Video-game developer Longtail Studios sets up shop in Charlottetown With UPEI and Holland College offering training, company ready to hire developers
DAVE STEWART The Guardian
Maryanne Martin, a video game character designer with Longtail Studios in the Atlantic Technology Centre, displays some of her work for Development and Technology Minister Richard Brown, left, as Gerard Guillemot, president of Longtail, explains the process. Guardian photo by Heather Taweel
Video games are normally frowned upon in the classroom but they will soon become part of the curriculum at UPEI and Holland College.
A news conference was held at the Atlantic Technology Centre on Tuesday where the provincial government introduced Longtail Studios as the newest tenant.
Established in 2003 by president Gerard Guillemot, Longtail, co-founder of Ubisoft Entertainment, develops character-driven video games and content at its offices in New York City, Quebec City and now Charlottetown.
And, beginning in the 2008-09 semester year, UPEI and Holland College will offer a new training program. Specifically, the college plans to offer a two-year program in digital design.
“(Longtail) is the fifth company in the last two years (to set up a P.E.I. office) so we’re gearing up to fill the need,” said Professor David Leblanc, chair of UPEI’s computer science and information technology department.
Leblanc hopes publicity surrounding all the video-game developers will entice more students to enrol in the post-secondary training courses.
“We hope this will drive in more students when they see that these are good-paying jobs, that they’re fun to do and you get to stay on P.E.I.”
And what could be more fun than spending a year developing games like Myst and the Tom Clancy series for brand names such as Nintendo, DS, Wii, PC and the average cellphone.
Guillemot, who was in Charlottetown on Tuesday, said the objective is to have 25 video-game developers working out of the office in the Atlantic Technology Centre in its first year with an eye to hiring an additional 30 developers in each year thereafter.
“We’re looking for artists, programmers and game designers,” Guillemot said.
The games they design are intended for a family audience, not just the core gamer.
Richard Brown, minister of Development and Technology, calls it the new wave of technology.
“We’re on it and we’re going to ride it,” Brown said. “The evolution of the computer industry has gone from business models, making business programs, financial packages and payrolls (into) gaming programming and that’s where the future is going.”
Brown said the province offers an incentive package which is competitive with other provinces and states.
“We have offered incentives, we have offered the technology centre, we have also offered a training program at (UPEI and Holland College) . . . that’s one of the reasons why we were able to attract the company.”
The minister said having the two post-secondary institutions offer training programs goes a long way to keeping bright minds on
P.E.I.
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Quill from Halifax, NS writes: Good for P.E.I.! And to think in the 80's, when I was in school, my teachers told me that nothing good would ever come from video games...
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This looks like work for someone's basement from all appearances...ATC is, not being fully utilized! writes: Great for the jobs, great for teh experience, great for PEI.
But something tells me this work could be done in someone's basement, not the high priced ATC ?
Perhaps one day this pricy structure will realize it's full potential...then again maybe not.
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In the Know from PEI writes: You are obviously unaware of how high profile some of these video game companies are. A business that has daily contact and regular meetings with such companies as microsoft and sony can't operate out of a basement. I'm quite certain to say they wouldn't get many contracts if that was the case. What type of companies are supposed to go in the ATC? Cookie cutter call centres? The ATC and citizens of Charlottetown should be happy that companies such as Longtail want to come to PEI at all.
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the shoe's on the other foot from charlottetown, pe writes: Richard Brown seems much more bullish on the ATC now that he's the minister in charge of it. He used to dump all over the government's incentive packages until he started getting his picture in the paper for handing them out.
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Didn't Mircosoft start in Bill Gates 'garage' ? from whay I read and hear the, IT startups are low frill writes: If Microsoft can start in Bill Gates' garage why can't you create game animation in one's basement?
Sony or microsoft would understand...and they wouldn't know the difference during a telephone conversation from Seattle or Japan.
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Think you you want from PEI writes: Most of these companies are far from start ups. I'm guessing you're not in the industry.
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