Village Gamer

Frima Studio says that size does matter, and  in conjunction with SFO-based Bolt Creative, the studio has announced that the Pygmies of Pocket God on Facebook are moving to bigger and better things with Episode V: Archipela-Go-Go. This latest addition to the Pocket God world introduces a brand new island, a first for the popular online title, and features a fun new way to reward the Pygmies for their undying loyalty. The latest update also adds customization for a 6th tribe member.

Since its debut in December 2010, the Facebook version of Pocket God has grown exponentially and is attracting more players every month. More than 40 million loyal, unquestioning Pygmies have met their demise over that time—that’s approximately the same amount of people who have had the fortune of being Rick-Rolled over the years. Don’t worry, we’re never gonna give you up (or let you down). Another two million sacrifices can be attributed to friends on Facebook sacrificing other friends in a host of brutal and irreverent ways, including electrocution, shark attack, venus fly traps, tornados, tar pits, and more! Nothing says moral support like a good smiting.

The new updates for Archipela-Go-Go include:

• Movin’ on up to a larger coastline: The Pygmies have finally found their deluxe island in the sky. Errr—water…you know what we meant! Players can now unlock or purchase a larger BIG island for Pocket God on Facebook, a third land mass in the archipelago, and will give deities the opportunity to stretch their Pygmies’ legs so they don’t feel too claustrophobic. More so, the new BIG island can be utilized for larger-scale Pygmy torment as there is now more space to invoke different, simultaneous acts of torture, as well as additional room to conveniently handle quests.

• More Pygmies, more customization: Six is bigger than five so it must be better! With the BIG island available, players can now add and customize a sixth member of their tribe, allowing players to expand their roster of endless torture victims, complete with all the trimmings such as grass skirts, t-shirts, life jackets (that still don’t work), and more!

• Relax with a nice hot spring bath: Put a hot spring in a Pygmy’s step with the all new Hot Spring! See what we did there with a classic expression and some word play? Zing! With the Hot Spring environment now enabled, players can pamper their subjects with a much needed and deserved bath, which will also award deities with additional devotion points if Pygmies are asking for a dip in nature’s hot tub.

• Win a trip to Uranus: April Fool’s (unless you’re into that sort of thing)! Jokes aside, players who log in today will have a chance to participate in a global event where users from around the world will cooperatively work towards unlocking a new special item. Also, for a limited time, players can feed their Pygmies and watch as the results of said feeding become more “explosive” than normal. What’s the secret item to be won and what kind of “explosive” do we mean? You’ll have to log in and find out!

Today, gamers on PC and Mac finally get their hands on Big Sandwich Games’ innovative dragon-themed game of gathering treasure.  HOARD™ is available for purchase on Steam.  Purchasers who act now can take advantage of a limited time discount off the retail price of $9.99USD.  4-packs are also available for a deeper discount, encouraging friends to take advantage of HOARD™’s unique and compelling multiplayer action. HOARD™ is also available for play on PS3 and PSP.

HOARD™ is packed full of content and features for both solo and group-minded gamers.  Aspiring dragons can compete for high scores on over 35 different maps and 4 modes, ranging from single player score-attack to co-op to intense head-to-head matches.  The gameplay is an innovative and addictive mix of action and strategy, creating a deceptively deep arcade experience.  Joystiq raves, “HOARD™’s gameplay shines.”  IGN agrees, having awarded HOARD™ “Best Quick Fix” honors, and nominating it for “Best Competitive Multiplayer.”  Despite the game’s quickplay nature, Big Sandwich assures gamers will find dozens of hours of gameplay in the package.  Ars Technica concurs that “HOARD will keep you scorching villages for hours on end.”

All popular Steam features are employed, including over 100 achievements, leaderboards, multiplayer matching, friend invites, stats, and Steam cloud saving.  Steam Play is also supported, meaning users who own both a PC and Mac only need buy the game once.  Several impressive new features are also making their appearance in the Steam version, including graphical boosts like Night mode and a crisp winter tileset.

“If you like dragons, gold, princesses, knights, burglars, giants, medieval villages, wizard towers, gems, or fire, you’ll probably like HOARD™,” says Tyler Sigman, Executive Producer. “But if you like great games and great value, you’ll definitely like it.”

Vancouver indie developer and VFS instructor Roger Mitchell has partnered with UK indie developer Stephen Hawkes to launch Tiger Shark Studios, a small enterprise that will initially create assets for Unity projects with the possibility of taking on contract work for specific projects.

Both Roger and Stephen have several years’ experience as artists and modellers; Roger began his game development career in 1986, working on a Commodore 64 before moving on to an Atari ST512 – I had one of those, too. His first job came in 1994 at UK game development studio Ark Developments, where he worked on such titles as Rosco McQueen, Firefighter Extreme and Track Attack, which was when he first met Stephen Hawkes. Both Roger and Stephen further developed their skills while working for Psygnosis, before Roger moved on to Bullfrog, Kuju, Asylum Entertainment and Codemasters before being recruited by EA Canada in 2004 for its Fusion PSP department at the Burnaby Campus.

After falling victim to studio lay-offs, Roger moved on to work for other Vancouver game studios before co-founding a studio named DropShip with another EA Canada alumni, but he has since left that company. Over the span of his career, Roger has been credited on thirteen games and contributed to many more, with additional experience leading art teams in the creation of Wii and DS games.

In speaking about the motivation to start another partnership, this time with friend and former co-worker Stephen, Roger said that he has “always enjoyed making art as a primary function, and with Tiger Shark the main focus will be in producing polished, game-ready art assets. This means that it can be 2D, 3D, Low-poly, High-Poly and Super High. We will initially be concentrating on art with a goal of expanding into other realms. Our art assets will initially be available on the Unity Asset Store, but we will be selling them via other online stores as well as our own website.”

Both Stephen and Roger work with young people entering the game development world, Roger as an instructor at Vancouver Film School’s Game Design Program, while Stephen offers mentorship to share his experiences.

Gamers Heart Japan will be airing this weekend, with its premiere on April 3rd at 4pm in all CityTV markets, G4 at 6pm in all markets and on SPACE at 7pm ET (4pm PT).

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRZz5mAQtgM]

Watch, Enjoy, Donate.

Reminder: Battle of the Apps Round 2 is open for submissions until April 15th.
Tickets: Canadian Video Game Awards tickets are on sale now at TicketMaster.
Just In: Seth Green will reprising his role as Joker in the upcoming Mass Effect 3.

FACTOR is now accepting applications for the 2011-2012 fiscal year through FACTOR’s Online Application System. Visit onlineapp.factor.ca to create an account, review new program guidelines, as well as create, save and submit online applications for all FACTOR programs. New Program Guidelines are available online. 

Apparently the Eastern Arctic region of our country has entered into a thaw, because Big Blue Bubble is celebrating Spring. Starting tonight at 5PM ET a large selection of the studio’s iOS titles will be on sale for 24 hours, so if you’ve been meaning to download some of their games and haven’t gotten around to it, now is the time for action.  Big Blue Bubble’s Administrative Assistant Amanda Thorpe hinted that the studio has some great things coming up for their iOS games in the next few weeks, so she suggested that you stock up now while they are at a reduced price.

These iPhone and iPod Touch Titles will be available for 99 cents USD:

• Thumpies (regular price 2.99)
• Burn The Rope (regular price 1.99)
• Home Sweet Home 2 – Kitchens (regular price 2.99)
• Home Sweet Home (regular price 2.99)

The following universal titles (they work on all iOS mobile devices) will also be available for only 99 cents USD:

• Fighting Fantasy: Warlock Of Firetop Mountain (regular price 2.99)
• Fighting Fantasy: Deathtrap Dungeon (regular price 2.99)
• Fighting Fantasy: City Of Thieves (regular price 2.99)
• Fighting Fantasy: Citadel Of Chaos (regular price 2.99)
• Fighting Fantasy: Creature Of Havoc (regular price 2.99)

The following iPad titles are also on sale:

• Burn The Rope HD – sale price 2.99 (regular price: 4.99)
• Home Sweet Home HD – sale price 0.99 (regular price: 3.99)
• Thumpies XL – sale price 0.99(regular price: 2.99)

Three of Big Blue Bubble’s 99¢ games will now be free permanently:

• Rooster Punch
• Invaders From Uranus
• Snow Ballistic

Henning Software Solutions property Kidobi has added several children’s series to its growing library of videos for preschoolers, which are part of new distribution partnerships with top children’s content producers, including Organa LLC and Toronto’s CCI Entertainment.

“These additional series bring us one step closer to our ultimate goal, which is to provide videos that entertain young minds while showing them their imagination and potential is limitless,” said Eric Sorenson, Director of Research & Content, Kidobi.

New Additions Include:

“The Adventures of Mouse and Mole” about the everyday adventures of these lovable companions as they help each other to navigate through both good times and bad, from Los Angeles-based Organa LLC.

“The Longhouse Tales” (26×30’) about the fantasy and fun adventures of a young coyote and his animal friends, and “Farzzles World” (130×3’), which shows the real world seen from a baby’s point of view, CCI Entertainment.

A subscription to Kidobi provides a personalized playlist for each child based on their skills, interests, educational needs and more. By creating playlists for individual children, Kidobi ensures a unique and engaging experience for each viewer. Parents can rest assured that while their children watch videos from Kidobi’s current library they are surfing on a site that is entirely age appropriate and free of advertising.

Kidobi, which is currently seeking Beta testers, was developed with experts in child development, education, psychology and children’s media. Kidobi creates personalized video playlists based on the educational needs and entertainment tastes of individual children.

A quick note before the major news – The Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP) has embraced the value of social media, with accounts on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. The OACP states that these accounts were opened in order to better serve Ontario police executives, members of the media, and members of the public with an interest in policing. Personally I think this is great – I believe that various police departments around the country are realizing what an important tool social media can be in crime fighting and helping to engage the general public when information is needed, from searching for a wanted person, a missing person, Amber Alerts, and the dispensing of public safety tips.

Some departments are far better at the use of these tools, such as both Vancouver and Toronto Police Departments, and some need improvement, such as the bcRCMP and local RCMP detachment twitter accounts, but they are on the right track, and I hope that as they get more comfortable with the use of social media, we will see a greater drop in crime and a big jump in safe communities.

Powernoodle, the web-based SaaS collaboration tool that recently acknowledged as the first recipient of FedDev Ontario’s Investing in Business Innovation Initiative (IIBI), will be powering the judging of the Road to Banff competition at the coming Canada 3.0 conference.

Canada 3.0 is all about Canada’s digital media future and Stratford has evolved into a hotbed of innovative, hi-tech development. From the University of Waterloo’s Stratford campus and the Stratford Institute, to an investment in 60 km of fibre optic cable and city wide Wi-Fi, the city has aggressively pursued a hi-tech economy, culminating in global recognition with a spot in the exclusive Top Seven Intelligent Communities of the Year for 2011, from the ICF.

“The Road to Banff Challenge aligns with Powernoodle’s solution for running competitions in the Evaluations space,” says Powernoodle CEO Deb Krizmanich. “Powernoodle’s collaboration features line up perfectly with the Canada 3.0 evaluation and rating requirements for the competition. The judges needed to be up and running quickly with little training and intuitively process a lot of data effectively. Powernoodle is a product of the Stratford technology ecosystem and while we have a global focus, being a part of Canada 3.0 is like a homecoming for us.”

With up to 100 companies making ten minute pitches to the panel of judges, there will be a great deal of information flying around and trying to track it all in a meaningful way presents many challenges. Each competing company will face a panel consisting of at least three judges (including venture capitalists, angel investors and professional services providers) and will be scored based on how compelling their product or service is, the viability of their business model, proven entrepreneurship and overall presentation. Powernoodle was chosen because it excels at empowering a team (in the same room or attending virtually) to collaboratively review, comment and rate a series of ideas, quickly and efficiently generating real-time results and reports of the very best ideas, solutions or in this case, companies.

According to Steve Currie, VP Business Services, Communitech: “It was critical for us to have real-time results reporting, even with judges evaluating companies in different rooms at different times. Powernoodle lets us move 100 companies to 16 finalists to three winners in real-time, using twenty different rating criteria, in a point and click interface. Best of all, Powernoodle generates an automatic report of the entire process, capturing the judges’ anonymous comments, feedback and scores through the two rounds of competition. Using technology to evaluate technology companies is a perfect fit for the Road to Banff pitch contest.”

Attendees of Canada 3.0 will see Powernoodle in action and will also be able to talk to company executives at the conference. Look for Powernoodle’s booth in the main conference exhibit hall.

HMS Software has announced the release of TimeControl 6.1.  This upgrade of TimeControl advances the 6th generation of one of the world’s best known timesheet systems.  Since its first commercial release in 1994 TimeControl has been recognized by some of the largest organizations in the world as the most flexible solution for meeting timesheet challenges.  TimeControl is a multi-purpose timesheet, serving requirements for project timekeeping, time and billing and time and attendance from within a single system. TimeControl version 6.1 takes the product to the next level with new features, an extended architecture, enhancements and an exciting new look existing functions.

“We’re very proud of the accomplishment represented by TimeControl 6.1” said Chris Vandersluis, president of HMS Software. “This version brings the new generation of TimeControl launched last year with the release of TimeControl 6 to a whole new level of interface and productivity.”

Canada Media Fund announces preliminary program budget and performance envelopes for 2011-2012, and the creation of a new Convergent Stream Digital Media Incentive.

The Canada Media Fund (CMF) announced today that its preliminary program budget for the upcoming year (excluding the $100M program funding allocation that was proposed in the federal budget) will amount to $271M.  The funding allocated to each of the CMF’s programs is outlined on the CMF’s web site as a PDF.

All programs without exception received a preliminary funding allocation based on approximately 73% of the expected total program budget for the year ($271M/$371M).

The CMF also announced that it will issue broadcaster agreements tomorrow which will outline the performance envelopes allocated to broadcasters for the upcoming year.  In order to enable broadcasters to ask any questions they may have pertaining to their envelope allocations, the envelope allocations will be posted on the CMF’s web site by April 15, 2011.

Two distinct performance envelope amounts will be indicated in each broadcaster’s agreement: the first amount is based on the preliminary program budget of $271M and represents the amount that the CMF will commit to in the broadcaster agreement. It excludes the amount related to the 5% Digital Media Investment factor which will be released in mid-April, as this factor is based on amounts spent in the current year and therefore requires data validation as of April 1, 2011.

The second amount is based on the expected total program budget of $371M (including the $100M program funding allocation that was proposed in the federal budget) and is provided to assist the industry with licensing and production planning.  It also includes the currently estimated amount related to the 5% Digital Media Investment factor, prior to data validation.

As stated in the CMF’s prior release on March 26, 2011, the preliminary program budget of $271M is based on confirmed sources of revenue, including the projected monthly contributions from broadcast distribution undertakings, as well as the allocation of funding of $34.6M included in the budget of the Department of Canadian Heritage which is targeted for the CMF.
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Distribution360 has announced the sale of the award-winning comedy cross-platform property TAC.tv to Belgian broadcaster RTBF (Radio télévision belge de la communauté française). The broadcaster will air the Québec-based Salambo Productions original French shorts (181 x 3 minutes), known in French as tetesaclaques.tv, over the next three years.

The series of shorts features a cast of hilarious characters such as The Googoos, The Secretary, and The Pilot, to name a few. The off-the-wall characters featured in the series are sculpted from modeling clay by the creator himself, Michel Beaudet. While in post-production, he superimposes his own moving eyes, mouth, and nose, creating unique characters with over-the-top personalities.

TAC.tv’s witty and humourous animated shorts are wildly popular and have proven very successful across all media, especially in French-speaking Canada and France. Originally in French, the series has expanded to add English shorts to its slate.

“We’re thrilled that Belgium’s French-speaking population will be able to enjoy TAC.tv’s crazy antics on RTBF,” says Stéphanie Röckmann-Portier, Managing Director/Head of Sales, Distribution360. “Our goal has always been to showcase our dynamic lineup of cross-platform projects to international audiences,” adds Stephanie. “TAC.tv has already proven to be a highly successful and hilariously entertaining brand in many markets, and we’re excited to be able to share it with audiences in Belgium.”

D-BOX Technologies Inc. has announced that it has received approval from the TSX Venture Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange for its graduation and the listing of its common shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange as of market opening on Friday, April 1, 2011.  D-Box’s common shares will trade under the stock symbol “DBO” as opposed to “DBO.a”.

“The graduation to the Toronto Stock Exchange is part of a normal evolution reflecting our growth and the execution of our business plan,” said Claude Mc Master, President and Chief Executive Officer of D-BOX Technologies. “It’s a great achievement for the entire D-BOX team.”

Founders and CEOs of technology ventures wanting to improve their chances of building a successful company can now participate in the BCIC Mentor Program and benefit from the experience of seasoned technology entrepreneurs. The Program (in partnership with ACETECH) is a province-wide development program for early-stage entrepreneurs with the goal of improving the success of technology companies in BC.

“The BCIC Mentor Program matches mentors with ventures in a way that recognizes the needs of the entrepreneur and the interests of the mentor,” said Paulin Laberge, BCIC Entrepreneur-in-Residence and Director of the BCIC Mentor Program. “The focus of the mentoring is on entrepreneurial education in the context of building a real venture. Once an entrepreneur is accepted into the Program, we expect that the mentoring relationship will span multiple years.”

In order to be accepted into the BCIC Mentor Program, the CEO or founder must be referred by one of the Program’s Participating Organizations. The first four organizations to come on board with the BCIC Mentor Program are: ACETECH, BC Technology Industry Association, BCIC-New Ventures Competition and Accelerate Okanagan. With the addition of Accelerate Okanagan as a Participating Organization, the BCIC Mentor Program is available to entrepreneurs in the Lower Mainland and the Okanagan region. The program will expand into other regions, including Victoria, later this year.

While each Participating Organization has its own set of criteria under which entrepreneurs can access the BCIC Mentor Program, the criteria typically includes participation in current or recent entrepreneurial development programs offered by that organization.

“Through this Program, Accelerate Okanagan is able to expand the breadth of our current offerings to include long-term mentorship,” says Jeff Keen, Director of Acceleration Programs at Accelerate Okanagan.

Since the program launched last fall in the Lower Mainland, over 40 mentors have been accepted into the program and they are eager to begin working with the founders and CEOs of local technology ventures. Mentorship through the BCIC Mentor Program is provided to entrepreneurs at no cost. Stay tuned for additional Participating Organization announcements.

A large majority of Canadians and Americans believe business leaders need to be open to take more intelligent risks in order to create innovation, a Microsoft Canada survey conducted by Harris/Decima has revealed. The majority of office workers in both Canada (97 per cent) and the U.S. (96 per cent) also agreed that companies must embrace new technologies in order to remain competitive. Both Canadians (96 per cent) and Americans (99 per cent) agree that technology is shaping the future of how they work.

The survey, which ran from January 5th to January 14th 2011, polled senior and junior/mid-level Canadian and U.S. office workers to better understand their views about technology and innovation in the workplace. Of the 504 surveys that were completed among a random sample of Canadian office workers and 501 surveys among a random sample of American office workers,  the results were clear: 84 per cent of Canadians and 77 per cent of Americans believe business leaders need to take more risks to create innovation, while only 53 per cent of Canadians and 55% of Americans feel the company they work for is already driving innovation.

“Canadian business leaders must embrace an appetite for intelligent risk instead of shying away from it to stay within the comfort of status quo,” says Eric Gales, President of Microsoft Canada. “Now is the time to createorganizational cultures where risk is not a dirty four-letter word, but is encouraged as a valuable ingredient in fueling learning, creativity and inspiring innovation.”

“The business world is in the midst of an exciting period of change driven by technology,” said Peter Aceto, Chief Executive Officer, ING DIRECT, commenting on the survey results. “For businesses to be successful in this environment, leaders need to promote a culture where employees at all levels not only understand their business but feel safe to experiment in it- to reach far across the divide – with no danger of the repercussions of failure.”

Added Gales: “What we need to do is overcome the misconception that risk automatically equates to danger. We need to transform the idea of risk into a true opportunity – whether in business, skiing down a mountain, or in improving Canada’s healthcare system. Business leaders need to empower their teamsand drive forward innovation to strengthen our economy and put Canada on the map.”

“Understanding the intersection of technology and innovation is critical to the future success of firms. It is particularly critical for larger organizations, that must not only embrace change and creativity, but most also “scale up” in order to survive global competition. This report is an excellent start toward understanding and infusing Canada’s corporate culture with the need to innovate and accept change,” commented Dr. Benson Honig, McMaster University, DeGroote School of Business, TeresaCascioli Chair in Entrepreneurial Leadership.

The survey also found that:

• The younger generation of corporate/business workers entering the workforce are considered to be just as innovative (Canada 47%; US 46%) or more innovative (Canada 41%; US 39%) than today’s current leaders
• The top reason for indicating the younger generation is more innovative than today’s current leaders is their experience, comfort, and understanding of technology (Canada 68%; US 80%)
• Americans are more likely than Canadians to believe the younger generation is more innovative due to their experience with technology (80% vs. 68%), while Canadians are more likely than Americans to think the younger generation is more innovative because of their ability to learn and adapt (27% vs. 15) and their fresh approach (10% vs. 5%)

SimplyCast.com has released Version 6.2 of its SaaS all-in-one marketing application. The latest software release further enhances the multi-channel marketing process by adding powerful features throughout the application to help beginners and advanced online marketers get the results they want.

All users will immediately benefit from an improved reporting framework, faster image serving for newsletters, a list segmentation option for fax marketing and a manage subscription feature that allows recipients to decide what lists they want to remain on.

“Our product development has always been driven by customer feedback and what small business owners need to get the job done,” said Saeed El-Darahali, president and CEO of SimplyCast. “This release represents another important milestone for our company as we continue to provide the most competitively priced all-in-one marketing product to users worldwide.”

Other new features of Version 6.2 include the latest version of SimplyCast’s one-of-a-kind Visual Editor, a revamp of the autoresponder marketing tool and key additions to the free Twitter Marketing service, including a RSS feed to Twitter option.

SimplyCast’s 11-in-1 multi-channel marketing platform is a web-based solution designed to create, track and deliver targeted online marketing campaigns such as email, survey, event, autoresponder, Twitter, fax, SMS and link tracking services.

Future Shop has introduced a new trade-in program which gives Canadians a chance to responsibly recycle their old DVDs and grow their Blu-ray collections with a special offer. Trade & Save will officially launch tomorrow, April 1st, and run until May 5th. Future Shop customers will be able to bring in their old DVDs in exchange for a $5 coupon to use towards purchasing a new Blu-ray movie from a massive selection of over 150 titles to choose from.

“Future Shop is excited to launch the new Trade & Save program that allows customers to upgrade their movie collections with Blu-ray movies at a discount,” said Nikki Hellyer, Director of Marketing, Future Shop. “This program provides a win-win scenario where customers can recycle old DVDs and receive a coupon geared towards helping them build their Blu-ray collections.”

To participate, customers can bring any DVD movies to their nearest Future Shop and exchange them for $5 coupons for select new Blu-ray movies at the Customer Service desk. Eligible Blu-ray titles are clearly marked with in-store with a Trade & Save sticker on the case. A $5 coupon will be provided per returned DVD to a maximum of 20 per customer per day. Customers can redeem one $5 coupon per select Blu-ray title.

The $5 coupon applies to a wide selection of Blu-ray titles from the industry’s top studios* in all genres: action and adventure, family, female favourites, comedies, dramas and musicals. Select new releases in the Trade & Save program, include The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (April 8) and Gulliver’s Travels (April 19).

Here are a few examples of after trade-in pricing:

* $4.99: Heat, Speed and James Bond movies.
* $9.99: Alien vs. Predator, 300 and Ice Age movies.
* $11.99: The Dark Night, Wizard of Oz 70th Anniversary, The Hangover.
* $14.99: Inception, The Sound of Music, A-Team, Faster, Robin Hood.

All DVDs collected will be responsibly recycled in Canada.

Reminder: The Gamers Heart Japan television special will be airing on SPACE and G4 on April 4th. Watch, Enjoy, Donate.

PlayTest: zinc Roe is looking for kids (ages 3-6) in the Toronto area to playtest some of the studio’s upcoming projects. Contact them via their website or email if you’re interested.

Yannis Mallat, President & CEO of Ubisoft Montréal & Toronto will be offering a glimpse into the secrets which enabled Canada’s video game developing industry to grow into the world leader it is today when he makes a presentation to the Canadian Club of Montreal on April 4th. Mr. Mallat’s speech is titled Myths and Realities of the Canadian Video Game Industry, and during his presentation, Mr. Mallat will also address what he considers to be the type of strategic thinking that should be encouraged in order to ensure a sustainable Canadian economy.

Yesterday Quebec newspaper Rue Frontenac broke the story that Ubisoft Montreal has fortified its court injunction barring THQ Montreal from further actively recruiting Ubisoft staff. THQ has already successfully obtained the development services of Mark Besner, Jean-Francois Boivin and Alex Drouin, all of whom worked on Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed franchise, and it’s suspected that other Ubisoft developers will be switching work addresses if they haven’t already. The first inkling of trouble between the two Montreal studios came last spring when THQ signed Assassin’s Creed creator Patrice Désilets, who was named to head up the THQ studio beginning this May.

And with that news bit, I will segue over to some Dawn of War II news. Owners of  Relic Entertainment’s Warhammer® 40,000®: Dawn of War® II – Retribution™ will soon be able to purchase a custom Dark Angels Space Marine chapter for use in multiplayer. The Dark Angels Pack is scheduled to be available for download on Steam, the THQ E-Shop and select digital retailers on 6 April for a suggested price of $7.50 USD.

The Dark Angels Pack adds the iconic Space Marine chapter to the game with eight unique models for the major multiplayer units as well as new color schemes for the others.  The Force Commander is replaced by a Dark Angels Company Master complete with winged helmet, the Tactical Marine squad all sport the iconic Dark Angels robes.  Additionally, the Scout Squad, Assault Marine Squad and Terminators all receive similar chapter-specific revisions. The Space Marine vehicles also get a visual makeover with this DLC pack, adding custom designs and emblems to differentiate them from the standard vehicles.

Activision Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Entertainment, LLC have officially announced Spider-Man™: Edge of Time, where Spider-Man faces one of his greatest challenges ever — saving Spider-Man. Developed by Activision-owned studio Beenox, Spider-Man: Edge of Time challenges the player to take on the roles of both classic Amazing Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2099 to correct a time-stream gone awry and prevent a catastrophic future brought on by the early and untimely death of Peter Parker.

“The first Spider-Man entry by Beenox, Spider-Man™: Shattered Dimensions, was touted as one of the wall-crawler’s best Spider-Man games to date from both critics and fans,” said Vicharin Vadakan, Director, Global Brand Management. “Beenox is once again taking a fresh and different approach to bring a fast-paced and high-octane adventure and unexpected story to life in Spider-Man: Edge of Time.”

“At Beenox, we are constantly listening to the fans and looking for new and creative ways to innovate the gameplay experience for them,” said Dee Brown, Studio Head, Beenox. “We want to create a totally distinct experience in Spider-Man: Edge of Time by working with Peter David on the story and creating this urgent, high-stakes experience where time is working against you and the fate of Spider-Man hangs in the balance.”

Spider-Man: Edge of Time is a focused, action-packed adventure set in two connected and evolving timelines, from the contemporary times of the Amazing Spider-Man to the corrupted future world of Spider-Man 2099, against the backdrop of a rich, tightly crafted narrative by acclaimed Marvel veteran Peter David (co-creator of the comic book series Spider-Man 2099). The game features all-new “cause-and-effect” gameplay, where players will see how the immediate and sometimes unexpected effects of their actions as one Spider-Man changes the timeline of the other Spider-Man. Spider-Man: Edge of Time is slated for release this fall.

Congratulations to Frima Studios, whose Zombie Tycoon: IceField Demo has reached the FITC finals for Technical Excellence in Flash and Excellence in 3D. The title is also nominated for an FITC People’s Choice Award. Voting is open now and will remain open until midnight on April 22nd. You can play the Zombie Tycoon Interactive Demo on Adobe Molehill.

“We’re honored to be nominated for two FITC awards,” said Steve Couture, Frima’s CEO. “Our R&D team has worked extremely hard to ensure we’re always on the leading edge of technology and it feels fantastic to be recognized.”

Built using a combination of Adobe’s Molehill technology and Frima’s proprietary IceField 3D engine, Zombie Tycoon is one of the most advanced Flash games to be released. In Zombie Tycoon, players control their very own horde of ravenous zombies! Developed in just a few months by Frima Studio’s R&D team, the Zombie Tycoon: IceField Demo offers three levels of zombie madness. Two game modes are available to try; mild, which offers players a chance to explore and conquer the game world, and chunky mode which offers players the chance to see the full power of the new technology with over a hundred zombies moving on the screen at the same time.

Held from May 2-4, 2011 in Toronto, FITC is a three day event of presentations, demonstrations, networking opportunities and parties about the creative, technical and business aspects of Flash and digital media. Topped off with the FITC Award Show, the event aims to leave the attendees inspired, energized and awed while covering the Flash and digital media industries.

Following its successful launch on iPad, Shaw Media today announced their Global Video App is now available on the App Store for iPhone and iPod touch. The Global Video App offers Canadian viewers on-the-go access the network’s blockbuster library of premium content, including full episodes of House, The Good Wife, NCIS: LA, The Office, Rookie Blue and Survivor along with previous broadcasts of Global National and 16:9:The Bigger Picture.

Highlights of the Global Video App include:

* Full-length episodes and clips
* Superb video quality
* Sleek interface design with user-friendly features
* Progress bars to indicate runtime – allowing viewers to exit the app and to resume viewing at the same spot
* Schedule guide for Global programs with listings up to two weeks in advance
* Behind-the-scenes footage and Web-exclusive content

As college enrollments surge to record levels, thousands of students are arriving to campus finding they lack the basic math and English skills needed to succeed in their studies. Many of these students are coming from the high-school system, are non-native speakers or are displaced workers looking to improve their workforce skills, necessitating enrollment in remedial programs that help address basic literacy and numeracy skills.

Providing students with a way to quickly improve their math, reading and writing skills is the basis for MyFoundationsLab from Pearson, the world’s leading learning company. Suitable for multiple college and career readiness programs, including boot camps, high school bridge programs and student success centers, MyFoundationsLab is a complete online resource for assessing and remediating developmental skills. The program also includes comprehensive learning modules to improve students’ general skills, such as note taking, test taking and critical thinking.

Built specifically for Canadian students in mind, MyFoundationsLab delivers interactive, customizable features, including a comprehensive diagnostic tool, personalized content modules specific to each student’s skill level and self-paced learning activities that allow students to measure their progress toward the skills needed for continued academic and workplace success. “Colleges need flexible resources to help students learn the math and English required to succeed in their courses, and MyFoundationsLab can be tailored specifically to the needs of any learning environment,” said Steve O’Hearn, President of the Higher Education division of Pearson Canada. “Pearson’s investments in new technologies and learning solutions like MyFoundationsLab are designed to support institutions and instructors in their efforts to improve student achievement and retention.”

Pearson’s award-winning MyLabs and Mastering programs have personalized learning for millions of students around the globe, delivering proven results for institutions looking to improve student performance and lower costs. Available in a range of subjects including math, English composition, the sciences, foreign languages, economics and IT training, the programs provide immediate feedback and targeted help where and when students need it the most. Students learn at their own pace, in their own style, while educators are able to monitor student progress and communicate with their students online to keep them engaged and accountable for their work.

Telefilm Canada has announced that 70 Canadian companies – representing areas of activity such as production, distribution, new media & mobile, and animation – will be participating under the Canada Pavilion umbrella – the largest national pavilion at the market – at MIPTV, the international television and multiplatform market that runs from April 4 to 7 in Cannes.

“By providing support on the international scene, we help clients forge international ties and facilitates the sale and purchase of Canadian products as well as the signing of co-production agreements,” said Carolle Brabant, Telefilm Canada’s Executive Director. “MIPTV is key to our international business development strategy; one of the highlights of our 2010 edition was that participating exhibitors generated a total of $21 million in economic activity for the Canadian television and film industry.

MIPTV Attendees - Please click to view full size

Carolle Brabant added: “For the 2011 edition, Telefilm is pleased to welcome the Canada Media Fund as a new partner to the Canada Pavilion – another sign of the synergy between our two organizations.”

By exhibiting under the Canada Pavilion, Canadian companies will benefit from a strong brand image, have access to a prime location visited by a large number of delegates, and obtain a variety of logistical, promotional and strategic services, as well as the support of a co-production specialist.

In addition, the Pavilion will play host to two invitation-only networking events between Canadian participants and their foreign counterparts. The first will be with France, organized in collaboration with the Canadian Embassy in France and TV France International. The second event will take place with Singapore, an important co-production partner for Canada.

“As an international distributor of Canadian content as well as programming from all over the world, Octapixx Worldwide has proudly attended MIPTV and exhibited at the Canada Pavilion for almost 25 years now,” said Octapixx President J. Gary Gladman. “MIPTV provides Octapixx with the perfect opportunity to meet face-to-face with global broadcasters, buyers and producers. And the Canada Pavilion has proven to be a wonderful platform upon which Octapixx can share our film content with the world.”

“MIPTV is an ideal place to develop new partnerships with a view to meeting new challenges and taking advantage of new business opportunities,” added Sandrine Pechels de Saint Sardos, Vice President of Program Distribution for Montreal’s Bejuba! Entertainment. “We produce and distribute children’s and family entertainment – which has international appeal – and thanks to Telefilm Canada we can build our positioning in an increasingly global trade environment.”

MIPTV’s Content 360 competitive program connects developers of future-defining creative concepts with the most influential audience in multiplatform content. Two Canadian entries are among the 18 finalists: the Canada Media Fund-financed Sports Vision (Phéromone and ODD1) for Online and Social Games, and Media Undone smartPhone App (PinkPom Digital) for Smartphone App for Youth Engagement.

The Canada Pavilion at MIPTV is a Telefilm Canada initiative, in partnership with British Columbia Film and Ontario Media Development Corporation as Principal Partners; the Canada Media Fund as a Major Partner; the Canadian Media Production Association as a Contributor Partner; and the National Bank of Canada as a Silver Sponsor.

Big Sandwich Games announced today that their award-winning strategy-arcade title HOARD™ now has a demo version immediately available for download on Steam.  The full version can be purchased at a “dragonfire sale” discount of 25% off the normal retail mark of $9.99. The full version unlocks (releases) on April 4^th on Steam for both PC and Mac.  4-packs are also available for a discount, so gamers can take on their friends as well as participate in the Hoard Steam Community and follow the game on Facebook.

Big Sandwich Games expects HOARD^TM to be a big hit with PC and Mac users who want an addictive combination of action and strategy. The game offers bite-sized chunks of single and multiplayer play that includes a co-op mode for up to 4 dragons working together.  “HOARD^TM is a rare game that was created for both core and casual gamers,” says Tyler Sigman, the game’s designer. “Whether they prefer solitary play, competitive multiplayer, friendly co-op, or arcade-style score-attack challenges, HOARD^TM is a great fit. At under $10, that’s a lot of fire-breathing destruction and fun for very little money.”

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ca2-riOgdO0]

All popular Steamworks features are employed in HOARD™, including over 100 achievements, leaderboards, multiplayer matching, friend invites, stats, and Steam cloud saving.  Steam Play is also supported, meaning users who want to play on both PC and Mac only need to buy the game once.  Several new features are also making their appearance in the Steam version, including graphical boosts like night mode and a crisp winter tile set.

Audiokinetic Inc. has released the latest version of Wwise. Wwise 2011.1 introduces new features and enhancements, including support of portable systems such as iOS (iPhone and iPad) and previously announced Nintendo 3DS™.

“The video game industry is evolving, casual and social games are becoming a focus for more partners. This also implies making games available on a wider range of media and devices.” said Simon Ashby, VP of Product Strategy at Audiokinetic Inc.

In an effort to make Wwise accessible to a wide range of developers, Audiokinetic confirms a new pricing model for iOS projects. Developers will be able to license Wwise for $500 US. New public discussion forums will be made available to the community. Approved Nintendo 3DS developers that want to license Wwise will be able to purchase a license at $5,000 US. Additional details on our pricing are available on Audiokinetic’s web site.