Telefilm Canada, in partnership with Arcadia Festival, is giving the nation’s gaming enthusiasts the opportunity to vote on their favourite game project among the four finalists of the Great Canadian Video Game Competition.

The top vote-getter among the four finalists will win the “People’s Choice Award.” The online vote will be hosted by the website of Arcadia Festival, namesake of Canada’s top gaming enthusiast consumer tradeshow. Voting for the People’s Choice Awards kicks off on July 9, and closes on September 21, 2007.

Voting will take place at Arcadia’s website, www.playarcadia.com, which also will feature new game trailers, profiles and background on the competition’s Round 2 finalists. Arcadia provides an exciting avenue for the Competition to connect with people who matter most – gamers.

“We’re excited to be working with Arcadia to broaden the appeal of the competition and for more Canadians, , to experience the creativity and excellence at work in Canada’s game development community,” says Wayne Clarkson, Telefilm Canada’s Executive Director.

“Arcadia is very happy to be associated to the Peoples Choice Award” says François Décarie, President of Arcadia Festival. “We truly believe that the video game industry needs to be recognized as much as the television and film industry. Involving the general public in the Great Video Game Contest is just one of many steps that Arcadia has engaged itself in promoting video games as a true interactive entertainment medium. We wish the best to the four finalists and the ultimate winner of this competition will by no doubt, be the Canadian industry.”

The People’s Choice Awards will run parallel to the Great Canadian Video Game Competition. However, results have no bearing on the selection of the Competition’s formal winner. The competition jury will not be aware of voter results in deliberating the lone winner to achieve Round 3 status, and receive up to $500,000 in matching funds from Telefilm to support the commercialization of its game.

The People’s Choice Awards and Great Canadian Video Competition winners will be announced in Vancouver at the Vancouver International Digital Festival (VIDFEST) in September 2007. People will be able to choose from among the Final Four game project from companies, including:

• Big Blue Bubble, London, Ontario, Hobby Shop, console;
• Cerebral Vortex Games, St. Catharines, Ontario, Ambush! Trivia, PC/Mobile/Xbox Live Arcade;
• MindHabits Inc., Montreal, Quebec, MindHabits Trainer, handheld; and
• Hothead Games Inc., Vancouver, B.C., SWARM!, PC.

The Arcadia Festival is an annual three-day event held in Montreal that draws video game enthusiasts, major video game publishers and developers from all over Canada and internationally. The Arcadia Festival, sponsored by Telefilm Canada, takes place Nov. 9-11, 2007.