Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Jordan Minor’s “Boss Fight Books: Super Mario Galaxy” is Now Available for Pre-Order
- Angry Birds, Dragon Quest, FIFA Soccer, and Silent Hill are the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026
- 2025 GOTY Scoreboard: In Progress
- 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
Warp Zoned Presents
- Video Game Research Library
- With Grand Theft Auto 6 poised to take over the world, I reached out to Jack Thompson and it did not go well – PC Gamer (2026)
- Vib-Ribbon: An oral history – Design Room (2026)
- How a Second-Grade Teacher Revived a Beloved Video Game – The New York Times (2026)
- Spore: An oral history – Design Room (2026)
- Diablo IV PC Cooled With Real Human Blood Is Still Going Strong Two Years Later, Says Guy Who Won It – Aftermath (2026)
Author: John Scalzo
Black Friday 2015 Video Game Deals: Nintendo eShop
Black Friday is coming, is your wish list (and your wallet) ready? Here’s what you can expect to find at one retailer on November 27th…
Nintendo is jumping into the Black Friday game a bit early as all of their digital discounts through the Nintendo eShop are available now (and will continue to be available until Wednesday, December 2). The price tags on some of Nintendo’s biggest titles have been slashed like a Thanksgiving turkey… including Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD, Pikmin 3, The Wonderful 101, Fire Emblem: Awakening, and Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon.
A number of “Nindies” can also be acquired on the cheap this week. Titles like Scram Kitty and His Buddy On Rails, Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse, SteamWorld Dig, and a few dozen others have all received a deep discount.
Nintendo’s complete list of Black Friday deals through the Nintendo eShop can be found after the break. (more…)
Xbox Store Today: Minecraft: Story Mode – Episode 3: The Last Place You Look
There’s just one new release on the Xbox Games Store today and its the third episode of Telltale’s Minecraft: Store Mode, now available to download for the Xbox One and Xbox 360. Titled The Last Place You Look, Jesse and his friends are on the hunt for the final member of the Order of the Stone in this episode.
A fuller description of The Last Place You Look can be found below. And if you’re looking for something new on your Xbox One or Xbox 360 this weekend, don’t forget about Microsoft’s massive Black Friday Sale.
Xbox One Games
Minecraft: Story Mode – Episode 3: The Last Place You Look ($4.99)
Trapped and running out of time, Jesse and crew must discover a means to locate Soren, the final member of the Order of the Stone. They’ll see sights and wonders beyond belief, including the horrors lurking beneath the starless sky of The End. Only Soren’s knowledge can help push back the all-consuming Witherstorm, but will it be enough to save the world?Xbox 360 Games
Minecraft: Story Mode – Episode 3: The Last Place You Look ($4.99)
Trapped and running out of time, Jesse and crew must discover a means to locate Soren, the final member of the Order of the Stone. They’ll see sights and wonders beyond belief, including the horrors lurking beneath the starless sky of The End. Only Soren’s knowledge can help push back the all-consuming Witherstorm, but will it be enough to save the world?
Posted in News, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Minecraft: Story Mode
Beyond: Two Souls, Bloodborne: The Old Hunters, Minecraft: Story Mode Episode 3, more added to PS Store
Sony is in a giving mood for this week’s PlayStation Store update. The consolemaker has heavily discounted dozens of games for Black Friday weekend (though they never use the words “Black Friday Sale”), as well as launching two new PS4 titles.
Beyond: Two Souls is a PS4 remake of Quantic Dream’s supernatural adventure story starring Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe. In addition to improved visuals, Quantic Dream has added increased difficulty, improved controls, and a special “chronological order” mode to the game.
Also available this week is The Old Hunters, the massive new expansion to From Software’s Bloodborne. Players will descend into “Byrgenwerth’s deepest, darkest secrets” as they “explore brand new stages full of dangers, rewards, and deadly beasts to hunt.” Sounds like a good time will be had by all.
Finally this week, Telltale Games has reached the halfway point with Minecraft: Story Mode. Episode 3 will be known as The Last Place You Look, and it’s a rather fitting title as Jesse are on the lookout for Soren, the final member of the Order of the Stone. I wonder if he’s hiding out to browse the PlayStation Store sale in peace.
More information on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. A complete list of this week’s discounts and new game add-ons can be found at the PlayStation Blog. (more…)
Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Vita
Tagged Beyond: Two Souls, Bloodborne, Minecraft: Story Mode
Vblank announces Shakedown Hawaii, a 16-bit sequel to Retro City Rampage
Two weeks ahead of this year’s PlayStation Experience, Vblank Entertainment has announced Shakedown Hawaii, a sequel to Retro City Rampage. Set to be released for the PS4 and Vita sometime in the “to be announced” future, the game will be playable on the show floor at Sony’s big showcase. Developer Brian Provinciano teased a tiny bit about Shakedown Hawaii, which will have a 16-bit art style, on the PlayStation Blog:
Shakedown Hawaii brings the Vblank open world universe into the 16-bit era, powered up with destructible environments and an arsenal of supercharged weapons. Taking place some thirty years after the events of Retro City Rampage, the game follows The Player as he comes out of early retirement to rebuild his neglected corporate empire.
The footer of the official Shakedown Hawaii website confirms that the game will also be available for the PC (via Steam) and at least one unnamed Nintendo platform.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS4, Switch, Vita
Tagged PlayStation Experience 2015, Shakedown Hawaii
Time Magazine names their top ten video games of 2015
It looks like Time Magazine will get the first word in the annual discussion about the best games of the past 12 months as the publication recently published their look at the “Top 10 Video Games of 2015.” As usual, Time’s honorees are a mix of blockbusters and games with a lower profile. That includes this year’s #1, which is Prune, a “minimalist” puzzler for the iOS. I’d never heard of Prune before today (and I’m sure I’m not alone), but it certainly looks interesting.
Among this year’s blockbusters, Nintendo has two titles in Time’s Top Ten: Super Mario Maker at #6 and Splatoon at #10. Both certainly made the Wii U stand out against the PS4 and Xbox One. But speaking of the PS4 and Xbox One, several multiplatform games rose to the occasion in the eyes of Time’s editors including Rise of the Tomb Raider (#2), Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (#3), The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (#5), and Batman: Arkham Knight (#8).
The rest of Time’s Top Ten can be found right here:
Time Magazine’s Top Ten Video Games of 2015
1. Prune (Mobile)
2. Rise of the Tomb Raider (Xbox One, Xbox 360)
3. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One)
4. Her Story (PC, Mobile)
5. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
6. Super Mario Maker (Wii U)
7. Ryan North’s To Be or Not to Be (PC, Mobile)
8. Batman: Arkham Knight (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
9. Undertale (PC)
10. Splatoon (Wii U)
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Batman: Arkham Knight, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Splatoon, Super Mario Maker, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
New tracks from Van Halen melt your face off in today’s Rock Band 4 DLC Update
Harmonix wants to take us back to school with today’s Rock Band 4 DLC Update. Van Halen’s eternally popular “Hot For Teacher” headlines the Van Halen Hits Pack 01, which will include five additional songs from the band’s David Lee Roth era. If you’ve got it bad… got it bad… got it bad… you’ll also be able to play along with “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love,” “And the Cradle Will Rock…,” “Dance the Night Away,” “Runnin’ With the Devil,” and “Unchained.”
The Van Halen Hits Pack 01 is available to download now on the PS4 and Xbox One for $9.99. Individual songs can also be purchased for $1.99 apiece.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Rock Band 4
Capcom will also release a GameStop-exclusive Street Fighter V Collector’s Edition in February
Fans of the Street Fighter franchise are a special breed. Capcom and GameStop are hoping to tap into that strain of fanaticism with an absolutely massive Street Fighter V Collector’s Edition, which will be available in February.
Retailing for $347.97 (though currently discounted to $329.98), the Collector’s Edition will include a Street Fighter V game disc, a 48-page Art Book, a Soundtrack Sampler, a Chun-Li Arcade FightStick, and a 10-inch statue of Ryu. I’m not usually one to go gaga over statues, but I have to admit, this one looks pretty sharp. The package will also include a three-month subscription to PlayStation Plus, a one-month subscription to the Capcom Fighter Twitch channel, and a downloadable sample of Udon’s Street Fighter comic.
The Street Fighter V Collector’s Edition will be available exclusively for the PS4 through GameStop.com on February 16, 2016. The game will also be released for the PC in a standard edition on the same day.
Posted in News, PS4
Tagged Street Fighter V
Bombshell will be released for the PC on January 29; “Retro FPS Prequel” announced
3D Realms and Interceptor Entertainment have announced that Bombshell, an isometric action RPG that began life as Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction, will be released for the PC on January 29, 2016.
Bombshell stars Shelly “Bombshell” Harrison, a one-armed mercenary who has been enlisted to fly across the galaxy and save the President. And in Duke-like fashion, she’ll do it with a scowl and plenty of sarcasm.
Players interested in joining her on this adventure will be able to purchase Bombshell through Steam or GOG.com in a standard edition ($34.99) or a Digital Deluxe Edition ($39.99). The Digital Deluxe Edition will include the game, as well as a Digital Soundtrack, Digital Art Book, Digital World Maps, and beta access to Bombshell: The Washington Project, a “retro FPS prequel” built from the ground up with the Build Engine. The Build Engine was used to create Duke Nukem 3D, so you know Bombshell: The Washington Project will be authentically retro.
Bombshell is also in development for the PS4 and Xbox One and it’ll launch sometime in 2016.