Using Unity3D on Windows - need an incentive? How about a load of cash?

Unity3D is an excellent development environment for writing 3D games. It works cross-platform, and that includes Windows Store and Windows Phone apps.

In a nutshell, Unity3D works by letting you create your game in a click-and-drag graphical environment in which you build all the individual objects that make up your game. You then attach behaviors and scripts to these objects, and optionally let the built-in physics engine do its thing. The scripts can be written in JavaScript or C#, so you'll feel at home pretty quickly. Unity3D is ideal for almost any game which isn't a flat retro arcade game - and even then, you could do that it you wanted.

There are two version of Unity3D - a Pro version, and a free version. You absolutely have to try the free version to get an idea for how nicely done it all is. You can even publish games using the free version,

Now, as an added incentive, there's a competition to win lots of money - here's the link: https://unity3d.com/contest/windows.

BTW, my favorite book for learning Unity3D so far is "Unity 3.x Game Development Essentials" by Will Goldstone.