Village Gamer

Bitcasters spin-off Social Game Universe, pioneers of the concept of inter-connected social games, has announced the launch of the Inter-Game API (IGAPI), a solution for game developers to drive traffic by letting users “play” through a cross-promotion bar.

IGAPI uses the power of the social graph to let players interact with their friends across games and apps without leaving the game they are currently playing. Rather than seeing a typical banner ad or cross promotion, players see IGAPI “Action Cards” that they can play on their friends in other apps. Action Cards can vary from the simple (e.g., “Give film to your friend Nathon to help him grow his studio in Hollywood Tycoon”) to the more zany and bizarre (e.g., “Release a horde of zombies on your friend Jen’s horror set!”). IGAPI’s actions are limited only by the imagination and creativity of the developers looking to attract attention to their games.

Originally developed for Social Game Universe’s own critically acclaimed Hollywood games, the IGAPI technology let players in the movie-mogul sim game Hollywood Tycoon hire actors from the fame and stardom game Avastar. Having seen the power of interconnecting the games, Social Game Universe turned IGAPI into a scalable, point-and-click tool that any third party developer can use. The result is greater player interaction, site engagement, and increased awareness of new apps.

“The IGAPI inter-game action system is very innovative, and I think it will improve the way games drive traffic, re-engagement, and revenue across the industry” said Hussein Fazal, CEO of AdParlor, a leading social application marketing business.

According to Eric Goldberg, Managing Director of Crossover Technologies, “IGAPI is a step forward in the cross-promotion of social games and a great tool for independent developers to reach new players”. Mr. Goldberg has now joined the advisory board of Social Game Universe, along with Manu Rekhi (Vice President of MySpace Games & Content) and Greg Bate (Co-founder of Neverblue).

Nathon Gunn, Founder and CEO of Social Game Universe, added “We knew we had something special going on between Avastar and Hollywood Tycoon, and we’re even more excited now that these innovations can be shared by other developers.”

On a side note, Social Game Universe is hiring. Check out their Jobs page for more details.

Toronto’s Longbow Games, one of the few selected for this year’s PAX 10 showcase winners, is proud to announce that their strategy wargame, Hegemony: Philip of Macedon, is now available on Steam. In addition, they have lowered the price to only $19.99.

“As an independent developer, it’s always a struggle to gain the attention of your audience,” said Jim McNally, president of Longbow Games. “We’re very excited to be launching Hegemony: Philip of Macedon on Steam, where we can share our game with a much wider audience.”

Longbow Games is currently working on their next title, Hegemony Gold: Wars of Ancient Greece, which will soon be in beta testing. Customers of Hegemony: Philip of Macedon can help test the new game for free at www.LongbowGames.com.

Hegemony: Philip of Macedon lets you conquer the ancient Greek world in this PC RTS war game that follows the rise of Philip of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great. Players campaign across a continuous satellite-accurate map of ancient Greece encountering the full range of warfare from reconnaissance to raids to field battles to mountain blockades. The game also features:

* Innovative supply system – Siege and starve the enemy by cutting their supply lines or burning their crops, all the while building and protecting your own supply network to support your growing empire.
* Steeped in history – In-game pedia and 100+ historical objectives recreate the rise of the Macedonian empire.
* Detailed and stylized world and map – Transition smoothly between the detailed 3D world and the stylized board-game map while maintaining complete control over your empire. Read the rest of this entry »

GameON: Finance 2011 will return to the Design Exchange on January 20 and 21, 2011, and the Kick-off rate of $489.00 is available now through November 15th 2010. Early Bird Tickets go on sale from November 16th through December 15th, with a price of $559.00. Once the Early Bird rate expires, ticket prices will go up to $699.00 if you purchase online, or $874.00 if you want and buy them at the conference. Interactive Ontario members will save an additional 30% off all ticket prices. See the event site for details.

GameON: Finance is Canada’s top business forum for the interactive entertainment industry connecting developers, innovators, investors and industry leaders. Delegates will gather in downtown Toronto for two days of keynotes, case-studies, lectures and panel discussions which will provide insight on topics such as:

* Emerging opportunities in game project financing
* The bottom line on equity investments
* Dealmaking across transmedia platforms
* Tips and tricks to optimize public finance opportunities

GameON: Finance’s 2011 Advisory Board members are: David Crow (Influitive), Jason Della Rocca (Perimeter Partners), Vikas Gupta (TransGaming Technologies), Marc Jackson (Seahorn Capital Group), Sean Kauppinen (International Digital Entertainment Agency), Jim Laird (Bedlam Games), Wanda Meloni (M2 Research), Ray Sharma (XMG Studio), Scott Steinberg (TechSavvy Global), John Sutyak (DDM) and Dean Takahashi (GamesBeat).

To compliment the release of Your Shape: Fitness Evolved, Ubisoft has launched Your Shape Centre, a website which works in tandem with the game, offering a truly personal online gym centre.

· Track your workouts and set yourself fitness challenges
· Compete and compare your progress with friends
· Set yourself fitness challenges
· Get advice from other players and fitness experts to help you reach your fitness goals
· Share your fitness achievements on your Facebook or Twitter

To help organizations meet expanding requirements for archiving, eDiscovery and regulatory compliance, Waterloo’s Open Text will embed Oracle technology to deliver a new set of enterprise content solutions. Read the rest of this entry »

IUGO Mobile Entertainment and Capcom Mobile are proud to launch Lil’ Pirates, a free-to-play social game for the iPhone and iPod Touch. This marks both IUGO and Capcom’s entry into the mobile social gaming space. Lil’ Pirates is launching with Facebook Connect, allowing players to invite, hire and interact with their Facebook friends as part of their pirate crew.

“The launch of Lil’ Pirates begins IUGO’s entrance into the dynamic space of mobile social games,” states IUGO’s VP of Business Development, Sarah Thomson. “This space is something we as a company have been thinking about, preparing for and watching for a long time. Lil’ Pirates builds upon what other companies have pioneered in social games for the iPhone. We believe IUGO has evolved the gameplay to create a compelling experience that is uniquely IUGO. Our partnership with Capcom is exciting and we’re thrilled to have Lil’ Pirates published under such a prestigious brand.”

Lil’ Pirates features hundreds of items to customize both users’ ships and avatars. Mini games, gifting, ship battles and jobs for crew members offers a robust experience balanced by a “pick-up-and-play” simplicitiy in game design. Lil’ Pirates was created by IUGO and owned by Capcom Mobile. Lil’ Pirates is available and free to download on the App Store now.

Avast ya scallywags! Drop anchor and prepare to be boarded. There be Lil’ Pirates in these waters!

Amass your perfect crew and craft the finest ship as you set sail for adventure and plunder as the captain of your own pirate vessel. From a modest beginning you’ll transform your ship into an object of fear and envy and amass a fortune fit for a king.

Features:

* Customize your ship as you see fit from a ghostly galleon to a pink gilded princes to a multi-mast ship of destruction.

* Assemble a crew with diverse skills and dress and equip them as you please with more than 100 items.

* Recruit friends to the pirate life through Facebook and share the adventure.

* Exchange volleys of cannon fire in ship-to-ship combat.

* Bury booty on Treasure Island to increase its worth or plunder a friend’s buried loot.

* Direct your crew to go on missions and amass more treasure!

Electronic Arts Inc. and Paramount Digital Entertainment today announced a distribution agreement that will catapult an upcoming Paramount property into the hands of gamers worldwide. Rango The Video Game is an action-adventure title inspired by the upcoming animated feature film starring the voice of Johnny Depp.

In development at Artificial Mind & Movement, Rango The Video Game invites players to continue on Rango’s wild journey through new adventures inspired by the movie. The game is set in the Old West town of ‘Dirt’ where players romp through a gritty, pint-sized, Wild West filled with wild rides, off-color characters and frantic shoot-outs. Rango is Paramount Pictures’ first full-length animated feature film; both the film and the video game will be released in March 2011.

“We are thrilled to be working with Paramount and the upcoming release of the video game version of its first animated feature,” said Sinjin Bain, Vice President of EA Partners at Electronic Arts. “Rango is a one-of-a-kind character that we know kids will love. We’re excited to give families worldwide the opportunity to take the humor and fun from the big screen into their living rooms.”

“We are pleased to team up with EA to deliver an exciting, action-packed adventure game that captures the spirit of the film and puts the fate of Dirt in players’ hands,” said Tom Lesinski, President of Paramount Digital Entertainment. “We’ve added exciting twists and turns in the video game that will challenge players of all levels on their adventures as Rango.”

Rango The Video Game will be available on console platforms including the PlayStation®3, Xbox 360®, Nintendo Wii™ and Nintendo DS™ in March 2011. Rango The Video Game has not been rated by the ESRB.

Sales of EA SPORTS FIFA Soccer franchise titles has surpassed 100 million units lifetime during the launch of FIFA Soccer 11, according to EA internal sales data. The best-selling sports videogame franchise in the world, now in its 18th year, sold a record-breaking 2.6 million copies in the first five days after launching FIFA Soccer 11 to become the fastest selling sports videogame of all time. Counting the first four weeks of sales, FIFA Soccer 11 sales are up 20% versus last year on a comparable basis with sell-in approaching 8 million units. Read the rest of this entry »

Wow – one day away and so much went on yesterday! Of course, catching up with yesterday has put me behind for today, but I’ll get all caught up eventually – even on all those games I’ve been trying to get to for reviews. I had a non-digital project to complete and ended up in a very demanding crunch time, because my time line for delivery did not match the deadline that my Mother implemented, and we all know that Mom’s always right…

For those who aren’t already aware, Ubisoft has acquired Longtail Studios’ Quebec City location, and will absorb most of its staff into their own studio. Longtail had contributed to Ubisoft’s Michael Jackson: The Experience, and while this means that Longtail Quebec is no longer in operation, both of Longtail’s maritime studios – Charlottetown and Halifax are still open for business. The Halifax studio recently launched its latest title, Dance on Broadway. By the way, the Halifax studio is currently looking to fill four career positions, including that of Game Tester.

EA Mobile put several of its titles on sale for 99 cents yesterday – if you live in the USA. The only exemption to the USA location restriction is Reckless Racing, which was put on sale worldwide. The other titles currently on sale in the US App Store are:

Tiger Woods PGA Tour – Skate It by EA – Command & Conquer Red Alert – Yahtzee Adventures – Trivial Pursuit – Boggle – Clue – Spore Creatures – Boggle for iPad – Snood – EA Sudoku – Spore Origins – Star Trek – Lemonade Tycoon Read the rest of this entry »

Transgaming Inc. has launched a brand new web site for its game development studio. Transgaming Studio features information about its launched titles, In The Mix Featuring Armin van Buuren, G-G-Goal, and the recently released PuzzleQuest: Challenge of the WarLords for iOS. Also featured is news about its latest game in development, Garage Inc. for the Mac, PC, iPhone and GameTreeTV. Garage Inc., a time management game set in 1928 Chicago, is based on an original IP by Global Fun and is being produced through a partnership with Breakthrough Entertainment. Players will guide recent Italian immigrant, Angelo Marito, as he tries to manage and grow a car garage. Game play features include the ability to diagnose and fix cars, hire workers, and try to steer clear of the ever-present mob while pursuing the American dream.

Capcom has announced that the Dead Rising 2 Ninja Theme Pack is now available on Xbox Live, Games for Windows Live and the PlayStation Network. With the new ninja pack, Chuck gains a “stealth mode” that allows him to evade zombies by making it harder for them to detect Chuck’s presence. Sword-type weapons (broadswords, katanas, etc.) have their attack power increased and will allow Chuck to perform new special attacks. Stackable items and throwing items such as nails, plates, gems, etc. will also do more damage and Chuck’s throwing speed is increased. The Dead Rising 2 Ninja Theme Pack is available for 160 Microsoft points, or $1.99 on the PlayStation Network.

AudioKinetic’s Wwise 2010.1.2 platform has been nominated for a Game Developer magazine 2010 Front Line Award in the Audio Category. Also named as nominees in this category are FMOD Designer 4.32 (Firelight Technologies), Miles Sound System 8 (RAD Game Tools), ProRemote 2.0.1 (Far Out Labs) and ProTools 8.0.4 (Avid Technology). Read the rest of this entry »

Netflix, Inc. has announced that Netflix members in Canada can now instantly watch thousands of movies and TV episodes streamed from Netflix to the TV via Xbox 360. There is no additional monthly fee for Netflix members who are also Xbox LIVE Gold members.

“Xbox 360 is a significant addition to a growing number of consumer electronic devices that are capable of streaming from Netflix in Canada,” said Greg Peters, vice president of product development for Netflix. “Netflix members in the United States enjoy instantly watching movies streamed from Netflix on Xbox LIVE and we think that our Canadian members will equally enjoy this enriched experience and the convenience and value that it offers.”

Starting today, Xbox LIVE members will be able to sign up instantly online for a free trial of Netflix, connect to the Internet on their Xbox 360 and simply click on Netflix in the Video Marketplace on the Xbox 360 Dashboard and follow the easy steps to start streaming thousands of movies and TV shows. In addition, Xbox LIVE subscribers will be able to access the Netflix movie and TV library through Windows Phone 7.

“Canadian Xbox LIVE members asked for more entertainment content and features and now Netflix provides an exciting new way for our members to get the entertainment they love wherever and whenever they want,” said Glenn Purkis, Xbox LIVE product manager, Microsoft Canada. “We are thrilled to offer Netflix to Xbox LIVE Gold members in Canada, and we are confident the service will provide our members with tremendous entertainment value.”

Corus Entertainment’s Nelvana Studio and YTV are pleased to announce the return of the classic children’s book character in the new CGI animated series Babar and the Adventures of Badou, featuring the voice of Gordon Pinsent and premiering in YTV’s Playtime block on Monday, November 22 at 11 a.m. ET/PT.

“Corus and Nelvana have a long history with the Babar brand and we are delighted to continue our relationship with this world-famous elephant, to once again bring this popular literary character to life on television with new storylines, a new generation of characters and with CGI technology for today’s audiences,” said Ted Ellis, VP, Kids/Family Programming, Corus Entertainment.

Produced by Nelvana Studio and TeamTO, in association with The Clifford Ross Company, Babar and the Adventures of Badou is based on the bestselling children’s book collection and follows eight-year-old Badou and his famous grandfather King Babar. Badou has an appetite for adventure and a tendency to get caught in some tricky situations along with his colourful friends Chiku the monkey, Zawadi the zebra, Jake the scruffy little fox and Munroe the deviant and brave porcupine. Navigating the ups and downs of growing up in Celesteville’s royal palace, Badou never forgets that his grandfather King Babar will always be there to offer guidance and support.

In episode one, Babar and the Adventures of Badou: Kite Flight/Zoomerblimps, premiering on Monday, November 22 at 11 a.m. ET/PT (r) Friday, November 26 at 11 a.m. ET/PT, Chiku volunteers Munroe for a kite flying contest against the Crocs. She promises to build him the best kite ever but keeps getting distracted by newer, better design ideas. Badou tries to help her focus so Chiku can deliver on her promise. Then, the kids are competing for their Zoomerblimp Junior Pilot wings. Badou and Rhudi are the favourites but when Dilash sabotages both their ships the two have to team up – and learn a little about sportsmanship – in order to compete.

Beginning on Wednesday, November 10, viewers can visit YTV.com to immerse themselves in Badou’s adventures online with 10 new customizable web games, nine exclusive web animations, visits to four neighbourhoods in Celesteville, as well as clips of the show. The online fun doesn’t stop there as fans can also access 23 different colouring pages and printable stickers, and download their very own customized adventure storybook.

YTV will be participating in Toronto’s 106th annual Santa Claus Parade – the longest running children’s parade in the world. Fans won’t want to miss the Babar and the Adventures of Badou float on Sunday, November 21 at 12:30 p.m. ET. YTV will air a repeat broadcast of the parade on Sunday, December 5 at 12 p.m. ET/PT.

Consulting-Portal, a leading IT Service Management (ITSM) process design and implementation company, is announcing the launch of an online social media community for Service Management practitioners.

This free online community provides a forum for ITSM practitioners to interact, share, collaborate and to expand their knowledge of IT Service Management processes and frameworks such as ITIL®, COBIT®, and ISO20000®. It also allows for members to connect at a personal level through private messaging, public posting and the ability to “friend” other members.

“The goal of the community was to create an online dialogue covering all aspects of IT Service Management. We are passionate about the practice of Service Management and we hope that this community will allow others to share our passion…we believe that social media and ITSM is a natural fit,” says David Mainville – CEO and co-founder of Consulting-Portal.

The community contains a number of resources including a blog, articles, podcasts, webinars and a variety of user forums on topics such as ITIL® training, ITSM Governance, Service Management tools, Process Design techniques, Configuration Management & the CMDB and much more.

Mood Media Corporation has expanded its casual games portfolio through agreement with iWin. Shoppers at popular retailers across the country can now sample a casual game such as Jewel Quest before they purchase it via an interactive display.

Lorne Abony, CEO and Chairman of Mood Media Corporation says, “we continue to expand our product range through partnerships with leading producers and distributors of popular PC based casual games. Mood Media has a large retail footprint and is dedicated to ensuring good media entertainment products are available for shoppers to enjoy”.

CEO at iWin, CJ Wolf comments, “seeing Jewel Quest for sale on the shelves at leading non-traditional retail chains is an exciting new move for iWin. We are happy to work with Mood Media to ensure popular games reach our target audience of females aged 35-50”.

Toronto’s Stealth.Com Inc. (Stealth Computer) has released a new ultra small PC designed specifically for in-vehicle/mobile/embedded applications. Stealth’s model LPC-100M is a rugged small form PC that operates from 10-26 VDC power input making it ideal for DC powered applications typically found in vehicles and remote applications.

According to Stealth CEO, Ed Boutilier; “One of the unique attributes the LPC-100M mobile computer possesses is a user selectable smart power control interface. Start-up and shut-down times are user definable allowing for safe application launching along with a controlled shutdown period. This is absolutely critical in preventing data corruption when power sources are interrupted in mobile and field environments.”

Housed in a rugged aluminum enclosure this powerful & versatile machine measures out at only 4.0″ x 6.1″ x 1.45″ (102mm x 155mm x 37mm) or about the size of a paperback novel. The machine weighs in at a mere 1.2lbs or 0.54kg.

Stealth’s ultra small mobile PC utilizes the Intel® Core™ 2 Duo mobile processor technology and outperforms other computers many times its size. The LPC-100M is available with a standard Intel Dual Core Celeron T3100 (1.9GHz) or optional Intel Core 2 Duo processor P8400 (2.26Ghz). The machine employs the Intel Mobile GM45 Express Chipset featuring Intel’s graphic media accelerator with advanced 3D graphics performance.

The LPC-100M mini PC features a multitude of I/O connectivity built directly into its impressively small design such as; Gigabit LAN, 4-USB, 2-Serial, 1-DVI-I, 1-DVI-D Video, Audio In/Out, 2-PS/2 ports and 1-external express card slot. The rear locking DC power connector ensures power is securely in place. The LPC-100M supports up to 8GB of DDR3 memory and has a built-in 2.5″ mobile hard drive with up to 500GB’s of storage space for archived data. For applications that require extra high shock, vibration and wide temperature ranges an optional SSD (Solid State Hard Drive) is available. Systems are compatible with Microsoft Windows 7/XP, Linux etc and can be custom configured to meet the exact needs of the OEM or end user. The LPC-100M is currently shipping with base pricing starting at $1095.00 USD.

Stealth’s LittlePC products serve a demanding market where powerful solutions are being deployed in space-challenged applications around the world. Embedded Control, Digital Signs, Kiosks, Mobile Navigation, Thin-Clients, POS & Human/Machine Interface are just a few of the applications that are ideal for Stealth’s industry trusted products.

Congratulations to Bioware, EA Sports and Ubisoft Montreal for a triumphant run in the 28th Annual Golden Joystick Awards:

Action Game of the Year sponsored by Nuts – Assassin’s Creed II
RPG of the Year in association with GamesRadar – Mass Effect 2
Ultimate Game of the Year in association with GamesMaster – Mass Effect 2
Sports Game Of The Year in association with Mousebreaker – FIFA 10

Two Canadians have been named to the IGF Nuovo Award jury for the 2011 competition. Clint Hocking, formerly of Ubisoft Montreal now settled in at LucasArts, and independent developer Justin Smith, creator of 2010 Nuovo finalist Enviro-Bear 2000. The Nuovo Award is dedicated to honoring abstract, shortform, and unconventional game development which advances the medium and the way we think about games. Now in its third year, the Nuovo Award allows more esoteric ‘art games’ from among the almost 400 IGF entries to compete on their own terms alongside longer-form indie titles, and has been newly expanded to include eight finalists.

Media Awareness Network (MNet) has released e-Parenting Tutorial: Keeping Up With Your Kids’ Online Activities, an online resource to help parents better understand and become actively involved in their children’s online lives.

Made possible through financial contributions from Inukshuk Learning Plan Fund and Bell, this engaging interactive tool helps parents increase their awareness of the ways that children and teens are using the Internet for learning, entertainment and socializing, and the issues they may be encountering along the way. Through the exploration of five key themes – homework, cyberbullying, marketing, online relationships and excessive use – parents can develop the knowledge and skills they need to help their children navigate the Internet safely, wisely and responsibly.

“Parents often feel unprepared when it comes to helping their children manage their online lives,” said Jane Tallim, Co-Executive Director of MNet. “e-Parenting Tutorial is designed to instill the confidence they need to help their kids become thoughtful cybercitizens.”

This practical resource takes a light-hearted approach while tackling serious issues, with downloadable tip sheets and links to further resources to help parents out. The key message throughout is that parents need to talk with their kids about their online explorations and work together to develop ground rules that everyone can live with.

e-Parenting Tutorial is available for free on Media Awareness Network’s Web site. It is also available on Be Web Aware, an Internet safety Web site for parents developed by MNet in partnership with Bell. The e-Parenting Tutorial development and promotion partners are the Alberta School Councils’ Association, The Alberta Library and the Canadian Home and School Federation.

webcom is coming to Toronto next month, bringing decision makers together for a collaborative conference focused on empowering professionals from across industries to integrate digital communications into business planning. webcom-Toronto follows in the footsteps of internationally recognized webcom-Montreal, which is approaching its ninth edition. webcom-Toronto features a keynote address delivered by Don Tapscott, international best-selling author and chairman of nGenera Insight, focused on content from his new book Macrowikinomics: Rebooting Business and the World. He will examine how the evolution of new technologies, combined with the recent crises that have swept across industries have brought the world to a turning point.

webcom-Toronto will take place on November 3rd at the Chestnut Convention Centre. The conference opens at 8:00a.m. and runs until 6:00p.m., with the public welcome to visit free of charge after 3:00p.m.

The people at Project Education Technologies ask, “Have you ever worked on a group project from hell?” They claim many of us have been there at some point and asked if there was a better way to do things. This was their motivation in launching their new site, EntertheGroup.com.

Winnipeg-based EntertheGroup.com provides students and teachers with project management tools such as the ability to create their own group pages, event calendars, task management, project outlines, polls, checklists, file sharing and more. There are also important social networking features like blogging, instant messaging, a Q & A forum and Twitter feed.

The site enable teachers to create virtual classrooms which enable them to interact with students online, share handouts, post events (like exams) to a shared calendar, conduct polls and much more.

“Students typically complain about their group projects. Their biggest problems are free riders and group members who try to take over the group. Also, getting everyone organized and on the same page is problematic,” says Sal Pellettieri, CEO of Project Education Technologies, creator of the website.

“I built this site so that students could learn project management techniques and integrate them into the classroom. I think that many students are overwhelmed by their work and I think that the tools and advice the site offers will help a lot,” says Mr. Pellettieri.

An important feature of the site is that it’s free. Users simply have to register and they will gain access to all of the tools and the library of articles at no charge.

“I wanted students to be able to make use of this site and it’s unlikely they could pay for this service, so I made it free,” says Mr. Pellettieri.