GAMETIME: Sask. game developers seek testers to help 'make the best games we can'

SASKATOON -

Saskatchewan video game developers are looking for volunteers to help test some projects still in production.

Kai Hutchence with SaskGameDev, a community organization dedicated to promoting, enhancing and growing the game development industry in Saskatchewan, says testers are needed for about a dozen games, from action games to puzzles.

“To really make the best games we can, we need people to play test them. To get hands on with the games in development and give us some feedback, whether that’s finding bugs, talking about the story or the art or the characters. Just helping us be the best creators we can be by giving us some feedback”.

Hutchence says those who sign up for a membership with SaskGameDev get information via a monthly newsletter on games needing testing.

“A few hours of effort and you can really help out some of the game developers here in Saskatchewan,” Hutchence says.

“We’ve got a lot of great products in development, and if they can just get that last little bit of polish from people helping out and getting involved and giving us their thoughts, it will be great for the industry here.”

NEW SWITCH HARD TO FIND

Canadians looking to pre-order the new Nintendo OLED Switch are not having a lot of luck.

Most major retailers in Canada have not gone live with pre-orders, as opposed to the U.S. where people began pre-ordering the new console on July 15.

Walmart Canada posted a message to Twitter saying the company would have more details about pre-order opportunities in the future.

Best Buy told CTV News the product is listed on its website and they hope to begin pre-orders in the coming weeks with the approval of Nintendo.

As of Tuesday night, the website for The Source says the OLED Nintendo switch is coming soon. The console doesn’t appear to be listed on the EB Games Canada website.

Aside from pre-orders, the new Switch console is scheduled to be released Oct. 8 for $449.

Consoles have been hard to come by over the last year, with many having trouble getting their hands on a PlayStation 5 or Xbox series S/X.

The new Switch features a seven-inch OLED display along with a dock which includes an Ethernet port, 64 GB of storage space and enhanced audio.

Nintendo has also quelled rumors about a potential Nintendo Switch Pro being released in the future.

WA-HOO!

Remember that Super Mario 64 game you got for Christmas back in 1996? Well, some people might be wishing they never opened their gift.

A pristine factory sealed copy of Super Mario 64 just set a record, selling for $1.56 million at a video game auction.

Heritage Auctions says it became the first videogame ever sold for more than $1 million, topping the previous record of set by a sale of a Legend of Zelda game, also in top condition, which went for $870,000 just days before.

"To break the world record for the most ever paid for a video game at auction, not once, but twice in our first video games auction exceeded my wildest expectations," Heritage Auctions video games specialist Valarie McLeckie said.

The standalone video game auction brought in a total of more than $8.4 million in sales.

Other top selling Mario games included a mint condition copy of Super Mario Bros. for $228,000 and a Super Mario Bros. 3 game which netted $120,000