Dave Mitchell, Director of Marketing for Microsoft's Game Developer Group, recently sat down with Gamasutra to discuss the release of XNA Game Studio Express and the Creators Club. Mitchell talks at length about the future of XNA, reiterating the often used idiom that Microsoft wants to create the "YouTube for games."
What is meant by this is that Microsoft wants to empower the consumer to generate content and share it with the community -- in much the same way that YouTube has given consumers the tools to mass publish video. Even further than this model, Microsoft wants to give indie developers and consumers the opportunity to share in revenue generated by their titles. The method for this -- whether it be ad sharing, direct distribution, etc. -- hasn't been established yet, but it's definitely in the works, according to Mitchell. Of course, before all that can happen, Microsoft must enable more widespread sharing of user created content, which is currently limited to paying members of the Creators Club only. The ultimate goal is obviously to see consumer created content available through Xbox Live, but that is likely still a long ways off. Mitchell also speaks briefly to Sony's inclusion of Linux in the PS3 and its potential ability to open the PS3 for home development as well. Mitchell notes that Microsoft's thrust is not only to open the 360 for development, but also to actively give consumers the tools they need to succeed.
The possibilities make the mind reel, and it's important to remember that many of these ideas are months (or years) away, but it's exciting nonetheless. Hit the read link for the full interview. Do you have any game ideas that you'd like to share with the world?
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