Microsoft reveals winners of XNA Game Studio Japan 2008 Spring Contest

Microsoft Japan has recently announced the winners of its recent XNA Game Studio Japan 2008 Spring Contest. The top prize went to a unique looking puzzle game with graphics reminiscent of Okami called Yamakake. You can check out the other winning indie-developed games by reading the full article after the jump.

Despite the rumored royalties cut Microsoft will supposedly be levying on XBLA indie developers, this hasn’t stopped homebrew developers in Japan from showing off how far they can push their creative talents during the recent XNA Game Studio Japan 2008 Spring Contest.

Five winners were announced on the official Xbox Japan website, with the top-prize going to an offbeat puzzle game with graphics reminiscent of Okami called Yamakake (with a screenshot of the game shown above). The developers from the college team Goto received a ¥100,000 prize for their efforts.

Other notable titles mentioned during the contest were 3D shooters Mazer Mayhem and Armored Strider. Both titles looked remarkably detailed for an indie-developed game on the Xbox 360 and showed definite promise regarding the talents of Japanese developers in general.

If you’re interested in taking a look at the other entries submitted, you can take drop by the official XNA Game Studio Japan 2008 Spring Contest website, accessible through the Via link below. In the meantime, you can also check out a couple of screenshots taken from the Mazer Mayhem and Armored Strider entries.