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
Lara escapes her own tomb in Tomb Raider gameplay video
Early in Microsoft’s E3 2011 Press Conference, they turned the stage over to Crystal Dynamics, who used their time to show fans the first extended look of their upcoming Tomb Raider reboot. During the gameplay demo, the much younger Lara Croft has been captured by an angry tribe who have hung her upside down in a cave. Using a nearby torch, she cuts through the ropes and crashes onto the stone floor. The player must then perform a quick time event to eject a sharpened stone from her stomach. Yikes!
And it only gets more intense and “visceral” (according to Crystal Dynamics) from there.
Tomb Raider will be released for the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 in Fall 2012.
CoD Modern Warfare 3 “Hunter Killer” mission is awesome
In case you missed Microsoft’s E3 2011 Press Conference, they opened the show with a play-through of the “Hunter Killer” mission from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. It is an absolutely thrilling nine minutes of gameplay that can stand next to any Hollywood blockbuster. The underwater scenes feel perfectly claustrophobic and the sub assault would make Jack Bauer blush. Also, be sure and snicker at the point early in the demo where the controller dies for a few seconds. Wouldn’t be E3 without surprises.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 will be released for the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on November 9.
CoD Black Ops Escalation pack now on PSN
Every Call of Duty: Black Ops player can now enjoy the Escalation Map Pack as the add-on was added to the PlayStation Store today. It’s priced at $15 and includes four new maps, “Zoo,” “Convoy,” “Hotel” and “Stockpile,” along with the “Call of the Dead” Zombies map. Don’t forget, today is also the start of a Black Ops Double XP Weekend. It runs all weekend and concludes on Sunday, June 12.
“For the millions of dedicated fans playing Black Ops each and every day online around the world, we crafted for them unique multiplayer maps and experiences with Escalation, that will allow PS3 players to continue enjoying the game for a long time to come,” said Treyarch Studio Head, Mark Lamia. “And with Call of the Dead, we went all out to give our loyal Zombie fans a totally new creative to enjoy.”
Also newly added to the store is a digital download of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2 and a bevy of E3-related videos. You can find a full list of available videos at the PlayStation.Blog.
Posted in News, PS3, PSP
Tagged Call of Duty: Black Ops
Rage enters anger management until October 4
Gamers will have to wait a few extra weeks to lash out at post-apocalyptic mutants in Rage, id Software’s PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 shooter. According to the game’s website, Rage will now be released in stores on October 4, almost a month after its original September 13 release date.
No reason was given for the delay, but John Carmack and company probably realized they couldn’t finish by the September ship date, which was announced more than a year ahead of time.
Overstrike trailer strikes the right note
The 2011 E3 Expo may officially be over, but there’s still plenty of news releases and trailers to report on. After years as a Sony second-party, Insomnaic Games has made the leap to multiplatform development with Overstrike. But while the franchise may be brand new, Insomniac believes it’ll be very familar to their fans:
Combining Insomniac’s knack for imaginative weaponry with immersive and witty storytelling, Overstrike is a four-player cooperative action game featuring a team of elite agents called Overstrike 9. Comprised of an ex-mercenary, a lifelong thief, a gifted young scientist and a decorated detective, the members of Overstrike 9 are considered outcasts within their own organization, but are the best team suited to stop a global terrorist group from attempting to wipe out humankind. Overstrike 9 uses lethal teamwork and an arsenal of fringe-tech gadgets to infiltrate and destroy enemy strongholds.
“Overstrike presents a unique blend of features that have long been a part of the Insomniac DNA: high powered gadgets, action-heavy gameplay, memorable characters in a deep and mysterious universe and of course a touch of humor,” said Ted Price, founder and CEO of Insomniac Games. “And since this is our first multiplatform game, we’re especially excited to introduce ourselves to a new audience – one which may not have experienced our previous games.”
Overstrike is in development for the PS3 and Xbox 360 with an unknown release date.
Assassin’s Creed: Revelations E3 trailer packs a punch (and a kick, swords, spears, etc.)
Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed: Revelations promises to unite Altair and Ezio for the first time and this E3 trailer gives us a glimpse into how the two great assassins will meet. It is also in the running for “coolest three minutes of E3 2011.”
Assassin’s Creed: Revelations will be stores this November for the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360. Players who pre-order the game on the PS3 or Xbox 360 from GameStop will automatically be upgraded to the Signature Edition, which includes an exclusive single-player mission, a weapons capacity upgrade, an extra multiplayer character, an animated short film and an original game soundtrack.
Mario Kart 3DS trailer features high-flying fun
Nintendo is bringing their biggest franchises to the 3DS in a big way and the new Mario Kart 3DS that debuted at this year’s E3 Expo promises several new ways to play the game.
Mario Kart 3DS adds gliders to every kart so Mario, Bowswer, Peach and all the rest can float after a big jump. Each kart is also equipped with a propellor allowing some races to take place underwater. Nintendo has given kart customization an overhaul as players will be able to choose a body and tires for their kart independent of their racer. Even something old is new again as coins are back for the first time since Mario Kart: Super Circuit.
Familiar tracks round out the Mario Kart 3DS with ghost houses, highways and desert tracks all visible. It also looks like we’ll be racing on an airship when the game ships to stores sometime this year.
Posted in 3DS, News
Tagged E3 2011, Mario Kart 7
Final Fantasy XIII-2 E3 trailer shows off story, gameplay
Square Enix has used the 2011 E3 Expo to give us a much deeper look at the next Final Fantasy game, Final Fantasy XIII-2. Releasing in early 2012 for the PS3 and Xbox 360, the game stars new character Noel Kreiss and Serah Farron, Lightning’s younger sister, in a search for Lightning after monsters attack their town.
Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged E3 2011, Final Fantasy XIII-2