The third annual Dream-Build-Play global game development competition by Microsoft has started at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, inviting aspiring and hobbyist developers to create new and innovative games for Xbox 360.

Starting Monday, April 6, developers will have the opportunity to submit their game creations to the competition for a chance to win a cash prize and an opportunity to sign an Xbox Live Arcade publishing contract. Winners will be announced this fall.

More than 7800 members had taken part in the competition last year, submitting over 350 completed games using Microsoft’s free XNA Game Studio tools. Winners took home more than $70,000 in prizes and have since become top sellers on the Xbox Live Community Games Channel.

“The level of innovation and the number of submissions we receive each year to Dream-Build-Play has increased exponentially because the development community is becoming increasingly familiar with the XNA Game Studio,” XNA General Manager Boyd Multerer said. “I’m really looking forward to seeing what developers are able to create with the latest LIVE features and updated tools at their disposal.”