Dream Build Play


Dream Build Play is an annual $75,000 Microsoft video game contest used to promote Microsoft XNA Game Studio and eventually Xbox LIVE Indie Games. It was announced in 2006, started in 2007, and ran until 2012.
In 2008 and 2009 it spanned over 100 countries and in 2010 it spanned 110 countries.
It was restarted in 2017 as the Dream.Build.Play 2017 Challenge. Notable winners include Dust: An Elysian Tail and The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai.

Concept

Dream-Build-Play, as it was first called, is a game development contest designed to promote and encourage experienced game developers and enthusiasts to create innovative and fun-to-play indie games for Windows and Xbox 360 using Microsoft XNA Game Studio. In 2017, the contest was relaunched to challenge indie game developers to create UWP games across four categories.

Notable entries

Many winners have gone on to be published on Xbox LIVE Arcade:A.R.E.S.: Extinction Agenda Blazing BirdsCapsizedCloudberry KingdomDust: An Elysian TailKung Fu Strike The Adventures of Shuggy The BridgeThe Dishwasher: Dead SamuraiYo Ho Kablammo!

Dream Build Play Challenges

Here is a breakdown of all Dream Build Play Challenges, including lesser known Warm-Up Challenges:

2007 Warm-Up Challenge

Microsoft offered a Relatives of Spacewar Warm-Up Challenge precursor to the first Dream Build Play, awarding US$500 to the top five entries. The entries had to create a game based on the Spacewar Starter Kit.

Winners

Top 5:Earth vs. Mars Udder Assault G, Viduce
  • ''Cracklin Crackles''

2007 Challenge

Also known as Dream-Build-Play 1.0, this is the first Dream Build Play Challenge. In it, Microsoft offered an Xbox LIVE Arcade publishing contract to the top four entries out of 4,500 participants, with the top two "1st Place" winning $10,000 each and the next two "2nd Place" winning $5,000 each.

Winners

1st Place :Blazing Birds The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai
2nd Place:Gravitron Ultra Yo Ho Kablammo!
3rd Place:Big Sky Burning Angels Chaos Gunstyle Hasta la muerte Hippocrate's Dilemma HurricaneX Little Gamers Magic Crystals Proximity HD Ragu Rocketball Samurai Soul Hunters Shuggy Sprockets of Strife Viduce
Blazing Birds, The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai, Yo Ho Kablammo!, HurricaneX, and Shuggy all eventually were published on Xbox LIVE Arcade. HurricaneX was eventually released as Kung Fu Strike and Shuggy as The Adventures of Shuggy.

2008 Warm-Up Challenge

Also known as the Silicon Minds Warm-Up Challenge, it was a precursor to the main 2008 Dream Build Play Challenge, announced in late 2007 this one centered on artificial intelligence and promised an opportunity to interview for at an internship with Microsoft Research, Rare, or Lionhead Studios.

Winners

Top 5:Conquerator Hive iSheep Orblast
  • ''Specimen''

2008 Challenge

The 2008 Dream Build Play Challenge marks the first time the contest offered $75,000 worth of prizes. First place won $40,000, second place won $20,000, third place won $10,000, and fourth place won $5,000.

Winners

Top 4 Prize Winners:CarneyVale: Showtime, Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game LabBattle Tennis, Gasp!Weapon of Choice, Mommy's Best GamesHurricaneX2, Qooc Soft
Top 20 :An Awesome Game Artoon AUTO Battle Tennis Bennu Biology Battle Blow Carney Vale:Showtime Galex-e-mail HurricaneX2 Petank Party Project X- Trino Pyramid Camel Boy Save Jack Smashell Spacehack Streets of Fury Tropos Weapon of Choice Zeit 2
HurricaneX2 and Zeit 2 were eventually released on Xbox LIVE Arcade.
Weapon of Choice made it into the Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition. HurricaneX2 was eventually released as Kung Fu Strike.

2009 Challenge

Winners

Top 4:Dust: An Elysian Tail, Humble HeartsMax Blastronaut, Coin AppRotor'scope, Nolver AppsHurricaneX2 Evolution, YouYun Tech
Top 20 :Avatar Golf, Barkers Crest Studio BAMBOONO, TAKENOKO Band of Bears, Cellar Door Games Cloudberry Kingdom, Zealous Studios Creed Arena, Reedake Duality ZF, Xona Games Dust: An Elysian Tail, Humble Hearts Echoes, binary zoo Guru-Guru, Gasp! HurricaneX2 Evolution, YouYun Tech Kaleidoscope, Morsel Magnetic Mind, laXarIS Masters of Belial, Brain Seal Max Blastronaut, Coin App Mirror, Silver Dollar Games Powa Volley, Kydos Studio Rotorscope, Nolver Apps Sol Survivor, Cadenza Interactive Square Off, Team Chaos What The?!, Social Loner Studios
Cloudberry Kingdom, Dust: An Elysian Tail and HurricaneX2 Evolution were eventually released on Xbox LIVE Arcade. Score Rush Extended, a spiritual prequel to Duality ZF, was eventually released on PS4.
HurricaneX2 Evolution was eventually released as Kung Fu Strike.

2010 Challenge

This year, in addition to the $75,000 in prizes for the top 4 entries, there was an additional $60,000 Old Spice prize. This allowed a single team to potentially win $100,000 in prizes.

Standard Dream-Build-Play Challenge

The standard prize money split, labelled a bit differently: $40,000 grand prize, $20,000 first prize, $10,000 second prize, and $5,000 third prize.

Microsoft Old Spice Challenge

In 2010, Old Spice launched four scents inspired by Matterhorn, Fiji, Denali, and Cyprus. The contest asked indie game studios to use these same places as inspiration for a funny and entertaining Xbox 360 game, the winner to be used to produce the products.

Winners

Top 6Lumi, Nicolas D. ARES, Extend Studio Prismatic Solid, YO1KOMORI Beat Hazard, Cold Beam Games Duality ZF, Xona Games JoyJoy, Radiangames
Top 20 ARES, Extend Studio Abaddon, Team Cornflake Abducted!, Photonic Games Alien Jelly, Collective Mass Armor Valley, Protege Production Beat Hazard, Cold Beam Games Capsized, Alientrap Creed Arena, Reedake Duality ZF, Xona Games Dysnomia, Team Mango JoyJoy, Radiangames King Spray, electronicshed Lumi, Nicolas D. Mind Over Metal, Murudai Ninja Garden, Kablammo Games Prismatic Solid, YO1KOMORI Shape Shooter, Super Jai Shoot 1UP, Mommy's Best Games Soul, Kydos Studio The Shadows in the Underworld, Polaris
ARES and Capsized eventually were published on Xbox LIVE Arcade. Prismatic Solid was eventually published to PS4. Score Rush Extended, a spiritual prequel to Duality ZF, was eventually released on PS4.

2011 Challenge

Winners

Top 4:Blocks That MatterSolar 2TIC: Part 1Sequence
Honorable Mentions:
  • Production Quality: Alien Jelly
  • Innovation: The Bridge
  • Fun Factor: Ninja Crash
The Bridge was published to Xbox LIVE Arcade.

2012 Challenge

Xbox 360 Winners

Top 4:One Finger Death Punch, Silver Dollar GamesDead Pixels, CantStrafeRightNinja Crash, Team DevilGateways, Smudged Cat Games

Windows Phone Winners

Top 4:Smirkers, Kenneth BugejaPixel Blocked!, Daniel TruongAlter Ego, Denis GrachevCradle to the Grave, COLTRAN Studios

2017 Challenge

PC/Windows 10 Category

Finalists:The Forbidden ArtsGoscurryImperatum - WINNER - US$50,000

Cloud/Azure Category

Finalists:Stellar Conquest - Winner - US$100,000Clash of Camelot
  • ''The Hadron Effect''

Console/Xbox One Category

Finalists:Fighties - WINNER - US$25,000King's Guard TD
  • ''Train Bandit''

Windows Mixed Reality/HoloLens Category

Finalists:
  • Racket: NxWindlandsPrison Boss VR - WINNER - US$50,000