London, United Kingdom – A new game app for iPhones, iPads and Android devices called Clickety Dog should be a hit with dog lovers. It is the only game app to use real life dog training methods. You can play it for fun – or use it to improve your own training skills.
‘Clicker’ training is the modern technique that Ashleigh Butler used to train Pudsey for their winning act in Britain’s Got Talent. Trainers use a metal clicker to tell a dog – or other pet – when it’s done something right. In the Clickety Dog game, players teach their cartoon dog new skills and tricks in the same way. They can then enter on-screen agility tests and cross-country competitions. School your pet well, or you may lose it as it chases a squirrel or cat.
The game has a built-in clicker – or you can use your own if you are already using one to train your pet. The app will pick it up through the mic on your phone. The method of gameplay is unusual, in that the screen dog’s behaviour is initially random. Players progress by limiting the randomness to the point where the dog becomes increasingly controllable.
“We first had the idea for Clickety Dog when I was learning to train my own dog,” says the app’s publisher and dog coach Vicky Carne “We wanted to make a game that would delight games players while also being true to the real-life technique. Other trainers tell me it’s spot-on. And the feedback from dog lovers has been great.”
Note for Editors:
Clickety Dog is based on the psychological principle of positive reinforcement. Trainers focus on what the animal is getting right and reward it. Animal trainers discovered that using a marker helps communicate the exact action that earned the animal a reward. The marker is usually a sound, most commonly that made by a small metal clicker toy: thus ‘clicker training’. Lead by Steven Green of Greenius Ltd the Clickety Dog development team’s experience includes working with publishers Empire Interactive, Electronic Arts and THQ, developing a wide range of video games from Wargamer to Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends, and from Dance Party to Pop Star Guitar for the Wii. John Augar, who created the art and animations for Clickety Dog, has worked as an illustrator and animator for numerous TV and film productions.
Product Name: Clickety Dog
Available for iPhone, iPad, Android
Release Date: October 4th
Price: $1.99 (iPhone) others may vary – on offer until October 11th at 0.99 / 0.69.
Developers: Greenius Ltd Publisher: Mosaic 2 Ltd. Please note that Pudsey and Ashleigh Butler have no commercial or contractual relationship with Mosaic 2 Ltd or Clickety Dog.
Mosaic 2 Ltd was founded by entrepreneur Vicky Carne, who cut her business teeth by publishing computer games back in the days of the Commodore 64 and the Sinclair Spectrum. Her hits included game versions of The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, radio soap The Archers and TV political comedy Yes Minister. That was in the early 80s – and since then Vicky has launched and run a series of more serious online ventures. But now, 30 years on, she’s back in the games market – thanks to her dogs, Cory the Labradoodle and Chocky, an Affenpinscher. Copyright (C) 2012 Mosaic 2 Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.
