One game I helped develop over the course of two years had us bouncing back files in all sorts of crazy and unorganized ways. Looking back, we were brand new to game development and could’ve used something to help streamline the process. If Amazon's Lumberyard is what it appears to be in thiswell made promotional video, we might be making another step in closing the gap between the physical locations of developers. Technology designed to unify global game development can only help evolve the collaborative process—I’ve worked with teams in The U.K., Australia, The U.S., and El Salvador. I’m just one guy among many millions that have attempted this intercontinental approach.

As mentioned in the Ken Levine post from a few days ago, fan interaction is becoming more and more important for game creation as it helps developers narrow down to the best ideas on the table. Twitch integration, being a major focus for what Amazon is trying to do here, is something that looks in line with supporting this fan-to-developer relationship. It provides instant video access to an already established user base of over 54 million unique visits a month.

The actual engine and full source code is free so you can get to work right away. Amazon Web Services are available, but those will cost you.