Author: John Scalzo

John Scalzo is Warp Zoned's Editor-In-Chief and resident retro gaming expert. You can email him at john AT warpzoned DOT com.

Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD will be released on March 4, 2016; And we got a quick glimpse at The Legend of Zelda Wii U too

Just in case you missed it, did you hear that Nintendo has announced plans to bring The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD to the Wii U on March 4, 2016?

Celebrating the tenth anniversary of the game’s launch on the GameCube and Wii, Twilight Princess HD will include improved graphics and come packed with an Amiibo figure featuring Wolf Link and Midna. Players who pre-order the bundle will also receive a soundtrack CD.

Twilight Princess HD will be compatible with five other Amiibo figures from the Super Smash Bros. series that feature characters from the Zelda franchise (Link, Toon Link, Princess Zelda, Sheik, and Ganon), though it’s currently unknown exactly how Amiibo support will work in the game. The many eras of Hyrule will connect together even tighter as Nintendo also said the Wolf Link/Midna Amiibo will be cross-compatible with the upcoming The Legend of Zelda Wii U.

What we do know is that Nintendo also released a few seconds of new footage from The Legend of Zelda Wii U as part of the Twilight Princess HD reveal. It’s been tacked on to the end of the trailer embedded above, so be sure to check it out.

Posted in News, Wii U | Tagged ,

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt leads all nominees at the 2015 Game Awards

Geoff Keighley’s Game Awards are back for another year and the nominees for the 2015 edition were announced late last week. From Software’s Bloodborne, Bethesda’s Fallout 4, Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Nintendo’s Super Mario Maker, and CD Project Red’s The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will all compete for the coveted “Game of the Year.”

Besides Game of the Year, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt actually lead the competition with six total nominations including “Best Narrative,” “Best Performance,” “Best Art Direction,” “Best Score/Soundtrack,” and “Best Role-Playing Game.” CD Projekt Red is also up for “Developer of the Year” due to their exemplary work on the game.

The 2015 Game Awards will be held on Thursday, December 3 at 9:00 PM (Eastern Time). Fans will be able to watch the show on a variety of platforms and devices including YouTube, Twitch, Steam, the PlayStation Network, Wii U, Xbox Live, and Go90. And don’t forget, plenty of “World Premiere Trailers” will make their debut in between the awards.

The full list of nominees and awards can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Weekly Warp-Up: Fallout 4 Aftermath Edition

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…

I guess, technically, this week’s Weekly Warp-Up could be called the “Fallout 4 Fallout Edition,” but that might be going too far. Whatever you want to call it, Bethesda’s epic RPG is now available and fans are going nuts for it. These fans include our own Nicole Kline, who awarded Fallout 4 a 7/7 in her review.

And speaking of epic games… retailers have begun to publish their Black Friday advertisements this week. Target and Best Buy are first out of the gate and they’ve got some especially good discounts on console bundles this holiday season.

But if you’d rather root for the underdog, UK Correspondent Andrew Rainnie is back with a new collection of compelling crowdfunding campaigns in the latest edition of Kickstart This! You might not have ever heard of The Nullpoint, Cold Blooded, Grey Night, and Failsafe… so we recommend you remedy that.

We’ve got more news from the week that was after the break. (more…)

Posted in News |

New Releases: Star Wars Battlefront, Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon, Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash, More

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“Do or do not. There is no try.”

After an absence from gaming for more than a decade, it’s time for the return of the Star Wars: Battlefront franchise on the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Did DICE recapture the old magic that made the series a fan favorite? We won’t know for sure until Tuesday, but I do know that the Vader-emblazoned PS4 500GB + Star Wars: Battlefront Limited Edition Bundle is a beautiful piece of hardware. A regular PS4 500GB + Star Wars: Battlefront Bundle will also be released this week.

Also available this week is a pair of Nintendo exclusives on Friday. Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon for the 3DS is the latest dungeon-crawling roguelike starring those lovable Pokemon. Meanwhile, Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash serves up another Mario-filled tennis tournament on the Wii U in place of the delayed Star Fox Zero.

Finally this week, we’ve got plenty of familiar games in new places…

  • Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate makes its PC debut as the Assassins and Templars take their eternal struggle to Victorian England.
  • The Borderlands Triple Pack (PS3, Xbox 360) puts all three games (and all their downloadable content) into a single package for the first time.
  • The Crew: Wild Run Edition (PS4, Xbox One) bundles together Ubisoft’s online racer with its Wild Run expansion.
  • Deadpool breaks the fourth wall again in this PS4/Xbox One remake of his PS3/Xbox 360 game.
  • Telltale compiles all six episodes of their Game of Thrones adaptation onto a single disc for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.

A complete list of this week’s new release can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged , , , , , , , ,

More than 113 games will be playable at PlayStation Experience 2015

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The 2015 PlayStation Experience is just a few weeks away and Sony has unveiled (via the PlayStation Blog) the semi-complete list of games that will be playable on the show floor. I say “semi-complete” because the consolemaker also revealed they have plenty of new game announcements planned for the next edition of their yearly showcase, many of which will also have demos available.

The list, which is available after the break, is mostly populated with this Fall’s biggest PS4, PS3, and Vita releases. But it also has a few unannounced titles, including New Hot Shots Golf. Actually, I’m not sure if this is the first mention of a new Hot Shots Golf game or not, but its inclusion is a nice surprise to me… and that’s something.

The 2015 PlayStation Experience will be held on December 5th and 6th in San Francisco. Tickets are still available and can be purchased through PlayStation.com. (more…)

Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Vita | Tagged ,

Friday the 13th: The Game is fully funded on Kickstarter

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Happy Friday the 13th everyone! I hope you managed to avoid any black cat that might’ve cross your path or any ladder that you might’ve walked under. And definitely steer clear of Jason Voorhees, because this is his day… in more ways than one.

Just a few hours remain in the Kickstarter campaign for Gun Media’s Friday the 13th: The Video Game, but they’ve chopped through their initial goal of $700,000 and are tearing past Stretch Goals as we speak. Detailed in the campaign’s latest update, these Stretch Goals include bonus kills for Jason, new skins for the Counselors, a number of new Maps (including Manhattan), and an Offline Mode.

Congratulations to Gun Media and everyone else involved in the creation of Friday the 13th: The Video Game (including special effects wizard Tom Savini, actor Kane “Jason” Hodder, and composer Harry Manfredini). If all goes according to plan, Friday the 13th: The Video Game will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One in October 2016.

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One | Tagged

Mega Man Legacy Collection retail edition will launch on February 23; 3DS Collector’s Edition will include Gold Amiibo figure

Capcom has announced we’ll all get the chance to rebuy the Mega Man games one more time as the Mega Man Legacy Collection retail edition will be released for the 3DS, PS4, and Xbox One on February 23, 2016. The Mega Man Legacy Collection Standard Edition for the 3DS, PS4, and Xbox One will include all six NES-era Mega Man games on a single disc/card, as well as a Robot Masters Cheat Sheet, a soundtrack CD containing 18 songs and four stickers.

megamanamiibogoldBut wait! There’s more! 3DS owners will get the chance to pick up a 3DS-exclusive Collector’s Edition, which will come packed with plenty of bonus goodies. In addition to including everything from the Standard Edition, the Collector’s Edition will include six Mega Man Postcards, 11 new Challenges in the Challenge Mode, more than 100 new items in Museum Mode, and a beautiful gold-colored Mega Man Amiibo figure. 3DS owners who opt for the Standard Edition or the digital download will also receive access to the new Challenges and Museum items, which will be unlockable with a regular Mega Man Amiibo figure as well.

If none of these bonus items appeal to you, the Mega Man Legacy Collection is currently available to download on the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

Posted in 3DS, News, PS4, Xbox One | Tagged

Halo 5: Guardians was the best-selling game of October 2015 according to the NPD Group

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The Master Chief’s sales performance was masterful last month as players flocked to stores to purchase Halo 5: Guardians, making it the best-selling game in October 2015.

The fifth entry in Microsoft’s long-running shooter series wasn’t the only new release to rule the charts last month. Players also pushed their gaming dollars towards the newly available Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate (#3), WWE 2K16 (#5), Yoshi’s Woolly World (#8), and Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection (#9). And the battle of the (plastic instrument) bands ended with Harmonix’s Rock Band 4 taking the #10 spot and Guitar Hero Live failing to chart. This month is also notable for another no-show as Minecraft was knocked out of the top ten for the first time in a long time. But it’ll surely climb the ranks again as the holiday season approaches.

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, The NPD Group’s Liam Callahan confirmed that the game industry saw a year-over-year sales increase thanks to Halo 5 and the debut of Microsoft’s Xbox One Elite Controller: “Overall sales across physical software, hardware, and accessories experienced a modest 2% growth in October 2015 compared to October 2014. This was driven entirely by accessory sales, which grew by 18%, or just under $30 million.”

Halo 5 also helped sales of Microsoft’s Xbox One triumph over Sony’s PS4 on the monthly sales charts for the first time all year. Even more impressive, this happened after Sony officially dropped the price on the PS4.

The NPD Group’s complete top ten for October 2015 can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,