Author: Nicole Kline

Nicole Kline is Warp Zoned's Senior Editor. She first began preparing for the job by climbing a milk crate to play Centipede in an arcade. You can find her on PSN under the name toitle or you can email her at nicole AT warpzoned DOT com.

Mass Effect 3 “Reinstated” trailer shows off FemShep

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Nicole Kline

The new trailer for Mass Effect 3, entitled “Reinstated,” shows off lady Shepard in all her badass glory. The franchise’s fans have been asking for an official trailer featuring the gender-flipped Shepard and it’s finally here. This game just keeps looking better and better with every scene they release.

Mass Effect 3 will be out for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on March 6. So until then, ponder if you’ll be taking enemies on as FemShep – or, you know, just regular old Shepard.

Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Daily Scoop: February 10, 2012 – Another busy weekend

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Yay, Friday has arrived at last! And it’s yet another busy weekend, filled with meetings, Dungeons & Dragons, and – what else? – gaming! This weekend also brings back everyone’s favorite zombie food with new episodes of the “Walking Dead.” Hooray!

Let’s see, what’s up for today? Amazon’s Deal of the Day in video games is $25 off the Plantronics Gamecom X40 for the Xbox 360. This stereo headset is super fancy, “with a closed-ear design and 40mm speakers” and “specially designed earpods and headband redistribute the pressure for long-wearing comfort.” Too bad I’m saving up for a pair of Astros…

What shirts do I have for you today? Hit the jump to find out! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Skyrim Creation Kit and High-Resolution Texture Pack now available

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Nicole Kline

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim‘s Creation Kit and High-Resolution Texture Pack are now available for free via Steam.

Players can now “upload, download, and install custom content through the Skyrim Workshop.” What I’m wondering is: could the legends be true?

Posted in News, PC | Tagged

BioWare re-editing Mass Effect novel after fan complaints

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Nicole Kline

After a ton of Internet backlash, BioWare has announced that they will be re-editing their novel, Mass Effect: Deception. Irate fans went so far as to create an in-depth Google Document citing all of the issues in the book. They even color-coded them so you know how serious each offense really is.

BioWare’s community coordinator, Chris Priestley, had this to say on the BioWare forums:

Mass Effect fans have been asking for a comment on recent concerns over Mass Effect: Deception. We have been listening and have the below response on the issue.

The teams at Del Rey and BioWare would like to extend our sincerest apologies to the Mass Effect fans for any errors and oversights made in the recent novel Mass Effect: Deception. We are currently working on a number of changes that will appear in future editions of the novel.

We would like to thank all Mass Effect fans for their passion and dedication to this ever-growing world, and assure them that we are listening and taking this matter very seriously.

I know people are upset about this, but this entire thing is comedy gold – so much so that even Penny Arcade mocked it, something that feels more endearing to me thanks to its well-placed Dragonlance joke.

Posted in Etcetera, News |

Violinist playing along with Super Mario Bros.

Posted on February 10, 2012 by Nicole Kline

This violist plays along with Super Mario Bros, including all of the sound effects and the “Game Over” screen. Can someone let him know my birthday’s coming up, and give him directions to my house?

Posted in Etcetera, News |

Sanctum 2 announced

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Coffee Stain Studios recently announced a sequel to their first person co-op shooter/tower defense game, Sanctum. Joystiq revealed that the sequel, Sanctum 2, will be out sometime in 2013.

Unlike the original, which was a PC exclusive that sold over 300,000 units on Steam, the sequel will be released for “digital console platforms,” including PC, the PSN, and XBLA.

Ted Lange, executive producer for Reverb Publishing, said “Sanctum has been a huge success on Steam for Coffee Stain Studios, and bringing the next version to console players as well as the PC market is a great next step to share this unique experience. We all have logged quite a few hours with Sanctum and can definitively say that what Coffee Stain has in store for Sanctum 2 will blow the minds of Sanctum fans and new gamers alike.”

Check out Sanctum on Steam, or pick it up for $9.99.

Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Jaffe talks Twisted Metal (no sequel or DLC planned) and his future (browser games)

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Nicole Kline

David Jaffe was recently interviewed by Game Informer about his decision to leave Eat Sleep Play, as well as what was in the future – for both him and Twisted Metal.

First off, fans will be disappointed to know that there won’t be a sequel or any DLC for Twisted Metal. “Right now there are no plans,” Jaffe said. “I always thought it was going to be a great game. But we weren’t nursing these illusions that we were making Call of Duty in terms of sales. If it’s a big enough hit I’m sure Sony won’t let it wither on the vine. But right now there are no plans at all.”

So what’s in Jaffe’s future? Well, I’m happy to report that Jaffe said “Scott [Campbell, one of Eat Sleep Play’s co-founders,] has been itching to get into iPhone and Android games for a while. I love those kinds of games, but the article that ran in Salt Lake misrepresented me by saying I wanted to do casual games. I love those games, and one day I may want to make them, but I’m very interested in the browser space as well as the next-gen space.”

I was ecstatic to read that – though the whole “browser space” comment worries me. Jaffe is too brilliant to leave console game development. But he gave me hope by adding “There hasn’t been a game in the browser space in my opinion that speaks to players and gamers that I usually make games for.” Hey! I’m one of those gamers! I think I’d still prefer a new Jaffe console game, though.

Twisted Metal will be out February 14.

Posted in News, PS3 | Tagged

Daily Scoop: February 9, 2012 – Just a Bit.Trip!

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Hooray, it’s nearly the weekend! How exciting. What are you going to be doing? Playing video games with some kitties on your lap? Rolling dice with friends? Getting your board game on?

You should surely be prepping for the “Walking Dead” on Sunday, that’s for certain!

The only deal I’ve got today is Amazon’s Deal of the Day in video games, which is Aksys’ Bit.Trip Complete for the Wii. It’s just $27.99 today, so scoop it up!

And don’t forget, these PC download games are all still on sale, and now some of them are even cheaper than they were earlier in the week:

  • Dungeons for $4.99
  • Dungeons: Map Pack – DLC for $0.75
  • Dungeons – Into the Dark – DLC Pack 1 for $0.99
  • Dungeons: The Dark Lord for $4.99
  • Tropico Trilogy for $4.99
  • Airline Tycoon 2 for $4.99
  • Disciples III – Resurrection for $4.99

There are also a few video gaming shirts up for grabs today! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |