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
Thunder Lotus announces Sundered, a Lovecraftian MetroidVania for the PC and PS4
Thunder Lotus Games recently launched Jotun for the PC, PS4, Wii U, and Xbox One. The overhead action RPG features hand-drawn graphics and a storyline inspired by the Norse mythology. Yesterday, they announced their newest retro-inspired project, Sundered.
Infused with Lovecraftian themes, Sundered is a side-scrolling exploration shooter (or “MetroidVania,” if you prefer) where players will be asked to explore “ever-changing caverns teeming with eldritch horrors” and “harness the power of corrupted relics to defeat gigantic bosses.” Within its series of procedurally-generated levels, players will help Eshe navigate a ruined world as he fights for survival… and his sanity.
Sundered’s debut trailer has been embedded above, and it’ll be released for the PC and PS4 sometime in 2017. But in the more immediate future, attendees of this weekend’s TwitchCon will be able to try out a playable version of the game at Thunder Lotus’s booth.
Sega announces special “Business Edition” of Yakuza 0
“It’s not personal… it’s business” is the mantra of organized crime bosses all over the world. And Sega is taking those words to heart after announcing a special “Business Edition” of Yakuza 0.
Available exclusively for the PS4 on January 24, the “Business Edition” will include a copy of Yakuza 0, as well as a Stainless Steel Business Card Holder adorned with Kiryu’s “Ryu” (dragon) and Majima’s “Hanya” (demon) tattoo designs and three Business Cards (one each for Kiryu, Majima, and Sunshine’s Hostesses). Sega will offer the “Business Edition” of Yakuza 0 to anyone who pre-orders the game, but the Business Card Holder and Business Cards will also be included with every copy that’s part of the first printing.
Sega also released a brand new trailer for Yakuza 0, which depicts Kazuma Kiryu taking care of business after the Yakuza frames him for murder. You can find it after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PS4
Tagged Yakuza Zero
Michel Ancel is possibly teasing a Beyond Good & Evil prequel on Instagram
Even though we’ve only glimpsed the barest scraps of information about Beyond Good & Evil 2 since its unveiling all the way back in 2008, the game has never really gone away. And as recently as this past Summer, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said the sequel is still on the way.
Earlier this morning, developer Michel Ancel teased Beyond Good & Evil 2 once again with a post on Instagram of concept art featuring a young Uncle Pey’j, Jade’s mentor/sidekick from the original Beyond Good & Evil. Does that mean the sequel is acually a prequel? It’s still too early to tell, but at least we know that Ancel is still thinking about the game.
Ubisoft France also posted a link to the image on their Twitter account, lending some legitimacy to the belief that this is “official” concept art and not just something Ancel whipped up in his spare time.
It’s rumored that Beyond Good & Evil 2 will be announced for Nintendo’s NX console in the coming weeks, but it’s probably a tad too early to speculate about that. You can find Ancel’s Beyond Good & Evil 2 tease after the break. (more…)
Developer Campo Santo will produce a Firewatch movie adaptation with Good Universe
The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Campo Santo has teamed up with Good Universe, a film production company responsible for Neighbors, Don’t Breathe, and The Night Before, to create a film adaptation of Firewatch.
Released earlier this year for the PC and PS4 (and earlier this month for the Xbox One), Firewatch is a first-person exploration game that takes place in the Wyoming wilderness in the 1980s. Armed only with a two-way radio, players must solve a mystery involving “mysterious occurrences and a shadowy figure” with the help of Delilah, his supervisor.
“When we met Good Universe we were floored by how they recognize, cultivate and produce incredible stories. It’s rare you meet another group that shares so many of your values and makes the process of creating things even more exciting. We can’t wait to see what we make together,” said Sean Vanaman, Campo Santo’s founder.
Obviously, it’s still very early in the process, so it’s unknown when Firewatch’s film adaptation will be released.
Max Brooks is writing an “Official” Minecraft novel for Mojang
There are lots of novels based on Minecraft on the shelves at your local bookstore, but Mojang has announced they’ve partnered with Max Brooks to produce a series of official novels based on the blockbuster game.
Brooks is best known as the author of World War Z, an “Oral History of the Zombie War” that was recently adapted into a movie starring Brad Pitt. But Brooks is also the author of The Harlem Hellfighters (which features many of the same events and people as this Fall’s Battlefield 1) and The Zombie Survival Guide. He’s also the son of legendary parodist Mel Brooks and Oscar-winning actress Anne Bancroft.
The first novel will be titled Minecraft: The Island, and according to Mojang Blog, readers should expect “cuboid Robinson Crusoe, but madder: a hero stranded in an unfamiliar land, with unfamiliar rules, learning to survive against tremendous odds.”
“I’m very excited to be part of this new venture,” Brooks said. “Finally I can justify all those hours I’ve spent playing Minecraft.”
“From our first meeting with Max, we knew he would be a perfect fit for our first foray into novels based on Minecraft,” said Lydia Winters, the Brand Director at Mojang. “His enthusiasm and understanding of all things related to the game bring out the sense of wonder and possibility that so many players love about Minecraft… ourselves included.”
We don’t know when Minecraft: The Island will be released, but we do know it’ll be published by Del Rey Books.
Playtonic digs up a cameo for Shovel Knight in Yooka-Laylee
Playtonic plans to pack their upcoming 3D platformer, Yooka-Laylee, with a ton of quirky and colorful characters. In addition to the original characters Playtonic is creating for the game, Yooka-Laylee will also feature a guest appearance by the one and only Shovel Knight! You can get your first peek at the chivalrous character in Yooka-Laylee’s latest trailer, which has been embedded above. It’ll also give fans a chance to reintroduce themselves to the villainous Capital B, the cunning Trowzer, and many others…
- Capital B – Cunning bizzness executive Capital B is the CEO of diabolical corporation Hivory towers, which has recently joined forces with ingenious tech firm Quack Corp. Together, they’re about to launch their most devious scheme yet: To absorb all of the world’s books and take over the world!
- Trowzer – The serpent salesman claims to be the most skilled and knowledgeable character in the game, though Laylee suspects he’s little more than a dodgy dealer. During their adventure, Yooka and Laylee can purchase advanced manoeuvres from Trowzer’s travelling moves shop.
- Dr. Quack – The former partner of Dr. Puzz, Quack’s increasingly wild experiments lead him down the path of corruption. Now fully clad in a not-so-hi-tech “biosuit,” the “good” doctor uses his scientific expertise to power up Hivory Towers’ Corplet employees
- Dr. Puzz – A hapless scientist who’s experience more than her share of tentacle – erm “technical” issues, Dr. Puzz will use her D.N.Ray to transform Yooka and Laylee into a plethora of crazy critters and help them on their adventure.
Yooka-Laylee will be released for the PC, PS4, Wii U, and Xbox One in Early 2017.
Runner 3 announced for undisclosed platforms by Choice Provisions
Choice Provisions has announced that the next game in the Bit.Trip Runner franchise will be released sometime in 2017. Known simply as Runner 3, the developer isn’t ready to reveal which platforms will host the third game in the series, but they do have some big plans… umm, planned:
- You can expect friends both old and new to show up in Runner 3.
- Runner 3 is far and away our biggest and most ambitious game yet!
- We’ve put together this cool website for you, where we plan to offer up weekly blog posts with more information about the game. We’re going to be very open about the development of Runner 3, including all the nitty-gritty details you never knew you wanted.
- Charles Martinet is returning to the role that made him famous: The Narrator.
While they’re playing things pretty close to the vest for now, Choice Provisions also plans to solicit feedback from fans to influence the game’s development:
We plan to be very open with you about the creation of Runner 3, and we even plan to solicit feedback occasionally and offer user polls to give everyone a chance to chime in and help us think of things like level names, possible unlockable outfits, and more.
More information about Runner 3 will surely be announced soon.
Bplus is also bringing Puzzle Box to the Nintendo NX
Here’s another one for the next revision to The Big List of Nintendo NX Games… In an update to their official website, developer Bplus has confirmed that Puzzle Box is in development for Nintendo’s upcoming NX console.
Currently available to download through Steam, Puzzle Box asks players to recreate a series of pixel art images using a “paint-by-numbers” control scheme. After rebuilding each level, players will be able to explore them in a grab bag of action-oriented modes including Kubi Mode (a platformer starring a block named Kubi), Claw Mode (a side-scrolling flyer where players have to collect coins using a claw), and Run Mode (an endless runner).
Bplus is also working on a second game for the NX, a “war simulation game” with an “anti-war” message known as Tank It!