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
Nintendo Switch Presentation: Fire Emblem Warriors will slash its way to stores this Fall
Nintendo and Koei Tecmo are teaming up again to create a Warriors game based on a Nintendo franchise. This time around, the two companies will give fans Fire Emblem Warriors… which will be available for the Switch this Fall.
This short teaser trailer is all we’ve got right now… so I guess it’s time to start speculating!
Posted in News, Switch
Tagged Fire Emblem Warriors, Nintendo Switch Presentation
Nintendo Switch Presentation: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe will be available on April 28 with a real Battle Mode
The Switch’s “Sizzle Reel” constantly flashed back to a kart racer that bared a strong resemblance to Mario Kart 8. However, none of the executives would talk about it. But now that the Switch Presentation is over, we know that it’s actually Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and it’ll be available on April 28.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe will include everything found in the original Mario Kart 8, as well as all the racers and courses from both downloadable expansions. However, it’ll also feature even more new courses and characters (Inklings from Splatoon and King Boo for sure), along with a more traditional Battle Mode.
A full trailer for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is embedded above.
Posted in News, Switch
Tagged Mario Kart 8, Nintendo Switch Presentation
WWE 2K17 will be released for the PC on February 7
2K Games has announced they’ll bring their newest wrestling sim, WWE 2K17, to the PC on February 7. Players interested in taking their turn in the squared circle will be able to pick it up in two different configurations… a Standard Edition for $49.99 or a Digital Deluxe Edition for $74.99.
The Standard Edition will come packaged with the base game and the Goldberg Pack, which adds two more Arenas and two different versions of the wrestler (“WCW Goldberg” and “WWE Goldberg”) to WWE 2K17. The base game and the Goldberg Pack are also included in the Digital Deluxe Edition, but its higher price also gives players access to the Season Pass content…
PC Digital Deluxe Edition
In addition to the base game, the WWE 2K17 PC Digital Deluxe includes over 20 characters, 50 new moves, and access to loads of additional content:
- WWE 2K17 MyPlayer Kick Start
- NXT Enhancement Pack
- Accelerator
- Legends Pack
- New Moves Pack
- Future Stars Pack
- Hall of Fame Showcase
Steam users who purchase WWE 2K17 before launch will receive a 10% discount on the Standard Edition or a 15% discount on the Digital Deluxe Edition.
Writers Guild nominates CoD Infinite Warfare, Far Cry Primal, Uncharted 4, Mr. Robot mobile app for 2017 WGA Award in Game Writing
The Writers Guild of America has announced the nominees for this year’s Writers Guild Award for “Outstanding Achievement in Videogame Writing.”
Once again, Naughty Dog has collected a nomination for their work on Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End. The prolific developer is a popular choice for the nominating committee at the WGA, previously receiving nominations (and later winning) in 2012 (Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception), 2013 (The Last of Us), and 2014 (The Last of Us: Left Behind).
Other nominees for “Outstanding Achievement in Videogame Writing” in 2017 include Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, Far Cry: Primal, and Mr. Robot: 1.51exfiltratiOn, a mobile app developed by Night School Studio.
The winner of this year’s Writers Guild Award for “Outstanding Achievement in Videogame Writing” will be announced on Sunday, February 19. The complete list of nominated writers can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, Far Cry: Primal, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Nintendo Download: F-Zero X, Shift DX
We’re just six hours from the unveiling of the Nintendo Switch, but the consolemaker still found the time to update the Nintendo eShop today.
Wii U owners will get the chance to get behind the wheel of a supersonic hover racer this week in F-Zero X. Originally released for the Nintendo 64 in 1998, many fans consider it the best game in the series. Over on the 3DS eShop, players can purchase Shift DX, a puzzle game where you need to shift the playing field to move forward.
Additional details for both games can be found right here… and we’ll see you tonight for the Switch Presentation:
Wii U eShop
F-Zero X – In this high-octane Nintendo 64 racer, choose from 30 different hover-car racers, including updated versions of the Blue Falcon and other vehicles from the original F-Zero game. With five separate play modes, hidden vehicles and courses, and an excellent soundtrack, F-Zero X is an all-time classic Nintendo racing experience.
3DS eShop
Shift DX – Many have tried to emulate the gameplay of Shift since its first release in 2008, but none have managed to capture the frantic, mind-bending nature of the series. Players are tasked with making their way through a series of perplexing rooms, equipped with nothing more than their ability to “shift” the playing field. Is a wall blocking you from progressing? Flip that level upside down and turn that wall into a pit!
2017 DICE Awards nominations announced and Uncharted 4 leads the way with ten
The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences has announced their nominees for the 2017 DICE Awards.
A Naughty Dog leads this year’s pack, as Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End scored ten nominations including one for “Game of the Year.” The developer’s swan song for Nathan Drake will be competing against Battlefield 1, Inside, Overwatch, and Pokemon Go for the coveted honor. We’ll hear from all of this year’s “Game of the Year” contenders throughout the ceremony as each earned multiple nominations including Inside with nine, Battlefield 1 with eight, Overwatch with six, and Pokemon Go with two.
The AIAS will hand out two new DICE Awards this year for “Immersive Reality Game of the Year” and “Immersive Reality Technical Achievement.” The nominees for both will be announced at a later date.
A total of 56 games received at least one nomination, and hosts Greg Miller and Jessica Chobot will announce the winners on Thursday, February 23, at 10:30 PM (Eastern Time). Viewers at home will be able to livestream the entire ceremony through the AIAS’s official website.
A complete list of this year’s nominees can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Battlefield 1, Inside, Overwatch, Pokemon Go, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Lego City Undercover’s re-release on the Switch, PC, PS4, Xbox One gets a new trailer
Lego City Undercover, the Lego-ized homage to Grand Theft Auto, and cop movie classics like Dirty Harry and Lethal Weapon was originally released for the Wii U in 2013, and has remained exclusive to Nintendo’s console ever since. But the rest of the gaming world will soon get to see what all the fuss is about because WB Games will re-release it for the PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch this Spring.
Today, the publisher unveiled the first trailer for the game’s 2017 reappearance, and it features all the goofy humor and family-friendly action you expect from the Lego series:
Lego City Undercover introduces Chase McCain, a police officer who goes undercover and dons multiple disguises to hunt down the notorious – and recently escaped – criminal, Rex Fury, to put an end to his city-wide crime wave.
This open-world Lego adventure allows fans and newcomers to explore the sprawling metropolis that is Lego City, with more than 20 unique districts to investigate, filled with car thieves to bust, vehicles to navigate, mischievous aliens to capture, hilarious movie references to discover, lost pigs to rescue and of course, hundreds of collectibles. Bringing together witty, original storytelling with signature Lego humor, this open-world Lego adventure creates a fun-filled experience for players of all ages.
Lego City Undercover is in development at TT Games, and we’ll probably hear more about it during tonight’s Nintendo Switch Presentation.
Shovel Knight is officially coming to Nintendo Switch; Yacht Club also plans to re-release the expansions as standalone games
Followers of the Code of Shovelry have quite a bit to celebrate today as Yacht Club Games uncovered a massive amount of new information about Shovel Knight on the game’s official site… including confirmation that it’ll be released for the Nintendo Switch.
Yes, the side-scrolling masterpiece will make its way to the Nintendo Switch sometime this year, along with each expansion and all the bonus content like Body Swap Mode and Co-Op Mode. Oh, speaking of Body Swap Mode, it’s finished and will be released alongside the Specter Knight expansion this Spring. And in the spirit of sharing, Co-Op Mode will no longer be exclusive to the Wii U (and the Shovel Knight Amiibo). According to the developer, it will soon be available for all consoles and the PC (but not the 3DS or the Vita) as a free update.
Here’s where it gets interesting.
Shovel Knight’s release structure will soon be undergoing some changes, though Kickstarter backers and other current owners won’t notice anything different. Yacht Club has decided to upgrade the game for current owners to the Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove on all platforms. Available this Spring, the Treasure Trove will include free access to all updates and expansions. But because the expansions have grown beyond being simple character swaps, Yacht Club has decided to raise the price of the Treasure Trove for newcomers once its available. The game’s new price has yet to be announced, but the current $14.99 price (and its promise of free updates and expansions) will remain in place until the Treasure Trove is released.
For everyone who has yet to purchase Shovel Knight (or for those who might want to rebuy the game on a new platform), Yacht Club has decided to split each of the expansions off into its own standalone game. So the original Shovel Knight campaign will receive a new subtitle (Shovel of Hope), and the expansions (Plague of Shadows, Specter of Torment, the King Knight campaign, and Battle Mode) will all be available as individual downloads (and for a lower price) on the PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Switch.
Finally, Yacht Club has begun to think about life after Shovel Knight, and will soon begin work on their “second” game (depending on how you count the Shovel Knight expansions). Writing in a new Q&A, the developer said, “[I]f you want something new outside of Shovel Knight… we have vowed to begin work on a new project this year!”
Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight Showdown, Shovel Knight: King of Cards, Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows, Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment