Planning For Disasters Using Video Game Technologies

A former Microsoft product planner, Mike Geersten, has built a business planning for and reacting to disasters based on the knowledge he employed while working on Microsoft Flight Simulator and train sims. With $1.5 million in angel investment Geersten has put together a team of 14 to develop and market his software called Depiction which helps model the effect of disasters on land mass. "Depiction can be used to plan for disasters ahead of time, but it's also useful for collecting and organizing data during a crisis. Citizens can e-mail reports from the field, and emergency workers can feed other data directly into the software to find alternative routes when downed power lines, flood waters or landslides block roads."

This Wired video discusses how Depiction can be used to examine the effect of rising seas on New York City and what might be done to preserve the city from these effects.

Gaming Gone Mainstream, Not Just For Teens Anymore

A study by market research company The NPD Group suggests that video games are not just for teenagers anymore. "We were surprised to find that the standard of the classic young male as a video game enthusiast has forever changed," said Matthew Tattle, spokesman for NPD's Canada Games group. "With the increasing adoption of a digitally based lifestyle by the majority of consumers, it was only a matter of time before we would see gaming become part of the mainstream." The study was based on a survey of 16,774 respondents in Canada between June 13 and 30. When considering all of the platforms, offline PC gamers, who played at least 10 hours a week and are the oldest of the segments with an average age of 40. CBC story here.

I guess I'd qualify as a casual gamer, I enjoy playing as much as the next guy but only play occasionally and haven't put in 10hrs a week in years. My game time is equally spent between PC and console.

Gold Farming Employs 1/2 Million In Developing Countries

A recent report says that there is a significant number of people earning a living in developing countries, 400,000 in China alone, that are making a living earning "in game" treasure and selling what they've accumulated to other players. "I initially became aware of gold farming through my own games-playing but assumed it was just a cottage industry," said Professor Richard Heeks from the University of Manchester who wrote the report. "In a way that is still true. It's just that instead of a few dozen cottages, there turn out to be tens of thousands." he said. With actual numbers difficult to come by Professor Heeks' work suggests that in 2008 it employs 400,000 people who earn an average of $145 per month making the global market worth about $500m. BBC story here.

UK Game Firms Losing Jobs To Canadian Counterparts

Lacking employees with the proper tool sets and a government will to succeed, the British video game industry is having a hard time these days. Industry lobby group "Games Up?" says that there are 81 video games degree courses at British universities, but only 4 are accredited by the government body which monitors such courses. David Braben, a spokesman for "Games Up?", says "95% of video gaming degrees are simply not fit for purpose. Without some sort of common standard, like Skillset accreditation, these degrees are a waste of time for all concerned." To complicate the matter the gaming industry in Canada is flourishing in part due to Canadian government support, vaulting Canada past the U.K. into third place amongst leading nations for games development. According to the BBC, thousands of jobs are now moving from Britain to Canada as the result.

US Video Game Sales Doing Well In '08

US sales of video game hardware and software are up 34 per cent over the same period last year hitting $1.33-billion in February. “With several marquee titles still to come in the front half of the year, the industry is poised to achieve another year of record-breaking sales despite difficult economic conditions,” NPD analyst Anita Frazier said in a statement. The Wii out paced both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, with February marking the second straight month that Sony beat Microsoft in console sales. Microsoft exec's are saying their stronger than expected holiday season has caused inventory shortages and that's affecting current numbers. “Our manufacturing team guesses five months out. They made their forecast and didn't have as high a forecast as they should have,” said Microsoft spokesman David Dennis. Globe and Mail story here.

Gamers see promise in writer's strike

There is an old saying that goes something like this... "it's an ill wind that doesn't blow someone some good" and the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences is feeling something like that with respect to the current writer's strike. According to the Globe and Mail, Joseph Olin, president of the Academy is quoted as saying "If you're a fan of network programming, maybe seeing another repeat of ‘Pushing Daisies' or ‘Cold Case' will inspire you to finish that level of ‘Ratchet and Clank Future' instead". The relationship between gamers and writers has been a bit rocky in the past, as The Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists both voted to strike against game publishers over compensation for voice talent, two years ago. "My hope is that people who are used to watching new programming on TV discover gaming as an entertainment alternative," says Dan Connors, CEO of Telltale Games. "Obviously, it will have to be a pretty prolonged strike for that to happen, but I think it's a definite possibility."

Video game companies coming to Prince Edward Island - job market to double

The CBC is announcing that the number of jobs in Prince Edward Island's fledgling video game industry is about to double to approximately 120 positions. This on the announcement of two new players into P.E.I.'s video game industry. The Province's higher education institutions are seeing the trends and will be pitching in by offering a new video game art and design program at Holland College starting this January. While the University of Prince Edward Island has already begun offering three courses this year, with a full degree in video game programming to be announced in the near future. "If we can do the training for them, then that helps them," said UPEI computer science department chair David LeBlanc. The companies include Longtail an independent game studio with ties to Ubisoft and an unnamed testing and quality assurance company.