Adding New Content Types

The XNA Game Studio Content Pipeline builds game assets included in your project into a form your game can load at run time on Xbox 360, Windows, or Windows Phone devices.

This game asset build process is controlled by Content Pipeline importers and content processors. When you press F5 to build a game created with XNA Game Studio, the appropriate Content Pipeline importer and processor for each asset is invoked. Each asset then is automatically built into your game.

The flexibility of this process enables you to create and update game assets using a variety of digital content creation (DCC) tools. XNA Game Studio supplies importers for several popular export formats supported by DCC tools, and also lets you develop custom importers for other formats.

In This Section

• What is the Content Pipeline?
  Describes the components and execution flow of the XNA Game Studio Content Pipeline.
• Content Pipeline Document Object Model
  Describes the built-in object support features for assets in the Content Pipeline.
• Loading Additional Content Types
  Describes the options for customizing the Content Pipeline to support nonstandard game assets or special-purpose needs.
• Creating a Custom Importer and Processor
  Describes how a content importer adds support for a new art asset file format.
• Tips for Developing Custom Importers and Processors
  Provides useful information about how to design and debug a custom Content Pipeline importer or processor.
• Adding a Custom Importer
  Describes how to add a custom processor or importer to an existing game solution.
• Extending a Standard Content Processor
  Describes how XNA Game Studio lets you modify or extend the behavior of any standard Content Pipeline processor that ships with the product.
• Developing with Parameterized Processors
  Describes how developing with parameterized processors, both standard and custom, requires additional thought and care.
• How to: Extend the Font Description Processor to Support Additional Characters
  Describes the process of developing a custom content processor needed to add additional characters to a FontDescription object based on the text that is required by the game.

See Also

Concepts

Writing Game Code
Content Pipeline Content Catalog at App Hub Online