Speakers Announced for 2012 Ottawa Game Conference

Speakers from Adobe, Capcom, Eidos, FourSquare, Konami, Microsoft, Ubisoft and more will present key trends in a variety of fields

OTTAWA, May 2, 2012 /CNW/ - The First Annual Ottawa Game Conference (OGC), to be held at the Ottawa Convention Centre on May 29, 2012, today announces its speaker lineup, including keynotes from Gabe Zichermann, author and gamification expert, and Jason Della Rocca, founder of Perimeter Partners and former Executive Director of the International Game Developers Association.

Combining speakers from Ottawa firms and developers around the world, the conferences' business and content tracks will explore a variety of topics in gaming trends, including social game design, location-based gaming, vehicle-embedded gaming, multi-screen experience design, web, console, PC, mobile and more.

Designed to foster growth of the game development industry in Ottawa, the initiative was founded by Magmic, Fuel, Playbrains and SnowedIn Studios with financial support from the Ontario Media Development Corporation, Royal Bank of Canada, Labarge Weinstein Law Firm and Carleton University.

Additional participation and support has come from Victory Arts, Invest Ottawa, Export Development Canada, Algonquin College, the Ottawa Chapter of the International Game Developers Association, KnowMads Inc. and Generator.

Speakers include:

• Jeff Bacon, Director or Mobile Strategy, bitHeads
• Mike Burns, CEO, Fuel Industries
• John Criswick, CEO, Magmic
• Tony Davidson, Professor, Game Development, Algonquin College
• Jason Della Roca, Founder, Perimeter Partners
• Sudhir Didee, Group Product Manager, Microsoft
• Josh Garellek, CEO, Arctic Empire
• Phil Giroux, Director, Mobile Practice, Lixar
• Phil Glofcheskie, Creative Director, Fuel Industries
• Zack Karlsson - Vice President, Business Development and Digital Platforms, Capcom
• Dominic Laberge, Computer Systems Analyst, Microsoft
• Gabriel Leblanc, AI Programmer, Eidos
• Frederic Lilegren, CEO, Antic Entertainment
• David Nicholson, Co-Founder, MyMusic, Inc.
• Pete Nofelt, Senior Software Engineer, FourSquare
• Joshua Ostrowalker, CTO, Magmic
• Kris Piotrowski, Creative Director, Capybara Games
• Patrick Plourde, Editorial Game Design, Ubisoft
• Scott Simpson, CEO, bitHeads/PlayBrains
• Gavriel State, Founder & CTO, TransGaming
• Jean-Sylvain Sormany, President, Snowed in Studios
• Jon Walsh, CEO, Fuse Powered
• Careen Yapp, VP, Licensing & Business Development, Konami
• Gabe Zichermann, Author Game-Based Marketing

The day also includes an industry tutorial hosted by the Entertainment Software Association of Canada.

Registration, which includes catered lunch and an after party, is $175 until May 22, and $95 for students. Attendees can learn more and buy tickets at www.ottawagameconference.com.

About the Ottawa Game Conference:
The Ottawa Game Conference is designed to showcase global industry advances and serve as a forum for strengthening the development industry in the Ottawa area. The event is organized by a consortium of Ottawa game developers and business organizations, led by Magmic, Fuel Industries, bitHeads and Snowed in Studios.

Image with caption: "Ottawa game development firms collaborate on 1st Annual Ottawa Game Conference (CNW Group/Ottawa Game Conference)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120502_C3514_PHOTO_EN_13040.jpg

Sean MacPhedran
Director, Creative Strategy
Fuel Industries
[phone]
[email protected]