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
Pokemon Go “Year-End Event” begins on Christmas Day
Niantic is launching another seasonal event for Pokemon Go and it’s going to take fans all the way into 2017. The Year-End Event kicks off tomorrow and the developer discussed what players can expect to find during it on their official website:
Don’t miss out on an increased chance to hatch a Togepi (and other Pokemon)! Starting the morning of December 25, 2016, and through the afternoon of January 3, 2017 (PST), PokeStops will award one single-use Incubator each day after your first Photo Disc spin. As you visit PokeStops during this time period, there will be a greater chance of finding Eggs that hatch Togepi, Pichu, and several other recently found Pokemon, originally discovered in the Johto region. Special Pikachu wearing festive hats will also be staying around a bit longer! You are more likely to find these limited-edition Pikachu during the time period of this celebration.
The Year-End Event will continue through January 8, and players will be more likely to encounter certain Pokemon, and they’ll receive bonus time when using Lures:
In addition, from the afternoon of December 30, 2016, through the afternoon of January 8, 2017 (PST), the first partner Pokemon and their Evolutions, originally discovered in the Kanto region, are more likely to be encountered. This means a greater chance to catch Bulbasaur, Ivysaur, and Venusaur, as well as Charmander, Charmeleon, and Charizard, plus Squirtle, Wartortle, and Blastoise! As a way to increase your chance to encounter one of these Pokemon, Lure Modules will also last for 60 minutes instead of 30 minutes.
Finally, Niantic revealed that Pokemon Go players have walked an astounding 8.7 billion kilometers (about 4.5 billion miles) and caught 88 billion Pokemon since the game’s launch this Summer.
Posted in Mobile, News
Tagged Pokemon Go
Super Mario Run Review: Nintendo’s Got A Winner After Plumbing New Depths on iOS
Whether you’re a video game fan looking for more games on the go or a stock market analyst fixated on profit margins, you’ve likely spent the last few years wondering when Nintendo would finally break into mobile game development. Earlier this year, the consolemaker dipped their toe into those waters with the Miitomo communication app, but now they’re finally ready to dive into that big blue ocean with their first mobile game, Super Mario Run. (more…)
Posted in Mobile, Reviews, Top Story
Tagged Super Mario Run
See the first gameplay trailer for Super Mega Baseball 2
Today’s the second day of Winter, so it seems like the perfect time for Metalhead Software’s Scott Drader to stoke the Hot Stove with the first gameplay trailer for Super Mega Baseball 2. The development team has big plans for the upcoming sequel, starting with a brand new art style. New customizable features and the addition of online multiplayer are also on the docket for Super Mega Baseball 2.
The gameplay trailer is embedded above, and Super Mega Baseball 2 will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One in Summer 2017.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Super Mega Baseball 2
New trailer highlights features Nintendo is adding to Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World
Yoshi’s Woolly World will be released for the 3DS on February 3 as Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World, and Nintendo plans to add several new features to the side-scrolling platformer for its portable debut.
According to a post on Nintendo.com, Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World will get additional Amiibo functionality thanks to the brand new Yarn Poochy figure. Players can use the Yarn Poochy figure to ask the character for assistance during a tough level, as well as unlock Poochy-themed bonus stages. New Yoshi patterns are also available by tapping Amiibo from the Animal Crossing and Splatoon series.
Other new features include:
New to the series, the Craft Yoshi mode will let you design your own patterned Yoshi. Using intuitive tools, you can use the Nintendo 3DS touch screen to design your own colorful and stylized Yoshi character. Your favorite pattern can even be shared through StreetPass!
In addition to the game, one animated short starring Yoshi and Poochy will be unlocked every day for 30 days for people that own the game. These short stop-motion animations can be viewed through a menu in the game.
Less experienced players looking for a little help can easily switch to Mellow Mode while playing Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World to gain the assistance of Poochy Pups. These sweet little Pups will sniff out secrets and wrap up enemies, and can even double as yarn balls for Yoshi to throw.
Nintendo has also unveiled a trailer showcasing the 3DS-exclusive features for Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World, and its been embedded above.
Posted in 3DS, News
Tagged Yoshi's Woolly World
Nintendo Download: Shantae Half-Genie Hero, Mario Party 2, more
Even though we’re counting down the days until Nintendo’s Switch Presentation, the consolemaker is still adding new titles to the Nintendo eShop, including one game that’s retro-styled and another that’s just plain retro.
WayForward’s Shantae series began on the Game Boy Color all the way back in 2002. It wasn’t a design choice to create retro-styled side-scrolling platforming in those days, but it is today, and Shantae still looks impressive in her first high definition outing on the Wii U. In Shantae: Half-Genie Hero, a mysterious crime wave has swept through Sequin Land, and players will need to master the genie’s “devastating Hair-Whip Attack” to fight back against the criminal masterminds employed by Risky Boots.
Also available to download for the Wii U today is Mario Party 2, which was originally released for the Nintendo 64 in 2000. More than a dozen sequels have been added to the Mario Party in the years since, but I’m sure one of the earliest games in the franchise still has plenty of fans for this Virtual Console re-release.
You can learn more about both of these games (and a few other new releases) after the break. (more…)
AnyArts unveils first trailer for Switch-exclusive Seasons of Heaven
Aside from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, we haven’t gotten a good look at any of the games currently in development for the Nintendo Switch. The consolemaker gave us a brief gander at Skyrim, NBA 2K17, Mario Kart, Splatoon, and Super Mario during the Switch’s “First Glimpse” trailer, but that’s been about it.
Thankfully, indie developer AnyArts Productions has come to the rescue to deliver a full trailer for the upcoming Switch-exclusive Seasons of Heaven. Expanding on the teaser trailer that launched last week, Seasons of Heaven is a puzzle game where players help a small boy and his dog explore a mystical forest.
The trailer is a good showcase for the Switch’s capabilities, as we see the boy surrounded by a few ghostly figures during his trek through the forest. I’m guessing that these figures, alongside an ominous heart monitor sound, will definitely get the “Purgatory” theories pumping about this game. It’s too early to know for sure, but hopefully we’ll learn more about Seasons of Heaven during Nintendo’s “Switch Presentation 2017” on January 12.
Posted in News, Switch
Tagged Seasons of Heaven
Xbox Store Today: Walking Dead New Frontier, Shantae Half-Genie Hero, Wick, more
The dead still walk! Telltale Games has launched the opening chapters of their latest Walking Dead adaptation, The Walking Dead: A New Frontier. Available to download now for the Xbox One, the two-part premiere, Ties That Bind, reintroduces fans to a teenage Clementine.
Also available to download today on the Xbox One is Shantae: Half-Genie Hero, the latest game in WayForward’s retro-styled series. Shantae may have made the move to high definition, but players will still get to whip out her “devastating Hair-Whip Attack” as they take on the minions of “bodacious buccaneer” Risky Boots.
Finally, Wick brings ghost stories to life on the Xbox One. Players will explore a local legend about “the long lost children in the woods who can still be seen,” but be careful, they’re only visible by candlelight.
More information on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, Xbox One
Tagged The Walking Dead: A New Frontier
Super Mario Run tallies 40 million downloads in 4 days; Friendly Run mode launches
While fans still don’t know exactly what to make of the it, Super Mario Run was destined to become a financial success from the second it was announced. And this morning, Nintendo made it official, announcing that the iOS-exclusive game was downloaded 40 million times in its first four days of availability.
According to Apple’s Phil Schiller, Super Mario Run’s launch weekend performance set an iOS App Store record for most downloads in a four-day period.
However, the publisher didn’t reveal exactly how many of those curious iOS owners purchased the $9.99 “Full Upgrade” option to unlock all of Super Mario Run’s content. And for those that haven’t taken the plunge yet, perhaps a new mode will do the trick.
This morning, Nintendo pushed out an update for Super Mario Run that adds a Friendly Run mode to the game. Similar to Toad Rally, Friendly Run mode is an asynchronous multiplayer race that lets players challenge their friends without using their limited supply of Rally Tickets (but the mode also makes it impossible to win more Toads). Even without any stakes, players are still limited in the number of Friendly Run races they can compete in per day (up to five if you’ve completed World 2).
Super Mario Run was added to the iOS App Store on December 15 and it’ll be available to download for Android devices sometime in 2017.
UPDATE: Nintendo announced (via Twitter) that Super Mario Run just passed 50 million downloads. And as a thank you, all players will receive 10 free Rally Tickets.
Posted in Mobile, News
Tagged Super Mario Run