Village Gamer

Gormley ON – Digital Leisure has released new screenshots for their upcoming DSiWare titles Sudoku Challenge and Word Searcher. With Sudoku Challenge, players have access to over 100,000,000 unique Sudoku puzzles, never seeing the same puzzle twice in Sudoku Challenge! Get started by selecting the classic nine-by-nine Sukodu gameboard or really take up a challenge with Grand Sudoku by completing five intersecting Sudoku boards simultaneously – A first for the Nintendo DSi! With three difficulty options even the most novice player to complete a Sudoku with ease. It’s time to get your thinking cap on and see how many Sudoku puzzles you can conquer!

With Word Searcher, a sharp eye and a quick mind will be needed to complete the 100 themed word search puzzles. Word Searcher contains fun words from multiple categories including anatomy, world cities and U.S Presidents. Packed with a huge assortment of subjects to choose from, there’s sure to be a puzzle anyone will enjoy. Help improve your vocabulary, memory and problem-solving skills with these addicting puzzles. Keep track of, and try to beat your own play through times again and again as words are scrambled every time you play.

Toronto – Parents are discovering the iPhone is a terrific platform for preschoolers because of its simple touch interface and its play anytime, anywhere convenience. But it’s hard to find high-quality, age-appropriate apps that are engaging and rewarding. With this in mind, zinc Roe created Tickle Tap Apps, a new app series developed by child gaming experts, vetted by educational researchers and tested by kids.

Tickle Tap Apps are designed to help children ages three to five practice key skills and learn about sounds, numbers, colors, patterns and shapes. These apps help children improve concentration and motor skills via simple tap and touch controls. This tactile element is what gives the iPhone an educational advantage over TV.

“Developmental research shows the iPhone is an excellent platform for preschool learning,” says Jason Krogh, zinc Roe’s founder and director. “Children need easy-to-use apps that take advantage of the unique features of the iPhone. Tickle Tap Apps address the need for simple, attractive and entertaining educational apps for this age range.”

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rd-CBIx5mcM]

Tickle Tap Apps feature four adorable characters—Jinja the cat, Harvey the dog, Robin the bird and Fins the fish—for humor and encouragement. The games, including the first three apps in the series below, inspire preschoolers to learn and laugh at the same time!

Sound Shaker is a delightful and hilarious sound-making game. Children create and play with chime, whistle, drum, barnyard animal and mystery sounds simply by tapping and tilting. Robin the bird makes a special guest appearance.

Count Caddy makes counting rewarding. Children count by ones with Jinja the cat and quickly progress to counting by twos with Robin the bird and counting by threes with Harvey the dog.

Sort Slider is a mesmerizing shape matching game. Children tilt the device to match objects with silhouettes while Harvey the dog pops up for plenty of encouragement.

Tickle Tap Apps for the iPhone and iPod Touch retail for $1.99 each on the iTunes App Store.

Toronto – CSA Standards, a leading standards-based solutions organization, today announces the launch of a suite of interactive solutions that harness the power of eLearning gaming technology to teach emergency preparedness, safety and a variety of essential skills that could mean the difference between life and death on the job for many Canadian employees.

Canada alone experiences as many as 315,000 reported time-loss injuries and 1,055 workplace fatalities in a year . CSA’s new tools for business are designed to enhance the abilities of employers, employees, students and consumers to prepare for threats and emergencies of all sizes, by giving them the ability to experience them in realistic virtual scenarios – before they happen in real life.

“To reduce injuries, workplace training must teach best safety practices and change behaviour,” says Suzanne Kiraly, President, CSA Standards. “These new interactive modules go well beyond the simple transfer of knowledge and engage users in making decisions in the workplace that are linked to real-world standards and safety guidelines. From handling hazardous materials to assessing risks to prevent major disasters, preparing workforces with safety and emergency response skills in a virtual environment could mean the difference between life and death on the job.”

CSA Standards recently purchased the assets and intellectual property created by Ottawa-based Distil Interactive, an award-winning developer of eLearning products. This expansion of its interactive online portfolio of offerings, as well as the hiring of new development staff, will drive CSA’s transition to the next level in fully interactive online learning environments. The purchase represents a significant milestone for CSA and a commitment to utilizing technology and developing products to ensure that standards for safety, health and the environment are understood and applied.

Read the rest of this entry »

Canada – Ubisoft Montreal has launched the first in-game trailer for Avatar The Game. The trailer shows off the game environment and some very interesting creatures, along with several explosive combat scenes between human forces and the native Na’vi people on the planet of Pandora. I can tell just by watching the trailer that this game is going to popular in the Village Gamer home office what with its big guns, big flying machines and fighting creatures. Pandora looks to be a place of incredible scenery full of imagination and wonders to be discovered – all while trying to stay alive (sometimes quite a challenge for me) and battling for planet supremacy. We will most definitely be looking forward to this game’s release on November 24th.

Ubisoft has also released more PC Games from their back-catalogue on GoG.com. The newly re-released titles include Heroes of Might and Magic® 2 Gold Edition, Heroes of Might and Magic® 3 Complete Edition, The Settlers® 2 Gold Edition and the stunning Might and Magic® 6 Limited Edition, which includes parts 1–6 of the landmark RPG series. All games are totally DRM-free, fully compatible with XP and Vista and accompanied by mounds of extras, including soundtracks, wallpapers, forum avatars, maps and much more.

SARF Studios has opened their studio’s new web site, which introduces their flagship product, an innovative, social virtual world named Planet SARF. Realizing the momentum, trends, and potentials related to environmental sustainability, Planet SARF has focused on creating an amusing and educational virtual experience based on the principles of Edutainment, educational entertainment as an effective learning tool.

Using highly detailed 3D imagery, players will be immersed in an open-ended, virtual adventure as they explore the beauty and mysticism of the Yucatan rainforests, Mexico. Players can choose a customizable character, which will be their Avatar in a virtual adventure that includes water rafting, diving, exploring, mini games, and learning.

Planet SARF will educate players about the flora and fauna as the players advance throughout the game. Informative pop-up windows will show specifics regarding the animal, plant, or geological characteristics encountered in the game. Research has found that not only are virtual worlds effective learning tools for children, they are also valuable opportunities for children to practice social and life skills.

Vancouver – A team of four students at the University of British Columbia’s Centre for Advanced Wood Processing has just released an innovative educational “video game” on the basics of CNC technology and tooling. The application allows users to explore a virtual machine shop to learn about topics related to the electrical and mechanical components of CNC machines, as well as tool design, physics, and metallurgy.

While many websites provide technical overviews of CNC technology, it is often difficult to obtain accurate and objective information, and the presentation is typically text-heavy. This video game takes a different approach by using an interactive 3D environment to teach 3D concepts such as tooling angles. The educational content is supported by pictures, graphics, videos, 2D animations, and 3D animations.

The project was developed at the Centre for Advanced Wood Processing at UBC, Canada’s education and training centre for the wood products manufacturing industry. The original concept was proposed by Richard Hewitt, a recent graduate of UBC’s Wood Products Processing program, and Robert Shum, a UBC Computer Science student. The two subsequently hired and managed a team of fellow UBC students to help develop the application, as well as contributing their own animation, video-editing, and programming skills. Funding was provided through BCCampus, a BC government initiative that promotes a fusion of technology and education to create open learning opportunities for students and adult learners.

The educational game is available for Windows PCs and can be downloaded for free at:
http://www.learncnc.org

Montreal – Mia’s Reading Adventure – The Bugaboo Bugs has won a Gold Medal from Mom’s Choice Awards. Developed by Kutoka Interactive of Montreal, Mia’s Reading Adventure is for children aged 5-9. The game follows primary school curriculum and enables the player to lead Mia the Mouse through a reading adventure. Designed to entertain, teach and spur imagination, the Mia series of titles feature lovable 3D characters who also happen to be house pests who have moved into Mia’s mansion.

Mia’s Reading Adventures, comprised thus far of six chapters, “includes 12 exciting reading and writing skills activities each with 4 distinct levels of difficulty. Topics covered: associating images to words, adverbs, phonics, rhymes, spelling, sentence structure, vocabulary, reading comprehension, word recognition and more.” Mia’s Reading Adventure comes in DVD-ROM format, and runs on both Windows and MAC platforms.

Read the rest of this entry »

Vancouver – Grubby Games, an independent Vancouver game development studio co-founded by Ryan Clark and Matt Parry in 2004, has been named to the final nominees list for the upcoming Independent Games Festival Awards. Their new 2D physics-based Incredibots game is in the running for an award in the Technical Excellence category.

Grubby Games co-founder Ryan Clark says that he came up with the idea for Incredibots after playing a physics game which allows the player to control a small tracked vehicle. “I really enjoyed playing with that little tank! I decided that if such a simple little application was so much fun, a full-featured robot editor would be far more fun!”
Read the rest of this entry »

Some sections are having content added and will be fully operational soon. Thank you for your patience as we build our new site. 🙂