It was reported today that Microsoft is going to begin offering a consumer version of the software tools used to create games for the Xbox 360 on August 30th. Yes, for an annual subscription fee of $99 you can create your own wizards, space marines and jiggly-breasted kung-fu masters on your Windows-based PC (naturally) with the XNA Game Studio Express and share them over Xbox Live.

"It's our first step of creating a YouTube for video games," Microsoft VP Peter Moore said. "It will give you everything you need to bring your game to life on Xbox 360."

Though it will be relatively easy to use it will require some basic game programming knowledge to really crank out something worthwhile. So expect plenty of hacky fighters and half-baked shooters to hit Xbox Live soon!

This is really quite revolutionary and really speaks to Microsofts commitment to gamers.

With Nintendo and Microsoft both taking steps to ensure people get the most out of their consoles, it seems that Sony has A LOT of ground to make up for this year…

You can read CNN's full report HERE.