Village Gamer

Leading Victoria event organizer Reboot Communications has just announced a new wholly-owned event, the Canadian Games Conference, debuting in Vancouver in May 2011 alongside the market-leading Canadian Videogame Awards.

This newly branded event will offer cutting-edge keynotes, lecture and roundtable content from local, national, and international game creators, focusing on core topics like game design and programming alongside emerging smartphone and social game areas. It will also include a bustling expo floor.

In addition, the 2011 Canadian Games Conference is also the first-ever event to feature a special ‘Best Of GDC’ content track, including some of the best speakers and topics from the worldwide Game Developers Conferences®.

This unique agreement for the ‘Best Of GDC’ content at the Canadian Games Conference evolves a partnership built around the former Game Developers Conference Canada™ event, which the Canadian Games Conference replaces and expands on. Reboot also ran the popular Vancouver International Game Summit from 2006 to 2008.

Reboot Communications CEO Greg Spievak commented of the announcement: “Our conference efforts in the game space have always been for the industry, by the industry. Our Canadian Games Conference advisory board is made of key representatives from across the country – and we expect the same vibrant growth and stimulating sessions that have defined our game events for the past four years.”

The UBM TechWeb Game Network’s global brand director Simon Carless added: “We’re delighted to continue working with Reboot and the Canadian game industry by contributing the ‘Best Of GDC’ track to the Canadian Games Conference – and look forward to supporting the conference and awards as one of the leading events in this vibrant space.”

The official dates for the Canadian Games Conference will be May 19-20th, 2011 at the Vancouver Conference Centre. Once again, the show will be preceded on May 18th by the 2nd Annual Canadian Videogame Awards, also produced by Reboot Communications in conjunction with Greedy Productions and DigiBC.

Keynotes and session topics for the Canadian Games Conference will be announced on the website soon.

Beginning today, Netflix members in Canada can stream content through their Wii™ consoles with Netflix installed on their Wii Menu. The Netflix disc that was used for instant streaming on the Wii console will no longer be required. Netflix members who have a plan starting at $7.99 a month, a Wii console and a broadband Internet connection can now instantly watch movies and TV shows streamed directly to their TVs by simply downloading Netflix from the Wii Shop Channel. This new channel is available at no extra cost. The new disc-free option installs Netflix on the Wii Menu, making it convenient for Wii owners to quickly access streaming movies and TV shows.

“At this time of year, consumers have a near-insatiable demand for family entertainment,” said Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “And this simplified Netflix access will help bring families together more quickly, more easily and in more ways than ever before. More than 3 million Wii systems have already connected to Netflix, demonstrating how easy the service is to set up and use.”

“Wii is a consummate home entertainment platform and has quickly become one of the best and most popular ways to enjoy movies streamed from Netflix,” said Reed Hastings, co-founder and CEO of Netflix. “The availability of Netflix right on the Wii Menu adds significantly to the ease and convenience that attracts our members to the Netflix streaming experience and is an important step in our efforts to continuously improve the service.” Read the rest of this entry »

I received a letter in my email yesterday which was sent out by Ontario developer Brent Howard, stating that he had purchased the formerly based in Santa Monica company Subdreamer, previously owned by Ziad Hilal. According to the letter, Brent Howard became involved with the Subdreamer community in 2003, and worked for Subdreamer from 2005 through 2009. Brent has named this newly-Canadian company Subdreamer Web Development, and has listed several items which he would like to work on in continuing the development of Subdreamer CMS.

I purchased a license for Subdreamer way back in 2006, when we were looking for ways to improve and grow one of our other sites – one which has since fallen off in use and will probably be integrated in some way into the future of Village Gamer. We didn’t use Subdreamer for very long, because while it started off promising, I soon found the software to be confusing, hard to learn, and not very friendly when it came to integrating our forum. When I look back in my Subdreamer Outlook folder, I note that it’s full of trouble tickets sent to Subdreamer customer support by the student coders who were, at that time, helping to develop our sites. After weeks turned into months of stagnation with Subdreamer, we mothballed the software somewhere in a cobweb-filled corner of our server reserved for failed design attempts. A costly lesson, with the license having set me back 100.00USD for a site which has no external income.

While I am definitely not the most knowledgeable person out there when it comes to using a CMS, I know when it frustrates me beyond redemption, and there are two CMS products out there which succeeded in doing so – Subdreamer and Drupal. I have been in the web game long enough to know that every CMS product has a learning curve as well as limitations, and I, nor anyone behind the scenes here at Village Gamer (that would be Scott), has the time or funds to develop a custom site from the ground up, so we depend on products like WordPress (which we currently use) to be the backbone of our sites, and even though WP has also frustrated me at times, it seems easier to get along with, despite my lack of time for learning, absentmindedness and low frustration threshold. In my mind, what I want to do is very logical and solid – however it appears that software developers don’t think like Geminis and presume that everyone with a web presence knows the ins and outs of code hacking, site security and features integration.

So with all that said, and despite my personal past experiences with Subdreamer, I do wish Brent Howard and his development team all the success that I know they are hoping for with this new acquisition.

Shaftesbury Films and Citytv welcomed Prime Minister Stephen Harper to the Toronto set of their popular drama series, Murdoch Mysteries yesterday. A longtime fan of Murdoch Mysteries, the Prime Minister visited the set to meet the cast and crew of the series, which is set in late 1890s Toronto and follows the adventures of a detective who pioneers forensic techniques in his quest to solve the city’s crimes. Canadian production company Shaftesbury Films is currently filming season four of Murdoch Mysteries, which is broadcast on Citytv in Canada and drama channel Alibi in the UK, and has also been licensed in more than 100 countries and territories worldwide.

“Without the support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Media Fund and tax credit programs, Murdoch Mysteries would simply not exist,” said Christina Jennings, Chairman and CEO, Shaftesbury Films. “Murdoch Mysteries has created more than 5000 jobs in the Canadian television industry since 2003, is enjoyed by audiences on TV and online in Canada, and has been sold to broadcasters in more than 100 countries around the world, making it a true Canadian success story.”

“Murdoch Mysteries on Citytv represents some of the finest homegrown programming available to Canadian audiences,” commented Leslie Sole, CEO, Rogers Media Television. “We are extremely proud of this series heading into its impressive fourth season. Murdoch Mysteries has solidified its position as a true fan favourite keeping Citytv audiences entertained week after week.”

Based on Canadian author Maureen Jennings’s popular Detective Murdoch series of mystery novels set in late 1890s Toronto, Murdoch Mysteries is a one-hour drama series that explores the intriguing world of Detective William Murdoch (Yannick Bisson), who uses unusual techniques for the time – including fingerprinting, human-blood testing, surveillance and trace evidence – to solve some of the city’s most gruesome murders. Murdoch’s small circle of confidantes include pathologist Dr. Julia Ogden (Hélène Joy), a staunch ally who shares the detective’s fascination for forensic science; Constable George Crabtree (Jonny Harris), Murdoch’s eager but sometimes naïve right-hand man; and Murdoch’s reluctantly supportive boss, Inspector Brackenreid (Thomas Craig). Read the rest of this entry »

Mob4Hire has announced the appointment of Laura Sullivan as VP, Operations. Laura holds an MBA in Venture Development from Haskayne School of Business (University of Calgary), in addition to a BGS from Athabasca University and a Diploma in Technology from BC Institute of Technology.

“It’s vital that we grow our management capabilities to help drive Mob4Hire’s accelerating international growth,” states Stephen King, CEO of Mob4Hire. “Laura is a world-class management consultant; we’re very lucky to have her deep experience, knowledge of the local tech economy / government relations, and startup expertise. She’s a great compliment to the rest of the management team.”

Laura brings broad experience in operations, finance, project and risk management, in a number of industries including Manufacturing, ICT, Retail and Health. As a Management Consultant, Laura’s clients included TransCanada Pipelines Ltd., Calgary Health Region, Bethany Care Foundation, C-mach Technologies, FoundPages and ITSportsNet. Laura’s experience in governance and advisory includes being a Director, and Chair of the Audit Committee of a $1B retail organization, Calgary Co-operative Association Ltd., as well as sitting on a number of advisory boards including the Operations Management Advisory Council for BC Institute of Technology, and International Business Advisory Council for University of Calgary. Laura currently provides governance training as part of the Alberta Board Development Program.

Since 2008, as a Program Manager at Calgary Technologies Inc., Laura has provided coaching and mentoring services to almost 100 early stage technology companies, helping them access $ Ms in funding and development.

“Mob4Hire is an exciting global company with limitless potential,” says Sullivan. “As a micro-multinational, establishing cloud-based operations is essential to scaling as we serve customers from 84 different countries. I’m looking forward to turning my focus solely to Mob4Hire’s success.”

Amidst daily news of Canada’s modest economic growth, there is a remarkable group of far-sighted employers that are offering lessons to other Canadian employers in creating exceptional places to work. Our congratulations to these Canadian Game, Mobile, and Software Developers for making the 2011 Canada’s Top Employers List:

Bioware
Digital Extremes
Research In Motion
Sophos Inc.
SAS Canada
ISM Canada
Ericsson Canada

These forward-thinking employers are treating the current economic slowdown as a rare opportunity to strengthen their organizations and pull ahead of others in their industries — and nowhere is this better illustrated than in today’s release of the 2011 winners of the Canada’s Top 100 Employers competition by Mediacorp Canada Inc.

“This is one of those moments when experience makes a difference,” says Richard Yerema, Managing Editor of the Canada’s Top 100 Employers project. “The decisions that employers make during times like these will affect their organizations for years to come, because challenging economic times also present many subtle opportunities for progress.” After a decade of writing about the nation’s top employers, Yerema adds, “today we see a calmness and desire to stay-the-course towards building better workplaces by the nation’s best employers.”

For far-sighted employers, the benefits of being considered one of the nation’s best places to work are considerable. “The elephant in the room is Canada’s changing demographic composition,” says Mediacorp Publisher Tony Meehan. “Even with modest economic growth, it will soon be nearly impossible to replace Canada’s current workforce, given current rates of immigration and labour force entry. Forward-thinking employers are seizing this opportunity to prepare for the day when not all organizations will be able attract the key people they need.”

Now entering its 12th year, the Canada’s Top 100 Employers competition is an editorial project organized by Mediacorp Canada Inc., a specialty publisher of employment guides and periodicals. To develop this year’s list, Mediacorp editors examined the recruitment histories of over 75,000 employers across Canada that it tracks for its popular job search site, Eluta.ca. From this initial group, Mediacorp invited 10,000 of the fastest-growing employers to apply, plus another 2,500 companies and organizations in industries its editors wanted to examine more closely. Employers completed an extensive application process that included a detailed review of their operations and HR practices. Over 2,750 employers started this year’s application process. Read the rest of this entry »

Montreal game publisher Meridian4 and European publisher Headup Games are pleased to announce that the unique parody/strategy/RPG – Grotesque Tactics – Evil Heroes is now available digitally for $19.99 on most digital portals and is currently on sale on Steam with a 20% discount for the first week.

Grotesque Tactics combines the features and clichés of Western and Asian console RPGs like Fire Emblem or Final Fantasy Tactics and provides a highly addicting and entertaining change to the current, more serious role playing games. The game is focused on providing the fascination of the Strategy RPG genre, but also weaves a humorous storyline and plenty of amusing dialogue, poking fun at some of the most successful RPGs, such as Oblivion, Final Fantasy and Lord of the Rings. In chess, a Grotesque is a problem or endgame study which features a particularly unlikely initial position, especially one in which White fights with a very small force against a much larger black army. Grotesques are generally intended to be humorous.

To protect the kingdom from the merciless cult “The Dark Church” which has murdered all of the kingdom’s heroes and knights, you will have to hire dubious soldiers and rescue jealous maidens who will follow you into combat as your groupies. Up to 10 heroes are deployed in tactical battles to take on the Dark Church with their mysterious special abilities.

Features

· Turn based tactical battles with humorous animations not seen in any RPG
· Distinctive party members such as the arrogant Holy Avatar, the blood thirsty Vampire Solitaire, the sweet but hot-tempered Angel Angelina and many more
· Gorgeous village landscapes and dark, sinister dungeons
· Scantily dressed maidens to be freed from the grasp of merciless monsters
· Enormous, highly detailed and very angry end bosses
· Classical RPG elements: quests, treasures, trade, leveling up and out­fitting a party of unique heroes
· Enjoyable multiple choice dialogues and conversation puzzles in the style of classic adventures, such as Monkey Island or Maniac Mansion

As competitive FPS fans eagerly await the arrival of Clan Mode to Mission Against Terror next week, Wicked Interactive pulled out yet another surprise today when it announced a new 1v1 ladder for its popular free-to-play shooter M.A.T. that is chock-full of prizes and fun for gamers of every skill level, particularly those who enjoy their fragging with a healthy side order of competitive play. Read the rest of this entry »

Capcom® Mobile and Vancouver’s IUGO Mobile Entertainment have announced Lil’ Pirates, a brand new title that will be available for free on the App Store later this month. The development of more accessible general audience games is in line with Capcom Mobile’s strategy of reaching a more casual audience as powerful smartphones become more ubiquitous and mass market. Capcom Mobile also announced two other titles in development which will be released over the coming weeks.

“The release of these titles marks a new direction for the company as we complement our traditional premium pricing model with freemium social games for our customers,” said Midori Yuasa, President and COO, Capcom Interactive, Inc. “By creating a line of casual freemium games we can appeal to consumers not serviced by our more ‘hardcore’ IP and cast a much wider net over the burgeoning smartphone app marketplace.”

In Lil’ Pirates the player recruits their own band of scurvy dogs and sets upon the high seas seeking, adventure, treasure and camaraderie. Starting with a small ship and a tiny crew of scallywags, players can upgrade their vessel and expand their crew by undertaking special missions and jobs. Once they start to amass resources and loot, players will be able to battle other vessels, play mini games with the crew and bury booty to increase its value. More than 100 premium content items including ship upgrades and custom gear will be available at launch as DLC.

The other two announced titles were Zombie Café and a third licensed title based off a children’s entertainment property. In Zombie Café, the player partners with an evil corporation to use zombies as free labor to build their café empire. To thrive, players must prepare food, direct their zombie staff and manage supplies. If the competition gets too fierce they can always direct their zombie workers to attack a neighboring café and steal their secret recipes. Zombie Café will be available for free on the Apple App store and is expected to release in November.

The floral experts at Grower Direct want to share their love of flowers with you in a brand new way: the Grower Direct iPhone App. This exciting and very practical application has been developed for iPhone users in the hopes that it will make everyday life a snap when it comes to researching, viewing, and ordering flowers from anywhere, at anytime. The Grower Direct iPhone App provides information on hundreds of topics about flowers and everything flower-related.

Developed in conjunction with crazedCoders of Edmonton, the free app will answer questions such as:

* How old the world’s oldest rose bush?
* How do flowers affect people’s moods?
* Which flower is associated with a 25th Anniversary? Read the rest of this entry »

The first-ever study on Canadians’ viewing habits of online video conducted by Ipsos Reid and M Consulting finds 80 per cent of all Canadians indicate watching some video content online. Among those that have watched video online 41 per cent watch more online video content than they did last year. A growing audience means a bigger business opportunity for brand marketers and the Canadian film community to produce original online video content.

“A loyalty of sorts is being developed for online video,” says Bill Mohri, president of M Consulting who commissioned the study, which will be unveiled in full at the MergeMedia: Online Branded Entertainment Conference on October 22 at the MaRS Discovery Centre in Toronto. “There is the potential that a critical mass of Canadians could be watching more online video than TV much sooner than experts predicted.”

While males between the ages of 18 to 24 comprise the biggest, most frequent audience, 41 per cent of all Canadians say they watch online video at least a few times per week. And the study found that people who view online video at least once per day are more receptive to branded entertainment, with 18 per cent indicating positive purchase intent for brands that have developed entertaining content online.

“It’s clear that brands have an impact with more frequent viewers of online video. It’s a more engaging, interactive medium,” says Bill Mohri. “Brand marketers and content producers need to pay attention to this growth area because it’s much less expensive than TV advertising and has real potential to reach consumers more effectively than TV.”

More research highlights include the following:

* Almost 100 per cent of Canadians between the ages of 18 to 24 watch some video content online, with 76 per cent watching at least a few times per week.
* Even though the incidence of viewership declines with age, fully 68 per cent of Canadians over the age of 55 indicate watching some video content online.
* 49 per cent of respondents cited poor production quality as a main downside to watching videos online compared to TV.
* Comedy is the most popular online video genre, with 65 per cent of respondents who already watch video on the internet say they watch this genre most often.

The MergeMedia Conference will showcase full results of this benchmark study and explore implications through an interactive presentation by Ray Kong, senior vice president at Ipsos Reid, which includes a group of actual respondents who participated in the study that will be on-hand to answer audience questions about individual online video viewing habits.

The full-day conference will also bring together leading marketers and content producers to provide insights on online branded entertainment. The roster is long and includes Canadian producer Fred Fuchs, actress Illeana Douglas who created and stars in IKEA’s hit series Easy to Assemble, Alison Leung, marketing director, hair care and deodorants at Unilever Canada and Joe LaMuraglia, social media manager at General Motors.

The Quebec Technology Association (AQT) has issued an invitation to all leaders and partners in the information and communications technology sector to recommend candidates for the second edition of its 1-2-3 GO! program. Each year, this program allows 33 start-ups to receive a free membership in the Association, which includes a targeted support program and substantial savings on registration fees for other networking and development opportunities available through the AQT Accelerator.

“We give out 33 free memberships per year, each worth $350, based on the recommendations of our members who are eager to see new companies have the opportunity to learn from experienced leaders. This helps recipients avoid potentially costly errors along the way, particularly during their growth stages”, explained Nicole Martel, Chief Executive Officer of the Quebec Technology Association.

Four companies from the 2009 cohort became regular members of the AQT, while others have been advised of their continued participation in the program. There are still many spots open in the 2010 cohort. These spots will be given to start-ups that provide ICT solutions and/or services with no more than 3 employees, that have been in business less than 3 years, and that have demonstrated their enthusiasm for the program.

One of last year’s recipients whose company became a regular AQT member had high praise for the program. In summing up his experience, Jonathan Stoikovitch, President of Sosign Interactive, said “within a few short months, AQT became a driving force for me. Their advice helped me find the best resources. I was introduced to people who have a great deal more entrepreneurial experience. I have absolutely no doubt that I saved a lot of time.”

Start-ups have until October 29, 2010 to apply by filling in the form available on the Association’s Web site. Requests for information should be directed to Patrick Gouin at 514-874-2667 ext. 106.