Village Gamer

Vancouver-based global payment solution provider hyperWALLET Systems Inc. has just announced the launch of hyperREMIT, a revolutionary new and low-cost SMS international remittance service from Canada to the Philippines. hyperREMIT enables Canadians to quickly send funds to recipients in the Philippines using a variety of secure remittance options, starting from just $6.00 CAD per transfer.

Through hyperREMIT, Canadians can transfer funds via bank deposit, cash pickup and door-to-door delivery, or via Smart Money transfers and prepaid airtime top-ups (coming fall 2010). Transfers can be quickly initiated over the phone or through SMS text messaging, and funds are typically available to Philippine recipients within 1 business day. With the upcoming Smart Money transfer option, remittances can be sent to any Smart subscriber’s mobile phone and accompanying reloadable Smart Money MasterCard cash card, providing them with quick and convenient access to their funds.

“Filipino Canadians rely on text messaging to stay in touch with loved ones. Now they can use the same mechanism to remit funds back home,” states Lisa Shields, President & CEO of hyperWALLET Systems Inc. “Through hyperREMIT, we are introducing a new paperless and agentless model for the remittance industry — a model that strengthens community relationships, rewards loyalty, and dramatically lowers the cost for senders.”

Canadian senders can sign up for hyperREMIT at www.hyperremit.com. There, they can fund their hyperREMIT account via pre-authorized debit or bill payment, add or manage Philippine recipients’ account details, or review remittance transaction details at any time. Using hyperREMIT’s mobile remittance service, senders can easily conduct ongoing Philippine money transfers by telephone or SMS text messaging, enabling quick and convenient remittances from the comfort of their own home or while on the go.

Ubisoft has released a video dev diary for Assassin’s Creed: The Fall, a comic book written and illustrated by Award-winning artists Cameron Stewart and Karl Kerschl and colored by Nadine Thomas, produced by Ubi Workshop and published by DC Comics. The first of the three issues will release on November 10th, 2010.

Assassin’s Creed: The Fall follows 19th century Russian assassin Nikolai Orelov as he strives to claim an artifact of immense power from the hands of the Templars, encountering historical figures such as the ruthless Tsar Alexander III. Meanwhile, in modern times, a troubled young drifter copes with unsettling visions of a possible past life – visions that have irreversible consequences for the present.

Eidos Montreal’s Deus Ex: Human Revolution is going to get a special preview tomorrow (today in AU) at The Mana Bar, a video game bar down in Brisbane, Australia. A team from Square Enix will be presenting a game demonstration, which will be followed by an exclusive video from the developers. Prizes and competitions giving away unique Deus Ex merchandise to the bar’s clientele during the day.

Vancouver’s Loud Crow Interactive Inc., a digital book publisher founded by a group of interactive entertainment veterans, announced today the redefining of e-books with its first release, PopOut!™ The Tale of Peter Rabbit, now available for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch in all non-European territories.

With decades of combined experience in interactive digital media, the team at Loud Crow has applied its creative talents and technical expertise to revolutionize the reading experience. “For us, it’s all about making the reading experience fresher and better than ever,” says Calvin Wang, Founder and CEO. “We blend traditional content with rich, interactive elements such as audio, animation, and even touch and tilt gestures. Using the original illustrations and text, we’re able to achieve an authentic, yet modern experience that our readers will find unique and inspiring.”

The publisher’s first title in the PopOut!™ series of interactive children’s books brings the age-old Beatrix Potter classic to life with signature PopOut!™ spin-wheels, pull-tabs, spring-mounted elements, and objects that literally pop out of the page. Complete with a beautiful classical piano soundtrack, fun and immersive sound effects, and a charming vocal performance, this is an experience you and your family won’t want to miss.

ItWowed.Me, a new smartphone technology platform developed by Majestic Media Ltd., allows businesses and brands to drive audiences to Facebook fan pages and convert them into fans.

“Like” something in real life? By placing a Quick Response (QR) code on real world objects, smartphone users can now scan these codes with their iPhone, Android, BlackBerry or any smartphone device and instantly “Like” the real world product or business on Facebook, thus sharing it with their friends on the social media site. Read the rest of this entry »

The sFund, a new $250 million initiative administered by California-based firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers to invest in entrepreneurs inventing social applications and services has opened for business. Amazon.com, Facebook, and Zynga, the leading companies defining today’s social and online environment; entertainment and media leaders Comcast and Liberty Media, and Allen & Company LLC, have committed to invest in the sFund and serve as strategic partners. The sFund will provide financing, counsel, and relationship capital for a new generation of entrepreneurs to deliver on the promise of the social web. According the sFund’s FAQ, the fund will invest in projects based outside of the United States.

“We’re at the beginning of a new era for social Internet innovators who are re-imagining and re-inventing a Web of people and places, looking beyond documents and websites,” said KPCB partner John Doerr. “There’s never been a better time than now to start a new social venture.”

The sFund will be led by KPCB partner Bing Gordon, former chief creative officer and longtime executive at Electronic Arts and board director of Amazon.com and Zynga. Gordon said, “Social is just getting started and the opportunities are vast. As in the early days of the Internet, the race is on. Today every business, organization, and entrepreneur should have a social strategy.”

“Social apps are viral, and when they hit, it often happens suddenly, and then they grow explosively. That’s one of the reasons the scalable, elastic, no capex, variable cost nature of Amazon Web Services is ideal for social apps,” said Jeff Bezos, Founder and CEO of Amazon.com. “The top three companies that develop for Facebook all use AWS.”

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, said, “The Web is being rebuilt around people, and we’re at a point where any app, website, or device can be designed to be social from the ground up. We’re focused on enabling entrepreneurs to build companies that can disrupt their industries.” Read the rest of this entry »

Microsoft Corp. today announced the Games for Windows Marketplace, a new online PC games store that combines the convenience of the Web with the power of Games on Demand online distribution. Launching November 15th, the Games for Windows Marketplace will offer PC gamers a robust lineup of games they love, easier navigation and purchase, and recurring specials such as Deal of the Week.

“With Games for Windows Marketplace, we set out to create a digital store built for PC gamers end-to-end,” said Kevin Unangst, senior global director, PC and Mobile Gaming, at Microsoft. “And by integrating with our existing Xbox LIVE and Windows Live services, we’ve made it easier than ever for millions of gamers to see for themselves how easy buying PC games can be.”

Built from the ground up for convenience and performance, the Games for Windows Marketplace will remove the barriers between gamers and the games they love by offering the following:

* Online access, anywhere. Optimized for speed, the store allows for ultra-fast downloads; this means fewer clicks to purchase and download, delivering faster turnaround for gameplay. And since the service lives on the Web, gamers can download games on a PC, anytime, and can easily redownload games they purchase if needed.
* Deals and discounts galore. Gamers can check out screaming deals on select games every time they visit the Marketplace, as well as the Deal of The Week and other recurring and seasonal offers.
* Game search functionality. Gamers can search by titles or genres to quickly find the games they want; they can even find new games from their favorite publishers with dedicated publisher pages.
* Fresh design. The clean, intuitive look and feel makes browsing for games a simple, enjoyable experience. Gamers can easily navigate between pages as they search for the perfect game.

Games for Windows Marketplace will launch with a managed portfolio of 100 top-quality titles. The launch roster includes blockbuster games such as “Fable: The Lost Chapters” (Microsoft Game Studios) and “Grand Theft Auto III” (Rockstar Games Inc.) from some of the industry’s biggest developers, such as Capcom Entertainment Inc., 2K Games, Square Enix Co. Ltd. and more. In addition to top retail games, the portfolio will bring new indie titles to the forefront and continue to grow with many of the best games in the industry including titles such as “Lego Universe” (Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment) and “CarneyVale” (Microsoft Game Studios), which will hit the Games for Windows Marketplace and retail stores at the same time and date; recent hits such as “Dead Rising 2” and “Lost Planet 2” (both from Capcom); and perennial best-sellers such as “Max Payne” (Rockstar) and “Deus Ex: Game of the Year Edition” (Square Enix). Read the rest of this entry »