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
Microsoft enables Cross-Network Play for Xbox One, Windows 10, and “other networks”
Chris Charla is the Director of Microsoft’s ID@Xbox initiative and he made a rather surprising announcement today on the Xbox Wire. With the Game Developers Conference set to kick off today, the executive revealed that a new feature will soon be available to ID@Xbox developers… Cross-Network Play.
Developers who choose to implement Cross-Network Play within their games will give Xbox One and Windows 10 players the opportunity to compete in online multiplayer matches against each other. Best of all, Microsoft will also open up this service to any “other networks” who choose to participate, essentially inviting Sony and Nintendo to come play in their sandbox.
This invitation is especially interesting as the first game to offer Cross-Network Play is Psyonix’s Rocket League. Will Sony take them up on it? Let’s hope so…
Axiom Verge is officially coming to the Wii U and Xbox One in 2016
Tom Happ has been tiptoeing towards an announcement about his future plans for a while now, but today the developer confirmed that Axiom Verge will be released for the Wii U and Xbox One sometime this year.
Axiom Verge is a “Metroidvania” that takes much of its inspiration from the Metroid half of that portmanteau, as Happ’s side-scroller puts players in the shoes of Trace, a scientist trapped on an alien world. Trace will need to do whatever it takes to escape, but he’ll also do it with style on the Wii U and Xbox One, because Axiom Verge took home multiple statues during our annual Golden Pixel Awards.
Presumably, Wii U and Xbox One owners will receive the same game that PS4 and PC fans have been enjoying since last Spring, as no platform-specific special features were announced.
Posted in News, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged Axiom Verge
Square Enix’s I Am Setsuna (formerly Project Setsuna) was inspired by Chrono Trigger
Square Enix’s Project Setsuna is beginning to take shape, with a new title (I Am Setsuna) and a tentative release date (this Summer). The publisher also revealed a single new screenshot for the RPG, which will be partially inspired by the classics of yesteryear, including the battle system from Chrono Trigger:
Led by director Atsushi Hashimoto, Tokyo RPG Factory aims to capture the narrative depth, impactful storytelling and masterful character development inspired by the golden era of Japanese role-playing games and bring them to current hardware and technology. With a battle system inspired by the classic hit Chrono Trigger, I Am Setsuna brings back authentic RPG gameplay, beautiful art design and a sorrowful story to the new generation.
I Am Setsuna is in development for the PC and PS4 as a digital download, and a teaser website is now open for your perusal at IAmSetsuna.com.
Posted in News, PC, PS4
Tagged I Am Setsuna
The Walking Dead: Michonne Episode 2 will be released on March 29
Telltale has announced that the second episode of The Walking Dead: Michonne will be released on March 29. Titled “Give No Shelter,” Michonne is on the run from the leaders of Monroe while memories of her daughter cloud her thoughts:
In Episode 2, “Give No Shelter,” a daring escape from the floating colony of Monroe sees Michonne, Pete, and Sam running for their lives. An all too brief reprieve is soon shattered; the leaders of Monroe don’t forgive and don’t forget. With memories of her daughters bleeding ever further into Michonne’s blurred reality, her world is becoming increasingly fractured… just at the point when she’ll need all of her skills to survive.
In development for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and mobile devices, The Walking Dead: Michonne is a three-episode miniseries set within the universe of The Walking Dead comic. A new trailer highlighting some of the choices available in the first episode, “In Too Deep,” has been embedded above.
The miniseries will conclude in April with the final episode, “What We Deserve.”
Retail version of Hitman will be available in January 2017
The “Intro Pack” for IO Interactive’s episodic take on the Hitman franchise is now available, but the team also confirmed that players will be able to pick up the complete collection of missions as a retail disc in January 2017.
“We are doing something bold and new which has the potential to shape how we experience AAA games in the future,” said Hannes Seifert, the Studio Head at IO Interactive. “Hitman is back and it’s clearly the game many fans have been waiting for, so that feels pretty special. And this is just the start, now our live content begins and then in April we head to Sapienza. We have a game that will evolve, grow and improve over time and deliver the best ever Hitman experience.”
IO Interactive’s plan for the full Hitman experience will play out over seven different story missions that’ll drop roughly once a month for the rest of 2016. The developer will also produce additional content including Escalation Contracts, time-limited Elusive Targets, and “The Sarejevo Six” (a series of mini-missions available exclusively for PS4 owners).
The Launch Trailer for Hitman has been embedded above.
Two Tribes will retire after the release of Rive in September 2016
Two Tribes has announced they’re calling it quits after they release their upcoming side-scrolling shooter, Rive, this September. Writing on their official website, the company’s three remaining members believe they don’t have a place in the video game industry anymore:
Long story short (grandfathers like to digress!): when running a company, you need to be on top of your game, not just in terms of the product you’re making, but business-wise too. And we just aren’t on top of the games business anymore. Therefore, it makes sense to focus our attention elsewhere, perhaps even outside the games industry. We simply don’t know yet; but we do know that Rive is going to be our parting gift to you and we’re making damn sure it’s going to be an awesome one!
Rive will be the final game produced by Two Tribes, though the developer said they will continue to provide support for all of their previously released games. A new trailer for Rive, which is in development for the PC, PS4, Wii U, and Xbox One, has been embedded above.
Good luck to everyone at Two Tribes, I sincerely hope you’re able to go out with a bang.
Weekly Warp-Up: Microsoft Closes Lionhead Studios and Press Play Studios…
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…
Microsoft shrunk their slate of internal teams this week when they decided to shut down development on Fable Legends. The consolemaker is looking for a way to also close developer Lionhead Studios, though it’s possible they could remain operational. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Press Play Studios, which was shuttered, along with their in-development survival game, Project Knoxville.
Elsewhere on Warp Zoned this week, we published reviews for Capcom’s globetrotting fighting game, Street Fighter V; and Nintendo’s adorable Yoshi’s Woolly World.
Travel past the break to read all about more news from the past seven days. (more…)
Posted in News
New Releases: Pokken Tournament, EA Sports UFC 2, Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, More
Put your dukes up, this week’s new release report is looking for a fight…
Nintendo and Bandai Namco kick things off with Pokken Tournament, a Wii U adaptation of the relatively recent arcade game. If you’ve ever wanted to take control of your favorite Pokemon as they battle it out, now’s your chance.
A bit more down to Earth, but featuring fighters who are equally bizarre (cough Mike Tyson cough), is EA Sports UFC 2. EA’s second trip inside “The Octagon” for the PS4 and Xbox One promises a more realistic fighting experience and deeper Career options.
Also available this week is Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games for the 3DS. While the two mascots won’t be trading blows, the Olympics always bring out a strong sense of competition for the whole world. And Mario versus Sonic is a fight that’ll probably never be settled.
Finally this week, Terraria is now available as a retail release for the 3DS, and Need For Speed will race onto the PC.
A full list of this week’s new releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged EA Sports UFC 2, Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, Need For Speed, Pokken Tournament, Terraria