professional developers need a special xbox 360, which may change with XNA Studio Professional.

For PC gaming, most developers still prefer native C++ (You can also use manage C++). The discussion between native code versus manage code has been done to death, but normally comes down to native code offering better runtime performance and more lowlevel control versus manage code offering safer code and faster development time.

 

[unrealphantasy3]

alright I gotcha. So devs use XNA to make games for 360, but when it comes to PC, they prefer using native code rather than the manage code that XNA provides.