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
The Last of Us returns to the top of the best-seller list in July 2014 NPD report
In previous years, the best-sellers chart for the month of July would normally be dominated by the latest entry in the NCAA Football series. But EA Sports canceled the series last Fall, so a new emperor is sitting upon the July Throne in 2014. Or rather, an emperor we’ve seen before in a spiffy new set of clothes.
This is a roundabout way of saying that the Remastered re-release of Sony’s The Last of Us (combined with more sales on the PS3) pushed the game to the top of the best-sellers chart. July was a pretty sparse month as far as new releases go, but 505’s Sniper Elite III also cracked the top ten. It was number eight… with a bullet.
You can check out July’s complete top ten list (which includes May releases Watch Dogs and Mario Kart 8 hanging tough in the top five) after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Call of Duty: Ghosts, FIFA 14, Grand Theft Auto V, Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Mario Kart 8, Minecraft, NBA 2K14, NPD, Sniper Elite III, The Last of Us, Watch Dogs
80s horror homage Until Dawn moves to PS4 without Move controller requirement
When we last saw Until Dawn, it was a first-person horror game on the PS3 that required players to use the PlayStation Move controller as they attempted to survive the night while being stalked by a homicidal maniac. Sony reintroduced gamers to Until Dawn during their Gamescom presentation and it looks like it’s undergone a few changes. For starters, it’s now in development only for the PS4 as a third-person game. However, the biggest change is that developer Supermassive has added DualShock 4 support to the game, making the Move controller no longer required.
But don’t worry, Until Dawn is still be an homage to 80s slasher flicks as the plot still asks eight friends to battle a homicidal maniac in the woods.
To capture that authentic Hollywood feel, Supermassive has signed several well-known genre actors to run from their maniac including Rami Malek (Ahkmenrah from the Night at the Museum movies), Brett Dalton (Agent Ward from Agents of SHIELD), and Heroes‘ Hayden Panettiere. At the very least, we know that Panettiere has experience fleeing from a homicidal maniac.
Until Dawn likely won’t be released in 2014, but Supermassive has promised more information on their launch plans “in the coming months.”
Posted in News, PS4
Tagged Gamescom 2014, Until Dawn
World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor will march into stores on November 13
Today, during a special Gamescom presentation, Blizzard announced that the fifth World of Warcraft expansion, Warlords of Draenor, will be released on November 13.
Warlords of Draenor adds a world’s worth of exciting new content for World of Warcraft players to discover. As Azeroth’s displaced heroes venture across Draenor, they’ll build and manage a mighty Garrison, a customizable fortress that grows with them on their journey; delve into otherworldly draenei temples and clash in the heart of hostile orc clans’ territory; fight the opposing faction for control of Ashran, a huge and dynamic PvP zone featuring a variety of personal and cooperative objectives; and take on a wide array of Dungeons, Raids, Battlegrounds, Challenge Modes, and more. No matter what kind of content you enjoy, your legend is waiting to be forged on Draenor.
As part of their presentation, Blizzard unveiled Warlords of Draenor’s opening cinematic, which you can view above. They also debuted the first episode of Lords of War, an animated miniseries that will introduce players to some of the expansion’s major characters. The premiere episode is known as “Shattered Hand” and is available after the break. Additional episodes will be posted on WorldofWarcraft.com “in the weeks ahead.” (more…)
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Gamescom 2014, World of Warcraft
Nintendo Download: Mega Man Battle Chip Challenge, Double Dragon II, more
The Nintendo eShop has been updated on this fine Thursday and Double Dragon II: The Revenge leads a mostly anonymous pack of titles. I spent a lot of time busting heads with the Lee brothers back in the late 80s and early 90s, and The Revenge is as good as it gets. Plus, any game that features a battle inside a flying helicopter with a malfunctioning door is just fun.
Also available this week is Mega Man Battle Chip Challenge, the latest addition to Capcom’s “Mega Man August.” As the title makes plain, Battle Chip Challenge is a card battling game set within the Mega Man Battle Network universe.
Over on the 3DS side of the store is Gaiabreaker, a nifty looking vertically-scrolling shooter, and Hidden Haunts: Gothic Masquerade, a hidden object game.
More information on all of these games (as well as a few others) can be found after the break. (more…)
Is Mortal Kombat X the end for the Mortal Kombat franchise?
NetherRealm Studios has an ambitious plan for Mortal Kombat X‘s Story Mode. After recreating the first three entries in the long-running franchise for 2011’s Mortal Kombat, Ed Boon and company want to visit the far-flung future in next year’s sequel. Ultimately, the campaign will send the player 25 years into the future, but Mortal Kombat X will begin by examining the direct aftermath of Shao Khan’s defeat in the previous game. From there, NetherRealm will check in on characters both old and new in five-year intervals. So after this epic bit of storytelling, what do you do for an encore?
IGN asked Ed Boon this question at Gamescom today and the answer is that this could be the end of the Mortal Kombat saga:
“One thing that’s certainly on my mind after jumping ahead 25 years, is I don’t know where we’d go from here,” Boon tentatively begins. “We wanted to do something bold, and this is a bold new story, despite the fact it’s the tenth game. But when you jump ahead 25 years it’s like… what do you do now? Do you jump in time again? Do you go back 25 years? Do you introduce a whole new cast? We’ll worry about it when we reach it, but I do think it could be hard to continue, if we do another one.”
While Boon might be willing to walk away from the franchise, the hard reality of financial success may force the developer to reconsider. The 2011 reboot became the best-selling game in the entire franchise and if Mortal Kombat X lives up to the early hype, it may sell just as well. If Boon really is out of ideas, WB Games might “persuade” him to think harder.
But that’s all far in the future. Check out the IGN interview and read up on some of the neat ideas Boon has for Mortal Kombat X.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Gamescom 2014, Mortal Kombat X
XBL Store Today: Risen 3: Titan Lords
Risen 3: Titan Lords is today’s lone addition to the Xbox Live Games Store. Developed by Piranha Bytes and published by Deep Silver, the game is a traditional RPG in the medieval mold that is sure is sure to make some gamers out there happy.
It has been priced at $49.99 and is available to download now. And in case Risen 3: Titan Lords is brand new to you, here’s a description of the game straight from the Xbox Live Dashboard:
The world has been abandoned by its gods and is scarred from the rampage of the Titans. Humanity is struggling to regain strength and rally its forces. You, however, have more pressing concerns: your own life has been shattered and you must set off to reclaim what is lost amidst the darkness that is spreading throughout the world. Step into a classic hand-crafted role-playing world – full of rugged charm, colorful characters and demonic dangers. From quaint medieval-style towns to delving deep into the dank dark of mines, to the supernatural shadow world, there is a wealth of possibilities waiting to be explored.
Posted in News, Xbox 360
Tagged Risen 3: Titan Lords
Geometry Wars 3 coming to PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One; first screenshots inside
I think it’s safe to say that if you’ve played Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2 for any length of time, finding out that Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions is in the works is like Christmas, Hanukkah, and Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day all rolled into one. But what do Sierra and Lucid Games have planned for the threequel? Thankfully, IGN is on the ground in Cologne, Germany with the first preview.
According to the report, Geometry Wars 3 will expand the horizons of the series in new ways. Instead of a flat plane, Dimensions will warp the playing field into 3D shapes such as spheres, cubes, and cylinders. Players will be able to completely circumnavigate the shape and fire bullets all the way around:
Right from the very first stage, Dimensions was as hectic and maddening as the Geometry Wars I fell in love with back on the 360. Additions such as a customizable drone ally, landscapes that morph throughout the round, and bullets that fire all the way around the circumference of a level make each round even more chaotic, but the smart design, easily-digestible color pallette, and UI make sure that the action never becomes truly disorientating.
Wow. Each level in Dimensions will also include its very own leaderboard and a variety of special objectives that players will have to complete to earn Stars. Like many games nowadays, Stars are the currency required to open up new levels and modes in Dimensions. Finally, IGN was able to confirm that the game will appear on the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One before the end of the year.
If you’d prefer to see it for yourself, you can find Geometry Wars 3’s first screenshots after the break. And by the way, Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day is January 27. (more…)
Posted in News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Gamescom 2014, Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions