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.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 officially announced; see the trailer now

Posted on January 18, 2011 by John Scalzo

UPDATE: Square Enix has pulled the trailer, but it’ll be officially unveiled on January 20th.

After it’s reveal early this morning in Tokyo, Square Enix has officially announced Final Fantasy XIII-2 for North America and Europe as well.

Coming to the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 “next winter” (presumably sometime early in 2012), the game’s official website is now live and it includes a single screenshot of Lightning with a very big sword.

Further details are pretty hard to come by, but Square Enix did promise that the game will feature a brand new story and an “evolved” battle system. They’ve also revealed that the game’s first trailer will be available at the official website on the 20th, but it’s already been posted to YouTube, and you can check it out after the break. (more…)

Posted in News | Tagged , ,

Daily Scoop: January 18, 2011 – Amazon All Games Gold Box Day

Posted on January 18, 2011 by John Scalzo

Today’s the day you’ve been waiting for, as the Amazon All Video Games Gold Box Event has begun!

First things first, the all-day Amazon Deal of the Day is Epic Mickey. The Wii platformer has been priced at $29.99, a 40% discount off of its regular $49.99 price. And Amazon is also offering a “Buy 2, Get 1 Free” promotion on almost 400 games spread across the PS3, Wii, Xbox 360, PSP, DS and PS2.

For the rest of the event, Amazon has 12 limited-time deals planned to go live throughout the day. The clues make some of the titles (or audio accessories) pretty obvious, so here they are (along with our guess and their start times):

  • 9:00 AM (Eastern)/6:00 AM (Pacific): Play as Darth Vader’s fugitive apprentice. (Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II)
  • 11:00 AM (Eastern)/8:00 AM (Pacific): Amplified Stereo Headset with Chat
  • 12:00 PM (Eastern)/9:00 AM (Pacific): Red Dead Redemption’s DLC bundled pack. (Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare
  • 2:00 PM (Eastern)/11:00 AM (Pacific): TB headset for PS3
  • 3:00 PM (Eastern)/12:00 PM (Pacific): The latest installment of an epic sports franchise.
  • 5:00 PM (Eastern)/2:00 PM (Pacific): High-fidelity 5.1-/7.1-channel Dolby Digital surround sound for PS3.
  • 7:00 PM (Eastern)/4:00 PM (Pacific): Fierce ninja action comes to the PS3 and Xbox 360. (Ninja Gaiden II… maybe)
  • 8:00 PM (Eastern)/5:00 PM (Pacific): Game Audio + Xbox Live Chat
  • 9:00 PM (Eastern)/6:00 PM (Pacific): A very complete GTA IV (Grand Theft Auto: Complete Edition)
  • 10:00 PM (Eastern)/7:00 PM (Pacific): Transform your stereo headset into surround sound.
  • 11:00 PM (Eastern)/8:00 PM (Pacific): Are you afraid of the dark? (Alan Wake)
  • 12:00 AM (Eastern)/9:00 PM (Pacific): Dolby 7.1 Surround Sound for X360.

The rest of the Daily Scoop will be dished out later this morning by Nicole Kline, Warp Zoned’s scoopmaster.

Posted in Daily Scoop |

CoD: Black Ops First Strike trailer strikes online

Posted on January 17, 2011 by John Scalzo

Activision and developer Treyarch have released the first trailer for First Strike, the first downloadable map pack for Call of Duty: Black Ops. The pack will be available to download from Xbox Live on February 1 for 1200 Microsoft Points ($15) with a PC and PS3 release coming later (the Modern Warfare 2 maps typically took five to six weeks to reach the PC/PS3).

Treyarch used this DLC pack to respond to some fan complaints, citing more verticality and more sniper opportunities in the five maps:

Kowloon: Inspired by the Kowloon level from the single-player campaign. Features zip lines to quickly get from point A to point B.

Discovery: An Antarctic research station divided by a deep chasm.

Berlin Wall: The largest map, set in and around Checkpoint Charlie on both sides of Germany.

Stadium: Set inside a hockey arena in the US, the map features close quarters fighting and gives off strong vibes of Lake Placid and the Olympic battle for Cold War supremacy that was fought there (“Do you believe in miracles? YES!”).

Ascension: First Strike’s Zombie Mode map was sadly absent from this trailer.

Posted in News | Tagged , , ,

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II Review: Starkiller Strikes Back in a By-the-Numbers Sequel

Posted on January 17, 2011 by John Scalzo

When it was released back in 2008, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed was met with stinging jabs from the critical community. Some of the game’s oft-mentioned flaws included repetitive combat, a poor camera, lame boss fights and a nearly broken targeting system. I did not share my compatriot’s problems with the game and actually found The Force Unleashed to be one of the better action-adventures of 2008.

But here we go again with Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II. (more…)

Posted in PC, PS3, Reviews, Top Story, Xbox 360 | Tagged

This Week: EA’s massive 50% off XBLM sale

Posted on January 17, 2011 by John Scalzo

Electronic Arts has launched their massive Xbox Live Marketplace sale, which runs from today through next Monday, January 24. Gamers will be able to get 50% off on the following Xbox Live Arcade games and Game Add-Ons, including the recently released MicroBot:

Xbox Live Arcade Games

  • Battlefield 1943
  • DeathSpank
  • DeathSpank: Thongs of Virtue
  • Hasbro Family Game Night: Battleship
  • Hasbro Family Game Night: Boggle
  • Hasbro Family Game Night: Scrabble
  • Madden NFL Arcade
  • MicroBot
  • NHL 3 on 3 Arcade
  • Risk: Factions

Game Add-Ons

  • Dragon Age: Origins – Awakening
  • Dragon Age: Origins – The Darkspawn Chronicles
  • Dragon Age: Origins – The Golems of Amgarrak
  • Dragon Age: Origins – Leliana’s Song
  • Dragon Age: Origins – Witch Hunt
  • Medal of Honor – Hot Zone Pack
  • FIFA 11 – Live Season All Leagues
  • Fight Night Round 4 – Champions Pack II
  • Madden NFL 11 Max Pack
  • NCAA Football 11 – NCAA Power Pack
  • NHL 11 – 20th Anniversary Bauer Boost Pack
  • Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 – Favorites Course Pack
Posted in News, Xbox 360 |

EA wants to know if “Your Mom Hates Dead Space 2” in contest

Posted on January 17, 2011 by John Scalzo

With Dead Space 2 just a little over a week away, EA has launched a new contest on the Dead Space YouTube channel that seeks to find out if “Your Mom Hates Dead Space 2.”

Gamers are encouraged to show their moms a few scenes from Dead Space 2 and take pictures of the results. They must then tweet these pictures on Twitter with the hashtag #mymomhatesdeadspace2. The best reactions will be chosen by EA and win some sweet Dead Space 2-themed prizes (including a PS3 adorned with Isaac Clarke’s face).

EA has an entire playlist full of reactions already posted on YouTube, you’ll definitely want to check it out. Your mom might not.

Posted in News | Tagged , , ,

Akuma, Taskmaster sneak into Marvel vs Capcom 3 as secret characters

Posted on January 17, 2011 by John Scalzo

IGN has posted videos revealing the two latest additions to the roster of Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds: Akuma and Taskmaster.

Akuma is Ryu’s red-headed archenemy from the Street Fighter franchise while Taskmaster is a Marvel villain that most often clashes with Deadpool. According to Eurogamer, both characters won’t be selectable at the start of the game. Akuma will be unlocked after acquiring 2,000 Players Points while Taskmaster requires 8,000. Eurogamer also claims that Capcom plans to round out the Marvel vs Capcom 3 roster by revealing two more characters.

You can see gameplay footage of Akuma and Taskmaster in action after the break. (more…)

Posted in News | Tagged , ,

Weekly Warp-Up: I Love Mortal Kombat Edition

Posted on January 16, 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…

Get Warp Zoned!
In a world where the PlayStation 3 has been jailbroken… we examine the fallout now that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has been hacked to shreds.

And on the eve of LittleBigPlanet 2‘s release, we talk to Media Molecule’s James Spafford about the game. The interview gets to the stuffing of Sackboy’s new adventure with information on all the new tools available in LBP2, a little bit about the game’s single-player campaign and what it’s like working for Media Molecule. (more…)

Posted in News |