Microsoft XNA#XNA Framework

Microsoft XNA Framework is based on the native implementation of .NET Compact Framework 2.0 for Xbox 360 development and .NET Framework 2.0 on Windows. It includes an extensive set of class libraries, specific to game development, to promote maximum code reuse across target platforms. The framework runs on a version of the Common Language Runtime that is optimized for gaming to provide a managed execution environment. The runtime is available for Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Phone and Xbox 360. Since XNA games are written for the runtime, they can run on any platform that supports the XNA Framework with minimal or no modification. Games that run on the framework can technically be written in any .NET-compliant language, but only C# in XNA Game Studio Express IDE and all versions of Visual Studio 2008 and 2010 (as of XNA 4.0){{cite web|url=http://create.msdn.com/en-us/resources/downloads |title=App Hub - downloads |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150204004132/http://create.msdn.com/en-us/resources/downloads |archive-date=2015-02-04 }}{{Failed verification|reason=This link is dead now, but I traversed it as far back in the past in Web Archive as I could. But hardly any of what is written above was there.|date=February 2015}} are officially supported.{{Cite web |date=2009-09-08 |title=XNA Frequently Asked Questions |url=http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/xna/aa937793.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090908145646/http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/xna/aa937793.aspx |archive-date=2009-09-08 |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=MSDN}} Support for Visual Basic .NET was added in 2011.{{cite web |date=24 May 2011 |title=Code Sample Details - Game State Management (Mango, C#/VB) |url=http://xbox.create.msdn.com/en-US/education/catalog/sample/game_state_management |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130604054042/http://xbox.create.msdn.com/en-US/education/catalog/sample/game_state_management |archive-date=4 June 2013 |access-date=2013-06-15 |website=Xbox MSDN |publisher=Microsoft}}

The XNA Framework encapsulates low-level technological details involved in coding a game, making sure that the framework itself takes care of the difference between platforms when games are ported from one compatible platform to another, and thereby allowing game developers to focus more on the content and gaming experience. The XNA Framework integrates with a number of tools, such as the Cross-platform Audio Creation Tool (XACT), to aid in content creation.

The XNA Framework provides support for both 2D and 3D game creation and allows use of the Xbox 360 controllers and vibrations. XNA framework games that target the Xbox 360 platform could only be distributed by members of the Microsoft XNA Creator's Club/App Hub, which carried a $99/year subscription fee. Desktop applications can be distributed free of charge under Microsoft's current licensing.

XNA Build is a set of game asset pipeline management tools, which help by defining, maintaining, debugging, and optimizing the game asset pipeline of individual game development efforts. A game asset pipeline describes the process by which game content, such as textures and 3D models, are modified to a form suitable for use by the gaming engine. XNA Build helps identify the pipeline dependencies, and also provides API access to enable further processing of the dependency data. The dependency data can be analyzed to help reduce the size of a game by finding content that is not actually used. For example, XNA Build analysis revealed that 40% of the textures that shipped with MechCommander 2 were unused and could have been omitted.{{Cite web |date=2006-01-24 |title=Will XNA tools be able to help reduce game sizes? |url=http://blogs.msdn.com/briankel/archive/2006/01/24/517071.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060206160118/http://blogs.msdn.com/briankel/archive/2006/01/24/517071.aspx |archive-date=2006-02-06 |website=MSDN}}

{{main|Microsoft XNA Game Studio}}

XNA Game Studio is a programming environment for development of games.{{cite web |date=2012-07-31 |title=Developing games |url=https://msdn.microsoft.com/library/windows/apps/hh452744 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120830190204/https://msdn.microsoft.com/library/windows/apps/hh452744 |archive-date=2012-08-30 |access-date=2007-03-20 |website=MSDN}} Five revisions have been released so far, but as of 2015, no new versions will be developed.{{cite web |last=Hruska |first=Joel |date=February 1, 2013 |title=Microsoft kills XNA |url=http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/147289-microsoft-kills-xbox-360pc-cross-platform-development-declares-directx-no-longer-evolving |website=ExtremeTech}}

XNA Game Studio Express was the first version released on August 30, 2006, and was intended for students, hobbyists, and independent game developers.{{Cite web |date=2006-08-13 |title=Microsoft Invites the World to Create Its Own Xbox 360 Console Games for the First Time |url=http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2006/aug06/08-13XNAGameStudioPR.mspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060820071806/http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2006/aug06/08-13XNAGameStudioPR.mspx |archive-date=2006-08-20 |website=Microsoft}}{{Cite web |last= |title=XNA Game Studio Express |url=http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/xna/aa937795.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080907054026/http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/xna/aa937795.aspx |archive-date=2008-09-07 |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=MSDN |language=en-us}} It was available as a free download. Express provides basic "starter kits" for rapid development of specific genres of games, such as platform games, real-time strategy, and first-person shooters. Developers could create Windows games for free with the XNA Framework, but to run their games on the Xbox 360 they will have to pay an annual fee of US$99 (or a four-month fee of US$49) for admission to the Microsoft XNA Creator's Club. With an update, XNA developers could compile Xbox 360 binaries and share them with other Microsoft XNA Creator's Club members.

XNA Game Studio 2.0 was released on December 13, 2007.{{Cite web |title=XNA Creators Club Online - Quick Start Guide |url=http://creators.xna.com/Education/GettingStarted.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080907054026/http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/xna/aa937795.aspx |archive-date=2008-09-07 |website=MSDN}} XNA Game Studio 2.0 features the ability to be used with all versions of Visual Studio 2005 (including the free Visual C# 2005 Express Edition),{{Cite web |title=XNAtutorial.com |url=http://www.xnatutorial.com/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061023143721/http://www.xnatutorial.com/ |archive-date=2006-10-23 |website=XNA Tutorial}} a networking API using Xbox Live on both Windows and Xbox 360 and better device handling.{{Cite web |title=XNA Team Blog : XNA Game Studio 2.0 Released |url=http://blogs.msdn.com/xna/archive/2007/12/13/xna-game-studio-2-0-released.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090826074513/http://blogs.msdn.com/xna/archive/2007/12/13/xna-game-studio-2-0-released.aspx |archive-date=2009-08-26 |access-date=2007-12-13 |website=MSDN}}

XNA Game Studio 3.0 (for Visual Studio 2008 or the free Visual C# 2008 Express Edition) allows production of games targeting the Zune platform and adds Xbox Live community support. It was released on October 30, 2008, and supported C# 3.0, LINQ and most versions of Visual Studio 2008.

XNA Game Studio 4.0 was released on September 16, 2010.{{cite web |date=September 16, 2010 |title=XNA Game Studio 4.0 Available for Download |url=http://blogs.msdn.com/b/xna/archive/2010/09/16/xna-game-studio-4-0-available-for-download.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110807063152/http://blogs.msdn.com/b/xna/archive/2010/09/16/xna-game-studio-4-0-available-for-download.aspx |archive-date=2011-08-07 |access-date=September 16, 2010 |work=XNA Game Studio Team Blog |publisher=Microsoft}} It added support for the Windows Phone platform (including 3D hardware acceleration), framework hardware profiles, configurable effects, built-in state objects, graphics device scalars and orientation, cross-platform and multi-touch input, microphone input and buffered audio playback, and Visual Studio 2010 integration.{{cite web |title=What's New in XNA Game Studio 4.0 |url=http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb417503.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080919084549/http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb417503.aspx |archive-date=2008-09-19 |access-date=September 16, 2010 |work=MSDN |publisher=Microsoft}}

XNA "Game Studio 4.0 Refresh" was released on 6 October 2011, and added support for Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango), and Visual Basic.{{cite web | url=http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=27599 | title=XNA Game Studio 4.0 Refresh | publisher=Microsoft | work=Downloads | date=October 6, 2011}}

The XNA Framework Content Pipeline is a set of tools that allows Visual Studio and XNA Studio to act "as the key design point around organizing and consuming 3D content".

Formerly known as XNA Game Studio Professional, XDK Extensions is an add-on to XNA Game Studio and requires the Microsoft Xbox 360 Development Kit.{{cite web |url=http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ced54340-d2ad-44bd-8a77-22339ed86e08 |title=Download GDC 2009: XNA Game Studio Program Overview from Official Microsoft Download Center |publisher=Microsoft.com |access-date=2013-06-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100724061754/http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ced54340-d2ad-44bd-8a77-22339ed86e08 |archive-date=2010-07-24 |url-status=dead }} Both are only available for licensed Xbox developers. The extensions include additional managed APIs for achievements, leaderboards, and other features reserved for licensed game titles. Titles developed using XDK Extensions include winners of Microsoft's Dream.Build.Play competition among others. The most heavily publicized of these was The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai.

The Microsoft XNA Framework 2.0 EULA specifically prohibits the distribution of commercial networked games that connect to Xbox Live and/or Games for Windows Live in the absence of a specific agreement signed by both the developer and Microsoft.[http://creators.xna.com/gamestudio2/xnags_setup.EULA.rtf XNA Game Studio 2.0 Software License Terms]{{Dead link|date=October 2011}} This means that XNA Game Studio can still be used to develop commercial games and other programs for the Windows platform, although Microsoft's networking support code for Xbox/Windows Live cannot be used. Self-developed network code can still be used inside the developer's XNA project.{{Citation needed|date = January 2015}}

Games created using XNA Game Studio may be distributed via the Windows Phone marketplace, and formerly via Xbox Live Indie Games.{{cite web

|url=http://www.1up.com/features/31-homebrew-games-worth-playing

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110503220427/http://www.1up.com/features/31-homebrew-games-worth-playing

|url-status=dead

|archive-date=May 3, 2011

|title=31 Homebrew Games Worth Playing

|first=Ryan

|last=Winterhalter

|work=1UP.com

|date=April 29, 2011

|access-date=May 1, 2011

}} The software may also be used to create commercial games which target Windows.{{Citation needed|date = January 2015}}

{{Main|Dream Build Play}}

Dream Build Play was an annual and global $75,000 Microsoft contest promoting Microsoft XNA and eventually Xbox Live Indie Games, although it predated it. The contest was first announced in 2006 and first opened in January 2007.[http://blogs.msdn.com/b/alfredth/archive/2006/12/15/dream-build-play.aspx Dream Build Play, Alfred Thompson] Many winners are notable developers in the Indie game community.

{{Main|Xbox Live Indie Games}}

Xbox 360 games written in XNA Game Studio could be submitted to the App Hub,{{Cite web |title=App Hub |url=http://create.msdn.com/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101012210250/http://create.msdn.com/en-US/ |archive-date=2010-10-12 |website=Create MSDN}} for which premium membership was required (about US$99/year). All games submitted to the App Hub were subjected to peer review by other creators. If the game passed review then it would be listed on Xbox Live Marketplace. Creators could set a price of 80, 240 or 400 points for their game. The creator is paid 70% of the total revenue from their game sales as a baseline. Microsoft originally planned to take an additional percentage of revenue if they provided additional marketing for a game, but this policy was rescinded in March 2009, leaving the flat rate intact regardless of promotion.{{cite web|url=http://creators.xna.com/en-US/news/downloadhistorynews |title=Download History News |access-date=2009-03-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090331031525/http://creators.xna.com/en-US/news/downloadhistorynews |archive-date=March 31, 2009 }}

Microsoft also distributed a free year premium App Hub subscription for educational establishments through their DreamSpark program and MSDNAA. These accounts allowed students to develop games for the Xbox 360, but developers still needed a premium Xbox Live account to submit their game to the marketplace.

A project called Mono.XNA was formed to port XNA to the open source and cross-platform Mono framework.{{cite web|title=Mono.XNA |url=http://code.google.com/p/monoxna/ |access-date=2009-04-08}}

From the codebase of Mono.XNA and SilverSprite, a new project called MonoGame was formed to port XNA to several mobile devices.{{cite web |url=http://www.monogame.net |title=MonoGame: Write Once, Play Everywhere |access-date=24 March 2013}} As of version 3.0.1 (released March 3, 2013), support is stable for iOS, Android including OUYA, macOS, Linux and Metro for Windows 8, Windows RT and Windows Phone 8, as well as PlayStation Mobile in 2D. PlayStation Mobile 3D and Raspberry Pi development are currently in progress.{{cite web|title=MonoGame Wiki |website=GitHub |url=https://github.com/mono/MonoGame/wiki |access-date=2013-03-24}}

FNA{{Cite web |title=About FNA |url=https://fna-xna.github.io/ |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=FNA}} is a full-featured open source reimplementation of XNA forked from MonoGame. The goal of FNA is to preserve the XNA game library by reimplementing XNA itself.

An open source project called Grommet contains a limited port for embedded devices using the .NET Micro Framework.{{cite web |title=Grommet - A .NET Micro Framework Library |url=http://grommet.codeplex.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091104081119/http://grommet.codeplex.com/ |archive-date=2009-11-04 |access-date=2009-11-02 |website=CodePlex}}

A project called ANX is available which implements its own version of XNA using the SharpDX stack; support for Linux, macOS and the PlayStation Vita is in progress as well.{{Cite web |title=AXN.Framework |url=http://anxframework.codeplex.com/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111128101105/http://anxframework.codeplex.com/ |archive-date=2011-11-28 |website=CodePlex}}{{Cite web |title=SharpDX |url=http://sharpdx.org/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116185138/http://sharpdx.org/ |archive-date=2023-01-16 |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=SharpDX}} Using ANX, developers are able to write games using code that is very similar to XNA, while still being considered a Metro application in Windows 8.

• Game engine
• Game development tool
• MonoGame
• Adobe AIR
• Win2D

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{refbegin}}

• {{cite book |first1 = Chad

|last1 = Carter

|date = March 7, 2009

|title = Microsoft XNA Game Studio 3.0 Unleashed

|publisher = Sams

|edition = 1st

|page = [https://archive.org/details/microsoftxnagame0000cart/page/792 792]

|isbn = 978-0-672-33022-3

|url = https://archive.org/details/microsoftxnagame0000cart/page/792

}}

{{refend}}

{{Wikibooks|.NET Development Foundation}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080517163516/http://msdn.microsoft.com/xna/ XNA Developers Center]

;Training resources

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20100524155033/http://www.xnavideotutorial.com/ XNA Video Tutorials]
• [http://xnacommunity.codeplex.com/ XNACommunity] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150808042219/http://xnacommunity.codeplex.com/ |date=August 8, 2015 }} at Codeplex
• [http://rbwhitaker.wikidot.com/xna-tutorials XNA Tutorials] at RB Whitaker's Wiki
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20150801183110/http://gamedevelopedia.com/ XNA Tutorial/Workshop Website]
• [http://xnameetingpoint.weebly.com/ XNA Meeting Point: Tutorials in English, French and Spanish]

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Category:.NET Framework terminology

XNA

XNA

Category:Programming tools for Windows

Category:Video game engines

Category:Xbox 360 software