Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- BAFTA Games Awards: All the Winners from 2003 to Today
- Clair Obscur Completes the Sweep by Winning “Best Game” at 2025-2026 BAFTA Games Awards
- Boss Fight Books to Get a New Look for Richard Moss’s “Age of Empires”
- GDC Awards: All the Winners from 1996 to Today
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Wins “Game of the Year” at 2025-2026 GDC 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: John Scalzo
Blizzard announces next WoW expansion: Mists of Pandaria
Kung fu pandas… where does Blizzard come up with this stuff? OK, believe it or not, the Pandaren race of kung fu pandas has been a part of Warcraft lore since Warcraft III. But they’ve been absent from the series since World of Warcraft launched in 2004. But now they’re back and they’re taking a starring role in the MMORPG’s fourth expansion, Mists of Pandaria.
“Players have been asking to see the Pandaren in World of Warcraft since the game’s launch, and we’re excited to finally be able to give them a proper re-introduction to Azeroth,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “In addition to the new playable race and class, Mists of Pandaria contains a huge amount of new content, and we’re looking forward to sharing more information about all of it at BlizzCon and beyond.”
No release date has been announced for the expansion, but it will add a bevy of new features including a new class, a higher level cap, new zones and Dungeon Challenge Modes. Check out a full list of all the new features after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PC
Tagged PC, World of Warcraft
Rumor: Doom 4 indefinitely postponed; Bethesda denies it was ever announced
A source inside id Software has told Kotaku that Doom 4 has been “indefinitely postponed” after the poor critical and retail reception for Rage. According to the source, the decision was made by executives from parent company Zenimax/Bethesda. This is in spite of the fact that id founder John Carmack told reporters that the developer would remain independent even after its acquisition by the Elder Scrolls publisher.
Pete Hines, Vice President of Bethesda Softworks, responded to Kotaku’s article with a statement declaring that Doom 4 can’t be “postponed” as it was never officially announced:
“We don’t comment on unannounced games and Doom 4 hasn’t been announced (though I appreciate that id has previously referenced Doom 4). Games are done when they are done and no title under development at id has been postponed – indefinitely or otherwise.”
Now wait just a minute! Mr. Hines, I say this with all due respect, but your statement is bullshit. Doom 4 was officially announced in 2008 and numerous interviews with id executives have since confirmed that development is well underway. The Internet never forgets, so it’s unwise to play these kinds of gotcha games with your fans.
That said, this news is still firmly in the rumor territory and as a Doom fan from way back, I hope it’s untrue.
Posted in News
Tagged Doom (2016), PC, PS3, Xbox 360
RAAM’s Shadow DLC announced for Gears of War 3
Gears of War players will be able to lead the Locust horde for the first time on December 13 when the “RAAM’s Shadow” expansion is released for Gears of War 3. Taking control of General RAAM himself, players will storm the human stronghold of Ilima City in a battle against some familiar faces.
“RAAM’s imposing size and strength, along with his Kryll shield, make him one of the most powerful and daunting foes in the Gears universe,” said Epic Games Design Director Cliff Bleszinski. “We think fans are going to have a blast unleashing hell upon the poor humans for the first time in a campaign setting.”
If you’d prefer to stomp some Locust grubs instead, players can also take up the human side of the battle and try to save Ilima City:
“RAAM’s Shadow” drops players into the events of Sera post-Emergence Day, as Zeta Squad is enlisted to evacuate Ilima City and protect the citizens against a Locust Kryll storm. Taking on the infamous Locust leader General RAAM, Zeta is led by Michael Barrick (from Gears of War comics fame) and comprised of familiar faces such as Lt. Minh Young Kim (Gears 1) and Tai Kaliso (Gears 2), and also includes a new female comrade, Alicia Valera.
The expansion will also add six new multiplayer characters, the Chocolate Weapon Set, and an additional 250 Gamerscore. All of this has been priced at 1200 Microsoft Points ($15), unless you sprung for the GOW3 Season Pass, which will include “RAAM’s Shadow.”
Posted in News, Xbox 360
Tagged Gears of War 3
Rumor: Sony working on PS4 games, Xbox 720 coming in 2013
New rumors from Develop have hit the Intertubes and they once again concern the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox 720 (or Xbox Next if you prefer).
The latest round of rumors say that several internal studios at Sony have begun work on PS4 games. Supposedly, these games are still in the very early stages, but the projects could enter “full production” if given the green light. Naturally, Sony declined to comment.
While Develop’s source didn’t delve into which of Sony’s studios were working on next-gen games, it’s probably not hard to figure out. Almost all of the company’s high-profile teams (Polyphony Digital, Sony Santa Monica, Zipper Interactive, Sucker Punch, Guerrilla Games, and Media Molecule) have yet to announce their development plans for 2012 or beyond. What could they all be working on? PS4 games of course.
A different set of sources informed the magazine that the Xbox 720 will likely make its debut at E3 2013 ahead of a Fall 2013 release.
The rumors also mentioned that Lionhead is working on Fable IV for the system. Peter Molyneux previously mentioned the next numbered Fable game at this year’s BAFTA Games Awards. But he was very careful not to announce the game’s existence or mention what system it may appear on.
But the Xbox Next seems like a pretty safe bet.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Fable Legends
Rockstar investigates PS3, Xbox 360 release for L.A. Noire: Complete Edition
After some careful investigation, Rockstar Games has announced that L.A. Noire: The Complete Edition will be coming to the PS3 and Xbox 360 in addition to the previously announced PC release.
The Complete Edition will include all of L.A. Noire’s currently available downloadable content. That includes all five bonus cases: “Nicholson Electroplating” (an Arson case), “Reefer Madness” (a Vice case), “The Consul’s Car” (a Traffic case), “The Naked City” (a Vice case), and “A Slip of the Tongue” (a Traffic case). And by complete, Rockstar means complete. Players will also find the Badge Pursuit Challenge and all DLC weapons and outfits inside the Complete Edition.
L.A. Noire: The Complete Edition will be available in stores on November 15.
Posted in News
Tagged L.A. Noire, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Double Dragon added to 3DS eShop
Get ready to kick, punch, and whip the Shadow Boss as the Game Boy rendition of Double Dragon has been added to the 3DS eShop today.
If beating up on Abobo and company doesn’t appeal to you, Nintendo has added Castle Conqueror: Revolution, a strategy RPG, to the DSi Shop and Fish Tank, a match-3 puzzler, to the Wii Shop.
More information on all of this week’s new releases can be found in the Nintendo Download Weekly Newsletter.
Posted in 3DS, DS, News, Wii
Tagged Double Dragon
Bejeweled 3, Dungeon Defenders added to XBLA
It’s Wednesday, so it’s time for another dose of the new releases on Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday. Man, how long has it been since someone at Microsoft has referred to it as XBLA Wednesday?
Anyway, this Wednesday is particularly shiny as PopCap will be adding Bejeweled 3 to the download service. Priced at 1200 Microsoft Points ($15), the third Bejeweled game features eight game modes for all your gem matching fun.
Also available this week is Dungeon Defenders, a four-player “tower defense action RPG” (a genre mouthful if I’ve ever seen one). Dungeon Defenders has also been priced at 1200 Microsoft Points ($15)
More information on both titles can be found at Major Nelson’s blog (Bejeweled 3, Dungeon Defenders).
Posted in News, Xbox 360
Tagged Bejeweled 3
Christina Hendricks, Sean Faris to star in Need For Speed: The Run
Before Castle, Nathan Fillion starred in Drive, a TV show about an illicit cross-country road race. Today, EA has announced that his Firefly nemesis, Christina Hendricks, will star in Need For Speed: The Run, a game about an illicit cross-country road race.
Hendricks, who also stars in Mad Men and Ryan Gosling’s new flick (also coincidentally titled Drive), will be joined by Sean Faris (Ben from The Vampire Diaries) in the game.
Sean Faris is Jack Rourke, one of the best drivers around. Jack’s cockiness and arrogance has led him into a debt he can’t repay. The mob has put a price on his head, and it’s a lofty one. Christina Hendricks stars as Sam Harper, a woman with ambition, street smarts and a penchant for lightning fast cars. Sam is the only person who can help Jack. Sam fronts Jack’s buy-in for The Run, a cut-throat coast-to-coast race from San Francisco to New York with a prize of $25 million. With Sam as his eyes and ears, all Jack needs to do is win.
A demo of Need For Speed: The Run was just added to the Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Store. The full game will be available for the 3DS, PC, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 on November 15.