Village Gamer

Ahead of the October 5th release date for NBA Elite 11, EA Sports has released a playable demo for the latest Burnaby-developed basketball title. The demo already available for download on the Xbox LIVE™ Marketplace for all Xbox LIVE Gold Subscribers. The demo for will be available for PS3 players on the PlayStation®Network on September 22nd, and then available for all Xbox Live Silver Subscribers on September 28th.

In the demo, gamers will get their first chance to try the all-new Hands-On Control system that allows for one-to-one responsiveness and introduces a skill-based shooting system to the basketball videogame genre. Only in NBA Elite 11 will you have the control to pull of exactly the right move at exactly the right time, and hit that buzzer beating shot based on your own skill.

In addition to a having a chance to rewrite history by playing through the 4th quarter of the 2010 NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics, the NBA Elite 11 demo will feature modes to help users practice the new Hands-On Control scheme and prepare for the release of NBA Elite 11. These include:

* Tutorial Mode – An interactive tutorial will walk users through the basics of Hands-On Control
* Practice Mode – Like in real life, the more time you spend in the gym the better you will be. In Practice Mode, users will be able to spend as much time as they want practicing Hands-On Control in a virtual gym environment. Have a friend jump on locally and both players can master both the offensive and defensive sides of the Hands-On Control system
* Become Legendary – Start your path to becoming an NBA legend in the demo by creating your character and playing in the Jordan Draft Showcase. Earn XP and carry your character onto the full version of NBA Elite 11 in October. In addition, players who share the demo with friends on Xbox LIVE and the PlayStation Network will also earn additional XP for their Become Legendary character.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHR7lB9ppr8]

The demo for NBA Elite 11 will also allow users to play the game using a button control scheme, if they so choose. “Like putting in time at the gym, there’s learning curve with Hands-On Control, says David Littman, Creative Director, NBA Elite 11. “But once you feel the difference between Hands-On Control and the traditional button configuration, you’ll understand why we chose the direction we did.” To compare Hands-On Control to the old button configuration, players can switch between the two control schemes in the Lakers-Celtics and Become Legendary portions of the demo by entering the Control Settings section of the Pause menu. Read the rest of this entry »

From Friday, Sept. 24 to Sunday, Sept. 26, Canadians across the country will be discovering their community’s vibrant arts and culture scene during the first annual Culture Days event (Journées de la culture in Québec), the nation’s largest weekend-long arts and culture celebration. With more than 4500 family-friendly activities offered by thousands of individual artists, groups and organizations in every province and territory, Culture Days 2010 marks the biggest event of its kind in Canadian history.

Free activities include hands-on workshops, drop-in classes, outdoor excursions, guided tours, demonstrations, seminars, panels and behind-the-scenes experiences available in a wide range of disciplines including music, dance, visual arts, film or video, theatre, literary, architecture, new media and heritage. Some activities were created brand-new for Culture Days; others were existing events that have opted to join the national movement. Canadians can get their arts and culture fix by searching for activities in their area on the Culture Days website.

An initiative that brings the Canadian public and artists and cultural groups closer together, Culture Days was launched to celebrate the creative vitality of every community across the country. Inspired by the 13-year success of Québec’s annual Journées de la culture event and its efforts at democratizing culture, Culture Days was also spurred on by the success of the annual Alberta Arts Days – which took place Sept. 17 to 19 this year – as well as the pilot project spOtlight in southern Ontario.

“The Culture Days movement has resonated with the arts and cultural right community across the country beyond our wildest expectations,” says Antoni Cimolino, Chairman of Culture Days’ national Steering Committee and General Director of Stratford Shakespeare Festival. “Since we announced an open call for everyone to join the movement just five months ago, thousands of individual artists, organizations, associations and public and private funders have embraced Culture Days as a fun opportunity to welcome the public into our world and to become more familiar with what we do.”

Culture Days is a volunteer-driven, grassroots movement led by arts-lovers, cultural aficionados and the arts and cultural sector in collaboration with municipalities, public funding agencies, provincial governments and the private sector. In coordination with a national Steering Committee, volunteer provincial Task Forces have rallied professional and community-based cultural organizers to offer activities during the celebratory weekend, and, in conjunction with a complementary national promotional campaign, are promoting the event to the public at the regional and local levels.

Visit culturedays.ca to search for activities in your area and plan your Culture Days outings.

Edmonton’s Beamdog is happy to announce the availability of great Kalypso games such as Disciples 3, Tropico 3 and Patrician 4.

“I am delighted to form a strategic partnership with Beamdog and look forward to this exciting business development!” says Charlie Barrett Managing Director of Kalypso Media.

“I’ve just started playing Tropico 3 and so far I’m no Fidel. My island people have yet to embrace my doctrine of statue building and banana worship.” rants El Presidente of Beamdog Trent Oster.

Kalypso Media games are available for purchase now, and the offerings on Beamdog’s site includes some free trials.

JoWooD Entertainment, the BVT Group and Toronto’s DreamCatcher Interactive announce details of the planned digital services for ArcaniA – Gothic 4 and therefore react to the needs of the gaming community.

“Digital Rights Management as a module of the digital services has always been a tightrope walk between user friendliness and security of the product. ArcaniA – Gothic 4 is different here” explains Clemens Schneidhofer, JoWooD Entertainment. “With Arcania – Gothic 4 we deliver a high-quality product gamers will enjoy playing for hours. This joy and fun should not be disturbed by intrusive copy protection measures. So SecuROM is the perfect solution for us because it offers the necessary security and at the same time it fulfills our high expectations concerning costumer-friendliness.”

ArcaniA – Gothic 4 can be installed on an unlimited number of PCs and only needs to be activated once via the Internet. To play, which can be done at up to three PCs at a time, neither the original disc nor a constant internet connection is needed. The possibility of an uncomplicated transfer of license between the used PC offers a maximum of flexibility to the customer.

“The implemented digital services will be perfected by a user-friendly Auto Update Feature that informs the gamer pro-actively – without an annoying search – about the availability of a new Update and installs with the permission of the gamer right away” says Sascha Geschwendtner, Product Manager Games Services Sony DADC. “In addition other innovative solutions to increase the usability and the comfort of the game were implemented one of them being the verification of the release date. This feature allows the user to install the game in advance and to start it directly on the release date and therefore helps to avoid unnecessary waiting time to access the game-world.”

The Province of Ontario is helping The Canadian Film Centre, the country’s largest institution for advanced training in film, television and new media, continue its leadership role in developing world-class talent. This training helps Ontarians get jobs in an exciting and growing industry, while giving Ontario’s artists an opportunity to reach a broader audience with their work.

The province is investing $9 million over three years to help expand its acclaimed training programs and further develop Ontario’s screen-based and digital entertainment market. This provincial support builds on a $10 million investment in the film centre announced in 2005, and in 2009, Ontario’s foreign film and television industry contributed $946 million to the provincial economy and The International Indian Film Academy has selected Toronto to be the first North American city to host its annual Weekend and Awards in June 2011.

Growing the creative sector supports the province’s five-year Open Ontario Plan to help seize new global opportunities and turn them into jobs for Ontarians. Two Canadian Film Centre films were selected for the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival: “Champagne” and “How To Rid Your Lover Of A Negative Emotion Caused By You!”

“The Canadian Film Centre has been instrumental in promoting Ontario’s entertainment industry to the world. Our government is proud to support its growth and the key role it plays in developing our cultural industry, which creates thousands of jobs for the province,” said Michael Chan, Minister of Tourism and Culture.

“We applaud the government for recognizing the cultural and economic contribution the Canadian Film Centre makes to the province and are grateful for their continued partnership. This investment will help our talent excel at creating innovative content for global audiences,” said Slawko Klymkiw, Executive Director of the Canadian Film Centre.

Electronic Arts Inc. and Hothead Games™ have unleashed the T-rated DeathSpank: Thongs of Virtue (T.O.V.), making it available first for the PlayStation®Network on September 21 for $14.99. Those of us who are Xbox LIVE® Arcade users will have to wait until September 22, when we can grab the expansion for 1200 Microsoft Points.

The follow-up to last summer’s award-winning, chart-topping action RPG, DeathSpank: T.O.V. is a fresh new adventure where players hack, slash and shoot their way through mission after mission, in search of the six mystical thongs that are corrupting the universe. Gamers who download DeathSpank: T.O.V. in its first week (see below) will also receive two pieces of free downloadable content, the Snowy Mountain Dungeon, which adds another layer of gameplay and Sidekick Tankko, a cute-and-cuddly ogre who is available as a playable co-op character.

“We took all of the things that people loved about DeathSpank and amped it up a hundred times more,” said Vlad Ceraldi, Director of Game Development at Hothead Games. “DeathSpank: Thongs of Virtue is a bigger, deeper, funnier and longer experience. We’ve added more crazy weapons, more areas to explore, more enemies and more thongs!”

DeathSpank: T.O.V. puts players in the mighty boots of DeathSpank in his quest to destroy the six mystical thongs which have corrupted those who wear them, and thus the universe. Players will travel through war-torn country sides, outer space and even the North Pole in an epic battle against an Evil Santa, collecting tons of loot along the way. DeathSpank T.O.V. also includes a local co-op mode, allowing a second player to help in the search for the thongs with either of his two trusty sidekicks, Sparkles the Wizard or Ninjatastic Steve.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6iNxpujdHyY]

Owners of DeathSpank: T.O.V. on Xbox Live Arcade will be able to download both the Snowy Mountain Dungeon and Sidekick Tankko DLC for free from September 22 – 28. After that time period is over, the Snowy Mountain Dungeon will be available for 240 Microsoft Points and Sidekick Tankko will be available for 80 Microsoft Points.

Owners of DeathSpank: T.O.V. on PlayStation Network will receive both pieces of DLC when downloading the main game on PSN from September 20 – 27 (or September 22 – 28 depending on when the game is available in certain regions). After that time period is over, the Snowy Mountain Dungeon will be available for $2.99 and Sidekick Tankko will be available for $0.99.

THQ Inc. today announced that it has selected Joyent, a global provider of smart computing solutions with an office in Vancouver , to support THQ’s expanding presence in the social games space. THQ will use Joyent’s innovative Smart Technologies to provide a turn-key development and publishing environment to its social gaming development teams. Joyent will provide the server infrastructure, bandwidth, hosting and network operations that enable rapid prototyping and deployment of online games.

Joyent’s quick-start cloud solution and professional services will enable THQ’s developers to focus on game innovation rather than infrastructure deployment. The application of Joyent technology will allow THQ to speed time to market, lower operating costs and improve scalability.

“Joyent provides a key component of our social network strategy,” said Mike Hogan, Vice President of Online Publishing and Operations, THQ. “Using Joyent technology, we’ve been able to create an environment that allows us to provide our studios a scalable platform for developing and launching social games. By removing the complication of infrastructure deployment, we allow developers to focus on what they do best, making great games.”

“We’re pleased to be providing smart computing infrastructure to THQ’s developers,” said Chris Arisian, Joyent EVP Field Operations. “Joyent’s extensive experience supporting some of the leading developers of social games have helped us refine our technology specifically for online games. We support the entire development lifecycle and have optimized our platform to deliver an end-to-end performance and scalability required by game developers. From prototyping through production, Joyent provides the infrastructure solutions to deliver the entire game.”

Incidentally, Joyent’s Water Street studio in Vancouver does have career positions open. According to their site, Joyent is looking for a Software Engineer, a Senior Network Engineer and a Sys Admin.

On the night of September 12th, Toronto’s McCaul St was egregiously quiet. Within the walls of OCADU, however, Interactive Ontario’s IN|2010 was enjoying a strong beginning. The room, sparsely lit and ultimately subdued in atmosphere, was party to a broad assortment of digital media pioneers. The occasion was particularly blessed with its concurrence to the opening of START. Ian Kelso, the President and CEO of Interactive Ontario, described the evening best in his greeting to the crowd.

“This is a preview—it actually doesn’t start until tomorrow, but thank you for bringing us into your space.” The thanks was better expressed by the round of applause. “These shows, called Start, the goal of the program itself is to promote art games created in Toronto, and some beyond, and to let you play, and decide for yourself, what is art in the creation of video games? So I really encourage you to play and develop all the games that are here. There’s some really, really fabulous games. So you won’t be disappointed.” Read the rest of this entry »

Remember the golden age of video arcades? The clatter of clanging tokens, 8-bit bleeps and the cheers of caffeine-fuelled competitors? Waiting patiently in line to shatter your best friend’s high score on your favourite game?

The Arcadian Renaissance — an interactive installation for the upcoming Scotiabank Nuit Blanche Arts Festival — will capture that same boisterous spirit of competition and camaraderie while featuring the best of the Toronto indie gaming scene. But without the wasted quarters and the faint smell of nerd sweat.

Scotiabank Nuit Blanche, the celebrated all-night arts festival, is partnering with the Hand Eye Society to feature six vintage arcade consoles that have been modified to play games by local developers. Starting at sundown on October 2, the exhibit will be featured in the atrium of the TIFF Bell Lightbox, the newly opened headquarters of the Toronto International Film Festival.

The Hand Eye Society’s “Torontron” arcade cabinet has been seen at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival, the Flash in the Can Festival and most recently, FanExpo. Five more Torontron-style cabinets have been built especially for the Scotiabank Nuit Blanche event, thanks to support from local game companies Metanet, Spyeart, RSBLSB and Untold Entertainment, and the Ontario Media Development Corporation.

The featured games were chosen to reflect Toronto’s vibrant indie gaming scene: highly accessible yet artistically sophisticated — and fast enough to play so that everyone gets a turn. The Arcadian Renaissance is expected to be a popular attraction for the city’s tech-savvy citizenry at the all-night event that drew over a million visitors in 2009.

“This is an amazing time for Toronto’s gaming community, not just as far as business is concerned, but culturally as well,” says project coordinator Jim Munroe. “Developers with artistic or experimental aspirations can create games that will be enjoyed by the masses. That’s the idea behind The Arcadian Renaissance: that video games can bridge the gap between high art and populist entertainment.”

Visitors can check out The Arcadian Renaissance at 350 King St. W. on October 2, 2010. The exhibit will run from 6:57 p.m. until sunrise, with a special midnight tournament of Nidhogg, a swordfighting game by celebrated Brooklyn-based indie developer Mark “Messhof” Essen, shown on the big screen.

After many weeks of teasing on a series of Assassin’s Creed comics and the recent call for submissions of an upcoming Assassin’s Creed artbook, Ubi Workshop officially opened for business earlier this week.

For the launch, four series of high-quality lithographs of Ubisoft games’ artworks are available for collectors in very limited editions. A Red Steel tryptic and a series on Assassin’s Creed are currently on sale. New series from various Ubisoft brands will be regularly added.

Ubi Workshop is a group located within the Ubisoft Montreal Studio among the development teams bringing the universes of Ubisoft brands to different medias such as comics, short movies, artbooks, limited editions of artworks, more of which will be available in the near future.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9DLBIJKVgs]

Coinciding with the release of the Mob4Hire platform Version 4.2, Mob4Hire announced today that its online community has exceeded 50,000 mobile testers (a.k.a. “mobsters”) from 152 countries with handsets on 389 different network operators. The Mob4Hire community also includes more than 1,600 mobile app developers and market researchers from 88 countries.

The award-winning Mob4Hire community puts mobile developers and a global community of tech-savvy testers together in a marketplace for mobile testing, product feedback and market research.

Mob4Hire is experiencing a rapid increase in the number of mobile functional and usability testing projects due to the growing demand driven by the explosion of the mobile app and smartphone industry. Mob4Hire’s customer base has grown substantially with both new mobile brands as well as larger traditional brands. Some of the 1,600+ companies registered in Mob4Hire include Verisign, BBC World Trust, IMMI, O2, Truphone, Yellow Pages, MTV Brazil, Vringo and Whompster. By using Mob4Hire, project costs for developers can be reduced by 65% to 90% over traditional methods.

“Mob4Hire’s mobile community of ‘real people on real handsets with real opinions’ are in virtually every country on the planet, which makes it very compelling for mobile developers who are looking for ways to extend their reach, decrease costs and increase software quality,” says Stephen King, Mob4Hire CEO. “Our developer base is growing by 14% per month and we have seen a 150% increase in usage of the Mob4Hire platform in the past year.”

Mob4Hire’s cost-effective “Do-It-Yourself” model allows developers and market researchers to post their own testing and research projects, requesting specific handset devices, carriers and countries. Developers who submit projects can set a flat fee for each qualified Mobster to make per test, or request that the Mobsters bid on the job when they apply to work on the project. Read the rest of this entry »

Score Media Inc. has acquired 20% of NuLayer Inc., one of Canada’s most innovative software development firms. As part of the transaction, Score Media and NuLayer entered into a multi-year technology development agreement. The deal with NuLayer, creators of the recently launched app theScore iPad Edition, brings enhanced technology development capabilities to Score Media and facilitates theScore’s continued ability to be first to market with cutting-edge offerings for sports fans around the world. The agreement gives NuLayer additional resources to build disruptive technology solutions for both theScore and other forward-thinking organizations and provides the company with the ability to continue to develop and grow their own suite of innovative products, including Crowdreel.com, a social media photo sharing application that delivers real-time access to images posted on Twitter.

“Our mobile, web and iPad platforms are growing exponentially and we are constantly looking for new, creative ways to further engage our fans. NuLayer understands our vision and through this investment, we’ve now created an environment where NuLayer and Score Media can continue to work together to develop innovative digital offerings while giving NuLayer the resources they need to achieve explosive growth,” says Benjie Levy, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Score Media Inc.

NuLayer specializes in creating custom software applications and has been recognized as one of Canada’s most innovative development firms. Creators of theScore iPad Edition, one of the first free sports apps on the market, and recently touted by the Globe and Mail as one of three Toronto-based tech companies “at the hub of the iPad revolution,” NuLayer is the brains behind several mobile and web solutions such as Crowdreel.com, a social media photo sharing application already used on theScore.com.

“This opportunity marks a new era for our team and we cannot be more excited to work alongside theScore, a company that shares our passion for using technology to disrupt the market and grow a competitive business,” Jeff Brenner, Co-Founder, NuLayer Inc. “We look forward to building innovative products and helping cement theScore as a leader in online and mobile sports entertainment and with theScore’s support as our newest partner, we now have more freedom to grow NuLayer Labs and develop our own ground-breaking product ideas. Crowdreel was just the beginning and we have several exciting products on our roadmap.”

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.