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
DC Comics will produce a weekly Injustice 2 digital comic written by Tom Taylor in 2017
Injustice: Gods Among Us wasn’t just a hugely successful video game for NetherRealm Studios and WB Games, it was also a very popular weekly digital comic for DC Comics. On Friday, DC announced that they’ve once again hired writer Tom Taylor to produce a weekly digital comic to bridge the gap between Gods Among Us and the upcoming Injustice 2.
“Our overarching goal is to tell one complete story between the comics and the games,” said Taylor. “In writing Injustice 2, there are a lot less ‘Gods Among Us’ than when we started our story, but I hope to join Batman and the world’s finest heroes in cleaning up the mess an evil Superman and his regime left behind. I hope to repair Earth and bring back hope… but this is Injustice. Prepare for tears, comedy, triumph, devastation, shocking tragic twists involving DC’s most beloved characters… and Harley Quinn stealing every scene she’s in.”
The Injustice 2 digital comic will debut in 2017, sometime before the game is released for the PS4 and Xbox One. And speaking of the game, NetherRealm also announced this weekend that Wonder Woman and Blue Beetle will be included as playable characters in Injustice 2.
Posted in Etcetera, News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Comic-Con 2016, Injustice 2
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 will be re-released for PC, PS4, Xbox One this Tuesday
Marvel is bringing back the Ultimate Alliance series this week. Announced yesterday at Comic-Con, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 will be available to download this Tuesday, July 26, for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Originally released back in 2006 and 2009, respectively, the Marvel: Ultimate Alliance series recruited characters from the entire Marvel Universe to save the world in two sprawling co-op action RPGs. Available separately for $39.99 apiece, or bundled together for $59.99, both games will be rebuilt for modern platforms with improved performance and “some UI and graphic enhancements.” While that price might seem steep, Executive Producer Mike Jones wrote on Marvel.com that fans have been asking for this re-release for a while now:
Well, it’s funny; since we started rebuilding our games strategy and going on the road to Comic Cons and gaming events like E3, we’re constantly being asked about Ultimate Alliance. “Are you guys going to do another Ultimate Alliance?” “Can you guys do a re-release of Ultimate Alliance 1 and 2?” It was actually kind of surprising how often it happens. It’s been 10 years since the series began and gamers are still as passionate about “Ultimate Alliance” today as they ever were. So we thought this would be a great way to celebrate an amazing franchise that’s about to hit its 10th anniversary. It’s a perfect time to play these games if you missed them the first time or replay with new friends and new Super Hero dream teams.
Does this re-release mean we might get Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 3 someday? Jones did his part by telling fans, “Anything is possible.”
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Comic-Con 2016, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2
Weekly Warp-Up: Comic-Con 2016 in Review…
No, that’s not a typo. Welcome to the Weekly Warp-Up, your weekly wrap-up of the biggest and the best articles posted at Warp Zoned this week…
It’s Comic-Con weekend, so get ready to get geeky and nerdy with all the latest video game news. That includes our look at 10 Superheroes and Supervillains We Want to See in Injustice 2, which matches up nicely with the announcement that NetheRealm will add Wonder Woman and Blue Beetle to Injustice 2.
But the biggest news out of San Diego this weekend is that a pair of new Sonic games are in development at Sega including Sonic Mania (a 2D side-scroller due out next Spring) and Project Sonic (a new game from Sonic Team that’ll be released for the PC, PS4, Xbox One, and NX next Fall).
But for my money, the actual biggest announcement was that Bandai Namco will bring Pac-Man Championship Edition 2 to the PC, PS4, and Xbox One this September. Pac is back!
Elsewhere on Warp Zoned this week, we cast our reviewer’s gaze on Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End. Nathan Drake had a good run, but it’s time to say goodbye.
More news from the week that was can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News
New Retail Releases: Fairy Fencer F PS4, Shiren the Wanderer 5 Vita, N.E.R.O., More
It’s the last week of July, and we’ve got a trio of new games to talk about…
Fairy Fencer F: Advent Dark Force is a PS4 re-release of an RPG from Japanese developer Compile Heart. In addition to high definition graphics, Advent Dark Force adds new content to the game, more playable characters, and three new difficulty settings.
Another brand new re-release can be found on the Vita this week as Aksys Games plans to release Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate. The fifth game in the Shiren the Wanderer series, The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate is a roguelike RPG that was originally released for the DS, only in Japan, in 2010.
Finally this week, N.E.R.O.: Nothing Ever Remains Obscure is a first-person puzzle game for the PS4 that takes players on a journey through a world of “incredible beauty.”
While just a handful of games will be added to retail shelves, a huge number of new games are expected to be made available to download through the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop this week.
Posted in News, PS4, Vita
Tagged Fairy Fencer F
NetherRealm adds Wonder Woman and Blue Beetle to Injustice 2
As a member of DC’s “Trinity,” one of the most popular characters from the first Injustice game, and the only universally-praised part of Batman V Superman, it’s not exactly surprising that Wonder Woman will return as a playable character in the sequel.
During their Comic-Con panel last night, NetherRealm also announced that the Blue Beetle (AKA mild-mannered teenager Jaime Reyes) will also appear in Injustice 2. A trailer showcasing both fighters has been embedded above.
Personally, I’m hoping that Conan O’Brien can finally make his Injustice debut in the sequel. He even pulled a Batman earlier this week by using his vast wealth and personal manservant to help him construct an impressive new superhero costume.
NetherRealm’s Ed Boon also revealed during the panel that Supergirl will play an important role in Injustice 2’s story. And for multiplayer fans, Injustice 2 will include a Tournament Mode and make use of the GGPO engine for its netcode.
Injustice 2 will be released for the PS4 and Xbox One sometime in 2017.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Comic-Con 2016, Injustice 2
Sonic Team will release untitled Project Sonic on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and NX in Holiday 2017
As promised, Sonic Team announced their next Sonic the Hedgehog game during the Sonic 25th Anniversary Party. The untitled game is known internally as Project Sonic, and a short trailer was revealed during the Comic-Con event.
We didn’t learn much about the game, but the video did show Sonic dashing through a post-apocalyptic landscape where he was eventually joined by “Classic Sonic” from Sonic Generations, so we might be looking at a sequel to that game.
Sega promised to announce additional information about Project Sonic “at a later date,” but for now, they’ve confirmed it’ll be released for the PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo’s upcoming NX console during the 2017 holiday season.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One
Tagged Comic-Con 2016, Sonic Forces
Sega will release Sonic Mania, a 2D Sonic game with remixed classic levels, in Spring 2017
While we already knew that Sonic Team would talk about their next Sonic game during this year’s Comic-Con convention, Sega had a surprise up their sleeve and also announced a second Sonic game set to debut in 2017.
Co-developed by Sega of America and Pagoda West, and with contributions from Christian Whitehead and Simon “Headcannon” Thomley, Sega Mania is a 2D side-scrolling Sonic game that’ll reimagine familiar levels from Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic CD, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, and Sonic and Knuckles. But instead of going full remake, the developers will also create “completely new Zones with all-new Acts, and bosses” for Sonic Mania.
Running with its theme as a celebration of the entire Genesis era, Sonic Mania will also give players the chance to play as Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles.
“Sonic Mania was born out of our fans’ love of the classic Sonic 2D platform games,” said Takashi Iizuka, Head of Sonic Team. “This type of collaboration is a first for Sega and we hope everyone will be both surprised and delighted by this title. Sonic Mania has been a passion project for the entire team and we look forward to sharing more details about it later this year. Having the game actually playable at the event itself tonight was testament to the dedication of the team behind it.”
Sonic Mania will be released in Spring 2017 as a digital download for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One… though Comic-Con attendees will get to try it out this weekend. For the rest of us, the debut trailer embedded above will have to be enough.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Comic-Con 2016, Sonic Mania
Nintendo will publish an official NES history book this November
Are you hoping to find an NES Classic Edition under the Christmas tree this December? If so, you might also want to ask Santa for Playing With Power: Nintendo NES Classics, an official guide to the NES published by Prima Games and created in collaboration with Nintendo.
Playing With Power: Nintendo NES Classics will be released on November 18, and it’s packed with a ton of retro-tastic touches:
- Exclusive embossed slipcase holds this hardcover tome in a clever package that resembles a classic NES Game Pak!
- A fascinating retrospective on 17 NES classics… including Super Mario Bros. 3, Donkey Kong, and The Legend of Zelda!
- Interviews and commentary from Nintendo visionaries who pioneered this era of gaming.
- A showcase of vintage advertising and priceless excerpts from Nintendo Power magazine back issues!
- Plus hand-drawn maps, character and game environment art, and much more!
Bitmap Books recently completed a Kickstarter campaign for The Unofficial NES/Famicom: A Visual Compendium, a similar reference tome that should be available in January.