Are you interested in or thinking about entering the job market as a game developer? I recently attended the Academic Days on Game Development in Computer Science Education Conference which provided some interesting facts. At the conference, Electronic Arts , Blizzard , Bungie and Garage Games revealed the specific knowledge set and skills they look out for in candidates when hiring new game developers. You can refer to their informative slides by clicking on the links below: Electronic Arts Blizzard

We ran the first Game Camp in November 2006 - it was great to see the number of people show up and the excitement you demonstrated towards XNA and the XNA Game Studio Express . In fact, the event was such a hit that our developer and student communities were soon asking us how to run their own Game Camps! So we followed the idea to it's logical conclusion. Enter the Develop Mental Institute website ! At the Develop Mental Institute , gamers can find out how to become Game Camp leaders. Once you have

Here is a video of Mike, a 3D modeling artist attending the Ottawa Game Camp. In this video, Mike gives his views on some of the 3D frameworks and technologies out there and how XNA measures up. Video: Game Camp Ottawa 2007 - Mike The 3D Artist If you have designed an XNA game, or you are in the process of designing a game on XNA, let us know! We would love to do a podcast or videocast and feature you on the MSDN website. Use the blog email feature on the top of the page to send us a note - we would

Last Saturday, Carleton University hosted a Game Camp for students and faculty. The theme of the Game Camp was XNA and Game Studio Express. Christian Beauclair gave an in-depth presentation on how to create a pong game from scratch. We also took a look at the Creator's Club, games being developed by the community and Torque X. During the event, I got the opportunity to chat with Daniel Deschamps. He is a bright CS student who has developed a game of Asteroids in C++ which works on multiple platform

If you are interested in XNA or game development, you won't want to miss this! It's a global gaming competition - check out the website at: http://www.dreambuildplay.com . As with XNA Game Studio Express, we're going to break from convention and look to do a few different things with Dream.Build.Play. This contest is about you - you the members of our XNA community and an opportunity to put gaming consumers in the spotlight as creators of compelling gaming entertainment. We're about done lining everything

Here is a video direct from the Game Camp at the University of Waterloo that took place on January 19th, 2007. Neville Samuell demonstrates his XNA game "Super Paddle Ball 2" - he wrote the game in 6 hours (after attending the original Game Camp in Toronto). Video: Game Camp Waterloo 2007 - Neville Samuell