Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Clair Obscur Completes the Sweep by Winning “Best Game” at 2025-2026 BAFTA Games Awards
- Boss Fight Books Gets 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
- Silent Hill, Dragon Quest, Skyrim, and More Announced as Finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026
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: ScreamRide, Resident Evil Revelations 2: Episode 2, Shiftlings
Are you ready to scream your head off this week? I hope so, as Microsoft and Frontier Developments have added ScreamRide to the Xbox Games Store on both the Xbox One and Xbox 360. This coaster creator comes from the same team responsible for RollerCoaster Tycoon and Thrillville, so there’s definitely going to be more to ScreamRide than a bored teenager pulling a lever and asking you to keep your arms and legs inside the car at all time.
Also available this week is the Xbox One and Xbox 360 launch of “Contemplation,” the second episode from Resident Evil Revelations 2. Capcom has plans to complete this chapter of the Resident Evil saga in a timely manner as the remaining two episodes should launch next week and the week after, respectively.
Finally this week, Sierra will add the Xbox One game Shiftlings to the Xbox Games Store. Shiftlings is a colorful platformer that stars a pair of space janitors who are attempting to fix all the broken gadgetry in the universe.
More information on all of this week’s new releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Resident Evil Revelations 2, ScreamRide
Sony improves Project Morpheus virtual reality headset ahead of 2016 launch
Hot on the heels of Valve’s announcement of their Vive virtual reality headset, Sony has stormed the stage at this year’s Game Developers Conference with a brand new version of their Project Morpheus. Like Valve, Sony is ready to vaguely talk about a release date and they confirmed that Project Morpheus will be available in the first half of 2016. Their latest prototype also includes a number of improvements over the previous publicly-displayed version:
- OLED Display: In exchange for the 5-inch LCD, the new Morpheus VR headset is equipped with a 5.7-inch 1920 X RGB X 1080 resolution OLED display. This new screen expands the field of view and enables low persistence, removing motion blur.
- 120hz Refresh Rate: The previous refresh rate spec has been doubled for this new prototype, which means games for Morpheus can be rendered at 120fps. When combined with the OLED display’s high refresh rate and the power of PS4, Morpheus is able to output amazingly smooth visuals.
- Super Low Latency: We know how critical low latency is to delivering a great VR experience, and we’ve reduced latency to less than 18ms, about half of what the first Morpheus prototype had. Low latency is critical to deliver a sense of presence, at the same time making the VR experience comfortable to players.
- More Accurate Tracking: To make positional tracking more precise, we’ve added three LEDs to the headset (one on the front and two on the side) for a total of nine LEDs to support robust 360° tracking.
- User-Friendly Design: We’ve made the Morpheus VR headset easier to put on and take off, with a single band design and quick release button. The headband supports the weight of the unit on the top of your head, so there is no pressure on your face. Other components have also been adjusted and configured to make the headset lighter, so that players do not find the headset cumbersome or uncomfortable to use.
Sony was not ready to discuss a price point for Project Morpheus, but they were all too happy to show off a new tech demo known as “London Heist.” The title couldn’t be more descriptive as the demo drops players into the middle of a heist in the heart of London that quickly devolves into a shootout. Polygon‘s Ben Kuchera was incredibly complimentary about the demo in his preview. Hopefully something like it is development for Project Morpheus’ launch next year.
[Source: PlayStation Blog]
PS4 Sales Update: 20.2 Million Consoles and Counting
In a short announcement, Sony has announced that more than 20.2 million PlayStation 4 consoles have been sold as of March 1, 2015. After 15 months on the market, the PS4 is already a quarter of the way towards matching the PS3’s lifetime sales total of more than 80 million consoles.
“We are so grateful for the enormous support from PlayStation fans worldwide, and we are truly humbled that gamers around the globe have continued to select PS4 as the best place to play,” said Andrew House, the President and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment. “We remain steadfast in our commitment to deliver unique and interactive entertainment experiences powered by the network and the PS4 system’s deep social capabilities.”
The PS4’s sales milestone also puts it well ahead of this generation’s other consoles. Microsoft hasn’t announced hard sales numbers in nearly a year, and current estimates place the Xbox One’s userbase in the vicinity of ten million consoles sold. Nintendo is most likely in third place in the eighth generation horse race as the consolemaker confirmed last month that they’ve sold 9.2 million Wii U consoles.
PS Store Today: Helldivers, RE Revelations 2: Episode 2, Zombie Army Trilogy, more
Sony kicks off their eight-week Spring Fever promotion with Helldivers, a top-down shooter set in a dystopian future where players are tasked with defending mankind from a horde of alien invaders. It sounds like a good time will be had by all. And I do mean all, Helldivers is a Cross-Buy title compatible with the PS4, PS3, and PS Vita.
Also available this week is the PS3 and PS4 launch of “Contemplation,” the second episode from Resident Evil Revelations 2. Capcom has plans to complete this chapter of the Resident Evil saga in a timely manner as the remaining two episodes should launch next week and the week after, respectively. If Resident Evil doesn’t have enough zombie Nazis for your taste, then prepare to square off against undead Hitler in Rebellion’s Zombie Army Trilogy, which will also be released for the PS4 this week. Even more horror can be found in the noirish White Night, which is a survival horror game that’s rendered completely in black and white.
Something slightly less horrifying will be available for PS4 and Vita owners as OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood will take the side-scrolling skater off the streets and onto the set of a blockbuster film. Can you skate on top of the Olliwood sign? Yes, yes you can. Finally this week, La-Mulana EX will make Vita owners very happy as the cave exploration title will appear on Sony’s handheld in its most complete edition yet.
More details about these games (and a few more new releases) can be found after the break. A full rundown of this week’s new game add-ons and discounts can be found at the PlayStation Blog. (more…)
Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Vita
Tagged Helldivers, OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood, Resident Evil Revelations 2, White Night, Zombie Army Trilogy
September 1 release date for MGS5: Phantom Pain leaked ahead of big announcement
It’s hard to believe that news this big would just sneak out of Konami, but it looks like Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain will be released on September 1. The news comes courtesy of a a behind-the-scenes interview with Hideo Kojima that IGN accidentally published a day earlier than planned. Several sites (including Game Informer) peeked at the video before it was pulled and shared the good news with the world.
Kojima had a few other interesting tidbits to share in the video including the fact that Snake will be more of a “silent protagonist” in The Phantom Pain. If that’s true, then why hire Kiefer Sutherland? Rather than expound on that puzzling question, Kojima reiterated (again) that The Phantom Pain will be his last time directing a Metal Gear Solid game:
“I always say this will be my last Metal Gear, but the games in the series I’ve personally designed and produced: Metal Gear on MSX, Metal Gear 2, Metal Gear Solid 1, 2, 3, 4, and Peace Walker, and now Metal Gear Solid V are what constitute a single Metal Gear saga,” he says. “With Metal Gear Solid V, I’m finally closing the loop on that saga. In that sense, this will be the final Metal Gear Solid. Even if the Metal Gear franchise continues, to me, this is the last Metal Gear.”
Konami acknowledged the leak on Twitter, but they also promised players that more Metal Gear-related announcements will be made tomorrow (at 12:00 PM Eastern Time) when their countdown expires.
Mad Max will go beyond release on September 1
Two generations enter, one generation leaves…
WB Games and Avalanche Studios have announced that Mad Max will be available for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on September 1. If you remember, the game was also in development for the PS3 and Xbox 360 but, according to Game Informer, those versions of the game have been “left by the wayside.” Avalanche made the decision to cancel the previous-gen versions of Mad Max so they could focus on creating the best game possible without also trying to make it work on lower-powered hardware. This new focus will allow the team to deliver “stunning vistas and effects that will challenge your expectations of what the Wasteland might look like.”
But anyone who wants to travel through the Wasteland will need transportation and Avalanche is providing just such a vehicle for Mad Max. “The Ripper,” a fully upgradeable car body with “a powerful V8 engine, upgraded exhaust with custom off-road tires, a ramming grill and a tuned suspension,” will be available as a pre-order bonus to all players who pre-order the game.
Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows add-on will be available this Spring
Now that we know when it’ll launch on the PS3, PS4, and Vita, Yacht Club Games has announced that Shovel Knight‘s first expansion, Plague of Shadows, will be available this Spring. Plague of Shadows will be a free update when its released and it’ll place the spotlight on the diminutive Plague Knight as he searches for the Ultimate Potion:
You play as Plague Knight, the villainous master of alchemy, in a quest all his own. Using his maniacal scientific mind, Plague Knight is seeking to concoct Serum Supernus, the Ultimate Potion. However, to retrieve these ingredients, he must extract them from his former allies… the villainous knights of the Order of No Quarter! World class platforming, music, storytelling, and art all return in Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows; an explosive quest with a new play style, new story, new bosses, and more!
Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows will make its public debut at this weekend’s PAX East expo. If you’re heading out to the Boston convention, the expansion will be playable on the show floor at Yacht Club’s booth, where they’ll also be selling a never-before-seen Shovel Knight plush toy with a magnetized shovel.
Plague of Shadows is the first of three planned expansions for Shovel Knight on the 3DS, PC, Wii U, and PlayStation platforms. Eventually, those who dispense shovel justice will also be able to play as the swanky King Knight and the wealthy Mole Knight.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U
Tagged PAX East 2015, Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows
Batman: Arkham Underworld, DC Comics Legends, Game of Thrones coming to mobile
After yesterday’s Mortal Kombat X announcement, WB Games is ready to unveil a few more mobile titles they’ve got in development including a new Batman game, a DC Comics crossover, and yet another Game of Thrones adaptation.
Developed by Turbine, Batman: Arkham Underworld is a villain simulator that tasks players with building a hideout and recruiting an army of henchmen. Players can use this army of mooks to take over turf in Gotham and maybe even take on The Batman himself. A beta test is currently scheduled for later this year, and prospective players can sign up at the game’s official website.
On the other hand, DC Comics Legends is an RPG in development at WB Games San Francisco that will ask players to select a team of superheroes to do battle with an evil plot for world domination.
Finally, WB’s Game of Thrones game is currently untitled, but it too is in development at Turbine. It’s being described as a “combat strategy game” and players will have to “join an alliance, rise to power, and then try to take the Iron Throne.”
In addition to Mortal Kombat X, all of these games will join the previously announced Lego Batman: Beyond Gotham in WB’s upcoming mobile lineup. More details on all of these titles can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in Mobile, News
Tagged Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham, Mortal Kombat X