Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Angry Birds, Dragon Quest, FIFA Soccer, and Silent Hill are the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026
- 2025 GOTY Scoreboard: In Progress
- 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”
Warp Zoned Presents
- Video Game Research Library
- How a Second-Grade Teacher Revived a Beloved Video Game – The New York Times (2026)
- Spore: An oral history – Design Room (2026)
- 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)
Author: John Scalzo
Nintendo Download: Picross E3, Just Dance 2014 (Tuesday), more
Get your dancing shoes on for this week’s Nintendo Download as Just Dance 2014 will be able to download this Tuesday, October 8, on the Wii U eShop. If bustin’ a move to the “Ghostbusters Theme” (among others) isn’t your style, there’s a bunch of other new releases on Nintendo’s download services today:
- TNT Racers: Nitro Machines Edition (Wii U), an overhead racer.
- Family Bowling 3D (3DS), a bowling game.
- Halloween: Trick or Treat 2 (3DS), a hidden object game.
- Happy Circus (3DS), a minigame compilation for kids.
- Picross E3 (3DS), the latest game in Nintendo’s long-running picture puzzle series.
- Rhythm Thief & the Emperor’s Treasure (3DS), a rhythm game.
- Jewel Quest 5: The Sleepless Star (DSi), a “match-3” puzzle game.
More details on all of these titles can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Just Dance 2014
SCE WWS President says The Last Guardian is still in development, possibly for PS4
What’s going on with The Last Guardian? It was a no-show at this year’s E3 Expo and SCEA President Jack Tretton’s admission that the game was “on hiatus” only stoked the “it’s been canceled!” fires. Thankfully, Shuhei Yoshida, the President of SCE Worldwide Studios, recently spoke to GamesIndustry International and cleared everything up. And you’ll NEVER guess what he had to say.
OK, that’s a lie, The Last Guardian’s final destination should be obvious to everyone by now.
First about that “hiatus.” Yoshida explained that Tretton misspoke and that development on The Last Guardian never stopped. Instead, the “hiatus” referred to its presence at Sony events such as this year’s E3 Press Conference. Considering the fact that The Last Guardian has been MIA for several years now, this answer makes a lot of sense.
But the real news to come out of this conversation is that The Last Guardian may have moved to the PS4. When asked what platform the game was in development for, Yoshida did’t comment either way. He wouldn’t say the game is coming to the PS4, but he also didn’t say it was still in development for the PS3.
What he did say was that the game is being “re-engineered” and that Sony is waiting for the best time to re-reveal it to the world:
“So, we’re waiting for the right time to re-introduce The Last Guardian in an appropriate way. I can’t… Well, the game is in development, and it’s well staffed, and [Fumito Ueda, the game’s Director] is here, working – even though he’s not a Sony employee, he’s dedicated to the product. But we’re not ready to update yet.”
So there you have it. The Last Guardian is still in active development and will be re-revealed someday… probably for the PS4.
Posted in News, PS3, PS4
Tagged The Last Guardian
XBLA Today: A.R.E.S.: Extinction Agenda EX
Today’s addition to the Xbox Live Arcade is A.R.E.S.: Extinction Agenda EX, a side-scrolling platformer where players have to battle deadly machines within the Minos Space Station.
A.R.E.S.: Extinction Agenda EX, an action-packed side-scrolling game from Extend Studios, takes players on a thrilling sci-fi adventure! Take control of combat specialist Ares, or the new playable character, Tarus, to battle deadly machines with a variety of powerful weapons and armor. Your goal: Save Minos Space Station’s survivors and uncover the nefarious Zytron’s extinction agenda!
A.R.E.S.: Extinction Agenda EX has been priced at $14.99.
Valve applies for Half-Life 3 trademark in Europe
UPDATE: Nevermind, it was all a hoax.
ORIGINAL STORY: Oh boy, here we go again.
After pointedly NOT announcing Half-Life 3 during last week’s flurry of SteamOS/Steam Machines announcements, Valve has gone and applied for a “video game software” trademark for “Half-Life 3” with the Trade Marks and Designs Registration Office of the European Union. The application was filed on September 29 and it’s currently listed as “under examination.” While this doesn’t confirm that a third Half-Life game is in development, it is a good sign that Valve is finally moving forward on a new chapter in their most famous franchise.
On the other hand, a search for “Half-Life 3” through the US Patent and Trademark Office did not return any results.
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Half-Life 3
Bungie will release Destiny in Spring 2014; early 2014 beta planned
It is your destiny to watch this brand new Destiny trailer, dubbed “The Moon,” and to learn that Bungie plans to release their ambitious new shooter in Spring 2014 for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
But first, the developer plans to hold a beta test in the first few months of 2014 for the game’s online features and (almost) everyone who pre-orders is invited. The beta will be available on all platforms, but you have to pre-order the game from a participating set of retailers (Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, or Walmart) to receive your access code.
Harold Ryan, Bungie’s President, is very excited about the beta’s possibilities: “From day one Destiny has been an incredibly bold vision that Activision shares with Bungie. Destiny is a massive universe that is populated by the players, and for that reason we need fans to get their hands on the game, fans all around the world. We can’t wait!”
Even though the beta was announced yesterday, everyone who has already pre-ordered Destiny from the list of approved retailers will receive beta access.
Rain, NBA 2K14, Flashback, more added to PS Store
The rain has begun to fall on the PlayStation Store as Sony Japan’s PS3 adventure game, Rain, is now available to download. The story of two invisible children who have to find their way out of a city, Rain has received considerable attention for its moody and atmospheric visuals. Also available this week is NBA 2K14 (PS3), the latest game in the popular basketball franchise.
What else is available this week for the PS3? Well, there’s Flashback, Ubisoft’s HD remake of the renowned side-scrolling; Pro Foosball, a video game version of everyone’s favorite bar game; and Skydive: Proximity Flight, a skydiving sim. Finally, PS3 owners will get a chance to download the PS2 Classic Fatal Frame III: The Tormented.
Over on the Vita side, this week sees the release of Atelier Meruru Plus: The Apprentice of Arland. The RPG is now available in portable form and with all of its previously released DLC expansion content. And last, but not least, we’ve got Die! Die! Die!, a game that asks players to invade the human body to destroy malicious microbes. Because that’s totally how being a doctor works.
As always, more information about all of these games can be found after the break and a full rundown of this week’s new game add-ons can be found at the PlayStation Blog. (more…)
Pac-Man is a finalist for the National Toy Hall of Fame’s Class of 2013
The National Toy Hall of Fame, which is part of the National Museum of Play at The Strong, has announced the 12 finalists that are up for induction this year. Two toys will be selected as part of the class of 2013 and the classic ghost-chomper Pac-Man is among the contenders.
Pac-Man will be competing against bubbles, Chess, Clue, Fisher-Price Little People, Little Green Army Men, Magic 8 Ball, My Little Pony, Nerf toys, the Rubber Ducky, scooters, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figure line for the right to be called a Hall of Famer. A national committee will choose the two inductees, which will be announced during a special ceremony on November 7.
If Pac-Man makes the cut, it will join Nintendo’s Game Boy (2009) and the Atari 2600 (2007) as the only other representatives of the video game industry in the National Toy Hall of Fame.
First PS4/Xbox One trailer for Madden NFL 25 showcases “10X the Detail”
EA Sports wants you to know that Madden NFL 25 on the PS4 and Xbox One is pretty. In fact, it’s so pretty because of the “Next Definition Visuals,” “High Fidelity Animations,” “10X the Detail,” and “4X the Texture Resolution” that are apparently impossible on the PS3 and Xbox 360.
See it for yourself by watching the trailer above and be sure to visit EA Sports’ “Next Generation of Presentation site” if you’re interested in learning more behind-the-scenes secrets and looking at a few more very pretty screenshots of Madden NFL 25.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Madden NFL 25