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
New Releases: Theatrhythm Final Fantasy 2, Cooking Mama 5, Fairy Fencer F, More
The spotlight is on oddities from Japan in this week’s new release report. Chief among them is Theatrhythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call, a sequel to the popular Final Fantasy-based rhythm game for the 3DS. The first printing comes with a special soundtrack CD, so you’ve ever felt the urge to tap Final Fantasy themes with a stylus, now’s the time.
And speaking of sequels to handheld favorites, Majesco is back with a new Cooking Mama game for the 3DS, Cooking Mama 5: Bon Appetit!. Also available this week is Fairy Fencer F, a turn-based RPG for the PS3 from NIS America, and Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Revolution (PC, PS3, Xbox 360), the latest game to star the whiskered ninja.
Finally this week, Majesco will release an “Ultimate Edition” of Air Conflicts: Vietnam for the PS4.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360
Tagged Cooking Mama 5, Fairy Fencer F, Theatrhythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call
Mega Man 7 is now available on the Wii U eShop
Nintendo’s Treehouse branch has been running a livestream of some of their upcoming games all day, but there’s been a few surprises as well. For example, did you hear that Mega Man 7 is now available to download through the Wii U eShop?
Priced at $7.99, the addition of the (relatively) obscure Super NES title means that the first seven games in the classic Mega Man series are now playable on the Wii U. Mega Man X and Mega Man X2 can also be found on the eShop (and are currently on sale to boot).
If you want to catch up with all the action, tune in to the livestream now, they’re still going until 11:00 PM (Eastern Time).
MX vs ATV: Supercross release date off roads to October 28
Nordic Games has announced that the Rainbow Studios-developed MX vs ATV: Supercross has been delayed. The first new game to emerge from Nordic’s purchase of the majority of THQ’s properties last year will be released for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on October 28. Originally given a “first half of 2014” release date, MX vs ATV: Supercross’ release eventually slipped to October 7 before settling on its current release date.
After the release date announcement, Nordic released a new gameplay trailer for MX vs ATV: Supercross, which you can view above.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged MX vs ATV: Supercross
Xbox 360 Blue Bundle + CoD Ghosts, Black Ops II coming to Walmart next month
While Microsoft is heavily pushing the Xbox One (and Sunset Overdrive) this holiday season, the consolemaker also has two new Xbox 360 bundles to entice the previous generation’s last holdouts.
This year’s Holiday Bundle, priced at $249, will come packaged with Call of Duty: Black Ops II and Call of Duty: Ghosts. A wireless controller, one month of Xbox Live Gold access, and a 500 GB hard drive will also be included in the box. The Holiday Bundle will be available in stores next week.
If you purchase the Holiday Bundle from Walmart, you’ll be able to score an icy blue Xbox 360 console (with a matching controller) by picking up the appropriately named Special Edition Blue Bundle, which is also priced at $249. The Special Edition Blue Bundle will be released on October 7.
Finally, the 4GB + Kinect Bundle has been revamped to include a wireless controller, one month of Xbox Live Gold access, the Kinect sensor, and three games (Kinect Adventures, Kinect Sports, and Forza Horizon). The 4GB + Kinect Bundle will be available exclusively through Target beginning next week and it’ll also carry a $249 price tag.
Posted in News, Xbox 360
Tagged Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Forza Horizon, Kinect Adventures
GTA5 hijacks PS4, Xbox One on November 18; PC version delayed to January 2015
After months of waiting, Rockstar Games has officially announced that Grand Theft Auto V will be released for the PS4 and Xbox One on November 18. Sadly, the PC version has been slightly delayed and won’t make it out before the end of the year. But PC players won’t have to wait long, Rockstar has confirmed that the PC version of the game will launch on January 27.
Rockstar is packing Grand Theft Auto V for the PS4 and Xbox One with “a range of major visual and technical upgrades” to make the game “more immersive than ever.” In addition to higher resolution visuals and increased draw distances, PS4/Xbox One owners can look forward to:
- New Activities
- New Weapons
- New Vehicles
- Additional Wildlife
- Denser Traffic
- New Foliage System
- Enhanced Damage and Weather Effects
- 100 New Songs and New DJ Mixes
- And Much More
In addition to the improvements to the base game, Grand Theft Auto Online players will be able to transfer their character onto the platform of their choice. The online component has also received a major boost as 30 players will be able to join in at the same time. And everyone who who pre-orders the game will receive $1,000,000 in in-game cash.
Finally, Rockstar released a new next-gen-specific trailer for your viewing pleasure. “A Picket Fence and a Dog Named Skip” is embedded above.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Grand Theft Auto V
Madden NFL 15 spikes the competition by outselling all games in August 2014
Even though his stance said, “stop,” Richard Sherman took it to the house as the cover athlete of Madden NFL 15. While it’s too early to be concerned with The Curse, EA Sports’ latest football sim, as expected, toppled the competition and emerged as the best-selling game of August 2014, according to The NPD Group.
Only a small number of new releases made their way onto store shelves last month and many of them were re-releases of older titles. This tactic helped Diablo III: Reaper of Souls reach the #2 spot as the “Ultimate Evil Edition” is now available for previous-generation and current-generation consoles. And thanks to its PlayStation debut, Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare cracked the top ten for the first time at #7.
Joystiq posits that this lack of major releases is the reason why game sales were down when compared to last August. The eighth month of 2013 saw the release of Madden NFL 25 as well as Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Blacklist, Saints Row IV, and Disney Infinity.
A full look at the top ten best-selling games of August 2014 can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Battlefield 4, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Madden NFL 15, Minecraft, NPD, Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare, The Last of Us, The Lego Movie, Watch Dogs
Ray Rice removed from Madden NFL 15 in today’s update
Ray Rice was suspended from the NFL indefinitely after TMZ published video footage of the former player punching his then-fiancee in a hotel elevator. Today, EA Sports has confirmed that Rice will no longer be a part of Madden NFL 15 as of the latest roster update:
With Ray Rice’s indefinite suspension from the NFL, he will be removed from Madden NFL 15. The roster change will take place by this Friday.
— EA SPORTS Madden NFL (@EAMaddenNFL) September 9, 2014
Rice’s de facto expulsion from the game (the CFL honors NFL suspensions and will not allow Rice to play north of the border) came after the NFL viewed an abbreviated version of the video and initially suspended him for two games. Public outcry led to a new domestic abuse policy for the league and the Baltimore Ravens have since terminated Rice’s contract.
This isn’t the first time EA Sports has removed a player from a Madden game due to legal trouble. Aaron Hernandez was removed from Madden NFL 25 after he was arrested for murder last July.
Dying Light parkours to an earlier release date: January 27
Previously pegged for a February release, Techland has announced the release date of Dying Light is moving up to January. January 27, 2015 to be exact. In development for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One, Dying Light adds a free running/parkour element to evading zombie hordes, which you slightly get a taste of in this promotional image for the new release date released by Techland:
January | 27 | 2015
#DyingLight pic.twitter.com/JYeCQCWSJP
— Dying Light (@DyingLightGame) September 11, 2014
Techland has another unconventional first-person game planned for 2015, the medieval melee monster hunter known as Hellraid, which will be released digitally for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Hopefully, it’ll get an official release date soon as well.