Village Gamer

Rock Hippo Productions announced today that its exhibition at Germany’s Gamescom last week in Cologne was a major success. The company estimates that tens of thousands of fans visited the Rock Hippo booth to play MicroVolts and Brawl Busters. The company also released photos of the winners of two huge competitions held during the convention. The winners of the daily Brawl Busters competitions took home Alienware gaming keyboards while the winners of the daily MicroVolts tournaments took home Alienware gaming mice.

Between August 25th and 28th, Rock Hippo will exhibit its two free-to-play games, MicroVolts and upcoming Brawl Busters, at Fan Expo Canada at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Booth 1445. Players who visit the Rock Hippo booth at Fan Expo Canada will have a chance to play the new action brawler, Brawl Busters, which just recently went into Closed Beta phase. In addition, visitors can participate in the special promotion for the company’s recently released third person action shooter, MicroVolts, to receive in-game currency and pick up all kinds of gaming swag.

“Gamescom was a huge success for us. We were able to show off our games to so many of our fans and give out some great prizes. We want to congratulate the winners of our tournaments who took home some awesome Alienware gaming gear,” said Howard He, President and CEO of Rock Hippo Productions. “We aren’t done yet. We are now looking forward to meeting the gamers at Fan Expo Canada this weekend, which is celebrating its 17th year, and we are proud to be part of such a popular convention which celebrates everything from gaming to anime and comics and more.”

The following is a statement on recent events which occurred at the office of Evil Objective Studios.

Filthy. Freezing. Kinda smelly. These are just four of the five words used to describe the scene in an Alberta basement Monday morning where three of the studio’s designers were found. Tired, cold, and mildly infuriated with one another, the trio had been held hostage for months by their own iOS game.

Details are sparse but it appears the three friends – who have no professional or practical experience in much of anything – were taken hostage by their iOS game “Scribble Byte Scramble” at some point early in development.

Authorities suspect the trio was likely unaware of the dangers of game development.

Possessing little money and even less sanity, the trio aimed to develop and release their game on a timeline and budget that was initially described as ‘brilliant’ – it has since been downgraded to ‘laughable’.

The whereabouts of “Scribble Byte Scramble” – the  game responsible for this catastrophe – are unknown, but it is expected to resurface in early September. Rumours suggest the trio are currently in recovery, receiving extensive treatments from an Italian pharmaceutical specialist.

Toronto-based developer DrinkBox Studios has announced that it is working on a new downloadable PlayStation®Vita title called Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack.  A follow-up to Tales from Space: About a Blob – the studio’s first game – Mutant Blobs Attack will feature new levels, new powers and controls, and a new Blob player character.

“The control systems available on the PlayStation®Vita have allowed us to experiment with all kinds of new gameplay possibilities.  We’re finding that touch controls in particular can be used to complement traditional thumb-stick puzzle-platforming very well”, said DrinkBox Designer Chris McQuinn.  He added: “We learned a lot developing our first game – we want to use that experience to deliver the best game we can in Mutant Blobs Attack.”

DrinkBox will be showing an early development build of the game this weekend at PAX Prime 2011 in Seattle.

The National Post and mobile game developer XMG Studio Inc. are teaming up once again to challenge Canadian college and university students to race the clock and develop an addictive game app in just 48 hours. From September 30^th to October 2^ndstudent developers from coast-to-coast are invited to carry on the legacy of gifted Great Canadian Appathon coders, and take a chance at coding the next hit game for mobile platforms.

At the first GCA in April 2011, approximately 300 students on 100 teams spent the weekend working to develop the next great mobile game and take a share of the $45,000 prize pool. In the end, more than 50 games were completed and submitted including the winning superhero-themed game “Super Punch”. The game developers at XMG Studio are currently working with the three finalists from Edmonton, BC and Montreal, to polish their games “Super Punch”, “Valley Raid” and “Plasmium” and publish them.

“We’re excited to announce GCA² over the weekend of September 30^th.” says Ray Sharma, founder and CEO of XMG Studio, the Toronto-based game developer. “We were very impressed with the quality of the submitted games from the initial GCA and can’t wait to get knee-deep in code with that young Canadian developer talent. It’s a great way to socialize, network and play around with the latest APIs.”

The GCA² will start at 5:00 p.m. (local time) on September 30th, 2011 and continue for 48 hours, ending at 5:00 p.m. on October 2^nd, 2011. Individuals or teams of up to four people will be able to work around the clock in coding hubs set up at a variety of university and college campuses across the country. During the time of the event, sponsors will be on-site at some campuses to give away prizes and recruit for job openings. Following the event, the winning games will be chosen and winning teams will be honoured at the “Grand Finale” in Toronto.

To stay informed about the event, including supported platforms, team registrations, rules and regulations, campuses already signed-on or information on how to get your campus involved, please visit the Great Canadian Appathon web site.

Designed to comfort children who suffer from frequent nightmares, the Nightmare Nibbler has been personally selected to participate in an official pre-Emmy event held on September 16th and 17th at the Intercontinental Hotel in Los Angeles. The exclusive event is a celebrity gifting suite called The Boom Boom Room. Past events have been attended by Leah Remini, Halle Berry, Brooke Shields, Denise Richards and Tori Spelling. Not only are the invite-only products at The Boom Boom Room events cherished by celebrities and their kids, products featured at these events have been showcased on E! News, Entertainment Tonight and VH1’s Fabulous Life of Celebrity Kids.

The Nightmare Nibbler was created out of necessity by a very clever mom and launched in 2010. Susan Smith’s son suffered from frequent nightmares. The problem of nightmares in children isn’t uncommon. Through Smith’s research, Susan discovered a startling fact. According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, one out of every four children will have nightmares more than once a week. As a result, Susan Smith created a nightmare management tool that appealed to children while helping parents get more sleep!

The Nightmare Nibbler Nation (N3) is where the Nightmare Nibblers are born. Susan Smith’s Nightmare Nibblers appeal to children because the products are backed by the power of imagination. The N3 invites children to believe in a magical place where nightmares and scary things don’t stand a chance. The story goes that Nightmare Nibblers have an appetite for all things scary and are sent to each child to stand guard during the night – eating up nightmares and other worrisome things, like monsters under the bed! The emotional comfort these tiny, yet powerful, Nightmare Nibblers offer to each child is unique, effective, and extremely affordable. In addition, the Nightmare Nibbler picture book will be available this holiday season.

“Each Nightmare Nibbler’s hang tag has a rhyming poem that is ideal for nighttime rituals. Parents are encouraged to read the story to their child right before bed. Parents with children suffering from bad dreams, or even those parents wanting to prevent them, will find my products are a perfect match.” said Susan Smith. “Plus, the Nibblers are endearing to children with emotional issues or those diagnosed with serious illnesses. I gave the first ever Nightmare Nibbler character, named Norbert, to a child who was battling cancer. After receiving a letter from his mom describing how Norbert offered overwhelming comfort to her son, I decided to start The Nightmare Nibbler Project.”

Nightmare Nibblers are available for purchase directly on NightmareNibbler.com and at select retailers. Currently, Norbert the Nightmare Nibbler sells for $24.95, stands twelve inches tall, and is CPSIA compliant. The Nightmare Nibbler is also a Kidlutions Preferred Product Award winning plush toy. Other Nightmare Nibbler characters and products are on the horizon.

Fresh off the heels of a successful launch of ePhone for the BlackBerry Playbook™, Comwave introduces ePhone as a web-based Adobe® Flash® video phone. Users can access their ePhone from any computer in the world with an internet connection. “ePhone is an incredible value that every laptop should have,” says Yuval Barzakay, President. “In the boardroom or in the dorm room, ePhone turns your laptop into a regular phone.”

Customers receive their own phone number so even people from landlines and mobile phones can call ePhone users. Comwave ePhone also includes free local and long distance calls to almost 60 countries for only $20 per year. All you need is a PC or Apple® Mac computer with an internet connection to log into ePhone to make and receive calls and no software is required to install. Additionally, Customers can make unlimited Video Calls to other ePhone users absolutely free.

Customers can sign up for a 3-Day Risk Free trial and enjoy 100 minutes of free calling to almost 60 countries and unlimited talk between other ePhone users. Once the free trial has expired, Customers will have the option to continue for only $20 per year.

ePhone includes:

• Your own telephone number
• Unlimited Free Incoming calls from anywhere in the world including landlines and mobile phones
• Unlimited ePhone-2-ePhone voice or video calling
• 250 Free Minutes per month to call almost 60 countries. Calls that exceed the 250 free minutes will be charged at low rates guaranteed lower than Skype™
• No monthly bills or fees, just a one-time annual payment

In recent weeks, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) has uncovered, particularly through Internet surveillance, several cases of companies that are unauthourized to operate in Québec yet are soliciting investors to speculate on the currency market.

The AMF is therefore cautioning investors against solicitations carried out through the website www.forexcanus.com by 6149154 Canada Inc., also known as Forexcanus. The AMF is also cautioning Québec investors against the activities of Gain Capital – Forex.com UK Limited, which solicits investors through www.forex.com.

These companies are not registered with the AMF as derivatives dealers or in any other capacity. Such solicitations and the nature of the products being proposed by these companies may be violations under the Derivatives Act or other laws administered by the AMF.

Currency and derivatives markets are complex and volatile, and are therefore for investors who have the knowledge, time and resources to track them. Investors who do not have the knowledge and time needed to trade in these markets could incur significant losses.

The AMF also reminds consumers about the importance of investigating before investing. They should ensure that the firms and individuals offering to act as intermediaries, including through the Internet, have the necessary approvals by checking the Register of firms and individuals authorized to practice on the AMF website or by calling the Information Centre. The Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) is the regulatory and oversight body for Québec’s financial industry.

Canadian emerging technology CEOs are finding it more difficult to add new qualified employees to their payroll, according to a PwC report exploring talent management issues for the Canadian emerging technology sector. The report found 44% of CEOs listed recruiting new talent and management team members as their biggest hiring issue. What’s more, an overwhelming majority (72%) either don’t have a talent management strategy in place or aren’t sure if their existing strategy is effective.

“It is interesting to hear that IT entrepreneurs are challenged with finding qualified people,” says Peter Matutat, National Emerging Company Practice Leader, PwC. “At the heart of the issue may be that IT grads are coming out of school with a skill set that isn’t quite what employers are looking for.”

“The nature of emerging technology companies means they aren’t just seeking people with the technical know-how, but employees who are more well-rounded,” adds Matutat. “Start-up companies also highly value softer skills like creativity, an entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen.”

Tobi Day-Hamilton, director of advancement at the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus, says change needs to happen at the university level to ensure grads are equipped with the skills technology companies are looking for.

According to Day-Hamilton, “We’re seeing a skills gap in what grads learn in post-secondary and what companies are now requesting in employees. In recent years, we found students were specializing in one area of technology, which meant grads were lacking general business and creativity skills. Increasingly, these are attributes that are becoming must-haves for many employers.”

Day-Hamilton also stresses the importance of co-op education throughout the university experience. “Employers want new hires to come in and hit the ground running, which is difficult to do if you don’t have the practical experience,” she says. “The more experience you can get before graduating, the better.”

The University of Waterloo has developed new program offerings to address this skills gap issue. The university is launching its Masters of Digital Experience Innovation this September and its Bachelor of Global Business and Digital Arts next year.

For job seekers, the industry looks positive. Turnover continues to be low with 81% of CEOs reporting less than 10% turnover and close to 70% with less than 5% turnover. The primary reasons for staff voluntarily leaving their companies last year were for higher compensation and new challenging opportunities (both 21%). Involuntary staff turnover was mostly attributed to poor performance (32%) rather than cost containment (11%), and 35% of respondents indicated they had no involuntary turnover at all.

Accessible Media Inc. will be participating in three Canadian showcases for greater accessibility in media anywhere. Each “a11y” event – be it conference, unconference (self-organized forums for idea sharing, networking, learning, speaking, and demonstrating) or camp – is full of speeches, presentations and demonstrations that lead to great advances in software and website accessibility.

“Accessibility is often shortened to ‘a11y’ because 11 letters are replaced,” explains Robert Pearson, Director of Accessible Digital Media. “An ‘a11y’ event is a great opportunity for members of the design/development, usability, accessibility, other IT and end-users within disabilities communities to interact and learn from each other, and AMI wants to be there, where the future of new kinds of accessibility is shaped.  The community that requires accessibility has been patient long enough. It is time to meet their needs and ensure that no one is left behind, that everyone feels included and that the world becomes a more accessible place.”

“At AMI, we make media accessible to all Canadians and allow everyone to consume media equally.  We also deeply believe in supporting and promoting the work of others who strive to achieve inclusion, including people in the groundbreaking ‘a11y’ movement,” adds David Errington, AMI President and CEO.

In addition to supporting May’s A11yCamp Guelph, which AMI sponsored as part of the Aiming for Accessibility Conference, AMI will be taking part in the following Canadian events this fall:

August 26 in Montreal: Web Accessibility and e-Governance: For Truly Accessible Web Services conference. AMI will sponsor the afternoon’s facilitation, beginning at 1:20pm with Robert Pearson as a featured speaker.

September 24 in Toronto: Accessibility Camp Toronto. AMI will be sponsoring the ASL interpretation for the day, and AMI’s President and CEO, David Errington will be a featured speaker in the morning to discuss AMI’s role in Making Media Accessible to all Canadians.

December 2 in Ottawa: Ottawa’s first accessibility unconference. AMI will be a sponsor at this event.

The Currency Museum of the Bank of Canada officially opens Fakes & Forgeries: Yesterday and Today, a Royal Ontario Museum-produced exhibition featuring 115 real and fake objects running the gamut from historical specimens and cultural artifacts, to household items and designer name brands.

Eleven displays are featured, each devoted to a different category of artifacts and their corresponding forgeries. Each display offers hints on how to tell the real from the fraudulent and a chance for visitors to see if they can pick out the authentic piece from the forgery. The exhibition is on display to the public from 26 August to 9 December 2011.