Most Recent: News

Weekly Warp-Up: Everybody Loves Shepard Edition

Posted on March 4, 2012 by John Scalzo

No, that’s not a typo. Welcome to the Weekly Warp-Up, your weekly wrap-up of the biggest and the best articles posted at Warp Zoned this week…

We’re T minus 72 hours from the launch of Mass Effect 3 and Warp Zoned has gone a bit Shepard crazy. During our look back at What We Played in February 2012, the Mass Effect 3 demo came up a lot. So much so that we devoted an entire article to a Hands-On Preview of the tiny taste of Shepard’s next adventure. And you better believe Mass Effect 3 showed up in our article highlighting The Games of March 2012.

And if you think that’s the last you’ve heard of Mass Effect 3 in this edition of the Weekly Warp-Up, think again and hit the jump to read the latest from the week that was. (more…)

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Persona 4: Arena battles its way into stores in August

Posted on March 3, 2012 by John Scalzo

A short report from Aram Jabbari, Atlus’ PR Relations Manager, has revealed that Persona 4: Arena will be available for the PS3 and Xbox 360 in August.

Jabbari also brought along three ultra-colorful screenshots as well as a promise that Atlus is “doing everything possible to retain the full English voice cast from Persona 3 and 4.” The publisher also isn’t ready to confirm or deny the status of the Japanese language track in the North American release, so don’t ask.

[Source: PlayStation Blog]

Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Madden NFL 13 Cover Nominees: AFC South

Posted on March 3, 2012 by John Scalzo

Are you ready for some football? How about a long and drawn out fan vote to decide who will appear on the cover of Madden NFL 13? Well, EA Sports has you covered on both.

Every day this week, the Madden-maker will continue to reveal each division’s nominees for the game’s cover. The 64-player tournament will initially include two players from each team. Beginning March 7, fans can head over to the ESPN SportsNation Facebook Page to decide who will represent each team in the final 32-player bracket.

Today’s nominees come from the AFC South:

Houston Texans
Arian Foster or Andre Johnson

Indianapolis Colts
Dwight Freeney or Robert Mathis

Jacksonville Jaguars
Blaine Gabbert or Maurice Jones-Drew

Tennessee Titans
Chris Johnson or Jake Locker

Andre Johnson didn’t have a great 2011 (in fact, he spent more time injured then he did on the field), but the Texans play-in matchup is certainly the most interesting so far. But out of this eight, it’s hard to argue, except for Arian Foster, that any of them are deserving of the cover of Madden NFL 13.

Posted in News, PS3, Vita, Wii, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Is this a God of War IV teaser trailer?

Posted on March 3, 2012 by John Scalzo

We know God of War IV is coming, even though it remains unannounced. We know this as surely as we know that Nintendo is working on another Mario game and Sega is working on another 3D Sonic. It is the way of things when it comes to the video game industry. But Italian website 4News.it has gone a step further and posted, what they claim, is a leaked trailer for the game.

The trailer opens with a Mature rating (even though, officially, God of War IV hasn’t been rated by the ESRB), the “Sony Computer Entertainment presents” text, and the Sony Santa Monica logo. Then a series of grayish images are flashed on the screen (a stone structure, floating rocks, hands reaching up from the ground) as a voice intones:

Brother, the phoenix has been drinking your blood. Full of your anger. Blood. Full of your anger and your strength in life. Now I ask you, what have you been doing with her? Would you leave me here in hell? Kratos… wake up! wake up!

Finally, we’re greeted with the God of War IV logo. Is it real? Who knows. But it certainly is convincing.

Posted in News, PS3 | Tagged

New Releases: Mass Effect 3, Street Fighter X Tekken, MLB 2K12/MLB 12, More

Posted on March 3, 2012 by John Scalzo

It’s here. It’s finally here. The grand finale of the Mass Effect trilogy, Mass Effect 3, will be available for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on March 6. It’s been a long wait (made longer by EA’s decision to delay the game from its original Fall 2011 release date), but it’s almost over.

However, other companies aren’t backing down from the juggernaut that is Commander Shepard…

  • Capcom is bowing their 2D crossover fighter Street Fighter X Tekken (PS3, Xbox 360).
  • A twin bill of baseball games will be available including Sony’s MLB 12: The Show (PS3, Vita) and 2K’s more inclusive Major League Baseball 2K12 (DS, PC, PS2 (!), PS3, PSP (!!), Wii, Xbox 360).
  • Namco Bandai is bringing back the Ridge Racer series in Ridge Racer Unbounded (PS3, Xbox 360), a title that has really managed to stay under the radar.
  • Zipper Interactive (creator of the SOCOM series) will make their Vita debut with Unit 13.
  • And Nintendo wants everyone to do the Mario one more time on the Wii with Mario Party 9.

Even EA isn’t afraid to compete against itself, as the publisher plans to ship The Sims 3: Showtime for the PC this week in both a Limited Edition and a Katy Perry Special Edition (scandalized muppets not included).

Believe it or not, this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are even more new releases after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, DS, News, PC, PS2, PS3, PSP, Vita, Wii, Xbox 360 | Tagged , , ,

The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences offers sneak peeks at PAX East

Posted on March 3, 2012 by Melissa Niedringhaus

For those of you that have been living under a rock, PAX East is a a three-day game festival for gamers of all stripes. For its debut at the show, The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences (AIAS) will present two sessions from the D.I.C.E. Summit, and give attendees early access to seventeen pieces from the 2011 Into the Pixel art exhibit.

On Friday April 6th, Richard Hilleman, chief creative director of Electronic Arts, will present his session titled: “Games as a Language”, and on Saturday April 7th, Cliff Bleszinski and Mike Capps of Epic Games will answer 10 questions from their fans, and talk about the past, present, and future of the studio with AIAS President Martin Rae.

The Into the Pixel exhibit features scenes from popular games like Mass Effect 2, BioShock Infinite and Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception, and will be displayed in the South East Lobby of the convention center.

For more information, or to check out more stuff going on at PAX East, visit the official website.

Posted in Etcetera, News | Tagged

Madden NFL 13 Cover Nominees: NFC East

Posted on March 2, 2012 by John Scalzo

Are you ready for some football? How about a long and drawn out fan vote to decide who will appear on the cover of Madden NFL 13? Well, EA Sports has you covered on both.

Every day this week, the Madden-maker will continue to reveal each division’s nominees for the game’s cover. The 64-player tournament will initially include two players from each team. Beginning March 7, fans can head over to the ESPN SportsNation Facebook Page to decide who will represent each team in the final 32-player bracket.

Today’s nominees come from the NFC East:

Dallas Cowboys
DeMarcus Ware or Jason Witten

New York Giants
Victor Cruz or Jason Pierre-Paul

Philadelphia Eagles
LeSean McCoy or Michael Vick

Washington Redskins
Ryan Kerrigan or Brian Orakpo

With their Super Bowl victory, the G-Men (Victor Cruz and Jason Pierre-Paul) obviously have a leg-up in the Madden NFL 13 cover competition. Especially because both players delivered big performances during the playoffs. But don’t count out LeSean McCoy or Michael Vick. Vick is a former Madden coverboy and McCoy is one of the best running backs in the league.

Of course, even with Vick’s on-the-field credentials, many people have other reasons not to vote for him.

Posted in News, PS3, Vita, Wii, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Daily Scoop: March 2, 2012 – Weekend: go!

Posted on March 2, 2012 by Nicole Kline

Whew! I have had a busy day so far. I got my license renewed, had a meeting, went to the doctor, picked up a board game, and baked. I. Am. AMAZING!

You know what else is amazing? Amazon’s Deal of the Day in video games, which is Activision’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. It’s on sale today for $39.99 for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. That’s a good scoop!

Just one video game shirt today, but it’s an epic mashup! (more…)

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