Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Silent Hill, Dragon Quest, Skyrim, and More Announced as Finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Has Another Big Night and Wins “Game of the Year” at the 2025-2026 DICE Awards
- 2025 GOTY Scoreboard: In Progress
- The Game Awards: All the Winners from 2003 to Today
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Racks Up Nine Wins, Including “Game of the Year”, at the 2025 Game Awards
Warp Zoned Presents
- Video Game Research Library
- We Pitched a Museum a 1993 Game Hint Line (And They Actually Said Yes) – Yarn Spinner (2026)
- The History Of The Word “Metroidvania” And How It Spread – A Critical Hit (2025)
- Creator of Hit Game Shovel Knight Is at a ‘Make or Break’ Moment – Bloomberg (2025)
- Shadow of the Colossus: An oral history – Design Room (2025)
- In 2005, games started rewiring our brains – The AV Club (2025)
Author: Andrew Rainnie
Microsoft announces new price for Kinect sensor in US
Microsoft has announced that the Xbox 360 Kinect sensor will now be available for the permanently reduced price of $109.99 in the US. The peripheral previously sold for $149.99. Latin America and Asia will also see a similar reduction, while Australia and New Zealand will have to wait until October 4th to receive their Kinect price drop.
The company, rather bizarelly, has decided to shun gamers in Japan and Europe by not offering them a similar price reduction. The announcement was presumably made to gear up the Kinect sensor for a Christmas war with Nintendo’s new Wii U system. But seeing as the price is just $10 shy of the magical $99, which the Kinect was available for at most retailers last holiday season, it seems like Microsoft missed their chance at causing a stir.
Nintendo Power will shut down this December
Living in an age of instantaneous and free information has brought with it an unparalleled level of enlightenment across the globe, but it does have a downside… and its victims… namely, the hard copy press. Yesterday, Nintendo announced that their long-running official magazine, Nintendo Power, would be hanging up its joypad with its December 2012 issue.
The house of Mario released the following statement concerning the magazine, which was originally published in-house by Nintendo before they gave the rights to Future Publishing’s US arm in 2007:
Nintendo can confirm that Future US will end the production of Nintendo Power magazine with the last issue slated for December 2012. For Nintendo Power subscription inquiries, please visit nintendopower.com/customerservice.
The demise of Nintendo Power comes only after a year after another high profile gaming magazine, GamePro, was forced to close after its new quarterly format was poorly received. And as we languish in our nostalgia of excitedly reading gaming magazines and adorning our walls with their posters, we wish the employees of Nintendo Power the best with whatever the future holds for them.
[Source: Kotaku]
Sony Japan Studio makes it Rain at Gamescom
When Sony registered several domain names related to “rain,” many assumed it had something to do with Quantic Dream’s Heavy Rain. Instead, the publisher revealed Rain at Gamescom, a new and beautiful title from Sony’s Japan Studio. In the trailer, we’re introduced to an invisible boy who can only be seen outside in the rain. When he wanders inside or under shelter, players can only see him via footprints or by objects that move as he touches him.
With a similar concept to Hudson Soft’s inspired, but clumsily executed, Wii title Lost in Shadow, Rain looks to be a PlayStation Network exclusive. While little other information was revealed, the trailer shows the protagonist being chased by other wet, ghostly figures. And during his flight, he appears to be looking for someone else, possibly a little girl.
Rain currently doesn’t have a release date, but Sony has promised more information will be revealed soon.
Posted in News, PS3
Tagged Gamescom 2012, Rain
Dante, Sackboy, Spike, Ratchet & Clank added to PlayStation All-Stars
News of Sony’s Smash Bros.-like PlayStation All-Stars: Battle Royale turned from a trickle into a pour over the weekend, as the company announced four new fighters at Germany’s Gamescom. Alongside previously announced combatants such as Kratos and Big Daddy, Sony revealed that Dante (from the Devil May Cry series), Spike (from Ape Escape), LittleBigPlanet‘s Sackboy, and the deadly double duo of Ratchet & Clank will be joining the fight.
If that were not enough to make even the staunchest critic salivate, a new stage was shown based on Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception. Labeled “Stowaway,” it takes place on the airplane Nathan hid in and ultimately crashed into the Arabian Desert. Players will not only have to contend with other fighters, but the constantly changing, shifting level as items come flying out of the plane.
I don’t know about you, reader, but I cannot wait to pummel Kratos with Sackboy. So what do you think? Is PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale going to be a Super Smash Bros Clone? Or is it going to be something special in its own right?
[Source: PlayStation Blog]
Posted in News, PS3, Vita
Tagged Gamescom 2012, PlayStation All-Stars: Battle Royale
Activision reveals more 007 Legends missions
In all the time they have held the James Bond license, Activision has never been able to top the critical and commercial success of Rare’s GoldenEye 007, even when they remade the game, as GoldenEye 007: Reloaded, last year. However, they might have a shot with their new game, 007 Legends, which will tie together various missions from Bond’s fifty years of cinematic history spanning 23 films.
Joining the missions already announced are two from the more modern era; the finale from Timothy Dalton’s Licence to Kill, and the Ice Hotel mission from Pierce Brosnan’s swansong, Die Another Day. The latter will see Bond teamed with Agent Jinx (Halle Berry) as they race through the melting ice palace while avoiding the deadly Icarus Solar Array. That mission will conclude with a confrontation against North Korean bad guy-turned-ginger toff, Gustav Graves (Toby Stephens).
The Licence to Kill level will see Bond destroying the drug factory of evil Mexican drug lord Fran Sanchez, and joining forces with DEA agent Pam Bouvier (Carey Lowell) to kill Sanchez in revenge for the death of CIA agent and friend Felix Leiter. It has also been announced that Toby Stephens and Carey Lowell will lend their thespian vocals to the new game, although no word yet on Halle Berry.
It will be very interesting to see how Activision ties all the missions from Bond’s history together, given that the character exists in a paradoxical bubble; for example, Felix Leiter dies in Licence To Kill but is alive in well in the new slate of films. Let us hope they can finally shrug off the GoldenEye shroud and give us a cracking game that will leave us shaken (but not stirred).
Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged 007 Legends, Gamescom 2012
Kickstart This! Mid-August Edition
Once again we join the crusading developers striving to seek funds for their gaming projects, vying for donations on the battlefield that is Kickstarter. In this edition, we have action adventure game Rack n Ruin, PvP RPG Eternal Fate, fantasy shooter Forge, energy platformer Wisp, and digital trading card game SolForge. That’s not to mention the KickStarter Indie Bundle, which features not one, but nine games! Get your money at the ready… (more…)
Killzone: Mercenary coming to Vita in 2013
Sony has released the first trailer for their upcoming PlayStation Vita title Killzone: Mercenary. The FPS has been designed specifically for the Vita’s graphical capabilities and unique additional touchpad controls to offer a new take on the Killzone franchise. For the first time players will be able to fight alongside the Helghast as well as the ISA as they take on mercenary contracts during the brutal war between the two sides. The game will allow plays more customisation than previous games as they select weapons ideal for a specific job.
No word yet on how it fits in within the Killzone timeline, especially given the explosive ending of Killzone 3. I guess we will just have to wait until 2013 to find out in this new chapter.
[Source: PlayStation Blog]
Posted in News, Vita
Tagged Gamescom 2012, Killzone: Mercenary
Naughty Dog shows more of The Last of Us at Gamescom
Naughty Dog has unveiled a new trailer for its survival action-adventure The Last of Us specifically for the Gamescom expo taking place in Cologne, Germany. It starts with a new cinematic before launching into previously seen in-game footage, cut to the warbling vocals of Hank Williams Sr. It moves with a tenacious pace, as the song cuts us with its apt lyrics, although I personally would like to see it edited to Hurt by Johnny Cash.
Actors Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson will be in attendance at this year’s Gamescom, explaining the depths they had to go to in order to convey their performances as the post-apocalyptic survivors Joel and Ellie. There will also be a playable demo, so expect to see more about The Last of Us in the coming days.
Posted in News, PS3
Tagged Gamescom 2012, The Last of Us