No, that’s not a typo. Welcome to the Weekly Warp-Up, your weekly wrap-up of the biggest and the best articles posted at Warp Zoned this week…
After a few months of teasing, Nintendo has officially unleashed the Switch on the world. The console/handheld hybrid seems to have had a successful launch, and the company is prepping fans for a second wave of titles with a new Nintendo Direct that confirmed more than 60 “Nindies” are in development for the machine, including SteamWorld Dig 2, Runner 3, Yooka-Laylee, and more. Capcom also announced that Ultra Street Fighter II will be released for the Switch on May 26.
Microsoft will attempt to compete with Nintendo’s latest console (and Sony, of course) with the launch of the Xbox Game Pass subscription service this Spring. This kind of “all-you-can-eat” download service has never been tried on a console before, and it should be very interesting to see how gamers react to it.
With all this talk about new games and new consoles, let’s not forget the Video Game History Foundation was founded to create a digital record of the industry’s past.
Elsewhere on Warp Zoned this week, we reviewed Double Dragon IV, and the staff got together to discuss What We Played in February and The Games of March.
Andrew Rainnie, UK Correspondent extraordinaire, sat down with the owner of Super Bario, the owner of Glasgow’s first arcade bar, for a conversation about Joysticks, Pints, and Kickstarter. And finally, the Scientifically Proven Best Video Games of All Time rolls on with #3, Super Mario 64, and a look at the launch of the Nintendo 64.
Everything comes full circle, and the rest of the of the news from this past week can be found after the break.
New Game Announcements
- THQ Nordic will bring De Blob, Sine Mora EX, SpellForce 3, and more to PAX East 2017.
- Ubisoft is developing another game based on James Cameron’s Avatar.
- A Nintendo Switch launch for Rive was officially announced, and it’s coming this year.
- Middle-Earth: Shadow of War will be available for the PC and Xbox One as an Xbox Play Anywhere title, as well as for the PS4, on August 22
Pre-Launch Updates and Release Date Announcements
- NetherRealm added some magic to Injustice 2 with the addition of Doctor Fate to the game’s roster.
- The biggest Beta in Ubisoft’s history belongs to Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands.
- Microsoft brought a bunch of upcoming ID@Xbox games to GDC 2017.
- Prepare your wallet… Middle-Earth: Shadow of War is getting a spceial Mithril Edition (Price: $300) at GameStop.
Other Game News
- The “12 In 1” Retro Freak console launched exclusively throughout Europe.
- Shantae: Half-Genie Hero‘s next update will add Hard Core Mode, PS TV support, and more on March 6.
- Overwatch was named “Game of the Year” at the 2017 GDC Awards
- Quadrilateral Cowboy won the “Seumas McNally Grand Prize” at the 2017 IGF Awards.
- Osira, a robotic Tank, will be the next character added to Overwatch.
- Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare’s Sabotage DLC Pack launched for the PC and Xbox One on March 2.
New Videos
- SteamWorld Dig 2 – “Announcement Trailer”
- Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition – “Story Trailer”
- Horizon: Zero Dawn – “Launch Trailer”
Rumor Has It
- Digital Eclipse is working on another “Legacy Collection” for Capcom.
Etcetera
- Sleeping Dogs lives on in an upcoming film adaptation that’ll star Donnie Yen.
- Peter Moore left Electronic Arts to run Liverpool FC, a soccer team in the United Kingdom.
New Release Round-Up
- Retail Releases: Nintendo Switch, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Horizon: Zero Dawn, more
- Nintendo Download: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment, Super Bomberman R, more
- PlayStation Store: Horizon: Zero Dawn, Torment: Tides of Numenera, Suikoden IV, more
- Xbox Games Store (Wednesday): Torment: Tides of Numenera, A King’s Tale: Final Fantasy XV, Ghost Blade HD
- Xbox Games Store (Friday): Metal Slug, Nam-1975, Eekeemoo, Bloons TD 5
- Next Week’s Retail Releases: Nier: Automata, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands, Lego Worlds, more
