Author: John Scalzo

John Scalzo is Warp Zoned's Editor-In-Chief and resident retro gaming expert. You can email him at john AT warpzoned DOT com.

Resident Evil 7 is coming to the Switch… only in Japan… as a cloud-based game

Posted on May 21, 2018 by John Scalzo

What do you do if you’re a publisher and you want to bring your beefy PS4/Xbox One game to the Nintendo’s lower-powered Switch? If you’re Capcom, you throw together a “Cloud Version” and ask players to be always connected to the Internet to play it.

As you may have gathered from the headline, and the creepy trailer embedded above, that’s exactly what Capcom is doing with Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. The horror game will be coming to the Switch… only in Japan… on May 24th. But players will need a constant Internet connection (just like Sony’s PlayStation Now service) to play this streaming-powered “Cloud Version” of the game.

Resident Evil 7’s “Cloud Version” will be available to download through the Switch eShop for ¥2000 (about $18), and players will receive a 45MB download that serves as their “Play Ticket” to access the game’s streaming server. Each “Play Ticket” expires after 180 days, after which players will need to purchase another one to keep playing.

Capcom has yet to announce if this special “Cloud Version” of Resident Evil 7: Biohazard will be released for the Switch in the rest of the world.

Posted in News, Switch | Tagged

NBA Playgrounds 2 won’t be released this week after all

Posted on May 21, 2018 by John Scalzo

Saber Interactive’s NBA Playgrounds 2 was originally set to launch for the PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One on May 22. But according to a new post from the developer on Facebook, the game’s upcoming release has been temporarily benched because “exciting things [are] brewing” for the franchise:

We’ve got some news to share, but we want to start by saying ‘good things come to those who wait.’ There are exciting things brewing with the NBA Playgrounds franchise that we think will take arcade basketball to new levels.

We can’t tell you everything now, but we can tell you that this means our launch date of May 22nd will be moved out. Please be patient with us, we promise that NBA Playgrounds 2 will be better than ever. We’ll have more details to share soon.

Saber Interactive didn’t elaborate on what these “exciting things” might be, nor did they announce a new release date for NBA Playgrounds 2.

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One | Tagged

New Retail Releases: Detroit: Become Human, Dark Souls Remastered, Runner 3, More

Posted on May 21, 2018 by John Scalzo

Two big re-releases headline this week’s New Retail Releases, as well as the latest PS4 exclusive from Sony…

David Cage and Quantic Dream have been trying meld the cinematic storytelling of movies with the interactivity of video games for more than two decades now. Their latest experiment, Detroit: Become Human, will be released this week for the PS4. Based on a tech demo from the PS3 era, Detroit asks players to take control of three androids and discover what it feels like to experience human emotions for the first time.

Also available this week are a pair of re-releases that have gamers very excited. Bandai Namco will bring Dark Souks Remastered to the PS4 and Xbox One with upgraded visuals, the Artorias of the Abyss expansion, and dedicated servers.

Switch owners will have to wait a bit longer to play Dark Souls Remastered, but they’ll get their first chance this week to dig into Mega Man Legacy Collection + Mega Man Legacy Collection 2, which contains all 12 games from the “Mega Man Classic” franchise, as well as new Challenges, and multiple graphics filters.

Speaking of side-scrolling platformers and Nintendo’s newest console, Switch owners will also be able to pick up Runner 3 this week. Dozens of new levels await Commander Video as he returns in another rhythm-powered running game from developer Choice Provisions.

Several other new games will also appear on store shelves this week including The Elder Scrolls Online: Summerset (PC), the latest expansion to Bethesda’s MMO; Tennis World Tour (PS4 and Xbox One), a tennis simulation from Bigben Interactive; 7’sCarlet (Vita), a visual novel from Aksys Games; and Space Hulk: Deathwing – Enhanced Edition (PS4), a tactical first person shooter based on the popular tabletop game.

Finally, Xbox One owners who skipped the “Ultimate Edition” for State of Decay 2, the zombie survival sim from Microsoft and Undead Labs, can pick up the Standard Edition this week.

That’s all for now, but we’ll be back later this week with a look at all the new additions to the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop.

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Switch, Vita, Xbox One | Tagged , , , , , ,

Launch date for Ubisoft’s Skull and Bones sails away to 2019-2020

Posted on May 19, 2018 by John Scalzo

The “X” on Ubisoft’s treasure map of upcoming games for Skull and Bones originally marked a spot for “Fall 2018,” but it looks like the pirate simulation from Ubisoft Singapore has been delayed. According to the publisher, it’ll now be released sometime in 2019 or 2020.

Because they feel their recent releases have “excellent momentum,” Ubisoft didn’t feel the need to crowd their 2018 calendar with yet another product, and delayed Skill and Bones to “give itself more time” to develop the game:

In line with previous practices and in view of the acceleration of our digital transformation, growth in back-catalog sales, and excellent momentum of recent releases, Ubisoft has decided to give itself more time to develop Skull and Bones to offer players an even more engaging experience. Skull and Bones is now scheduled for release in 2019-20.

So what does Ubisoft have on tap for 2018? The publisher confirmed that The Crew 2, Tom Clancy’s The Division 2, and “an unannounced franchise title” will all be released this year. The Crew 2 arrives in stores in June, and we’ll likely learn more about the latter two titles at this year’s E3 Expo.

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One | Tagged

State of Decay 2: Ultimate Edition, Divinity: Original Sin II (Game Preview), Baseball Stars Professional, more added to Xbox Store

Posted on May 18, 2018 by John Scalzo

Today’s additions to the Xbox Games Store include hungry zombies, absent gods, and pixelated pitchers…

Microsoft and Undead Labs have teamed up once again to release State of Decay 2: Ultimate Edition. This survival simulation sequel includes online cooperative multiplayer in an open world where “every decision matters.” Players who pick up State of Decay 2 title will also receive a free copy of the game for their Windows 10 PC thanks to the Xbox Play Anywhere program, as well as an Xbox One download of the original State of Decay: Year One Survival Edition.

Also available to download today for the Xbox One is the Game Preview launch of Divinity: Original Sin II – Definitive Edition. The full version will be available this August, but in the meantime, Xbox One owners will be able to get a head start on the “Battle For Divinity” from Larian Studios.

Finally today, Hamster Corporation is taking us all the way back to the ballgame with an Xbox One re-release for Baseball Stars Professional, which was originally released for the NeoGeo in 1990.

You can learn more about all of these games, and the rest of today’s additions to the Xbox Games Store, after the break. (more…)

Posted in News, PC, Xbox One | Tagged ,

Take-Two CEO officially announces WWE 2K19 and NBA 2K19… but delays next entry in “one of 2K’s biggest franchises” into 2019

Posted on May 18, 2018 by John Scalzo

About a year ago, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick confirmed that “a highly anticipated new title from one of 2K’s biggest franchises” would be released in 2018. At the time, fans speculated that the executive was slyly hinting at Borderlands 3 and BioShock 4, but an official announcement never materialized for either title.

Fast forward to this week, and Zelnick once again took the stage to share details about Take-Two’s future.

This time, the CEO told investors that 2K’s mystery sequel will now launch during the “2020 fiscal year” (sometime between April 1, 2019 – March 31, 2020) to give the unknown production team “additional development time” to work on it. All signs still point to Borderlands 3 or BioShock 4 (or both, if we’re being truly optimistic), but it looks like we’ll have to wait a bit longer to play it.

Elsewhere during the presentation, Zelnick revealed that the next entries in the company’s annual franchises, WWE 2K19 and NBA 2K19, will be released this Fall on “To Be Announced” platforms. Not surprising, but nice to know.

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One | Tagged ,

Hellbound is “A 90s FPS Made 20 Years Later” by Saibot Studios

Posted on May 17, 2018 by John Scalzo

It might be fair to say that retro-styled first person shooters are “having a moment.” There’s already several to choose from on the market (including Pixel Titans’s Strafe, New Blood’s Dusk, and Sorgath’s Devil Daggers), and several others are currently in development. It looks like you can add Saibot Studios’s Hellbound to the latter group.

Just one glance at Hellbound’s Gameplay Trailer is enough to know that the development team was heavily inspired by id Software’s Doom, but they’re not asking players to battle back the hordes of Hell as yet another Space Marine. Instead, Hellbound’s main character, Hellgore, is a grizzled warrior that “loves killing Demons in Hell.”

Hellbound has been in development for almost two years, and Saibot is currently seeking additional funding for the game through Kickstarter. Their campaign, which just surpassed $13,000 (of its $40,000 goal), includes a glimpse at some of the game’s very Doom-like concept art and gameplay mechanics. Potential backers also have the ability to try before they buy as the development team recently launched a free Survival Mode demo of Hellbound on Steam.

If all goes well, the full version of Hellbound will be released for the PC in 2019, and if Saibot manages to reach a $100,000 Stretch Goal, the developers plans to add a Campaign Mode to the game.

Posted in News, PC |

Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, Runner 3, Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 + 2, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week

Posted on May 17, 2018 by John Scalzo

It’s another big week for Switch owners as the Nintendo eShop will see a double-digit addition of new titles to its virtual shelves over the next seven days.

Leading the pack is Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, a Zelda spinoff from the action specialists at Omega Force and Team Ninja. Originally released for the Wii U in 2014, this Definitive Edition adds content from the Legends re-release, as well as several costumes from Breath of the Wild. Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition will be available on May 18.

Also set to launch tomorrow is Bandai Namco’s Little Nightmares: Complete Edition. The dark… yet whimsical… side-scroller asks players to save Six from The Maw, “a mysterious vessel inhabited by corrupted souls looking for their next meal.”

Further out, Choice Provisions will return with Runner 3, the third game in the incredibly popular Bit.Trip sub-series, on Tuesday, May 22. This time out, CommanderVideo will “jump, double-jump, wall-jump, slide-jump, slide, kick, float, drive, fly, and dance” to prevent the destruction of the multiverse. Capcom will also bring the Blue Bomber’s “Classic” period to the Switch this coming Tuesday with the launch of Mega Man Legacy Collection and Mega Man Legacy Collection 2.

And speaking of classic games from the late 80s/early 90s, Hamster Corporation has stepped up to the plate with a re-release of Baseball Stars Professional. It’s available to download today, alongside a Switch launch for Stoic Studio’s Viking RPG, The Banner Saga.

You can learn more about the rest of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop (including the Framed Collection and Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles) after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, News, Switch | Tagged , , , , ,