XNA game distribution questions

Question

I want to start on a 2D game using C#, so I'm checking out my options. XNA sounds good, but a few points are not very clear to me.

If I use XNA, can I just build my game and distribute my game as a standalone executable from my website ? Or are there any catches ? Do people need special libraries to play my game ? Do I have to pay MS to be able to distribute my game ?

Normally I'll write a program, build it, put the executable up for download and presto, anybody can download, install and use it. Will it also work like this when using XNA or are there any restrictions ?

Answer 1

If you're a student your university/college whatever can provide you with a years free membership.

But if you're doing Windows only games, then there is no fee. Just include the necessary dependencies as already discussed and you're good to go.

At first my university was not on the list of valid locations, but it was soon sorted out.

Answer 2

People will need the XNA redistributable package which is automatically (downloaded and) installed if you create a game with the default installer.