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.

Two Worlds II expansion coming September 2011

Posted on April 17, 2011 by Nicole Kline

Two Worlds II is getting a disc-based expansion pack, Two Worlds II: Pirates of the Flying Fortress, this September. This return to Antaloor will bring you into the realm of the pirates, though “Flying Fortress” makes it sound like some sort of steampunk adventure. They’ve announced a lot of new additions, including thunder and rain storms, weapons, breeds, bosses, and new animations for both the cutscenes as well as the in-game dialogs.

This multiplatform expansion pack will also include several new multiplayer maps as well. Check out the Pirates of the Flying Fortress website for more details.

Posted in News | Tagged , , ,

Daily Scoop: April 17, 2011 – Scoop Sundae

Posted on April 17, 2011 by Nicole Kline

Writing the Daily Scoop has made me really want ice cream – ice cream sundaes, to be specific. Something huge and gooey, with a warm brownie on the bottom, and maybe some hot fudge and whip cream on top. Maybe piled high with some raspberry chocolate truffle ice cream. YUM.

To start off the scoop, we’ve got Amazon’s sales on two Wii hardware bundles. Not to be outdone by the sale at Toys R Us, Amazon is offering the white Wii hardware bundle and the black Wii hardware bundle for $169.99 with free shipping. It’s looking more and more likely that is the Wii’s new official price.

Amazon’s also having a sale on portable accessories, including $5 off that awesome Nerf Armor for your DS. Add to that the Amazon Deal of the Day in video games, which is the Mionix Naos 5000 Laser Gaming Mouse for $64.99 down from $89.99. To sweeten the pot, there’s going to be an Amazon Gold Box Event in video games this Tuesday, so check back here for that!

Whew. Thank you, Amazon. And we’ve got ANOTHER day with two video game t-shirts, so hit the jump to see those! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News, Wii |

Nintendo sells almost 400,000 3DS units in first week

Posted on April 16, 2011 by Nicole Kline

Nintendo hit it out of the park again, selling nearly 400,000 3DS units in its first week on sale. But it couldn’t overtake its little brother as, according to Nintendo, the NPD group announced that the DS family sold over 460,000 units in the month of March, “propelled by sales of more than 1.3 million Pokémon White Version games and more than 1.1 million Pokémon Black Version games.” I guess that smear campaign isn’t working.

But 3DS owners have more to look forward to than just 3DS without the glasses. There’s a free system update coming soon that, besides allowing DSi and DSi XL owners to transfer their DSiWare games, will also give access to the Nintendo eShop. There’s The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, which was finally given a June 19 release date. And, finally, Netflix is coming to the 3DS, reportedly later this summer, which is awesome news for those of us with both an unlimited streaming membership as well as a 3DS.

Nintendo of America’s senior director of Corporate Communications, Charlie Scibetta, said that “Nintendo provides people with the best video game experiences, from 3D visuals without special glasses to a touch-screen interface to motion controls.” Nintendo reps are really heavy on the “3D without glasses” angle. Hey Charlie, I’ve got your new slogan: “No glasses? No problem.” Bam.

Posted in 3DS, News | Tagged ,

Daily Scoop: April 16, 2011 – Special Portal 2 and gaming t-shirts edition

Posted on April 16, 2011 by Nicole Kline

It’s raining here in Philadelphia, and I’m starting to think that it rains less in Seattle than it does here, because seriously, I haven’t gotten this much use out of my galoshes or umbrella in as long as I can remember. But that’s ok, because it’s an awesome day to sit around, write, and play video games. Oh, and shop for video game deals, of course!

First and foremost, Best Buy is having a sale on Portal 2. It’s $44.99 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and $34.99 on Mac and PC. Amazon is still offering the game for $54.99 with a $20 promotional credit, too. So you’ve got lots of options – that is, if you haven’t already pre-ordered it, and aren’t already waiting at the mailbox/lining up at your local brick-and-mortar store to wait for it. It’s not long now!

And let’s not forget today’s Amazon Deal of the Day in video games, which is Paradox Interactive’s Magicka for the PC. This game download is $4.99 down from $9.99, and features an “Innovative and dynamic spellcasting system” and supports up to four players. Neat!

There are two awesome t-shirts for sale today. Hit the jump to be super tempted into dropping some cash! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop |

L.A. Noire is mature – no, we mean REALLY mature

Posted on April 15, 2011 by Nicole Kline

We all knew L.A. Noire was going to be gritty, but I didn’t realize just how gritty Rockstar was going to get. Cole Phelps, the detective searching for a serial killer, is going to have a lot to deal with as he goes up through the ranks at the police station. According to the ESRB rating information, this is what you have to look forward to:

  • Realistic shootouts, which are “highlighted by gunfire, cries of pain, and blood spirts that stain injured characters and the surrounding environments”
  • Violent cutscenes, including one with “a character being beaten with a crowbar (off screen)—large spurts of blood are depicted in the foreground”
  • Some crime scenes in which you investigate “badly beaten or mutilated corpses” and you have the ability to “examine victims’ bodies close-up, surveying various bruises and bloody cuts for evidence—a few female corpses are depicted fully nude with fleeting images of pubic hair”
  • Investigations involving sexual assaults, in which “details are often conveyed in clinical terms through dialogue or on-screen text (e.g., ‘He’s some kind of sex fiend,’ ‘Woman’s briefs torn at seams, forcibly removed,’ and ‘Head trauma . . . external bruising to genitals.’)”
  • And, perhaps the strangest of the lot: “In one cutscene, there is an implication that a character is engaged in a sexual relationship with a teenager (e.g., ‘You take love where you can find it as you get older, Jack’/That has nothing to do with love . . .’)”

Damn. This is going to make Heavy Rain look like Kirby’s Epic Yarn. Oh, there are also scenes with drugs, and, um, “Language such as ‘f**k,’ ‘sh*t,’ ‘c*nt,’ ‘n**ger,’ and ‘sp*c’ can be heard in the dialogue.” If your stomach is strong enough for you to listen to the Warp Zoned podcast, then you should be safe.

L.A. Noire hits stores on May 17th for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Get your sleuthing skills ready.

Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Daily Scoop: April 15, 2011 – Poked to Death

Posted on April 15, 2011 by Nicole Kline

It’s Friday, YAY! This weekend, I plan on playing video games, writing, doing laundry, and hugging my cats until they squeak. If that doesn’t sound like the awesomest weekend ever, then I don’t know what does.

There are lots of great deals today! First up is this amazing XBLA sale that is TODAY ONLY! Get 50% off (that’s just 600 points!) Limbo, Castle Crashers, Shadow Complex, Trials HD, and Monday Night Combat. This is a steal for these games, so hop on this! Toys R Us is also having two great sales right now – the first is Buy 1 Get 1 40% off ALL Wii, PS3 & Xbox 360 Video Games. Yes, that says ALL in all capitals! And the website says that’s 1,128 games. Hot damn! Toys R Us is also having a sale on black and white Wii consoles – they’re $169.99 with free shipping. To polish it all off is today’s Amazon Deal of the Day in video games, which is THQ’s Dood’s Big Adventure – Udraw for the Wii. It’s $21.99 from $29.99, and no, it doesn’t have Prinny. Sorry!

And, finally, I present to you a t-shirt that I am absolutely going to buy today from Qwertee:

I have officially become obsessed with mash-ups.

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Daily Scoop: April 14, 2011 – A Game of Thrones

Posted on April 14, 2011 by Nicole Kline

News Editor Mike Gutierrez and I are heading to a screening of “A Game of Thrones” tonight, and I’m pretty excited. Why? Not because of the upcoming video game, but because I read these books back in 2005 and I can’t remember much from them and I really, really don’t feel like re-reading them, but I think Boromir is going to do just great as Ned Stark. Also, I’m a little concerned about the video game development so far, because – SPOILER ALERT – there really aren’t dragons in the books. At least, not right away. And certainly not gigantic and threatening and village-destroying ones.

Speaking of spoilers and dragons and Boromir, today’s Amazon Deal of the Day in video games is Namco’s Active Life Outdoor Challenge for the Wii. It’s $34.99 down from $49.99, and promises to be “A fun and easy way to get off the couch and get hearts pumping!” That sounds really exciting! It’s sure to train your dragon and prepare you for a grueling, dragon-filled RTS.

I think a few people are going to be excited about today’s t-shirt over at Ript:

Super Sesame Street Fighter! Heyooooo!

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Daily Scoop: April 13, 2011 – Raid some tombs

Posted on April 13, 2011 by Nicole Kline

There are a lot of sales happening, as mentioned in yesterday’s Daily Scoop. If I didn’t have such a giant backlog, I would have already snatched up a bunch of games on sale, but that would be a really bad idea right now. I mean, not that I can’t just keep stacking them, but…yeah. Too many games!

Speaking of which, today’s Amazon Deal of the Day in video games is Square Enix’s Tomb Raider Trilogy for the PS3. It’s $10 cheaper today at $29.99, which is a steal for the three games you’re getting – Tomb Raider: Legend, Tomb Raider: Anniversary and Tomb Raider: Underworld. If you’re looking to catch up on raiding tombs with your favorite lady, now’s your chance.

Daily t-shirts have been letting me down lately, but today’s Tee Fury at least has controllers in it:

I’m not feeling it, but all that means is that my wallet will live to fight another day.

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |