XMG Studio and the National Post challenge Canadian students to create a mobile game over the weekend of September 30 and get their share of the $50,000 prize pool
Toronto, Ontario – September 23rd 2011 – Mobile game developer XMG Studio and the National Post are calling all Canadian college and university students to bring their game-ideas to life at Great Canadian Appathon2. Over the weekend of September 30 “HUBS”, where students can gather, will be set up at over 20 participating colleges and universities, across the country, to give student game developers and designers the chance to work around the clock and compete for $50,000 in prize money.
Similar to the Great Canadian Appathon, the largest ‘hackathon’ to be held in Canada, GCA2 guarantees participants 48 hours of intense fun, meeting new people, learning stuff, and building a game on top of the world’s leading mobile API’s. Some of the talented designers and developers from XMG will be on-site at the major universities’ “HUBS” to motivate and mentor the teams. All other coders can rely on a 48-hour support line for questions and advice on how to work with the latest interfaces.
“In addition to the street cred for winning the GCA2, we’re also awarding the front-runners with some serious, cold hard cash,” says Ray Sharma, founder and CEO of XMG Studio. “The team pumping out the best mobile game wins $25,000 and Unity Pro 3.x licenses for each of its members. We’ll also invite them for job interviews at our office in Toronto and work with them to polish their game and get it ready for publication in an App Store.”
The team whose game takes second place will be awarded $10,000, and another 10 winners will each be awarded with $1,000 for a variety of category prizes including “Best Windows Phone 7 Game” sponsored by Microsoft, “Best Technical Game Play” sponsored by Telus and “Best Power & Performance Game” sponsored by NOS Energy Drinks.
“The Great Canadian Appathon is a celebration of our country’s competitive spirit. You have to be extremely driven and dedicated to spend an entire weekend in virtual lock down building an app from scratch,” says Douglas Kelly, Publisher, National Post. “We will have journalists covering all facets of this compelling challenge for nationalpost.com. so that we ensure our young entrepreneurs get the coverage they deserve.”
The GCA2 will start at 5:00 p.m. (local time) on September 30, 2011 and continue for 48 hours, ending at 5:00 p.m. on October 2, 2011. Following the event, the winning games will be evaluated on criteria such as the degree of innovation, the fun and entertainment factor, the level of art and design polish as well as stability. The three finalists will be honored on November 2 in Toronto at the “Grand Finale” event, sponsored by KPMG, and will compete live in front of the panel of judges for the ‘game-changing’ grand prize of $25,000.00.
More information about the event including supported platforms, team registrations, rules and regulations, campuses already signed-on or information on how to get your campus involved, please visit www.greatcanadianappathon.ca or follow twitter.com/GCAppathon on Twitter.
About XMG Studio Inc
XMG Studio is an award-winning developer of hit video games for mobile devices. Founded in late 2009, XMG has been pushing the app envelope to create innovative titles that provide a cool experience for casual gamers. The company’s core focus is to develop properties that allow players to actively immerse themselves in our games. Whether it is the incredible customization feature in Drag Racer Pro Tuner, or the experimental touch mechanic in Cows vs. Aliens, XMG’s portfolio of mobile casual games all seek to drive the maximum in user engagement through innovation. Based in Toronto, Canada, XMG is presently one of the largest independent mobile game studios in the emerging app economy. For more information visit www.xmg.com, follow XMG on Twitter.com/xmgstudio or become a fan on facebook.com/xmgstudio.
About National Post
National Post is a division of Postmedia Network Inc., the largest publisher by circulation of paid English-language daily newspapers in Canada, representing some of the country’s oldest and best-known media brands. Reaching millions of Canadians every week, Postmedia Network engages readers and offers advertisers and marketers integrated solutions to effectively reach target audiences through a variety of print, online, digital, and mobile platforms.
About KPMG
KPMG LLP, a Canadian limited liability partnership established under the laws of Ontario, is the Canadian member firm affiliated with KPMG International, a global network of professional firms providing Audit, Tax, and Advisory services. Member firms operate in 150 countries and have more than 138,000 professionals working around the world. In Canada, KPMG has more than 4,000 professionals. KMPG Enterprise™ is a network of professionals devoted exclusively to helping private companies in Canada.