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
New Releases: The Witcher 3, Puzzle & Dragons Z + Super Mario, Farming Simulator 15, More
A quartet of new games will be available on store shelves this week including one of the year’s biggest new releases.
CD Projekt’s The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a massive, sprawling RPG that ends Geralt of Rivia’s story in the biggest way possible. If you haven’t seen of the trailers or gameplay walkthroughs (Conan O’Brien’s “Clueless Gamer” segment is particularly enlightening), you should fix that right now before The Witcher 3 launches on the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on Tuesday.
Also available on Tuesday are a pair of games that are nothing like The Witcher 3 and nothing like each other. First up is Farming Simulator 15, which is now available for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One after a PC launch last year. Farming Simulator 15 does just what it says on the box and gives players a simulation of what it’s like to be a farmer. This Tuesday’s other new release release, HyperDimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed for the Vita, doesn’t simulate anything approaching reality. Instead, it’s a beat ’em up that takes place within an anime-influenced recreation of the video game industry.
Finally, on Friday, Nintendo will bring the popular match-3/RPG hybridization Puzzle & Dragons to the 3DS for the first time. Puzzle & Dragons Z + Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition is actually two separate takes on the concept, one of which stars Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom.
That’s it for this week’s retail release report, but check back all week for details on all the new additions to the digital storefronts.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Farming Simulator 15, Puzzle & Dragons Z, Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Divinity: Original Sin – Enhanced Edition will be released for PS4, Xbox One in Fall 2015
Larian Studios is partnering with publisher Focus Home Interactive to bring Divinity: Original Sin to the PS4 and Xbox One in a special “Enhanced Edition” this Fall. The RPG will receive a “full makeover” for its console debut:
A new intuitive user-interface tailored for controllers and couch friendly dynamic split-screen, with full voiced and remastered AAA dialogues featuring Alix Wilton Regan and Alec Newman, as well as hours of new content; quests, combat-styles, locations, changes to the crafting system and a reworked storyline breathing new life into the already expansive world of Rivellon.
What else can console players expect from Divinity: Original Sin? Larian had this to say…
- Become part of a reactive, living and open world. Explore diverse environments, find myriad creatures and tons of desirable items.
- Experience gripping, party and turn-based combat. Manipulate the environment and use skill & spell combos.
- Play in co-op multiplayer online or in local split-screen and engage in co-op dialogues. Shape your relationships with your partner that will influence the game.
- Unravel a deep and epic story, set in the early days of Rivellon. Taking place well before Divine Divinity and Divinity 2: The Dragon Knight Saga, Divinity: Original Sin presents you with a familiar world in another era.
- Classless system lets you shape your character any way you want. Endless item interaction and combinations take things to another level of freedom.
Larian and Focus Home have promised we’ll learn even more about Divinity: Original Sin – Enhanced Edition during next month’s E3 Expo.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Divinity: Original Sin, E3 2015
Play as Jason in Mortal Kombat X for free this weekend
Mortal Kombat X will get to try Jason Voorhees out for free this weekend in one of the game’s Living Towers.
Voorhees, the classic slasher from the Friday the 13th films, joined the other kombatants in NetherRealm’s latest last week as part of the Kombat Pack expansion. He’s the first of four characters who will be added to the game this year, he’ll eventually share the stage with The Predator, Mortal Kombat 4‘s Tanya, and the never-before-playable Tremor.
All three of Jason’s variations will be accessible in the Living Tower’s six fights, which will be available until Monday.
Prepare your PC for Oculus Rift with the VR rig’s recommended system specifications
Is your PC ready for the Oculus Rift? The consumer version of the virtual reality headset will be available in stores in early 2016, so to prepare gamers, the hardware manufacturer has published (on their official blog) the system specifications needed to get “the full Rift experience”:
- Nvidia GTX 970 / AMD 290 (Equivalent or Greater)
- Intel i5-4590 Processor (Equivalent or Greater)
- Compatible HDMI 1.3 Video Output
- 8GB+ RAM
- 2x USB 3.0 Ports
- Windows 7 SP1 or Newer
According to Oculus, the system specifications will “stay constant over the lifetime of the Rift,” which is good to hear, as this hardware configuration is rather pricey at the moment.
Atman Binstock, the Rift’s Technical Director, went into more detail on why these exact specifications were chosen in a separate blog post. He also has some bad news for laptop users who were hoping to power the Rift with their portable PC: “Almost no current laptops have the GPU performance for the recommended spec, though upcoming mobile GPUs may be able to support this level of performance.”
I’m still not sure virtual reality will change gaming the way the folks at Oculus believe it will, but this is definitely an exciting time to be a gamer.
Xbox Store Today: Nero, Toro
Two games that sound similar in name, but couldn’t be more different in execution, were added to the Xbox Games Store today.
Nero is a first-person exploration game where the player has to solve puzzles in a magical world. Developed by Storm in a Teacup, the Xbox One game asks players to “explore and experience emotions and feelings that are uncommon in video games.”
Also available for the Xbox One today is Toro, a title that developer Recotechnology claims is the world’s first “bullfighting simulator game.” I don’t know if they’re telling the truth, but it definitely a locale that you rarely see in games.
More information about both titles can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News
Nintendo will host a second Splatoon Global Testfire on May 23
Did you miss last weekend’s “Global Testfire” for Splatoon? Get out your painting clothes, because Nintendo has announced a second round of testing will take place next weekend on Saturday, May 23 at 6:00 PM (Eastern Time):
Download the #Splatoon Global Testfire software in the #WiiU #eShop to play some multiplayer Turf War action on 5/23 from 3-4 p.m. PT!
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) May 15, 2015
Warp Zoned’s Mike Ryan had a blast during the original beta test, so be sure to download the demo today. Those that do will receive a 10% discount on the Wii U eShop edition of Splatoon when it launches on May 29.
Flawless Retaility! Mortal Kombat X tops April 2015’s list of best-selling games
Mortal Kombat X killed the competition last month as it’s been crowned the top-selling game of April 2015 by The NPD Group. Aside from NetherRealm’s latest and Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin at #8, the tracking firm’s report showed a top ten that was comprised solely of returning titles including Grand Theft Auto V at #2, Battlefield Hardline at #3, MLB 15: The Show at #4, and the well-loved Minecraft at #5.
Overall, it was a good month for the game industry as total sales rose 3% over April 2014. It’s a small gain, but it’s a gain nonetheless.
“Overall sales across hardware, new physical software, and accessories in April 2015 grew by 3% over April 2014 due to the strength of new physical software sales, which offset losses from hardware and accessories,” The NPD Group’s Liam Callahan told GamesIndustry.biz.
April 2015’s top ten best-selling titles (which also includes CoD: Advanced Warfare, NBA 2K15, the fourth Super Smash Bros. game, and a remastered Borderlands collection) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Battlefield Hardline, Borderlands 2, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Dark Souls II, Grand Theft Auto V, Minecraft, MLB 15: The Show, Mortal Kombat X, NBA 2K15, NPD, Super Smash Bros. For 3DS, Super Smash Bros. For Wii U
Ratchet & Clank remake pushed back to 2016 as film adaptation gets April 29 release date
We haven’t heard much about Insomniac’s Ratchet & Clank remake since its reveal less than a year ago. Originally scheduled to launch earlier this year, the game was quietly delayed with no explanation or announcement. Until now, that is.
Yesterday, Insomniac’s Ryan Schneider confirmed (via the PlayStation Blog) that the Ratchet & Clank remake will be released in Spring 2016. The remake will include an overall new coat of paint and several new weapons and levels that will help it tie-in to the upcoming Ratchet & Clank animated film:
While you might have to wait a bit longer than expected, rest assured we’re using the time wisely to further polish the game to a spit-shine level, with dazzling shader response, awe-inspiring effects, velvety smooth animations, and spectacular new gameplay segments. Really, we can’t wait to show it to you.
Speaking of the animated film, Schneider also announced that it’ll make its theatrical debut on April 29, 2016. Distributed by Focus Features, the film will include a variety of big names in its cast list including Paul Giamatti as Chairman Drek, John Goodman as Ratchet’s mechanic mentor Grimroth, Bella Thorne as Galactic Ranger Cora, Rosario Dawson as Galactic Ranger Elaris, and Sylvester Stallone as the villainous Victor Von Ion.
But don’t worry, the original voice actors for Ratchet (James Arnold Taylor), Clank (David Kaye), Captain Qwark (Jim Ward), and Doctor Nefarious (Armin Shimerman) will all return to reprise their roles for the film.
Posted in Etcetera, News, PS4
Tagged Ratchet & Clank