We believe in a world where all gamers can be united under one flag where communication is open, fun is palpable and friendships are forged. We thrive in the understanding that the joy of gaming is universal and a sociable, culture blurring movement. We at the Canadian Online Gamers Network (COGN) proudly help build and guide that movement. Together we are positivity and responsibility.
We call this concept Game Canadian. Canadians take an immense sense of pride in being approachable, intelligent, friendly, hospitable and open-minded. We aim to project these qualities to the gaming public without being attached to brand specific gaming console hardware. Not only does COGN feature a full suite of editorial content including up-to-date gaming news and reviews, we marry content and community in exciting ways that allow members to get involved.
Who are we you ask?
Kirby Yablonski (The Outcast) – Co-Founder & Editor in Chief. A graduate of Simon Fraser University with twelve years experience, Kirby is responsible for editing content from other writers, posting news, as well as writing his own reviews and previews. Kirby also originates and maintains relationships with publishers, developers, and PR reps in the video game industry and takes pride in those relationships he has developed. He is also the recipient of the 2012 Microsoft MVP Award and was a judge for the 2012 Canadian Video Game Awards.
Trevor Houston (MRBIGCAT) – Co-Founder and Executive Editor. Trevor has been writing in the video game industry since 2006. Trevor has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of the Fraser Valley. Trevor is responsible for posting news, writing previews, uploading videos, as well as writing reviews and previews exclusively for Canadian Online Gamers. Trevor also edits reviews, mentors new writers, social networks, frequently attends video game events and has excellent relationships with many Publishers and PR firms.
Shad Forsyth (Fifty) – Co-Founder & Community Manager. Previous to COG, Shad contributed game reviews to various sites since 2004. A graduate of the Sauder School of Business at the University of BC in 2009, Shad’s experience in leading online communities shaped the Game Canadian concept around which COG is developed.
Frank Naresh (Alucardblack) – Associate Editor. Frank has been writing game reviews since about 2001. Frank contributes to COG in such that his focus is on RPG’s and action games. He attends preview events when able too and writes reviews on whatever games are assigned to him.
Henry Kokuryo (Ippon) - Contributor. Henry has only been writing reviews since late 2011 but has been playing video games since he was 8 starting with the original NES and then on to PC games. Henry’s platforms of choice are the Wii, the 3DS and the PS3 with particular interests in RPG, action and fighting games. His other interests include personal fitness and health, comic books, and martial arts.
Jennifer Dingle (xxGENEVIEVExx) – Contributor. Single parent, office manager, social media enthusiast, and a newbie runner, Jen balances a busy lifestyle and a hard core gaming addiction. While the Xbox 360 is her platform of choice, she can often be found sneaking in a game on her Vita, or on her PC questing in an MMO. New to the site, she looks forward to sharing her passion for gaming and getting to know the Canadian Online Gamer community.
John Elliott (JohnnyXeo) – Contributor. John began writing reviews in 2008 and is actively involved in Canadian Online Gamers as a “Community Leader”. He does review other titles that are dear to his heart though, which may be more adult oriented, but in the end he has an interest in Family games as he has two kids that play games just as much as him.
Paul Sullivan (Paulhammer) - Contributor. An active and valuable member of our community since its inception, Paul joined our review team in 2011. As a youngster, a desire to read the dialogue in Final Fantasy and The Legend of Zelda actually drove Paul to learn to read and he’s been gaming ever since. Paul enjoys playing most genres, but particularly enjoy action, adventure, and RPGs. In the physical world, Paul holds a B.Sc in Kinesiology and is currently finishing a Registered Nurse program in Edmonton, AB.
Suzie Goodwin (Secret Squirrel) – Contributor. Also new to our staff, Suzie focuses primarily on 3DS, DS and Kinect titles. Suzie has been playing video games for the past 10-years and enjoys playing games on her spare time and with her family. Suzie considers herself a casual gamer and is always looking for fun family or party based games. Other interests include hockey, reading, travelling and spending time with her family.
We score our reviews using the following scale.
- 100: An Unparalleled Experience
- 90-99: Excellent
- 80-89: Very/Pretty Good
- 70-79: Good
- 60-69: Above Average
- 50-59: Average
- 40-49: Below Average
- 30-39: Passable
- 20-29: Flawed
- 10-19: Fundamentally Broken
- 0-9: A complete waste of time.
Our branding is born of the mind of commercial/gallery artist, designer, and art director Todd Lawson. We are very grateful for his contribution. For more information on Todd and his work visit www.toddlawson.com and www.minerthought.com. Our site was designed by 14-year veteran of the graphic design and marketing industry Shawn Johnston. Find out more about Shawn’s work at www.shawnjohnston.ca.
We are gamers. We are Canadians. We are connected.
