Microsoft Launches Community Games Beta

Author: by Staff

Microsoft has announced that a beta version of its Community Games on Xbox Live initiative has launched, along with a revamp of its XNA Creators Club website that allows paid members to submit, rate and share their games. Part of its XNA Game Studio 2.0 program, the Creators Club allows members to create cross platform games for PC, Xbox 360, and, most recently announced, its handheld Zune media player. With its Community Games initiative, games made in Game Studio can be uploaded and shared with other members, and soon to the Xbox Live community at large. Currently, the site contains a quick start guide to show off new site features and how its proposed pipeline will work, a Community Spotlight area with interviews and articles by community members, and a Role Playing Game Starter Kit that gives programmers a jumping off point to create new content. Submitting and reviewing games currently requires a premium subscription membership, but the site is free for all to join. No specific release date has been given on when XNA creations will be available on Xbox Live for all members to download, but Microsoft has said to expect the service to launch during holiday 2008.