Microsoft Gives Free Torque X Engine To XNA Creators Club

Microsoft has announced via its XNA Team Blog that premium members of its XNA Creators Club can now download GarageGames' Torque X and Torque X Builder 2D and 3D engines for free at the XNA Creators Club Online web site. As featured in an extensive interview with GarageGames' president, Mark Frohnmayer in August of last year, Torque X is a full-featured 2D and 3D game engine which will support the editors being used in Torque Game Builder, as well as the features of the Torque Game Engine and its shader generation system. The full debut of the XNA Creators Club and XNA Studio Express came in December of last year, allowing anyone with Windows XP to sign up and create, build and play game content for the Xbox 360. The premium version of the Creators Club is available for purchase on Xbox Live Marketplace for $49 for a four-month subscription, or $99 for an annual subscription, providing aspiring game developers access to thousands of game assets from Microsoft and key supporters such as Turbo Squid Inc., as well as "white papers, specialized starter kits, samples and technical product support to help turn [your game] into a reality." More information on the Torque X engine can be found via GarageGames' site. Information on the XNA Creators Club can be found via Microsoft's own Creators site.