Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Clair Obscur Completes the Sweep by Winning “Best Game” at 2025-2026 BAFTA Games Awards
- Boss Fight Books Gets 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
- Silent Hill, Dragon Quest, Skyrim, and More Announced as Finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026
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
New trailer shows how players can customize their own character and in Sonic Forces
Classic Sonic and Modern Sonic will be receiving some help in this Fall’s Sonic Forces. Sega has announced that players will also be able to dash through the game’s levels as their own “powerful gadget touting” customizable character.
Players will be equipping their custom Hero Character with one of a variety of powerful unique gadgets called Wispons. Wispons are an evolution of the Color Powers from Sonic Colors and double as both offensive abilities and as a way to platform through levels quickly. Along with the Wispon, the Hero Character will have a grappling hook they can utilize to quickly traverse across zones. Players can also customize the Hero Character’s looks by choosing and swapping between hundreds of accessories and outfit options to change the character’s appearance as they play through the game.
In addition to changing their look, players can also choose the species of their Hero Character:
Animal Types in Sonic Forces
- Wolf – Automatically draws in rings when near them
- Rabbit – Has longer invincible time after receiving damage
- Cat – Keeps one ring after being hit
- Dog – Restarts with five rings after the player dies
- Bear – Blows away enemies with a homing attack
- Bird – Flies high with double jump abilities
- Hedgehog – Collects rings when getting damaged
And in case you were worried, Hero Characters won’t be walled off in special areas of the game. According to Sega, they’ll be “a key part of the story” and appear alongside Sonic in cutscenes and throughout his adventure.
Sonic Forces will be available for the PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One this Fall. A new gameplay trailer featuring a customizable character with a grappling hook and fired-based Wispon can be found after the break. (more…)
Sega’s future plans include a focus on PC development and “revival of major IPs”
Sega fans have been on a wild roller coaster ride since the company’s early 90s heyday. Every time Sega hits it out of the park, they seem to crash back down to Earth in short order. But the publisher has started to turn things around lately, especially after their merger with Atlus.
Fresh off the launch of Persona 5, Sega has issued a “Road to 2020” report as part of a presentation to investors. In addition to disclosing financial details, the report talks about short-term goals (such as “aim for big hits”), as well as longer-term plans on how to keep this recent bit of momentum going.
The first part of Sega’s plan involves expanding their reach on the PC by developing more titles based on existing properties and obtaining new properties in deals with outside developers. The publisher has already begun to follow through with this promise by re-launching Bayonetta and Vanquish through Steam.
But Sega also wants to bring back some of their classic game franchises and are planning a “Revival of major IPs” in the future. The report didn’t delve into which properties Sega is looking to revive, but the company’s back catalog offers a nearly unrivaled selection of characters to choose from. Personally, I’d love to see another chapter in the House of the Dead saga.
Hopefully, we’ll learn more about Sega’s plans for the future soon.
Phantom Dust re-release will be available for free beginning tomorrow, May 16
Well this is a surpise.
Microsoft’s Aaron Greenberg has announced (via Twitter) that Phantom Dust will be available for the Xbox One and Windows 10 on May 16… also known as tomorrow. Best of all, the re-release will be free to download on both platforms as a thank you to fans.
Phantom Dust was originally released for the Xbox in 2004 as part of a push to help the console appeal to Japanese gamers. It’s card-based combination of strategy and action eventually lead to it becoming something of a cult classic. The 2017 re-release will offer improved resolutions, better framerates, and slightly tweaked gameplay.
Microsoft is keen to bring back the Phantom Dust franchise and even announced a sequel/reboot in 2014. However, it was plagued by development difficulties and was put on hiatus in 2015. Perhaps a successful launch for the re-release will bring it back to life…
Posted in News, PC, Xbox One
Tagged Phantom Dust
Bandai Namco and 8-Bit Cinema are retelling Tekken’s story with a retro twist
Tekken 7 will make its PC, PS4, and Xbox One debut in just a few short weeks, but in the meantime, Bandai Namco has teamed up with 8-Bit Cinema to create a “Tekken Retro Recap” of the franchise’s story so far.
The Tekken franchise makes the stories behind Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter look tame by comparison, and its recurring theme of demonically-possessed fathers is on full display in this retro retelling of events from Tekken, Tekken 2, and Tekken 3. Oh, and so much child abuse. Can’t forget that.
Tekken 7 will be released on June 2, but expect to receive a “Tekken Retro Recap Part 2” video before then.
Redout will race onto the PS4 and Xbox One this Summer
Previously announced for the Switch during Nintendo’s console unveiling back in January, 505 Games and 34BigThings have confirmed that Redout will also be released for the PS4 and Xbox One this Summer.
In addition to an appearance on the PlayStation Store and the Xbox Games Store, Redout will also make its console debut as a full-fledged retail release. You can get a sneak peek at the racing action in the new trailer embedded above, or read up on what makes Redout unique with this description straight from 505 Games:
Redout is a tribute to the old racing monsters such as F-Zero, Wipeout, Rollcage, and POD. It is designed to be an uncompromising, fast, tough and satisfying driving experience, soaked in that vertigo that stands at the core of the arcade racing genre.
The floating system and driving models are based on physics: each turn, slope, hard braking, acceleration, each turn and twist of the track will apply a unique force to the ship. A sharp low-polygon style blends meshes and terrains with the latest state-of-the-art shading and lighting effects provided by the Unreal Engine 4, creating beautiful and instantly recognizable aesthetics. Breezy coastlines, eerie frozen landscapes, vast desert plains: the melancholic, dystopian atmosphere of a semi abandoned Earth is the background for the most high-speed, tense and beautiful futuristic racing clashes.
Redout will be published by Nicalis on the Switch, and its expected to be released for Nintendo’s new console in July.
NetherRealm Studios delivers the Launch Trailer for Injustice 2
With the game’s launch less than one day away, NetherRealm Studios has delivered one final trailer for Injustice 2… its Launch Trailer.
In addition to scenes of Batman and Superman going toe-to-toe with Brainiac, the Injustice 2 Launch Trailer also features an all new Steve Aoki remix of “Jungle” by X Ambassadors. Over the last few months, NetherRealm has created dozens of trailers for Injustice 2 that include hours of gameplay footage. I recommend starting with the “Everything You Need to Know” trailer and going backwards from there.
Injustice 2 will be available for the PS4 and Xbox One on May 16.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Injustice 2
704 Games will release NASCAR Heat 2 on September 12
704 Games has announced they will release NASCAR Heat 2 for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on September 12. In addition to confirming a release date, the publisher promised the sequel will build on last year’s game with “enhanced online multiplayer, a deeper career mode, track updates, additional drivers and other features in line with the 2017 NASCAR-sanctioned national series formats.”
“[NASCAR Heat 2] will have a very different look and an enhanced overall experience that reflects the insights of actual NASCAR drivers,” said Paul Brooks, the CEO of 704 Games. “Over the coming months, we’ll announce additional new features that we believe will really excite our fans.”
Like last year, 704 Games will use the results of an upcoming race to determine NASCAR Heat 2’s cover athlete. From now until Friday, May 19, fans can vote for the two drivers they want to see compete for the cover spot at NASCARHeat.com/CoverRace. And then on May 20, the first driver to finish Stage 2 at the Monster Energy All-Star Race will become the game’s cover athlete.
We’ll learn more about NASCAR Heat 2 during this year’s E3 Expo, as 704 Games also announced they’ll have a demo version of the game on display at the industry’s Summer showcase.
WB Games will release Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 on November 14
Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 was first teased more than six months ago as one of the struck titles from the SAG-AFTRA voice actor’s strike (which has still not been resolved, by the way), but a new announcement from WB Games has confirmed the game will be out this Fall.
Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 will be developed by TT Games, and feature a dimension-hopping story that’ll bring together a huge number of Marvel characters:
Players will go head-to-head with the time-traveling Kang the Conqueror in an epic battle across Chronopolis, from Ancient Egypt and The Old West to Sakaar and New York City in 2099. Along the way, gamers will be able to take control of a host of iconic characters, from Cowboy Captain America from the past to Spider-Man 2099 from the future along with Thor, Hulk, the Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Panther, Captain Marvel, Doctor Strange, Green Goblin, and dozens of other Marvel Super Heroes and Super Villains.
“With a completely original branching storyline, Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 introduces amazing new gameplay features, including the ability for characters to manipulate time and a four-player competitive Super Hero battling mode,” said Tom Stone, the Managing Director at TT Games. “With a huge array of brand new characters from the Marvel Universe, including old favorites in new guises, this game is sure to thrill both Lego and Marvel fans, as well as newcomers to the series.”
WB Games will release Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on November 14. The game is also in development for the Switch, and it’ll be released for Nintendo’s console sometime this Fall. An official launch date for Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 on the Switch will be announced at a later time.
Finally, you can find the first teaser trailer for Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2 after the break. And WB Games plans to unveil the “Full-Length Trailer” on May 23. (more…)