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Each Tuesday in Download Code, Daniel Kaszor looks inside the business of video games with news, analysis and a peek at the week’s major releases.

In recent weeks, I have spent a lot of time talking about video game award shows, which might seem odd for an industry that isn’t known for glitzy galas and red carpet affairs.

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But here in Canada, video game awards are a big deal, simply because for a country with a relatively small population, we punch above our weight class when it comes to producing top tier video games.

With the announcement of the 2012 Canadian Video Game award nominees this week, it is now clearer than ever that the Canadian industry is world-class in a way mostly unseen in other entertainment industries, and is arguably only eclipsed by the United States and Japan in terms of industry cachet.

“Canada is absolutely the number three superpower when it comes to making video games and I wouldn’t be surprised if we make a bid for a higher spot over the next five years,” Victor Lucas, a co-founder of the Canadian Video Game awards, told me over email when I asked him about the awards and Canada’s place in the industry.