Finalists Announced for the First Ever Canadian Game Development Talent Awards

By Paul Hunter

The Alliance numérique, in collaboration with the Canadian Interactive Alliance, have announced the finalists for the first-ever Canadian Game Development Talent Awards, which will be taking place in Montreal on November 2, 2011.

This new award show has seven distinct categories recognizing the creativity and achievements within Canada's video game development community. For the inaugural awards show, five individuals have been chosen for each category.

The 2011 nominees are:

Animator of the Year
Aaron Bouthillier (Shank)
Cristinel Bostan (Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood)
Matt Hammill (Gesundheit! for iOS)
Roxy Liao (Fight Night Champion)
Yvan Deschamps (A Space Shooter for Two Bucks)

Designer of the Year
Jean-Francois Dugas (Deus Ex: Human Revolution)
Kris Piotrowski (Sword & Sworcery EP)
Mary DeMarle (Deus Ex: Human Revolution)
Matt Rix (Trainyard)
Preston Watamaniuk (Mass Effect 2)

Programmer of the Year
Chris Thiffault (Undergarden)
Frédérick Blais (Michael Jackson The Experience)
James Hall (Dead Rising 2)
Jean-Philippe Auclair (Flash 11 Molehill)
Stéphane Girard (Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood)

Emerging Talent
Alexandre Fiset (Spider-man: Shattered Dimensions)
Annie Dickerson (Blokhead)
Gerald Orban (Skate 3)
Jared Thomson (Jetpack)
Richard Flanagan (Fract)

Audio Professional of the Year
Fabien Noel (Splinter Cell Conviction)
Mathieu Jeanson (Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood)
Michael McCann (Deus Ex: Human Revolution)
Simon Ashby (Wwise)
Steve Szczepkowski (Deus Ex: Human Revolution)

Producer of the Year
Casey Hudson (Mass Effect 2)
David Anfossi (Deus Ex: Human Revolution)
Marie-Jo Leroux (Driver San Francisco)
Mark Darrah (Dragon Age 2)
Vincent Pontbriand (Assassin’s Creed : Brotherhood)

Visual Artist of the Year
Craig Adams (Sword & Sworcery EP)
Derek Watts (Mass Effect 2)
Jeff Agala (Shank)
Jonathan-Jacques Belletête (Deus Ex: Human Revolution)
Kun Chang (Osmos)

This new award show immediately follows the Montreal International Game Summit and will take place in the Hilton Bonaventure.

For more information check out the official website at: www.talentawards.ca
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Review: Gears of War 3

By Paul Hunter

Seems rather fitting that the developer behind the genre-defining Gears of War 3 is called Epic Games because if there ever was a video game describable as poetry in motion this would be it. Albeit a gritty, gruesome poem filled with despair, destitution and desperation. Don't tell me you were expecting rainbows and lollipops?

It's been nearly three long years since fans have had a chance to play a new Gears of War game, and the wait has been worth it. Our war-torn hero Marcus Fenix and the now beard-sporting Dom return to continue their bloody crusade to stop the Locust Horde, and the even more deadly Lambent creatures, in a three-way battle that spills more red juice than a Saw marathon night.

Equipped with their signature chainsaw-teethed Lancers, the Coalition of Ordered Government (aka COG) soldiers, or what's left of them at least, receive word that the thought-to-be-deceased father Adam Fenix has actually been kidnapped and is still alive. A retrieved data disc shows that Adam is not only alive, but may have a means of wiping out the new Lambent threat that is poisoning the world with their highly reactive yellow Imulsion goo.

Graphically, Gears of War 3 doesn't stray too far from its predecessors, which is certainly welcome here. The Unreal Engine which powers this game presents some of the most fluid and high fidelity graphics you'll see on a home console, and this time around the crispness is even more defined. The mostly greys and browns that permeates the ravaged world of Sera still take up the majority of the game time, however a lush tropical environment, an immersive underwater chapter and a richly detailed Thrashball stadium set piece provide some much-needed visual variety.

If life on Sera was rough in Gears of War 2, this time around it's all-out hell. The survivors and Stranded that populate this world distrust the COG even moreso, and justifiably so after the Hammer of Dawn rainfall and the sinking of last remaining safe haven, Jacinto. Every encounter with denizens of the makeshift outposts is visceral and more believable than in the last two games, and overall the world of Gears of War 3 is more grounded. While the story has its predictable moments, the dialogue is better also, although it rarely surpasses the cliche one-liners you'd hear in an 80's Stallone film. This is Gears of War people, not Shakespeare!

The highly explosive Lambent creatures add a distinct visual flair in this war adventure, and sometimes their violent discharge upon death literally shakes whatever foundation you're standing on. Their yellow gunk sticks everywhere, leaving most battlefields a mucusy mess. Particle effects are top-notch, culminating in the best smoke effect you'll see in a console game, along with superb yellow beams of sunlight that reflect elegantly on varied surface types, and the partially destructible environments that look really cool as they crumble and crack.

Did I mention the Campaign is awesome? Well it is, even though it doesn't break a lot of new ground. Epic Games played it safe and did what they know, refining here and there, while never really creating any new jaw-dropping moments like the first time we saw a Berserker in Gears of War 2, but it's still solid all the way. The Campaign can be played local split-screen co-op, online co-op, and even 4-player online co-op for the very first time. Trust me, it's way easier playing with a partner, although the AI controlled players are remarkably smart in this game, even killing all the grunts while you focus on eliminating the boss target or flip some switches. For an added challenge, Campaign mode includes an Arcade option which adds a point system to each chapter and encourages friendly competition amongst teammates.

Oh did I mention multiplayer? A Gears game wouldn't be a Gears game without well-thought out and robust multiplayer modes, to which it has in spades. I know, I know, Gears of War 2 had a lot of problems with its online multiplayer, but believe me these shortfalls received a lot of attention this time around. Matchmaking is simple, intuitive and quick, and the menu system has never been easier to navigate.

First up we have Versus mode which contains seven game type variants including Execution where eliminations can only happen through executions, the self-explanatory King of the Hill and the two-player teams in Wingman. Team Deathmatch gives opposing teams of four a pool of 20 lives each, which eventually winds up being a last-man standing type scenario. Whereas in the campaign you'll mostly be running and stopping, in Versus mode you'd best not stand around too long or you'll find an enemy sawed-off shotgun pointed squarely at your head. Teamwork really plays a central role in Team Deathmatch since each death drops your life count by one, making revival all the more central to your game strategy.

Horde mode returns and pits up to four players in a 50 wave battle with increasingly more challenging flocks of enemies. Round one begins with more benign creatures such as the squirrely Tickers that claw at your knees and the slow and lumbering Butchers with their oversized meat cleaver. Every ten rounds you'll encounter a boss battle and wage war with the most menacing Locust and Lambent foes the game has to offer. Some of these bosses are a few stories tall and have ample firepower to mop the floor with your remains, so careful strategy is required to overcome them. Blurring the line between a third-person action and a real-time tower defense game is a new monetary system that rewards players with cash for each kill or enemy down you perform which can be used to build fortifications. Defenses include barriers that slow down and harm enemies, decoys that distract and confuse them, and turrets and sentries for intense firepower. Horde mode itself is probably enough to justify getting this game.

Beast mode is the just the inverse, you play as the Locust and Lambent armies as you march towards the human holdouts with guns, spiked maces and meat cleavers in fist. As you fight through 12 rounds of successfully more challenging opposition you gain access to even more powerful brutes such as the heavy bombing Boomers, the creepy Giant Serapede and if you really want to raise hell there's always the (nearly) unstoppable Berserkers.

All the while you're playing each mode there's a Level-up system that ups your rank as you gain experience and win victories. As you progress through levels you'll unlock new weapon skins, characters, weapon executions and special mutators that alter the gameplay in some manner. With such a robust level-up system you'll be playing all modes of Gears of War 3 for some time to come.

As if all this wasn't enough, there's even a handful of new weapons to play with including the Retro Lancer, a variant that includes a bayonet at the tip and can be ram full-speed into your opponent's gut. There's also the Digger which shoots burrowing explosives as it travels underneath enemy cover and as mentioned above there's the Cleaver, which is essentially a butchers knife on steroids.

If it's not clear by now, Gears of War 3 is unquestionably a must-have game for fans of the series or the action genre. It's easily worth the cost of admission and ultimately the biggest challenge is juggling your personal time for the first few weeks you have the game because you'll want to play it over and over again. The multiplayer modes are insanely fun with a few buddies and there are enough unlockables, hidden collectibles and Easter eggs to keep you busy for a long time to come. While the Marcus story arc has come to an "end", and the epic trilogy over, there's no bigger final bang than what we have here. Bring on the DLC!

[This article originally appeared on the Future Shop Tech Blog]
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Gears of War 3 Launch Event Coverage

By Paul Hunter

To celebrate the launch of the third and final installment in the epic story arc starring COG veteran Marcus Fenix and his longtime comrade, Dominic Santiago, Microsoft Canada held a spectacular launch party featuring COG Ink tattoos, locust meat, a lancer carving expert, and so much more. Here's how it all went down:

About a week ago I received a package in via courier containing a small, vacuum-sealed bag (see image left) inviting me to the Gears of War 3 Launch Event in Toronto. Of course, this wasn't any ordinary sealed bag, it looked like a bloody mess and naturally that was the whole point. The content of the bag was a piece of hacked up Locust, the humanoid, bestial creatures that threaten humanity in the Gears of War series.

In case you're interested, the "Nutrition Facts" on the front reads:

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Serving Size: 1 Package
Amount/serving % Daily Value
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Blood: 100%
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Gore: 100%
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Excitement: 100%
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Pretty ingenious marketing I must say. In case anyone thought it might be a good idea to sample some of the Locust meat sealed in the bag, the bottom has a very direct warning stating "NOT SAFE FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION. This is FAKE MEAT and is made from plastic." Drats, and I was really hoping to taste some of those repulsive looking ground-dwellers too. To get a sense of how disgustingly fantastic this event invite was, here's a picture of the reverse side of the bag:

Appetizing indeed.

Fast forward to the weekend and Microsoft held the event at The Hoxton, a sprawling pub venue located on King West. Hundreds of eager gamers lined-up for their chance to play "the most anticipated game of the year" according to Microsoft (and they could be right...unless Modern Warfare 3 would like to dispute this). Inside the location the lights were turned way down and most were replaced with red bulbs giving the whole place an eerie gore-like feeling to it. Seemed appropriate enough considering the game is rated M for Mature and the back cover warns of "Blood and Gore" and "Intense Violence", but if you've played other Gears of War games you already have come to expect this.

Scattered around The Hoxton were a number of themed stations ranging from a tattoo table, where fans could get the Gears of War 3 logo, or the COG skull symbol spray painted onto their bodies. There was also a meat carving station dishing up Locust meat pitas (so I guess I did end up eating Locust meat!) which were wrapped in Gears of War 3 promo material, a "Lancer" carving professional who used a chainsaw to carve out a fresh COG from a large block of wood, and a green screen area where fans could hold authentic lancers and superimpose themselves into the game.

Naturally, there were plenty of gaming stations around the room where fans could play some Team Deathmatch, or check out what Gears of War 3 looks like in 3D thanks to a station set-up by LG. In the four hours I was at the event there wasn't a single moment where any of the game stations were vacant, showing just how popular this franchise is, and how eager fans are to get their hands on it.

All in all, a really successful event. Congrats to Microsoft Canada for pulling off what could easily be described at the best gaming launch event of the year. Well done, and game on!

As a special treat, check out some of my event photos below:













[This article originally appeared on the Future Shop Tech Blog]
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Nintendo Confirms 3DS Expansion Slide Pad For Japan

By Paul Hunter

In what has to be Nintendo acknowledging that their 3DS should have had dual-analog nubs from the get-go, the company has announced an expansion Slide Pad attachment just six months into the portable gaming system's lifespan. The expansion fits around the Nintendo 3DS system giving it an additional analog nub on the right side, along with three additional shoulder buttons. Named the "3DS Expansion Slide Pad", the peripheral is expected to hit Japan stores on December 10 and will cost ¥1500 ($19.50).

Given that dual-analog sticks have been the industry norm since the PS1, at least on the home console side, it was rather curious that Nintendo only included a left analog nub when their 3DS system launched this past March. Sony experienced first-hand with their PSP what happens when they include just a single analog nub -- tremendous fan outcry -- and have since added a second analog nub to their upcoming PS Vita next generation portable.

Let's be honest, the Expansion Slide Pad is aesthetically atrocious. It looks bulky, clunky, and gives the rather eloquent 3DS device an uneven look to it. However, looks aside, what really matters is how does it feel, and most hands-on reports have been positive (example -- see IGN editor Richard George's impressions here). Nintendo is holding their cards tight and is currently showcasing the attachment, but no games compatible with the attachment are playable at time of writing.

As mentioned above, the expansion adds three shoulder buttons, an L2, R1, and R2, and utilizes the Nintendo 3DS' existing L1 button. Since the add-on extends out the right, it covers the existing R1 button on the Nintendo 3DS, and adds two new shoulder buttons above the right anaolg stick.

The expansion acts a cradle for the Nintendo 3DS, effectively increasing the size and making it less "portable" overall, which could deter some gamers. You have to wonder if Nintendo is already planning a new, sleeker version of the Nintendo 3DS with the dual-analog sticks and four shoulder buttons built-in.

Rumours of the attachment circulated last month when French gaming website 01net reported about the existence of a new 3DS that would incorporate a right analog stick. Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu confirmed the 3DS add-on earlier this month, and Capcom's Monster Hunter 3G was the first game said to be compatible. Since then, more game have been confirmed to be compatible including Biohazard Revelations (Resident Evil: Revelations outside of Japan), Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D, Ace Combat 3D: Cross Rumble, Dynasty Warriors VS, and Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.

Given that the 3D capabilities of their new handheld has yet to drive large consumer demand you have to wonder if Nintendo is shifting its attention toward dual-analog controls, and effectively beating the PS Vita to the market.

Nintendo has yet to announce whether the 3DS Expansion Slide Pad will come to North American shores.

[This article originally appeared on the Future Shop Tech Blog]
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Review: Hobo With a Shotgun

By Paul Hunter

Look out Hope Town, there's a new Hobo on the streets and he's out to seek justice one shell at a time. To call Hobo With a Shotgun a gorefest would be like calling Evil Dead a Sunday picnic. Yet beneath the gratuitous violence there's a moving story about corruption and exploitation that makes this film much more than just another blood-soaked grindhouse flick.

The Dartmouth, Nova Scotia-born Director Jason Eisener was given a chance of lifetime with Hobo after his faux trailer was picked by Quentin Tarintino and Robert Rodriguez as the winner of their Grindhouse trailer competition. The original trailer (see on YouTube here) quickly became a cult phenomenon that garnered hundreds of thousands of fan views and was eventually picked up by Alliance Films for nation-wide release in Canada.

From two minute trailer to an full-on 86 minute feature length film, Hobo With a Shotgun is one of those films that has cult status potential much like The Warriors achieved back in the early 80's. The movie stars horror film legend Rutger Hauer (The Hitcher, Blade Runner) as the eponymous hobo vigilante who takes a train to Hope Town (with has spray paint over the city sign reading Scum Town) to fulfill his dream of buying a lawnmower to open up his own landscaping business. What he finds is a town full of the worst corruption imaginable, crime is rampant, sexual predators roam free, and the drug and sex trades fuel the local economy. After watching the sadistic capitalist named Drake (Brian Downey) and his stooge sons Slick (Gregory Smith) and Ivan (Nick Bateman) behead an uncooperative citizen openly on a residential street, our homeless hero decides to take the law into his own hands. Instead of buying his dream lawmower, the Hobo decides to purchase a shotgun and make these degenerate terrorizers pay.

What ensues is a bloodbath of bodies exploding and heads rolling as the Hobo systematically starts at the bottom ridding the streets of lowly thugs, exploitative filmmakers, and perverted pedophiles. Along the way our Hobo meets up with a prostitute named Abby (Molly Dunsworth) who provides him with shelter and warmth away from the streets and the armed citizens that have been persuaded, rather underhandedly, to locate and murder him. Eventually the Hobo sets his target on a particular sex offending police officer before aiming the barrels of his shotgun on Drake and his heinous empire.

If all this seems a little over-the-top, you're absolutely right. Some of the scenes are a bit to take in, and can be downright shocking to watch. Whether or not it's too much is really going to be the determining factor of your enjoyment of this film. If you can stomach the blood and guts what you'll find is an entertaining film filled with deep, moral questions and unquestionably memorable scenes. The dialogue in the film is surprisingly funny, with each scene having some very memorable one-liners (usually highly offensive too) such as "You and me are going on a car ride to hell, and you're riding shotgun!" What's great about this movie is that every scene seems so well thought out and distinct, usually involving Hauer blasting away an evildoer such as a pimp or a pedophile in a comedic manner, it would be near impossible for this film to not to become a grindhouse classic.

Not only is this a superb film, but there are extras galore. For starters, there's a special Shotgun mode contained on disc one featuring commentary with Jason Eisner (Director), John Davies (Writer), Rob Cotterill (Producer) and David Brunt (Grindhouse Trailer "Hobo"). With this mode enabled, as the film plays a shotgun icon appears on screen and if you press Enter on your DVD remote a behind-the-scenes look at how that particular scene was produced will begin.

On disc two there a documentary called "More Blood, More Heart" that presents the making-of and contains acting spotlights of each character ranging from Rutger as the Hobo, Dunsworth as Abby the prostitute, the evil brothers Nick Bateman (Ivan) & Gregory Smith (Slick), and more. This piece also has an interesting look at David Brunt, the original Hobo on the Grindhouse trailer, and how they selected Rutger Hauer to replace him for the feature film. There are also Deleted Scenes, a short Alternate Ending, Video Blogs, a Camera Test Reel, Fangoria interviews with Rutger and Eisener, the original Grindhouse trailer, and the Canadian/US theatrical trailers. That's an awful lot of additional bonus content and if you enjoy the film you'll have hours of bonus content to root through.

This is going to be a really polarizing film and you're either going to love it or hate it. If you enjoy 80's grindhous-style movies in the same vein as Rodriguez's Planet Terror or Tarantino's Death Proof then you'll enjoy this film immensely. After watching this film it'll be forever etched into your memory, which could be a good thing or a bad thing depending on how much gore you can stomach. One thing is certain though, taken for what it is Hobo is awesome, and it's lasting appeal is without question.

[This article originally appeared on the Future Shop Tech Blog]
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Review: Red Riding Hood

By Paul Hunter

The tale of Red Riding Hood has endured for centuries thanks to its compelling story filled with rich imagery, supernatural lore, and its underlying themes that strikes a resonating chord with the coming-of-age crowd and adults alike. Numerous college lectures, thesis papers and books have attempted to analyze the so-called subliminal theme of sexual awakening buried within the subtext of the fairy tale, and it's this very theme that director Catherine Hardwicke seems to have latched onto when creating her modern day adaptation of the classic tale.

Aside from the flowing red cape that adorns our young and naive Valerie (played by Amanda Seyfried) who plays the leading role in the film, there's nothing in the film that even remotely resembles the classic fairy tale and in fact you'll probably only remember it's derived from Red Riding Hood source material because the hood is so blatantly crimson red against the drab medieval setting. Even the wolf, apparently not cool enough to be a real wolf, has been changed to a ferocious werewolf that has the ability to morph into human-form during sunlight hours and even has limited telepathic powers. Even on its own, the story of Red Riding Hood is a constantly changing target which never seems to settle into a consistent tone, dipping into gothic horror during some moments, then into a Twilight-esque teenage heartthrob flick the next.

The plot is about as cheesy as it gets, which has our wide-eyed Valerie betrothed to the gorgeous young blacksmith Henry (played by Max Irons) from the wealthiest family in town, yet she is madly in love with the poor woodcutter Peter (played by Shiloh Fernandez) whom she's loved her entire life. Not wanting to proceed with the marriage arranged by her parents, she plots to run away from Daggerhorn (that's really the name of the village) with Peter, only to have her plan stymied by the big bad werewolf. What results is a teenage love circle that could easily be an episode of Jersey Shore, mixed with hand-me-down sets that look like they were borrowed from the Twilight series.

While the dialogue as a whole rarely seems to advance beyond campfire chatter, once Father Solomon (played by Gary Oldman) arrives with his plan to destroy the wolf, his commanding voice delivers some memorable speeches. As a whole, the only two characters worth their weight in gold are Oldman and Seyfriend, and the pair carry the entire weight of the film on their shoulders. The handsome gents vying for Valerie's hand feel like deadweights that are only present to sexualize the film with unnecessary masculine tension that never seems to rise above artificial and campy.

Technically, Red Riding Hood comes to Blu-ray mixed in 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, and is presented in 2.40:1/1080p/AVC.  This encoding is quite bold, delivering some vibrant reds and warm amber hues mixed with deep blacks and crisp whites, all without much distortion. For the most part, the enclosed village of Daggerhorn fits its medieval setting with it's bleak textures further sullied with a light camera haze that reduces the depth, amplifying the feeling of claustrophobia. On the audio side the movie fairs even better with booming bass sounds and thumping medieval rave sequences created by Alex Heffes and Brian Reitzell. Sound effects really deliver as well, with snarling wolf sounds, crackling campfire flames and fierce battle sounds enhancing the overall mood.

Extras include picture-in-picture commentary with Catherine Hardwicke and cast and crew, casting and rehearsal tapes, gag reel and deleted scenes, as well as an "alternate cut" that's used as a main selling feature but really only amounts to about an extra minute of footage. Overall, most of the bonus features are forgettable, aside from perhaps the "Making of the Score" which is an interesting look at the recording of the film's soundtrack, and "Before the Fur...Making the CGI Wolf" which shows how they created the furry villain.

Had Catherine Hardwicke stuck closer to the source material perhaps there might have been more suspense and wonderment behind the film. What we have here though is a convoluted gushy love mess that never quite picks up traction nor drags you in. Amanda Seyfried and Gary Oldman deliver powerful performances which almost make this movie worth watching, but alas they're both dragged down by a sludge of haphazard writing and mediocre supporting roles. The entire experience looks greats, and sounds even better, but it's really hard to appreciate the artistic elements of the film when there's not enough substance to keep your attention hooked.

[This article originally appeared on the Future Shop Tech Blog]
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Future Shop Hosting Midnight Openings For Batman Arkham City

By Paul Hunter

To celebrate tonight's launch of Batman: Arkham City for Xbox 360 and PS3, Future Shop is hosting midnight openings at select locations across the country.

The first purchasers of the game will receive a Future Shop exclusive DLC of the Dark Knight costume designed by comic-book icon, Frank Miller. These same fans will also qualify to receive a complimentary copy of Batman Begins on Blu-ray ($22 value) and a $10 credit towards Ubisoft's upcoming Assassin's Creed Revelations (available November 15).

Additional midnight opening and day one offers include branded Batman: Arkham City merchandise of posters, t-shirts, keychains and music download cards.

To see if your local store is having a midnight opening, check out the Future Shop event page: www.futureshop.ca/arkhamcity


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