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
Xbox Store Today: Rugby League Live 3, Draw A Stickman: Epic, Leo’s Fortune
Another trio of new games were added to the Xbox Games Store for the Xbox One today. Ready? Because here we go…
- Rugby League Live 3 is another rugby sim for the Xbox One. This one’s developed by Big Ant Studios and includes more than 100 teams from Rugby League competitions around the world .
- Draw A Stickman: Epic is a “cartoon RPG” for the Xbox One that asks players to sketch out a solution to save their stickman buddy from a villain named Zarp.
- Finally, Leo’s Fortune is a platformer “where you hunt down the cunning and mysterious thief that stole your gold.”
More information on all of these games can be found after the break. (more…)
Darksiders II comes to PS4 on October 6; Xbox One release date to be announced soon
Nordic Games has announced (via Twitter) that the PS4 launch of the Darksiders II: Deathinitive Edition is fast approaching. According to the publisher, the end of days will officially begin on Sony’s system on October 6:
#Darksiders II #Deathinitive Edition arrives October 6th on PS4! Pre-Order on Play Station Store US http://t.co/CVpMPD875p (save 10%)
— Darksiders (@darksiders) September 11, 2015
Unfortunately for Xbox One owners, Nordic Games is currently unable to nail down a final release date for Darksiders II: Deathinitive Edition on Microsoft’s new-generation console. Business & Product Development Director Reinhard Pollice confirmed (also via Twitter) that “they’re working on it” and that an announcement would be made soon.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Darksiders II
BOOM! Madden NFL 16 is the best-selling game of August 2015
Whatever your opinion of Tom Brady and Deflategate (for the record, I agree with Tony Kornheiser, the suspension was “completely unjust”), it looks like nobody can take the air out of EA’s Madden NFL franchise. And don’t just take my word for it. The latest entry in the series, Madden NFL 16, topped the NPD Group’s newest monthly report and was declared the best-selling game of August 2015.
Madden NFL 16’s ascendance to the top of the list was a foregone conclusion, but August was an unusually quiet month for new releases. Just look at the three remakes/re-releases that broke into the top ten. Gears of War: Ultimate Edition chainsawed its way into the #3 spot, while the 30 games in the Rare Replay compilation collectively landed at #6. Finally, a Combo Pack containing Call of Duty: Black Ops + Call of Duty: Black Ops II claimed the #8 position (two spots ahead of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare at #10, I might add). The only other new release to crack the top ten was Sony’s Until Dawn at #7.
But the real story of the month might be that Minecraft continues to sell. Even though its been available on the PS4 and Xbox One since last year (and another year on the PS3 and Xbox 360), the game continues to sell month after month. Only Madden NFL 16 was able to outpace Mojang’s creation in August as Minecraft is sitting at #2 on the best-sellers list.
A complete look at August 2015’s top ten is available after the break. (more…)
SteelSeries Nimbus adds a console-style controller to All-New Apple TV this October
The voice-controlled Siri Remote was the centerpiece of Apple’s “All-New Apple TV” unveiling on Wednesday, and the hardware giant neglected to mention anything about MFi Controller support even though the microconsole is certainly capable of handling console-style games. Thankfully, we now know the box will include MFi Controller support as a proper controller designed specifically for the All-New Apple TV is on the way from SteelSeries.
Looking very similar to a melding of the Xbox One Controller and the Wii U Pro Controller, the SteelSeries Nimbus includes four face buttons, two shoulder buttons, two trigger buttons, two analog sticks, a D-Pad, and a centralized Menu Button. The Nimbus is powered by a rechargeable battery (with a Lightning connector) that’ll offer more than 40 hours of playing time.
“Nimbus is the result of a lengthy and rigorous R&D effort,” said Craig Olson, President of SteelSeries Worldwide Mobile. “Our engineers and designers have worked tirelessly to create a wireless gaming controller worthy of the new Apple TV. Nimbus will allow consumers around the world to play amazing games on Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, and Mac with an unprecedented level of performance.”
The SteelSeries Nimbus has been priced at $49.99 and will be available across the globe beginning in late October.
Nintendo Download: Super Mario Maker, Tecmo Bowl, Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX, more
You couldn’t design a better Nintendo Download this week if you tried. But then, any designers in the audience will be quite busy beginning tomorrow when Super Mario Maker is added to the Wii U eShop. More than a mere Mario level editor, Super Mario Maker will include dozens of pre-built courses and the option to download an unlimited number of levels from the Wii U community. Also, you can use an Amiibo figure to drop Link (and many other characters) into a Mario game for the first time.
The Wii U eShop received a bounty of new releases this week in addition to Super Mario Maker. For starters, Tecmo’s famous football sim for the NES, Tecmo Bowl, is now available through the Virtual Console. Seems appropriate on Kickoff Thursday. Also available to download today are a pair of puzzling adventures including steampunk caper The Swindle and the first-person environmental brain-twister QUBE: Director’s Cut.
Finally this week, Sega will bring Japan’s most famous blue-haired idol, Hatsune Miku, to the 3DS in the rhythm action game Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX.
More information on all of these titles (and a few others) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Super Mario Maker
Pokemon Go will let you catch Pokemon in the real world on mobile devices in 2016
The Pokemon Company has released several Pokemon games on mobile devices in the recent past. But today’s announcement of Pokemon Go marks the first time that Nintendo is involved in the creation of a mobile Pokemon game… which is fitting as it might be the biggest one yet.
Pokemon Go will be available for iDevices (through the iOS App Store) and Android devices (through Google Play) beginning in 2016. Similar to a digital version of geocaching, Pokemon Go will use GPS positioning to give players directions to Pokemon they can find “in the wild,” along with other players they can trade with or battle.
Development on Pokemon Go is being lead by Niantic, a team that is actually very familiar with the intersection of mobile gaming and augmented reality. They’re probably best known for Ingress, a mobile game that uses the backdrop an alien invasion to bring players together out in the world.
Pokemon Go will be a free-to-play title, but The Pokemon Company and Nintendo will also sell an optional bauble known as the Pokemon Go Plus that can act as the player’s Pokeball. After linking with the game, it will flash and beep when Pokemon are nearby and players can use the device to catch ’em all with the press of a button. And in addition to the involvement of Niantic and Nintendo, Junichi Masuda, Game Director of the Pokemon franchise at Game Freak, will also assist in the development of Pokemon Go to ensure that it’s the best Pokemon experience possible.
“Pokemon Go is a wonderful combination of Niantic’s real world gaming platform and one of the most beloved franchises in popular culture,” said John Hanke, CEO of Niantic. “Our partnership with The Pokemon Company and Nintendo is an exciting step forward in real-world gaming and using technology to help players discover the world and people around them.”
I have a feeling this super effective team just might be able to create a game that’ll become very popular with the convention crowd.
Posted in Mobile, News
Tagged Pokemon Go
Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows will infect all platforms on September 17
Yacht Club Games has announced that Shovel Knight‘s Plague of Shadows expansion will be available to download on all platforms and in all regions on September 17. The free update will completely transform the game, allowing players to take control of the villainous Plague Knight as he does battle with his fellow knights of The Order of No Quarter.
However, this challenge is only for expert players as the Plague of Shadows campaign will remain locked unless you’ve beaten the game as Shovel Knight.
Unlike some cinematic knights, prospective Plague of Shadows players won’t need to choose wisely as Shovel Knight is currently available for the PC, 3DS, Wii U, PS3, PS4, Vita, and Xbox One. Yacht Club will continue to expand the world of Shovel Knight in the future as campaigns centered around King Knight and Specter Knight are in the works. In the nearer future, a Shovel Knight Amiibo figure, which will unlock a Co-Op Campaign on the 3DS and Wii U, will be released sometime this Fall.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows
Apple will release the gaming-capable All-New Apple TV in late October
Even though a tidal wave of Android-powered microconsoles have been released over the years, Apple was content to let the Apple TV stream pictures and video. That all changes this Fall with the release of the “All-New Apple TV,” which will be available in late October in 32GB ($149) and 64GB ($199) models.
The All-New Apple TV will be powered by tvOS, a new operating system that’ll let developers create games and apps specifically designed for a bigger screen. Every All-New Apple TV will come packaged with Siri Remote, a remote that includes a glass touch surface that will handle “both small, accurate movements as well as big, sweeping ones.” Users will be able to speak to the Siri Remote for searching and motion controls (including a built-in accelerometer and gyroscope) will also be included in the controller’s bag of tricks.
While the All-New Apple TV will make use of iOS gaming technologies like Metal and Game Center, Apple was mum on the microconsole’s compatibility with MFi Game Controllers. However, the All-New Apple TV’s powerful A8 chip means that, from a technical standpoint, it should certainly be able to handle console-quality games. And it’s definitely getting those games as Apple TV versions of Rayman Adventures, Disney Infinity: Star Wars, Shadowmatic, Crossy Road, and Guitar Hero Live were all announced during today’s event.
Posted in Mobile, News
Tagged Disney Infinity: Star Wars, Guitar Hero Live