Village Gamer

Toronto – Indigo Books & Music, Inc. today announced the launch of Shortcovers, a new digital destination that enables people to discover and experience their next great read, on the mobile devices they already own. This new service provides consumers with an easy way to access and read their favorite content on the go.

eBook sales grew nearly 70 percent in 2008, with growth accelerating over 100 percent in the fourth quarter. Shortcovers is an integrated online and mobile service that gives anyone with an iPhone™, Blackberry (Storm™, Bold™ and Curve™), or Google Android™ device, instant access to the newest books, hottest authors, and most popular magazines and blogs – as well as new content formats and user-inspired writings such as subway novels.

“We are at a tipping point in the publishing world. People are reading differently–they are reading on screens, in more frequent, shorter sessions–and are accustomed to digital sampling services,” said Michael Serbinis, CIO & EVP of Indigo Books & Music. “Consumer behavior combined with the wide availability and popularity of high quality mobile devices inspired us to create Shortcovers, a destination where consumers can sample for free, purchase what they want, and read their favorite content on the go.”

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Ottawa – Corel Corporation has introduced Corel® Painter™ 11, the newest edition of the world’s leading painting and illustration software. With more than 40 new and enhanced features, Painter 11 provides the most inventive drawing and painting tools available, making it the ultimate art studio for those ready to expand their definition of creativity.

Since its inception, Corel Painter has set the standard for painting and illustration software. With Painter 11, artists can now expand their digital toolset with the most advanced painting and natural media tools available. New pressure-sensitive brushes allow hand and brush to fluidly work as one, producing brushstrokes that are unrivaled in texture and precision. Enhanced drawing tools and customizable media allow users to create distinct art every time.

“The cornerstone of Painter’s success has always been our loyal user community. During the development cycle for Painter 11, we listened closely and carefully to what these talented artists were saying about our product – the features they loved and the new features they needed as they worked with Painter on a day-to-day basis,” said Rob MacDonald, Product Manager for Corel Painter. “With Painter 11, we’ve successfully addressed many of the key areas our users highlighted while also delivering some exciting new features that will further expand artists’ creative options.”

Changing What’s Possible in Art
In developing the newest version of Corel Painter, the Corel team focused on four key areas:

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Toronto – The Adventure Company, a leading publisher of interactive entertainment software in North America, has announced it will publish the Adventure Game Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper for Windows® in North America. The game is developed by Frogwares, the creators of the award-winning adventure game Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened and is scheduled to release in April 2009.

“We are extremely pleased to continue publishing one of the best franchises out there in adventure gaming,” said Byron Gaum, Global Product Marketing Manager at The Adventure Company. “Frogwares and Focus Home Interactive have brought us some of the finest adventure titles in recent years. We think this pairing of the world’s greatest sleuth and the infamous killer will be another standout release in the adventure gaming genre.”

Sherlock Holmes, one of the world’s best known detectives is matched up with the most dangerous serial killer in England’s history, Jack the Ripper. The Year is 1888, London has been overtaken by a series of gruesome murders and police are left baffled, with no leads. The murders continue and Sherlock Holmes steps up to the case, setting out on a terrifying adventure to seek out the identity of Jack the Ripper.

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Video Games Live has announced more Canadian performance dates for 2009.  Video Games Live is a great journey down gaming’s nostalgia lane, it’s a fun and entertaining way to introduce our children to the world of symphonic music. Village Gamer highly recommends the production as worthy family entertainment.

New Dates:

A second performance date has been added for Kitchener, ON:

Kitchener, ON – March 13 and 14 2009 – Centre In The Square with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony

Winnipeg, MB – July 6 and 8 2009 – Centennial Concert Hall

Video Games Live has promised forthcoming tour dates for:

Montreal, Ottawa, Halifax, Vancouver, New Brunswick and Newfoundland.

Vancouver/Beverly Hills – Live video streaming from mobile device pioneer, LiveCast®, and Palm, Inc. teamed to add support for Sunday’s live webcast of “A Night to Make a Difference” Oscar viewing and after-party organized by Leeza Gibbons and Oliva Newton John to promote advocacy, philanthropy and volunteerism and their respective non-profit organizations, the Leeza Gibbons Memory Foundation, and Olivia’s Cancer and Wellness Centre Appeal.

A night focused on giving back, Mr. Chow’s became a “living set” providing the backdrop of the live webcast. Philanthropists, volunteers and stars like Laila Ali, Jessica Biel, Paris Hilton, John Paul Dejoria, Hilary Duff, David Foster, Tony Hawk, Mario Lopez, Holly Robinson, Rodney Peete, Jane Seymour and many others came to help support this special event. Celebrity correspondents toting Palm Treo Pro with LiveCast provided the personal point of view with live video streaming from their Palm Treo Pro smartphones.

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Vancouver – Hothead Games revealed today its plans for a one-of-a-kind model of collaboration with other top-notch independent developers. This unique collaborative effort marries indie studios’ creative game designs with Hothead Games’ multi-platform development and digital distribution expertise to bring award-winning titles to new gaming platforms.

Among the first to join in this effort is Jonathan Blow, whose 2008 launch of Braid via Xbox LIVE® Arcade amazed gamers with its innovative game play and distinctive art style. Hothead Games is partnering with Blow to bring his ground-breaking game to the Mac® platform and has secured exclusive digital publishing rights to that version.

Further, Hothead Games has forged a new fellowship with The Maw developer Twisted Pixel. Launched last month on Xbox LIVE® Arcade, Hothead will deliver The Maw to the Windows® platform, integrating special features to make the crowd-pleaser compatible with multiple as-of-yet-unannounced digital distribution platforms and services.

“We focus on finding new distribution opportunities so that they can focus on what they do best: developing their next great game,” said Hothead Games COO Joel DeYoung. “These two titles represent only the tip of the iceberg. We’re committed to working with indies and helping them be successful, so look for lots more announcements to come.”

Wii Gamers Get Their Own Taste of Zombie-laden Insanity with Humor, Hordes of the Undead and a Variety of Weapons at the Player’s Disposal

Vancouver – Capcom®, a leading worldwide developer and publisher of video games, is pleased to announce that Dead Rising™: Chop Till You Drop ships today for the Wii™ home video game system. Developed by Vancouver’s Blue Castle Games, and taking advantage of the same proven technology that brought Resident Evil® 4 so successfully to Wii, Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop delivers a more intuitive and interactive experience as players use the Wii Remote™ to shoot, slash and bludgeon their way through a zombie infested shopping mall, fighting for survival. Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop is rated M for Mature by the ESRB.

Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop follows the harrowing tale of Frank West, an overly zealous freelance journalist on a hunt for the scoop of a lifetime. In pursuit of a juicy lead, he makes his way to the small suburban town of Willamette only to find that it has become overrun by zombies. Frank escapes to the local shopping mall, thinking it will be a bastion of safety but turns out to be anything but. A true struggle to survive the endless stream of enemies, players luckily have full reign of a realistic shopping centre and its varied stores offering an endless supply of real and makeshift weapons to fight off the flesh-hungry mob. If Frank is running low on health he can pay a visit to one of the many restaurants or cafes for a meal in order to restore his energy and continue the fight.

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Creative Control –  featuring LA-based composer, producer and product specialist Brian Carter

Vancouver –Annex|Pro invites you to join them at the VFS Cafe (390 West Hastings Vancouver) for this special presentation, where you’ll follow a music project from inception to completion, with LA-based composer, producer and product specialist Brian Carter.

Brian toured with several Grammy-winning acts, and brings with him years of studio experience, as well as an in-depth knowledge of Pro Tools and the recording process.

At this speaker session, you’ll learn how solutions like Pro Tools 8 and the C|24 control surface can bring new life to your productions, whether you’re a songwriter, film composer, or a serious hobbyist.   If you’re already using Pro Tools LE, HD or something else entirely, you’ll pick up some real-world tips that you can take back and immediately use in your own studio.

Agenda:

6:00PM – Come early for food and drinks
6:30PM – Annex|Pro presents “Creative Control” with Brian Carter

Everyone is welcome, but as space is limited, pre-registration is recommended.

Vancouver – GDC Canada Advisory Board Member and President of Radical Entertainment Kelly Zmak was interviewed on Electric Playground. Kelly shared his view about what GDC Canada means for the

local development community and highlights a few topics he is looking forward to this May.  Always a strong proponent for the game development industry in Vancouver and Canada, Kelly touches on the strengths, opportunities and future of our local game industry and how GDC-Canada ties into it all as an addition to the family of GDC international events. You can watch Kelly’s interview on the Electric Playground web site.

“The Evolution of the Canadian Game Industry: A Conversation with Don Mattrick”

Vancouver – Don Mattrick, leader of the Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE and Games for Windows businesses at Microsoft, will kick of the inaugural GDC Canada with an exploration of the Canadian game development industry and the role it plays within the global community. With 25 years of broad industry and game development experience, Mattrick’s portfolio includes some of the most successful game franchises in the world, including “Need for Speed,” “Harry Potter” and “The Sims.” He will be joined onstage by Victor Lucas, creator, executive producer and co-host of

Don Mattrick

“The Electric Playground,” for an engaging interview and discussion on the dynamic changes and growing influence of Canadian game development.

Don Mattrick, who began his career in the video game industry at the age of 17, with the launch of Distinctive Software in Burnaby BC, has since held several leadership positions at EA, most recently as president of the publisher’s worldwide studios. Previously, he oversaw EA’s global studios and research and development in several major sites, including Redwood Shores, Calif. (Silicon Valley), EALA in Los Angeles, EA Tiburon in Florida, EA Canada in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Montreal, and EA UK Studio in Chertsey, England.

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