Topic: Microsoft to offer cheap Xbox 360 game development kit? (Read 1040 times)

Xbox-Scene · « **on:** March 21, 2006, 05:26:00 PM »

Microsoft to offer cheap Xbox 360 game development kit?-- Posted by XanTium on March 21 18:50 EST
From CNet news.com:

Quote

Since last spring when the Xbox 360 was first announced, one of the biggest concerns was that it would be too expensive for most game developers to create games for the next-generation console.

But at the Game Developers Conference here today, the rumor is that Microsoft plans on announcing tomorrow a developers kit that would make it possible for anyone to build games for the console, or for PCs, and that the kit will cost only about $100.
It's hard to know exactly what such a development kit would mean for the larger body of Xbox games, but one thing seems clear: there would be a lot more games on the horizon, something that would no doubt annoy Sony as it ramps up for the launch of the PlayStation 3 sometime late this year or early next year, presumably not with such a cheap developers kit available.

Microsoft did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Read More: news.com
Could this be related with the news we brought you back in December 2005: Developing for Xbox 360 Not Limited to Licensed Publishers?

[MF]superman · « **Reply #1 on:** March 21, 2006, 05:04:00 PM »

Only issue I'm struggling with is that there must be some catch. If this is in anyway true and related to the idea of MS allowing 360 developing without a liscence then there must be some bait as to the fact that they are trying to shut us down from playing backups and homebrew. I dont know, this sounds really fishy to me....

HSDEMONZ · « **Reply #2 on:** March 21, 2006, 05:12:00 PM »

the price might be right.. but the catch will be that to get anything published, it will likely still need to go through MS approval process of some sort. MS is not gonna let just anyone.. make anything they wish.

MrPhunkee · « **Reply #3 on:** March 21, 2006, 05:17:00 PM »

Agreed hsdemonz. But still great

jsrlepage · « **Reply #4 on:** March 21, 2006, 05:32:00 PM »

if MS does that, it'll somewhat consolidate the Xbox360 position as the "homebrew/enthusiast platform" as well as a kewl matress decoration / game console.

PedrosPad · « **Reply #5 on:** March 21, 2006, 05:34:00 PM »

Undoubtedly the most interesting scene news titbit ever.

CattyKid · « **Reply #6 on:** March 21, 2006, 05:50:00 PM »

QUOTE(beerbaron @ Mar 21 2006, 07:24 PM)

yeah it sounds like they're trying to de-legitimitize the claim by mod-chip makers that the chips are legal because they are used to develop software on an otherwise locked system.

Still if it yields better and more diverse games (which I think the industry needs) then it could be a good thing.

Meh, maybe.
But MS just won't let someone release an XBMC, or a Linux Distro. It will still have to go through MS.
So modchips (still)= good.

sew3521 · « **Reply #7 on:** March 21, 2006, 06:11:00 PM »

i kno this is somewhere in these forums but still i might as well ask here....cus the forum search ahas been down forever

Why can we just hack the code on the DVD?

The Bat · « **Reply #8 on:** March 21, 2006, 06:39:00 PM »

I'm going to just poll a few ideas out of my hindquarters again. What that $100 will likely get is just straight software, without a single cable or anything. Development won't be 360-specific or PC-specific when written, with the XDL doing the porting from one platform to the other when compiled.

I'm guessing that the software won't be the only thing you'd need to write code, acting instead with MS's existing programming software for PCs. In other words, that new $100 package will be a plugin for what is already available.

Programs such as XBMC, Gentoox, and so forth could still be created with this utility. Distribution would likely be through MS's Live network, and may require a registration fee for the approval process, pass or fail. Emulators will likely have little chance of getting through, since anything for playing Playstation or Dreamcast or whatever titles will be a legal mess outside of the scope of the program.

The process for getting your code released on the PC side would be more straightforward, and likely cheaper, to the point that the new development kit would be pointless. But on the 360 side, it'll promote the Shareware market. If my guesses are correct, the Offline XBox Arcade market will get the greatest benefit from this.

So unless I'm just being needlessly pessimistic, I'll be modding my 360 with the rest of you eventually.

MondoMor · « **Reply #9 on:** March 21, 2006, 06:40:00 PM »

I suspect any cheapo GDK will have a restricted API, perhaps not allowing use of some of the more advanced graphics capabilities. I would hope they wouldn't stifle networking capabilities. If it's true, it's got to be some seriously small subset, else all of the companies that coughed up large sums for the official GDK will be furious.

I'll be very happy to see XBMC and XPort stuff ported over to the 360.

psxpirate1 · « **Reply #10 on:** March 21, 2006, 06:49:00 PM »

Xport's emulation projects will never see the light of day because of copyright infringements, and legal wranglings. Unless you're speaking strictly homebrew and PD roms.

derived · « **Reply #11 on:** March 21, 2006, 07:06:00 PM »

QUOTE(The Bat @ Mar 22 2006, 02:46 AM)

What that $100 will likely get is just straight software, without a single cable or anything. Development won't be 360-specific or PC-specific when written, with the XDL doing the porting from one platform to the other when compiled.

I'm guessing that the software won't be the only thing you'd need to write code, acting instead with MS's existing programming software for PCs. In other words, that new $100 package will be a plugin for what is already available.

There would need to be some way of testing what you have compiled, it would be very lame to code something without getting the opportunity to test it.

Xbox 360 retail-signed development kit disc anyone? (ok i'm probably dreaming)

knepley · « **Reply #12 on:** March 21, 2006, 07:10:00 PM »

Crappy cyber journalism. They probably don't understand what XNA is. They are probably not talking about an actual hardware XeDK, but rather referring to an $100 package of tools.

BTW lantus: way to pay the bill on your domain son!

JimmyGoon · « **Reply #13 on:** March 21, 2006, 07:48:00 PM »

QUOTE(HSDEMONZ @ Mar 22 2006, 01:19 AM)

the price might be right.. but the catch will be that to get anything published, it will likely still need to go through MS approval process of some sort. MS is not gonna let just anyone.. make anything they wish.

What would keep someone from 'accidently' leaving in some bugs...?

Damn, M$ must be very comfortable with their hypervisor and others to think of doing this... if the rumor is true of course.

QUOTE(knepley @ Mar 22 2006, 03:17 AM)

Crappy cyber journalism. They probably don't understand what XNA is. They are probably not talking about an actual hardware XeDK, but rather referring to an $100 package of tools.

BTW lantus: way to pay the bill on your domain son!

I didn't understand if you knew this or not but XNA is like the new style of programming for games that (at least in the old article from over a year ago said) is compatable with Vista and X360... so... who knows... that would be good enough as long as they offer someway of xfering to the xbox.

Is there anychance they could have a loader.xex that kills support to the DVD drive... aka no more piracy... or MAKE you burn to a DVD and have ResetOnEject...? OR... networked? <- that'd be cool...

blah101 · « **Reply #14 on:** March 21, 2006, 07:52:00 PM »

im glad there actually going thru with this. i remember billy boy talking about it months ago and i thought it would just be words.. now i can finally start working on something for all you college kids..

msg me if your intrested in helping defintley need some more graphic artist and a few more programmers.. granted this is no halo or anthing big like that and can be finished withink 10 months with about 11 people but would be defintley something nice on the resume if you wanted to get into the industry

[email protected]

Author Topic: Microsoft to offer cheap Xbox 360 game development kit? (Read 1040 times)