Congratulations to Big Blue Bubble, whose iPhone/iPad application Thumpies won the award for Mobile Entertainment of the Year at the Mobile Content Awards 2010 in Seoul, Korea. Facing some stiff competition that included more than 110 companies from 15 countries, Thumpies emerged victorious against semi-finalists Fallen EP-1 from 7th Sense Studios in the United Kingdom and UBC Mobile from UBC in Korea. Present to accept the award and the prize money, Big Blue Bubble CEO, Damir Slogar stated “After receiving nothing but absolutely glowing reviews from the media, Thumpies reached another milestone – formal recognition from industry professionals. This will just fuel our enthusiasm to bring the game to many new platforms.“
Thumpies is a unique rhythm-based music game for players of all ages. By correctly matching the beat of bouncing Thumpies the player progresses through a song. Unlike typical rhythm based games, Thumpies uses a mechanic of bouncing in time instead of just a series of notes. The quirky art design of Thumpies XL is accompanied by a unique musical score composed by award winning, industry veteran David Kerr. The music was crafted with game play in mind, giving the player a harmonizing experience.
Vancouver Film School’sGame Design Expo 2011 is now accepting speaker proposals from game industry professionals who have a passion to share their expertise. Past speakers at the consistently sold-out Industry Speaker Day at Game Design Expo have included the makers of games such as Dead Rising 2, Halo, Mass Effect, ModNation Racers, and Saints Row 2 (amongst many others). The deadline for submissions is October 4th 2010, so download the Speaker Proposal Package (PDF) today and send your completed proposal in as soon as possible.
Telefilm Canada announced today a streamlined approach to submitting corporate information as part of an application.
Previously, four documents were required in order to provide all required corporate information with an application; now only one is required. The new Canadian Status of Corporation and Corporate Information Affidavit (doc file) now online replaces the following forms:
* Corporate secretary’s certificate naming the shareholders and the number of shares held by each * Corporate secretary’s certificate naming the officers and indicating their signing authority * Declaration of Corporate Information * Canadian Status of Corporation Affidavit
Telefilm Canada is committed to providing effective and efficient service to its clients and as such continuously works to provide new ways in which to work with the industry.
New indie house Wild Games Studio Inc. has announced the title and genre of their first game in production, an open-ended RPG/Adventure game. The game, which will release a trailer in October, will be set in third person view. Dhaila’s Adventures will be a game for PC, Mac, PS3 and Xbox 360, with a playable demo coming soon.
Featuring Dhaila, a young fairy whose powers are bound to nature, the game will rely on gameplay taking place in an open world where the player will update the origins of Dhaila and help fulfill her destiny. In addition to the main quest, Dhaila could fill hundreds of side quests depending on the choices and actions proposed. Puzzles and large dungeons filled with traps and monsters will be part of her adventure to enhance the gameplay. Furthermore, Dhaila will be accompanied with a friend that can be controlled by another player to help Dhaila during certain puzzles through teamwork.
Orphaned in the fantasy world of Martania, Dhaila possesses unknown extraordinary powers. She has special skills, including one which can absorb the energy of nature directly through its DNA. She can also absorb the DNA of other creatures, making the heroine able to acquire their shape at any time. Living in one of these valleys, the village seems protected by an unknown magical force, more powerful than in other villages. Dhaila will leave to research her origins, while trying to release Martania of the influence of Dysan, a tyrant who has subjugated the people, forcing them to labour under the threat of the dragons he also holds sway over.
Selected as one of the glorious PAX 10, Retro City Rampage from VBlank Entertainment will be showcased at PAX Prime this weekend at booth 3017, where visitors can meet the dev team, play the game and get some fantastic swag.
This unbelievable FREE swag includes:
* Retro cartridge labels (stick ‘em on NES carts)! * Retro game boxes* (stick your cart in it)! * Retro plastic case inserts (with BLURST processing)! *Retro game rental case inserts (“INDESTRUCTIONS”)!
As an added Bonus, the team will also be having a daily draw to win a Retro City Rampage cartridge case in the box! The team does caution, however, that due to the indie budget and a recent price increase on Ramen Noodles, the “box” is a cleverly designed and exciting arts and crafts project. Simply cut out and fold it yourself for some analog fun Alternatively, you could frame it and stick it on the wall of your local museum.
Capcom will be taking up residence at PAX in Booth 652, where you can drop by and try out their upcoming lineup of titles including Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Okamiden and Blue Castle Games‘ Dead Rising 2 – shipping on September 28.
Ubisoft will have three booths at the show. You will find them in spaces 632, 622 and 712. Each booth will feature a variety of Ubisoft’s upcoming releases and lots of fun prizes for booth visitors.
For the first time in the U.S., PAX attendees will get to try out various titles from Ubisoft exclusively for Kinect™ for Xbox 360®, including Your Shape™: Fitness Evolved and MotionSports™, in addition to seeing the first public demo of Child of Eden™. Consumers will also get an opportunity to play H.A.W.X® 2 multiplayer, and see a sneak peak of Outland™, one of Ubisoft’s digital games for PlayStation®Network and Xbox LIVE® Arcade for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. In addition, Just Dance® 2 will be available to play onsite at the show.
PAX attendees will have a chance to play Assassin’s Creed® Brotherhood, which will be playable on Xbox 360 and the PlayStation®3 at the Ubisoft booth before its November release. Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood fans who pre-order the game onsite at PAX will receive an exclusive Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood T-shirt, and there are also opportunities for consumers who fan the Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Facebook page to win Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood posters. Other giveaways include a Just Dance–themed t-shirt for anyone who pre-orders the October release of Just Dance 2 at PAX. Read the rest of this entry »
Vancouver Film School has announced that the 2011 iteration of its Game Design Expo will be held in Vancouver on January 22nd and 23rd. The school has also made exclusive session videos from the 2010 Game Design Expo available online. just made exclusive video from the most recent Game Design Expo available for free online at the Expo’s website. These interviews, panel discussions, and presentations let you hear from the makers of ModNation Racers, Mass Effect 2, Dead Rising 2, and many more.
Autodesk and EA Sports present the Game Developer Webcast, featuring a discussion with Simon Sherr, Animation Director for Electronic Arts Tiburon, focused on how EA Sports MMA heavily leveraged Autodesk® HumanIK® in their production of complex character interaction. In this session we discuss implementation of HumanIK features for EA’s Mixed Martial Arts fighting game including: dynamic Footplanting, Non-Uniform Player Scaling, Interaction-based player scale compensation, and partial body “Relative IK” interactions. This Webcast will take place at 10:00A.M. PDT on September 9th. The one hour session is free, but registration is required.
Attention all of you Mac-using Dragon Age fans: Bioware’s Dragon Age Origins Awakening is now available for your platform over at GameTree Online for $29.95.
“The Dragon Age franchise has been exceptionally well received by Mac gamers and we’re excited about continuing the saga through the release of this expansion pack and all DLC add-on game content for the Mac community”, commented Vikas Gupta, President and CEO of TransGaming. “Our strategic partnership with Bioware provides Mac gamers with some of the industry’s most acclaimed RPG games and illustrates yet another example of how TransGaming’s technology and distribution channels are empowering EA to bring their best games to the broadest consumer audience.”
Dragon Age: Origins – Awakening is available now, plus Mac gamers can also enjoy great DLC add-on content packages such as Return to Ostagar, Darkspawn Chronicles, Leliana’s Song, and many more this year. Players are encouraged to sign up for GameTreeOnline news updates or Twitter alerts, as more great DLC add-on content releases for the Mac will arrive over the coming months, aligned with the PC releases.
Executive producer and Project Director on Mass Effect, Casey Hudson will reveal how BioWare navigated the challenge to create an (even more successful) sequel to Mass Effect in a keynote address at Future Game On. The new conference, which is the new European annual gathering for developers, creators and game and apps researchers in every field, will be held on September 9th and 10th at the Parc des Expositions de Paris – Porte de Versailles, hall 7. Read the rest of this entry »
“The consistent support of movie studio giants like Sony speaks volumes about industry and consumer confidence in our immersive motion technology,” said President and Chief Executive Officer of D-BOX Technologies, Claude Mc Master. “This is our second collaboration and we are pleased to add an exciting, action-packed sci-fi thriller to our growing catalogue of D-BOX Motion Code™supported films.”
Nintendo is dropping the suggested retail price of its Nintendo DSi™ and Nintendo DSi XL™ video game systems. Effective Sept. 12, the new suggested retail price of the Nintendo DSi system will be $149.99 USD, while the new suggested retail price for the Nintendo DSi XL system will be $169.99 USD. The Nintendo DS™ Lite model will remain at a suggested retail price of $129.99 USD.
“We know shoppers want to get the maximum value out of every dollar they spend,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “Our new Nintendo DSi prices make it easier than ever for consumers to access the tremendous variety of games, applications and social tools on the Nintendo DSi and Nintendo DSi XL systems.”
Video Games Live has announced several Canadian performance dates for 2011, beginning with Victoria’s Royal Theatre on April 12th followed immediately by two nights at Vancouver’s Centre for the Performing Arts on April 13th and 14th. Video Games Live will then move across the Rockies to perform in Calgary’s Jack Singer Concert Hall on April 17th and the Jubilee Auditorium in Edmonton on April 18th.
Moving across the prairies, VGL will perform at TCU Place in Saskatoon on April 20th and Conexus Arts Centre in Regina on April 23rd. Winnipeg will have a matinee and evening performance at the Burton Cummings Theatre on April 23rd before the show moves on to Ontario for four performances. Thunder Bay’s Community Arts Centre will be the first stop on April 25th, then it’s on to Centre in the Square for April 27th in Kitchener. April 28th will see VGL at the Place Theatre in Hamilton and then the Civic Centre Theatre in Ottawa on April 29th. The show will close out April at Montreal’s Place Des Arts on April 30th before returning to Toronto to perform at Massey Hall on May 2nd. VGL’s final announced show will be on May 3rd at K-Rock Centre in Kingston. Visit VGL’s site to sign up for VGL’s newsletter to get the latest news and advance ticket sale notices as well as to volunteer at the pre-show events in each city.
Yahoo! and Canadian real estate search site Zoocasa have partnered for the launch of a new application that enables Canadians to access Zoocasa’s online real estate search service directly from their Yahoo.ca homepage. The new app will enable visitors to search for a new home, research local neighbourhoods and receive updates about properties that fit their personal profile, all through the Zoocasa.com application on their Yahoo.ca homepage. Combining real-time listing information and mapping technology, Zoocasa.com allows users to personalize their search experience and discover community, demographic and lifestyle information to help them choose the right home.
“Our vision is for Yahoo.ca to be the best guide for Canadians for both their online and offline worlds,” said Laurie Maw, director, Business Development for Yahoo! Canada. “The Zoocasa application is an important addition to Yahoo! Canada’s current line-up of online apps that includes everything from Flickr and Facebook, to links to our Sports and Finance channels.”
Zoocasa offers a variety of real estate search options to Canadians, including searches by region, city, price range, number of bedrooms/bathrooms and property type. Users can also enhance their decision making process by learning about their city and area of choice using online guides and maps.
“We are excited to work with Yahoo! Canada to launch a Zoocasa.com app that gives Canadians another great way to streamline their house-hunting efforts,” said Butch Langlois, president of Zoocasa. “From Vancouver and Edmonton, to Toronto and Montreal, Canadians can find detailed, real-time information about the regions, cities, neighbourhoods and houses they are interested in.”
Zoocasa is a portfolio company of the Rogers Ventures Group, a new source of funding for technology start-ups and a support mechanism for Canada’s innovation ecosystem.
Now you can compete against your Facebook and Twitter friends in the latest release of ApeZone’s SoliScare card game for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. The new version adds 11 leaderboards and 18 achievements to this already addictive little card game.
SoliScare lets you embark on a fantastic journey through graveyards, haunted houses, and spooky castles. Put the beat down on ghosts, zombies, and classic movie monsters in 100 levels of play.
Game play follows one simple rule: move monster cards to your hero pile by choosing cards that are one higher or lower than your current hero card. As you make longer card runs, you’ll capture these creatures and add them to your jailhouse. Capture all 37 ghosts, zombies, and monsters to become the new Van Helsing.
Ludia Inc., and Sony Pictures Consumer Products announced today that Ludia will create video games based on the hugely popular Pyramid series of television game shows. The licensing deal will result in games across major console platforms, PC/Mac, iPhone/iPod touch and iPad, the first of which games is slated for release in Q1 2011.
“Pyramid is a classic TV game show favorite, and we are thrilled to create games around the property so that fans of the show and broader audiences alike are able to feel the thrill of reaching ‘Winner’s Circle’ from home,” said Alex Thabet, Founder and CEO of Ludia Inc. “This deal serves to further expand Ludia’s prominence across platforms in the game show video game category, which has been a successful growth strategy for us.”
Pyramid will feature all the favorite elements from the show as the game pits pair against pair in a bid to reach the coveted ‘Winner’s Circle’. Players pick from six categories on the pyramid-shaped game board, and guess a series of words or phrases as described by their team mate. The duo that scores more points than their opposing team wins the match, and gets a shot at the grand prize. Additionally, the Pyramid video games will incorporate thousands of questions, connected gaming elements, single and multiplayer game modes, as well as reward systems to fuel the competitive fun between players.
“Pyramid has been a long-standing and successful game show franchise, and we are delighted to work with Ludia to create new opportunities that will bring an engaging entertainment experience to fans of the show,” added Mark Caplan, Vice President Licensing, Sony Pictures Consumer Products.
Three of EA Sports’ titles are vying for the top spot in the Golden Joystick Awards. FIFA 10, Skate 3 and 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa are all in the final run to the top. Ubisoft Canada is also competing against itself in the Action Title category, with both Assassin’s Creed 2 and Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction in the running.
Assassin’s Creed 2: Bonfire of the Vanities and FIFA 10 are finalists for Downloadable Game of the Year while Next Level’s Punch Out!! and EA Sports’ Fight Night Round 4 have entered the ring for Fighting Game of the Year. EA Blackbox is trying to be first over the finish line in the Online Game of the Year with Need For Speed World while franchise twins Assassin’s Creed Bloodlines and Assassin’s Creed Discovery are both in the running for Portable Game of the Year. We have a cross-country showdown going between EA Montreal’s NFS Shift and United Front’s Modnation Racers in the Racing Game of the Year category.
Bioware fans will have a real problem voting in the Role Playing Game of The Year category as Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age Origins Awakening have all made it to the final list. In the soundtrack category, we have Mass Effect 2 competing against Assassin’s Creed 2, and in the RTS category we have household favourite Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II – Chaos Rising from Relic. The voting for Ultimate Game of the Year is going to be hot and heavy with Assassin’s Creed 2, Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age: Origins all hoping to take the podium. Read the rest of this entry »
PayPal and leading Canadian companies announced two new ways for Canadians to use the power of smartphones and social media to quickly and simply send charity donations or raise money for their favourite causes.
The new version of the PayPal Mobile 2.5 released today on iTunes allows customers to send charity donations to 17 highly-regarded, national Canadian non-profit organizations directly from their iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch. Donations can be funded from a PayPal account balance, bank balance or credit card. PayPal worked with Artez Interactive, a Toronto-based online fundraising solutions provider to make the donate feature possible.
“Canada is a caring society and Canadians are very technologically savvy,” says Darrell MacMullin, General Manager, PayPal Canada. “By bringing these two powerful qualities together and making charitable giving and fundraising simpler on the digital platforms Canadians use every day, PayPal hopes to help charities find new ways of raising money.”
The use of smartphones to buy products and services from online retailers, known as mobile commerce, has exploded in recent years. PayPal customers completed $25 million in mobile purchases in 2008. In 2009, the figure jumped to $141 million. In 2010, PayPal expects to process more than $500 million in mobile transactions.
Part of that growth has been fueled by the rapid adoption of smartphones in Canada. According to an IDC report in January 2010, smartphone penetration among businesses and consumers in Canada is about 25 per cent, but is growing at a rate of 30 per cent year over year. In Canada, the growing number of advanced networks is expected to continue to drive smartphone adoption.
“Customers are comfortable using smartphones for all kinds of professional and personal needs, so making it easier for Canadians to give to charities that way is important,” said Philip King, President and CEO, Artez Interactive. “For charities, mobile giving is a new channel; one that allows people to give quickly and simply and one that may help reach new, younger audiences who don’t respond as readily to traditional fundraising campaigns.” Read the rest of this entry »
My 360 is going to be very busy downloading new DLC from Bioware next month. Earlier this week the studio announced The Lair of the Shadowbroker for Mass Effect 2, which is due out on September 7th. Also coming out on the same day is Witch Hunt for Dragon Age Origins. It appears that this DLC chapter will cost the same as Leliana’s Song, 560 MS Points or $7.00.
The dreaded Archdemon has been slain and the advance of the darkspawn halted by a lone, heroic Grey Warden. The kingdom rejoices, but at least one question remains: what happened to Morrigan? The sorceress joined the Wardens cause, but it is said her true purpose was not revealed until the eve of the last battle. She vanished into the shadows, and while rumours claimed she crossed over the mountains into Orlais, no trace of her path could be found. She was never heard from again… until now. Nearly a year has passed since the Archdemon’s death, and word has reached the Wardens that Morrigan has returned to Ferelden. She has been sighted in the southern wilderness where she was first encountered, but is it truly her? If it is, then why is she here and what secret does she carry with her? The Warden heads into the forest to find out and tie up this last loose end once and for all.
Key Features:
* Confront Morrigan in this dramatic conclusion to the Origins storyline * Earn powerful rewards that transfer into your Awakening and Origins campaign * Import your character from Origins or Awakening or create a new, high-level hero
Witch Hunt will also introduce Ariane, a new character who is a gifted Dalish warrior, and her clan’s best hunter. When an ancient artifact belonging to the clan’s Keeper is stolen, one with a history tied to the very roots of the elven people, Ariane is charged with the task of reclaiming it. She is determined to carry out her solemn duty, and when her task turns out to intersect with the Warden’s quest to find Morrigan she realizes that there may be far more to the artifact’s disappearance than simple theft. There are two more character links, but as of right now they are both “sealed” – perhaps more will be revealed in the coming days?
Unity Technologieshas announced that Jesse Schell, CEO of Schell Games, will keynote at Unite 2010. Unite 2010 is Unity Technologies’ fourth annual developer conference for artists, programmers, designers, researchers, publishers and enthusiasts taking place November 10-12 at the historic Marché Bonsecours in Old Montreal, Canada following the Montreal International Game Summit.
Jesse is a lauded author and lecturer on the subject of games design and his Schell Games studio is using Unity to develop ‘The Mummy Online’ in collaboration with Universal and Bigpoint. This Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG) is set to launch in Winter 2010.
“I’ve been dreaming for years about a ubiquitous 3D solution for web browsers, and Unity is that solution,” said Jesse Schell, CEO of Schell Games. “It’s changing the face of online game development, and we’re just at the beginning of what is possible.” Read the rest of this entry »
Electronic Arts Inc.and independent Vancouver development studio Klei Entertainment would like to remind you that the highly anticipated downloadable 2D action game Shank, will be available for download today on PlayStation®Network for $9.99 and tomorrow, August 25th, on Xbox LIVE® Arcade (1200 MS Points). At press time, Shank was still showing a release date of “08.2010″ on PSN, but the XBLA page has been updated with tomorrow’s release date. With its blend of classic side-scrolling action gameplay and stylized animation set against a modern-Western canvass, Shank tells a bloody story of revenge, penned by award-winning game writer Marianne Krawczyk.
“Our goal with Shank was to create a game that pays homage to the classic 2D brawler, while seeing how far we could push it by melding it with our own pulp-fiction influences,” said Jamie Cheng, CEO of Klei Entertainment. “At the end of a long road that began as an indie dream in 2009, we’ve finally shipped a visually striking, cinematic brawler.”
“With Shank, Jamie Cheng, Jeff Agala, and the team at Klei Entertainment have delivered the game analog of the black comedy symphony of violence dominating today’s indie film circuit,” said Jamil Moledina, Outreach Director at EA Partners. “This exquisitely bloody game conjures memories of the best arcade brawlers of the late 1980s, while delivering the production values and pitch perfect controls of a modern high definition blockbuster masterpiece.”
Shank tells a classic story of gangland betrayal through a violent, pulp-fiction lens. Gamers play as Shank, getting their hands bloody as they uncover the secrets of Shank’s past and the reasons he is hell-bent on revenge. With a deep and intuitive combat system, players unleash a tremendous number of creative combinations as they take down waves of enemies standing in their path. Shank also features a special co-operative campaign, designed to be played with a friend locally, which tells the backstory of the revenge plot. This prequel mission allows players to play as Shank or his partner-in-crime Falcone, with deadly double-team moves and gameplay that encourages teamwork.
Shank is one of the most highly anticipated downloadable game releases of this summer, having been nominated for Excellence in Visual Arts by the Independent Games Festival, as well as multiple “Best of E3” awards, including “Best Action Game” from IGN.com and “Best Downloadable Game” from GameTrailers.com. Shank is rated M by the ESRB.
The McLuhan Festival of the Future’s Vortex Videogame Conference and Competition, an illustrious event designed to showcase Ontario’s undiscovered videogame talent, has announced today that it will be accepting entries for its 2010 edition.
With the mission to create opportunities for emerging videogame companies and individuals to showcase their work locally, nationally, and internationally, Vortex achieves its goal through education, discourse, pitching, networking and, of course, competition. Read the rest of this entry »
A-la-carte tickets for Spark Animation are now available. Vancouver’s ACM SIGGRAPH chapter have officially opened the event’s site for individual session or film session purchases. The festival will open with a social mixer on Wednesday, September 8th and will feature a full schedule of inspiring speakers, panels and films.
Vancouver indie studio Ninja Robot Dinosaur has declared Ray Ardent: Science Ninja done. The product of indie developer & design veteran Shane Neville, Ray Ardent: Science Ninja is a high speed platformer where players assume the role of Ray Ardent, a retro pulp combination of Nicholas Tesla and Chuck Norris who saves the world with his unique combination of Science and Ninjutsu. Power-ups like Science Slide, Triple Jump and nine others let gamers customize Ray to play how they want him to. Ray Ardent features 15 levels and is currently up for licensing on Flash Game License. Ray Ardent was built using the Flixel game libraries created by Adam Saltzman of Canabalt fame, with John Tennant providing the audio work.
You begin this adventure not knowing where you are or who you are. All you know is that you are some kind of creature of instinct, understanding little. During the course of the adventure, it may be possible for you to begin to control your bestial nature, to find out more about yourself, and even to learn your destiny. But even if you know all this, success is by no means certain, for the traps and terrors of Trolltooth Pass are many.
Now you can experience the books that have sold over 15 million copies worldwide, on your iPhone or iPad. Fighting Fantasy fans will love the classic story and original illustrations with a technological twist. No more dice, pencils, or bookmarks. All of the special features are built in:
* New! Player Achievements * Universal app iPad support * Scrolling image gallery of unlocked in-game art * Tap the on screen buttons to flip pages (No papercuts!) * Shake to roll the 3D dice using the accelerometer (or tap through with ease) * Inventory items selectable via touch-screen * Game-save feature allows you to retrace your steps * Includes both original illustrations by Ian McCaig and digitally re-mastered versions * Integrated iPod music library access
Bioware has just announced that the newest DLC for Mass Effect 2 for PC and Xbox 360 will be released on September 7th. Available for 800 Bioware/MS Points, players who purchase Lair of the Shadowbroker will join Liara T’Soni on her mission to track down the mysterious Shadow Broker. She’ll do anything to recover the man the Broker kidnapped, and the Shadow Broker’s agents will do anything to stop her. Team up with Liara and chase down clues as you adventure from the luxurious heights of Illium to the Shadow Broker’s own secret lair. In this new DLC, players will gain access to the Shadow Broker intel center, new research, and five new achievements. Mass Effect 1 players who carried their characters over to ME2 will also have the chance to continue a relationship with Liara. Read the rest of this entry »
A reminder to all those planning to attend IN2010 – if you haven’t yet purchased your tickets, Early Bird pricing ends tonight at midnight. The event is also looking for a few good volunteers, so if you’re interested in helping out, click here.
Along with the opportunity to hear from 65 industry speakers, IN2010 offers:
3 keynote presentations Facilitated one-on-one meeting opportunities 4 Networking breaks 2 Evening receptions Fully catered lunch and breakfast on both days
Games Stream • Concept to Screen: This will focus on the actual creative arc that individuals trace in order to create a piece of work that is exploitable along multiple entertainment verticals. Mark Long, Style Driver, Zombie Studios.
Mobile Stream • Managing Mobile: Challenges & Opportunities Facing Mobile Projects. Creating projects for the new set of mobile platforms can present it’s own set of challenges. What types of issues can you expect to face and what opportunities can the mobile platform present? Featuring Rick Segal, Co-Founder, FixMO.
The BlackBerry Social Media Stream • Bend It!: A discussion about pushing boundaries of social media and future trends between an assembly of innovators from several different sectors. Featuring Juliette Powell, Author, Pundit, Integrated Media Specialist.
The Rogers X-Platform Stream • Branded Entertainment: A breakdown of brand-supported entertainment properties. Featuring creation, brand integration and ROI measurements. Featuring Paul Bennun , Owner, Somethin’ Else.
Visionary Stream • Weird Science: From thought-controlled devices to biotechnology, this Visionary Presentation session will showcase leading work being done locally and aboard that has the potential to usher in a new era of interaction. Andrew Hessel, Co-Chair, Bioinformatics and Biotechnology, Singularity University.
If you are a Dragon Age fan but couldn’t go to Gamescom, do not despair. You, too can take part in a Dragon Age 2 live chat tomorrow (August 21st) via the magic of the internet. The live chat will begin at 12:00PM CEDT, which translates to 6:00AM EDT (or 3:00AM here in Vancouver).
XMG Studios has released its first Android title. Little Metal Ball is a top-down full-tilt platform adventure which features 20 levels of twisted labyrinths and challenging puzzles controlled by precise tilt control and physics. You will race against the clock, trying to obtain bronze, silver and gold record times along with power-ups and more.
According to recently released data from comScore Media Metrix, Disney Online, the No. 1 ranked community-family and parenting destination on the Web, reached a record-breaking 36 million unique visitors in July, beating the previous all-time record of 34 million uniques set in June 2009 by two million unique visitors. This growth was in great part due to increased traffic to areas of the site such as Disney Games, Disney Channel and Disney Movies. Most notably, Disney Games climbed to the No. 3 spot in the Online Gaming category. Read the rest of this entry »
A quick reminder that Microsoft Tech Days will be touring across the country beginning next month. You may still have time to get in on the Early Bird pricing if you act fast. Early Bird prices close six weeks prior to tour arrival dates.
Vancouver: September 14-15 Edmonton: October 05-06 Toronto: October 27-28 Halifax: November 02-03 Ottawa: November 09-10 Montreal: November 23-24 Winnipeg: December 07-08 Calgary: December 14-15
If you are a Joss Whedon fan, then you will want to be spending some time at Whedon Fest, a 3 day unofficial convention to celebrate all that is Whedon. The convention will feature guests and events from Buffy, Angel, Firefly, Dr. Horrible and Dollhouse. Organizers and fans will be celebrating the Joss ‘verse from Friday October, 1st to Sunday October, 3rd 2010 at the Sheraton Hotel and Conference Centre in Toronto, Canada. The unofficial Whedon Fest convention will comprise of guest talks, autograph and photograph sessions, charity auction, a Saturday night masquerade and dance, contests, and more.
BattleGoat Studiosand Paradox Interactive are pleased to announce that Supreme Ruler Cold War, the next title in the Supreme Ruler series, is scheduled for release in Q2 2011. Building on Supreme Ruler 2010 and 2020, BattleGoat Studios invites you to relive the tension and uncertainty of the Cold War. As the 1950’s approach, the Korean War looms, the Arms Race intensifies, the Berlin Crisis leads to the formation of NATO, and the world anticipates a new World War.
As leader of the United States or the Soviet Union, you must make the correct Economic, Diplomatic, Domestic and Military decisions to successfully navigate your country through this dangerous historical era and increase your nation’s Sphere of Influence on the world stage.
Features
- Play as the United States or Soviet Union in Campaign Mode – Control any Nation in Post-World War II Era in Sandbox Mode – Use Diplomacy, Trade and Espionage to influence the policies of other nations – Research new Technologies to give your nation an edge – Grow and Modernize your Economy – Control Military production and deployment, or let your Ministers take care of the details – And when Diplomacy Fails… Sophisticated Real-Time Strategic and Tactical Control of your Military Forces! – Enhanced Graphics and Sound including New 3D Terrain – Experience the redesigned GUI with improved On-Map feedback and streamlined controls – Up to 16 players in Multiplayer over local network or Internet
ApeZonehas released a free version of SoliScare for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, letting you take a free peak at their whimsical card game, specifically designed for the iPhone’s touch screen. The free version lets you play though ten ghost levels, where you will use your astral weapons of everyday objects to beat down ghosts. Drawing a club, gives you a golf club, a spade gives you a shovel, and so on. As you make longer runs of cards, you’ll capture ghosts and place them in your jailhouse. Try to capture all 13 ghosts. Collect coins as you clear cards and buy game perks to help you out.
Paradox Interactive and Vancouver’s Kerberos Productions have released new screenshots and gameplay scenes from Sword of the Stars II, the sequel to the hit 4X franchise, Sword of the Stars. Scheduled for release in Q2 2011, Sword of the Stars II will feature the six races from SotS and its expansions, as well as revealing the dark, running secret of the original series, the Suul’ka – an ancient race that is responsible for tampering with other races in the Sword of the Stars universe.
“We’re really excited to have the Sword of the Stars II as a part of our lineup at Gamescom” Says Executive Producer Mattias Lilja at Paradox Interactive. “PC gamers have a lot of love for the genre and we’re no exception. The game looks and plays great already and we’re really looking forwarding to showing off the game.”
nGen, Niagara’s Interactive Media Generator is pleased to announce the opening of its $3 million, state of the art facility designed for digital interactive media advancement. Funded by the Community Adjustment Fund, a government fund established as part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan to address the short-term economic needs of Canadian communities impacted by the global recession. The new facility houses cutting edge digital interactive media technologies and will undoubtedly increase Niagara’s already growing reputation as a hub for digital interactive media. The expanded facility has been branded the Generator at one. Located at one St. Paul Street in downtown St. Catharines the facility has the capacity to enable entire media projects to be created at one location. Read the rest of this entry »
Klei Entertainmenthas started to reveal some of the Costume Unlocks that will be available in Shank, which is due for release on the PlayStation Network on August 24th and Xbox LIVE Arcade on August 25th. By completing challenges and amassing points, you will be able to unlock costumes such as the Yellow Jumpsuit Shank. Klei will be unveiling a new costume every day, so follow them on Twitter to get the daily costume news. According to the dev blog, the studio has made more progress on re-mastering the game’s soundtrack and as gamers requested, the soundtrack will be available in mp3 format.
THQ Inc.today announced that the Windows PC version of the hotly anticipated first-person-shooter Homefront™ from Kaos Studios, is being developed by a dedicated team at Digital Extremes and will be available early in 2011.
“Digital Extremes has a superb track record in PC development,” said David Votypka, General Manager at Kaos Studios, THQ. “While the team here at Kaos is completely focused on the core Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of Homefront, our partnership with Digital Extremes means that PC gamers can look forward to a version of the game tailored to the demands of the discerning PC gamer.”
“We’re building on the great game that Kaos Studios is making and enhancing it with specific PC relevant features,” added Frank De Lise, Executive Producer, THQ. “PC players will be able to set up and host Homefront dedicated servers and enjoy additional community features including clan support. We believe the core PC first-person-shooter fan will really appreciate these features, which are becoming increasingly rare.”
THQ Inc. also announced that it will be launching a rewards program for Relic Entertainment’s upcoming 3rd Person Action/Shooter Warhammer® 40,000®: Space Marine® for the Xbox 360®, PlayStation®3 and Windows PC. The loyalty program, dubbed ‘Honor Guard’, will allow gamers to become part of an elite group of Space Marine fans who will be given the opportunity to become involved in the success of the game. Honor Guard members will get the latest news, exclusive access to first look assets and receive reward points for viral activity, which could result in rewards of exclusive Space Marine branded items.
Travis Plane, Vice President of Global Brand Management commented: “Rewarding community for their role as opinion formers is important to us so we are delighted to be able to unveil the Honor Guard program.”
To kick off the Honor Guard program THQ will be handing out an Ultramarine cloth patch at Gamescom with directions on how to register for a free “For the Emperor” ring tone. The patch will also be handed out at Games Workshop’s US Games Day event in Baltimore on August 21st, 2010, and the UK Games Day event at the Birmingham NEC on September 26th, 2010. This item is the first of five items that fans are encouraged to collect over the next few months at various shows around the globe. More details about these items will be released throughout the year.
Combining intense melee and ranged combat, Space Marine puts players into the boots of one of humanity’s elite soldiers, genetically engineered and equipped with state of the art weapons and armor. Players are dropped right into the action as they battle to defend an Imperial Forge World, from an invasion by the savage and brutal Orks, using the most devastating weaponry mankind has at its disposal.
Kelowna indie developer Cosmic Logic Inc. is proud to officially announce details on their upcoming XBLIG and PC title, Doc Logic, an arcade-style platformer with an emphasis on explosive action and survival. Doc blasts across the screen with upgradeable weapons and abilities through expanding levels of increased difficulty that will challenge and engage the true gamer in you. Unique level designs combined with increasing enemy difficulty makes “Doc Logic” an intense sci-fi adventure. Do what you can to keep the clock running as you collect points, destroy enemies, and collect time bonuses. Read the rest of this entry »
Toronto and Vancouver Halo fans, get ready to track The Covenant on August 21, 2010 and then Defend Reach in two separate missions on August 28th in Vancouver or September 4th in Toronto.
Locate the Covenant Advance Invasion Forces in either city to prove you’re ready to fight alongside Noble Team, win instant prizing, and be entered to win an exclusive Halo Reach Xbox bundle pack.
Join the fight and help UNSC track down Covenant by following UNSC_INTEL on Twitter. You’ll receive up-to-the-minute updates from UNSC pertaining to the whereabouts of the Covenant. Twitter followers of UNSC_INTEL will also be entered for the chance to win a Legendary Edition copy of Halo Reach.
In Defend Reach, Covenant have located and attacked UNSC control points. UNSC has planned a strategic assault and needs recruits. Do you have what it takes? Come down to the control point in your city for an event you’ll never forget. Battle Covenant troupes live using state-of-the-art weapons technology and be one of the first Canadians to get a sneak peak of Halo Reach. The event is free to anyone prepared to kick some serious Covenant butt. And for any die-hards out there who have pre-ordered the game, bring proof of purchase for an exclusive VIP experience at the event.
With Microsoft’s announcement of Xbox Live for Windows Phone 7, IUGO is proud to be a launch partner with the upcoming platform. IUGO’s hit physics puzzler Implode XL and rabidly fun 3D tower defense game Zombie Attack! Second Wave are part of the prestigious line up of WP7’s launch titles.
“Early on Microsoft approached us to be a part of the WP7 launch,” explains Sarah Thomson, IUGO’s VP of Business Development. “ From what we had read and seen of the platform along with MS’s aggressive support for developers to bring over their content, we were excited to be a part of it. We believe WP7 is going to be a serious competitor in the smartphone space. The OS has been amazing to work with and implementing Xbox Live features is a brilliant move.”
IUGO now has games on iPhone, BlackBerry and WP7. Android is the next platform users will see IUGO content on. IUGO aims to build content on these specific smartphone platforms. Plans to explore social gaming and cross-platform gaming are also underway for the powerhouse indie studio.
THQ Inc.and Relic Entertainment have announced that there will be a second stand-alone expansion for the genre redefining real time strategy PC game, Warhammer® 40,000®: Dawn of War® II released in the first quarter of 2011.
Jeff Lydell, Producer of Dawn of War II – Retribution commented: “We all love the Blood Ravens here at Relic Entertainment, but there are also a lot of fans of the other races and armies out there so we decided that Retribution should allow the player the freedom to experience the campaign from the perspective they select.” Read the rest of this entry »
Montreal’s Strategy Firstand U.S. based Nvinium Games are expanding the Space Empires: Battle For Supremacy franchise which began on the PC in 1993. The five-title franchise has been infiltrating social media and casual game platforms, and with versions for the iPhone and iPad due to launch in 2011, social gamers will now be able to connect with Space Empire gamers anywhere and at anytime, including those on Facebook.
“The avid Space Empires audience pushed us to expand from the PC to Facebook. We have been extremely pleased by the response to the new social network version of the game both in terms of excellent reviews and the exceptional take up of the game by the Facebook community. Accordingly we are expanding to the iPhone and the iPad platforms which will allow us to make the game available to these popular and growing social game audiences”, said Strategy First’s President Emanuel Wall.
Big Stack Studios has released a new game in the iTunes App Store. In Dead of Night, you will travel back to the 19th century and direct the vampire army through their conquest of Europe. In this 40 level quest you will capture villagers with your vampiric gaze and defend your legions from those of Van Helsing and the Werewolves. This title, which is OpenFeint-enabled, blends elements of castle defense and line-drawing gameplay and is available now for $ 0.99USD.
The Zellers store located at 8925 Torbram Road in Brampton will be holding an in-store BattleTag event with the game’s producer, Gael Seydoux, who will be on hand to talk about the new game and answer questions. The event will run from 10:00a.m. until 3:00p.m.
The Canada Media Fundwill begin a new round of consultation sessions with the industry this fall. Valerie Creighton, President and CEO, and Stéphane Cardin, VP of Industry and Public Affairs, will meet with stakeholders across the country to gain input on key issues to be resolved prior to releasing the program guidelines for 2011-2012 in December.
If you wish to attend one of these sessions, you are asked to please register by selecting a location near you. Exact times and locations will be provided to registrants by email prior to each event. New this year, stakeholders who are unable to attend a session in person can participate through an online discussion forum. More details will be provided by CMF in the coming weeks.
Scheduling site Tungle.me has once again expanded its services, allowing users to add their Facebook Events to their Tungle.me account. With this new integration users can now see their entire schedule in one, simple calendar view, allowing them to factor Facebook events into their availability, thereby avoiding those pesky double bookings. As users RSVP to new Facebook Events, those events will be added to their Tungle.me calendar, automatically updating available time slots.
This past Saturday marked a momentous occasion for Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada and its long-standing partner Future Shop as they celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Future Shop Future Leaders Scholarships program. And what better way to celebrate than to give the gift of education to 25 Boys and Girls Clubs youth across Canada. Presented with scholarships based on their outstanding contribution to their Boys and Girls Club and local community, good academic standing and financial need, the deserving 25 recipients will use their bursary to pursue their careers and life goals through higher education. Read the rest of this entry »
If you haven’t heard about it already, the Merging Media Conference is set to take the stage in Vancouver this October 28th and 29th with former President of Digital Media at OWN Robert Tercek delivering the Keynote Address. As the former President of Digital Media at OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network, Senior Vice President of Digital Media at Sony Pictures Entertainment and Creative Director at MTV, Tercek has created breakthrough entertainment experiences for digital platforms across the board, from cable and satellite television to games, interactive television and wireless networks.
According to the Conference’s web site, which is still be under construction as the group prepares for their official launch next week, The M+M Conference will bring together 350-400 media professionals from film, television, mobile, games and interactive media, and feature top International cross-media experts to showcase “Best in Class” Case-studies, discuss the rapidly evolving business of cross-media and explore how new platforms and technology can be adopted to help companies stay competitive.
There will be a Master Class led by Anita Ondine Smith which is designed to help 30-40 producers who have cross media development projects in development and are seeking financing for their projects, to fine-tune their cross-media proposals and business plans. Thus far the Conference appears to be scheduling an impressive speaker line-up, including two of our favourite people, Victor Lucas and Rochelle Grayson along with Susan Bonds, Sibley Verbeck, Caitlin Burns and more
MiGS has just announced that Narrative Bridging: A CIN workshop will be taking place immediately after the Montreal International Game Summit. The two day workshop takes place November 10 and 11 at the Hilton Bonaventure Hotel and will focus on developing advanced interactive narratives using Narrative Bridging. This will give the participants tools for designing interactive narratives for video games and show the mechanisms that motivate the player to action in the game world. The focus will be on Narrative Bridging and model and control design. After the workshop the participants will understand how the narrative creates incentives for the players to form strategies in the game world and how to accommodate for that in the narrative design.
Canwest and certain of its subsidiaries had previously filed for creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act. Shaw is a broadcast distribution undertaking, while its affiliate, Corus Entertainment, is a broadcasting company. Canwest owns and operates an over-the-air television network and an extensive portfolio of specialty television channels.
Following a significant review, the Bureau has concluded that this transaction would not likely give rise to a substantial lessening or prevention of competition having regard to a number of factors, including effective remaining competition, the effect of the regulatory environment, and a lack of relevant competitive concerns on the part of market participants. In particular, with respect to the impact on advertising, the Bureau concluded that there were numerous alternative options available to advertisers.
The York Woods Branch (1785 Finch Avenue West) of the Toronto Public Library is bringing the past to life through their new Black Creek Living History project. Local seniors and teens will work together to create a resource that will preserve the unique history of this diverse and vibrant Toronto neighbourhood.
“This is an exciting project and a great opportunity for the community to celebrate its past,” said Jessica Rovito, a librarian at the York Woods Branch. “We want the community to be involved in telling their own stories and preserving them for years to come.” Read the rest of this entry »
Hello Kovasys! Good question!!! You are right, our job is to get to know the right people for the job. We are trying every way possible to extend our network, and this one is just a way to bring some new contacts in our network, and also to give something to someone that is encouraging this networking exercice. We started this promotion because it often happens that people we know are telling us : ”I know a guy….”, and it often works. Well, we thought that these people are giving us a great hand by doing that, why not reward them? Do you have anybody to refer? )
Congratulations to Big Blue Bubble, whose iPhone/iPad application Thumpies won the award for Mobile Entertainment of the Year at the Mobile Content Awards 2010 in Seoul, Korea.
Vancouver Film School’s Game Design Expo 2011 is now accepting speaker proposals from game industry professionals who have a passion to share their expertise. Past speakers at the consistently sold-out Industry Speaker Day at Game Design Expo have included the makers of games such as Dead Rising 2, Halo, Mass Effect, ModNation Racers, and Saints Row 2 (amongst many others). The deadline for submissions is October 4th 2010, so download the Speaker Proposal Package (PDF) today and send your completed proposal in as soon as possible.
Telefilm Canada announced today a streamlined approach to submitting corporate information as part of an application.
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Do you have anybody to refer? 
