XMG announces the Great Canadian Appathon(4) is Back to Hack

A call for up-and-coming game makers across Canada to develop a mobile game within 48 hours over the weekend of January 17^th and win over $35,000 in cash prizes

TORONTO, Dec. 20, 2013 /CNW/ - Once more, award winning mobile games studio XMG is challenging students from coast-to-coast to test their talent and carry on the legacy that is the Great Canadian Appathon (GCA): a crazy, intense and exhaustingly wonderful hackathon to design the next hit mobile game in just 48 hours. From January 17^th to January 19^th Canadian college and university students will race against the clock and take their chance at winning a $25,000 grand prize, $5,000 runner-up prize and numerous category prizes. In addition, the top 15 teams of the GCA⁴ will receive a VIP ticket to participate in Canada's first national open data hackathon, the Canadian Open Data Experience (CODE), which includes a seat in the invite-only CODE hacker-hub in Toronto as well as travel and accommodation.

"We are proud to announce that going into its fourth year, the GCA remains not only the largest and most national appathon in Canada, but it is also the first and only hackathon to be officially sponsored in part by the Canadian Government," says Ray Sharma, President and Founder of XMG Studio Inc. "But this is by far not the only new and exciting change: McDonald's has stepped up and will help feed the hungry hoards of hackers as the official food sponsor and we're bringing in the art schools in a way that has never been done before. We have built a custom tool that allows, for example, a developer from the University of Ottawa to link up with an artist from the Ontario College of Art & Design to collaborate!"

Taking a completely new approach to the creation of teams and allowing students to connect and find each other across the boarders of different fields of study, schools and provinces, the GCA⁴ has kicked expectations for national hackathons up a notch. The specially developed matchmaking tool in the sign-in section of the GCA⁴ website allows anyone to find the team members needed to take an idea from concept to completion.

"This means everyone has the chance to bring together an ultimate team of programmers, artists and designers and truly opens up the competition to everyone - regardless of digital prowess," says Steve Engels, Senior Lecturer, Dept. of Computer Science at the University of Toronto, one of the designated GCA⁴ HUBs. "The results of this effort will be better-balanced teams and thereby higher quality submissions."

Like the Great Canadian Appathon³ - the largest competitive hackathon in Canada to date with over 500 participants - the GCA⁴ guarantees all who take part 48 hours of intense fun, the opportunity to learn all kinds of new code, and a chance to build a mobile game on their operating system of choice. Students can compete from any of the 20 physical GCA⁴ HUBs set up on campuses of selected Universities and Colleges, or participate virtually from their homes, schools or their local coffee shop. XMG will be sending its talented designers and developers to selected HUBs to motivate and mentor the teams. All others can rely on a 48-hour support line for questions and advice on how to work with the latest interfaces.

The GCA⁴ will start at 5 p.m. (local time) on January 17^th, 2014 and continue for 48 hours, ending at 5p.m. on January 19^th, 2014. Following the event, the submitted 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 honoured on February 13^th 2014 in Toronto at the Grand Finale event where they will demo their games in front of a live audience and the GCA celebrity judges.

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.com.

About XMG Studio:
XMG Studio Inc. is an award-winning developer and publisher of mobile games. Founded in late 2009, XMG has developed a track record for innovation excellence in mobile gaming including the release of critically acclaimed games downloadable on your iOS, Android, and Windows Phone devices. Based in Toronto, XMG is one of the largest indie mobile game studios in Canada. Named as one of the top global mobile games developers to watch by popular media, XMG is focused on providing creative expression through gameplay for all fans of fun.

SOURCE: XMG Studio

Patti Mikula - XMG Studio Inc. - Email: Patti [at] xmg.com - [phone]