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 Mercenaries 3D: GameStop NOT accepting trade-ins, NOT rentable at Gamefly

Posted on June 28, 2011 by John Scalzo

With Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D now available in stores, some disturbing facts about the game cartridge are coming to light. It seems that Capcom has rigged the game with a feature they call “Forever Saves.” A “Forever Save” cannot be erased or reset and will remain with the game permanently. It’s also causing some problems for game retailer GameStop and rental-by-mail company Gamefly.

Gamefly has confirmed they will not be offering Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D for rent. Meanwhile, GameStop managers have begun to inform gamers that they will not accept the game as a trade-in. However, they will continue to sell new copies of the title (insert “Oh, the irony!” comment here).

A Capcom representative told Destructoid that the “Forever Saves” were not implemented to deter used sales, but he didn’t really have an explanation for why the feature was included:

In Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D, all mission progress is saved directly to the Nintendo 3DS cartridge, where it cannot be reset. The nature of the game invites high levels of replayability in order to improve mission scores. In addition, this feature does not remove any content available for users. Secondhand game sales were not a factor in this development decision, so we hope that all our consumers will be able to enjoy the entirety of the survival-action experiences that the game does offer.

Something tells me the “Forever Save” is an experiment that won’t be repeated.

Posted in 3DS, News | Tagged

Uncharted 3 beta, Beyond Good & Evil now available on PlayStation Store

Posted on June 28, 2011 by John Scalzo

You’ve been waiting for it, and the time is now, the Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception multiplayer beta is now available on the PlayStation Store. To receive access to the beta, you have to be a proud owner of InFamous 2 or a PlayStation Plus subscriber. Otherwise, you’re out of luck.

In non-beta news, this week will also see the addition of a quartet of new games to the PlayStation Store:

  • Beyond Good & Evil HD, a re-release of the PS2/Xbox/Cube classic.
  • Gatling Gears, a twin-stick shooter from EA.
  • Puzzle Dimension, a puzzle game that is “easy to learn hard to master.”
  • Streets of Rage 2, a re-release of the Genesis classic.

More information about all of these games is available after the break and the full rundown of this week’s PlayStation Store update can be found at the PlayStation.Blog. (more…)

Posted in News, PS3 | Tagged ,

Xenoblade inspires fan campaign to bring game to America

Posted on June 27, 2011 by John Scalzo

Are you a Wii owner who is sick and tired of Nintendo’s decision not to localize many of the games they publish in Japan? Titles like Fatal Frame IV, Dynamic Slash, Pandora Tower, The Last Story and Xenoblade have all been published by The Big N in Japan and have never made it across the Pacific. If the last game in that list, the Monolith Soft-developed Xenoblade, interests you, then perhaps you should hook up with Operation Rainfall.

The group plans to flood the offices of Nintendo of America’s President, Reginald Fils-Aime, with letters from July 11 through the 13th. They also plan to call Nintendo’s customer service line (1-800-633-3236) to request Xenoblade as well as mass emailing the company with the same message. It’s unlikely this campaign will do anything (if I were Reggie, I’d call in sick that week), but Nintendo really needs to do a better job of listening to their fans (I’m still waiting on Mother 3).

If you want to join the movement, be sure to visit Operation Rainfall’s website.

Posted in News, Wii | Tagged

Summer of Arcade 2011 release dates released

Posted on June 27, 2011 by John Scalzo

Microsoft has revealed the release schedule and price points for this year’s Summer of Arcade promotion. Beginning on July 20 and ending on August 17, five highly anticipated games will be added to the Xbox Live Arcade for your gaming pleasure. The full release schedule is as follows:

July 20: Bastion (1200 Microsoft Points)
July 27: From Dust (1200 Microsoft Points)
August 3: Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet (1200 Microsoft Points)
August 10: Fruit Ninja Kinect (800 Microsoft Points)
August 17: Toy Soldiers: Cold War (1200 Microsoft Points)

Like in years past, players who purchase every game during the Summer of Arcade will receive a free bonus. This year, Microsoft plans to reward the completist Summer of Arcade shopper with a free download of Crimson Alliance, a “fast-action RPG game from industry-leading Certain Affinity” that’ll be available through the XBLA on September 7.

Posted in News, Xbox 360 | Tagged , , , , ,

Activision registers GoldenEye 007 Reloaded domains

Posted on June 27, 2011 by John Scalzo

A true Sherlock Holmes for the Internet age, Superannuation has discovered a quartet of domain registrations relating to a new James Bond game from Activision:

* GoldenEyeReloadedGame.com
* GoldenEye007GameReloaded.com
* GoldenEye007Reloaded.com
* GoldenEyeReloaded007.com

As you can see, the URLs appear to be connected to a game titled GoldenEye 007 Reloaded and I don’t think it’s much of a stretch to conclude that the game is likely yet another take on the classic N64 FPS. Activision originally remade the game last year, exclusively for the Wii, with new voiceover work by Daniel Craig and Judi Dench. Could these new URLs mean that GoldenEye’s famed multiplayer will “reload” on the PS3 and Xbox 360? Let’s hope so.

Obviously, Activision is remaining mum about GoldenEye 007 Reloaded, but the CEO of Activision Publishing, Eric Hirshberg, told investors that a new James Bond game would be released this Fall at the company’s quarterly financial briefing in May.

Whatever happens, it looks like James Bond will return.

Posted in News | Tagged

Black Eyed Peas Experience dances to Wii, Xbox 360 soon

Posted on June 27, 2011 by John Scalzo

If you’re Ubisoft, you have to ask yourself… how do you follow up The Michael Jackson Experience? Remember, this was a game that sold millions of copies and starred one of the world’s most beloved entertainers. Passing over the obvious answer, Ubisoft has gone in a different direction and announced The Black Eyed Peas Experience.

You can check out the trailer above and “get hyped” for more information on The Black Eyed Peas Experience, which Ubisoft plans to bring to the Wii and Kinect for Xbox 360 soon.

Posted in News, Wii, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Weekly Warp-Up: Summer’s Here

Posted on June 26, 2011 by John Scalzo

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…

Summer is upon us, and that means the amount of announcements coming out of the game industry will be slowing to a crawl. But there’s still some interesting stuff out there this week.

Get Warp Zoned!
This week we examined the battle for your rental dollar and compared Redbox vs Gamefly. While both have their positives and negatives, our final decision may surprise you.

Hit the jump for the rest of the Weekly Warp-Up. (more…)

Posted in News |

New Releases: Dynasty Warriors Gundam 3, RE Mercenaries 3D, Street Fighter IV Arcade, More

Posted on June 25, 2011 by John Scalzo

The month of June comes to an end with a bunch of new sequels and a new fitness game that will turn your mom into an ultimate fighter. Take that Wii Fit! But I’m sure you want specifics, so here we go:

Check out the full list of the rest of this week’s new releases after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, Wii, Xbox 360 | Tagged ,