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
Nordic Games fully rebrands themselves as THQ Nordic
THQ is back (sort of)!
After acquiring the company’s trademark in 2014, Nordic Games has announced a plan to rebrand the entire company as THQ Nordic. The publisher has issued a surprisingly amusing statement about the name change, which also looks back to their humble beginnings and rather bright future:
It all started out in Sweden in 2008 as a mini-venture to self-publish such illustrious titles like Dance Party Club Hits, Kart Racer, and Truck Racer (just to name a few) on PlayStation 2 and Nintendo Wii. The following year, we landed We Sing, a million-plus selling karaoke franchise for Nintendo Wii. In 2011, with our first of many acquisitions to come, Nordic Games began its transformation from small scale, two-platform games publisher to a multi-platform, multi-genre global player.
One could say the most defining moment for our company happened in 2013, grabbing headlines like; “Who the FUCK is Nordic Games?”, “Darksiders Gets Bought By… Nordic Games?”, and “Nordic Games explains who the F they are, plans for THQ assets”. Funny enough, back then, this was so true. Until that point, we had been a low profile publisher uttering expletives of our own along the way, and all of a sudden we found ourselves in the international gaming media spotlight. We knew then, with great certainty, that we’d just made the best deal in our company´s history.
THQ Nordic currently has 23 games in development, “the majority of [which] are based on former THQ owned IPs and franchises.” More than a dozen of these games have yet to be announced, but its possible they may make an appearance at this year’s Gamescom convention. THQ Nordic will have a large presence at the event, which kicks off next Wednesday, August 17.
Florence + The Machine just released a three-song soundtrack for Final Fantasy XV
After using a Florence + The Machine cover of Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me” during their Final Fantasy XV “Uncovered” event, Square Enix is teaming up with the British band again for a three-song soundtrack album.
Songs From Final Fantasy XV contains the aforementioned “Stand By Me” cover, as well as two original songs. “Too Much Is Never Enough” is described as “a cinematic epic, featuring sweeping strings and Florence’s rich, emotive vocals.” And “I Will Be,” which is featured in the new Final Fantasy XV trailer embedded above, showcases the band’s quieter side with a ballad.
“I’ve always seen Final Fantasy as a beautiful and creative game so I don’t think I could have worked with another video game. It wouldn’t have made sense,” said lead singer Florence Welch. “In some ways the landscape of Final Fantasy and my own internal landscape seemed to fit quite well, it’s mythical and beautiful and epic.”
Final Fantasy XV’s Director, Hajime Tabata, added: “We are incredibly excited to have collaborated with Florence on both the cover of ‘Stand by Me’ and on the two original tracks inspired by the world and story of Final Fantasy XV. Music has always been a hugely important and much beloved part of the Final Fantasy series, and with these three tracks we really wanted to create a musical experience to live within the game, and that will transport listeners, whether new to the series or not, into the epic Final Fantasy XV Universe.”
Songs From Final Fantasy XV is now available to buy from your favorite digital music service, and you can also listen to it for free through Spotify.
Posted in Etcetera, News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Final Fantasy XV
Call of Duty: Black Ops III Descent DLC Pack now available for PC, Xbox One
Just in case you forgot, Call of Duty: Black Ops III‘s Descent DLC Pack is now available to download for the PC and Xbox One. Originally released last month for the PS4, the downloadable expansion adds four more multiplayer maps and a new Zombies episode to Treyarch’s shooter:
- Empire: Treyarch adapts its Black Ops III movement system to the Call of Duty: Black Ops II fan favorite map Raid. The re-imagining of this classic, medium-sized map features an authentic Roman villa that has been “recreated by a modern-day eccentric billionaire,” where a classic map structure mixes with the new gameplay mechanics of Black Ops III.
- Cryogen: Located far off the coast in the Dead Sea, an isolated compound holds some of the world’s most dangerous criminals in frozen isolation. Sentry towers keep watch over the small map’s circular design as frenetic combat is funneled around the prison’s cryogenic tubes, where opportunities for wall running attacks abound.
- Berserk: Ancient sentinels from a lost civilization guard the entrance to Berserk, a Viking village frozen in time. Players will fight through blizzards, and control the center bridge as they navigate this medium-sized map’s wooden buildings, deadly rocky outcroppings, and tight chokepoints.
- Rumble: Gamers battle amongst larger-than-life mechanized warriors in Rumble, a stadium where giant robots battle to the roar of the crowd. This medium-sized map funnels high-speed combat to the central arena, where players battle their way through fallen mechs and pyrotechnics.
Descent also thrusts players to an alternate universe of Nikolai’s motherland, the 1940s Soviet Union, in the next highly-anticipated chapter of the Origins Zombies saga, “Gorod Krovi.” Players face-off against a swarm of mechanized zombie infantry and dodge hell-fire from aerial dragon assaults, all in the middle of a raging battle within the remnants of Stalingrad. “Gorod Krovi” delivers the most exciting Zombies experience yet, filled with horrifying new enemies, exciting new gameplay mechanics and an epic set of Zombie annihilating weapons.
The Descent DLC Pack is included as part of Call of Duty: Black Ops III’s Season Pass, or it can be purchased as a standalone download for $14.99.
Posted in News, PC, Xbox One
Tagged Call of Duty: Black Ops III
Nintendo Download: Wave Race 64, Mega Man X, Mario Sports Mix, more
If you’re a fan of retro gaming, then today’s a good day to visit the Nintendo eShop. Three games from Nintendo’s illustrious past are now available to download through their digital storefront.
Let’s start with the Wii U eShop, and that’s because owners of Nintendo’s home console are now able to download Wave Race 64, one of the best games from the Nintendo 64’s launch period. An argument could even be made that it’s one of the best games ever released for the Nintendo 64, period. Also available to download this week is Mario Sports Mix, a mash-up of hockey, basketball, volleyball, and dodgeball that was originally released for the Wii in 2010.
Jumping over to the 3DS eShop, we find that Mega Man X, the first Mega Man game released for the Super NES all the way back in 1993, is now available to download for Nintendo’s handheld. Fans love the game’s colorful new characters and more mature storyline, and the brutal difficulty will provide a challenge for even the toughest players.
More details on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Mega Man X
Please rise and watch the 1992 Dream Team challenge the 2016 Men’s Olympic Basketball Team in NBA 2K17
After all the panic and worry, the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio kicked off without a hitch and Team USA seems to be doing pretty well on the basketball court. Their 3-0 record includes a 98-88 victory over Australia, and they’ll take on Serbia this Friday, before closing out the Group Phase with a contest against France on Sunday. But first, 2K Games wants everyone to get excited for NBA 2K17 with this new trailer pitting the current National Team against the 1992 Dream Team.
So please rise for the “Star Spangled Banner” and watch as virtual versions of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird take on Kevin Dyurant, Carmelo Anthony, and NBA 2K17 cover athlete Paul George.
NBA 2K17 will be released for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One on September 20. However, the 1992 Dream Team is only available in the game as a pre-order bonus. But on the plus side, you’ll receive NBA 2K17 four days early in a special “Tip-Off Edition” that’ll be released on September 16.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Game of the Year Edition will be available on August 30
We all knew it was in the works, but CD Projekt made it official today by announcing that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Game of the Year Edition will be released on August 30. The Game of the Year Edition is the most complete version of The Witcher 3 and it’ll include the epic original game, every update, and both downloadable expansions (Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine):
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Game of the Year Edition offers over 150 hours of open world adventures and sees players take on the role of professional monster slayer Geralt of Rivia, as he seeks out the child of prophecy in Wild Hunt, faces off against a ruthless bandit captain in Hearts of Stone, and unravels the terrifying secret of the beautiful region of Toussaint in Blood and Wine.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Game of the Year Edition will priced at $49.99 for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. You can pre-order now from your favorite game retailer or watch the brand new announcement trailer embedded above.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Sony unveils five new The Last Guardian screenshots
After devoting nine years to its development, Sony and Team Ico are finally ready to release The Last Guardian for the PS4 on October 25. While the consolemaker has said very little so far this year about their flagship title for the Fall, they did release a quintet of new screenshots on Facebook late last night.
Beautifully depicting the growing bond between the nameless boy and the griffin-like Trico, the screenshots can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PS4
Tagged The Last Guardian
First Resident Evil: The Final Chapter trailer promises a return to Raccoon City
The Resident Evil film series is, without a doubt, the most successful set of game-to-movie adaptations ever. And after five films, director Paul W.S. Anderson and star Milla Jovovich have taken a simple zombie and cranked the crazy up to 11. Now there’s monsters and clones and hypnotic brain slugs and psychotic British AIs and a girl named K-Mart…
And it’s all been leading up to Resident Evil: The Final Chapter.
Set to open in theaters on January 27th (just three days after Resident Evil 7‘s January 24th launch), The Final Chapter promises a return to Raccoon City for Alice, along with reunions with Claire, Wesker, and Dr. Isaacs. You can get a little taste of the action in the film’s first trailer, which has been embedded above.
Even though the Resident Evil film franchise doesn’t have even the slightest resemblance to Capcom’s original storyline anymore, I’m still eager to see how everything comes to an end.
Posted in Etcetera, News
Tagged Resident Evil