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
- 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”
- GDC Awards: All the Winners from 1996 to Today
Warp Zoned Presents
- Video Game Research Library
- 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)
- Shadow of the Colossus: An oral history – Design Room (2025)
Most Recent: News
N. Sane in the Membrane… Crash Bandicoot Trilogy crashes onto PS4 in 2017
Last seen as a welcome retro distraction in Naughty Dog’s Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, everyone’s favourite orange marsupial is returning to the PlayStation 4 in Crash Banidicoot N. Sane Trilogy, developed by Vicarious Visions.
The developer, which originally got involved with Crash after working on Crash Bandicoot: The Huge Adventure for the Game Boy Advance in 2002, dubbed the N. Sane trilogy a “Remaster Plus” on the PlayStation Blog. This need for a new moniker is because the original games designed by Naughty Dog are 20 years old, and all the assets used would not directly translate to the new generation of consoles. To that end, Vicarious Visions rebuilt the trilogy collection from scratch, using the original geometry of the levels, but redoing the animation, art, and audio.
The result is a trio of games (Crash Bandicoot, Cortex Strikes Back, and Warped) that feel familiar, but have been completely retooled to almost better resemble a brand new game. The eyebrows are back, but in glorious high definition. There will also be Time Trials in all three games, plus the original will now have a proper save system. Vicarious has even managed to snare the original voice actors, including Jess Harnell and Lex Lang, to record fresh dialogue.
Although they didn’t specify an exact date, Sony confirmed the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy will drop sometime in 2017.
Weekly Warp-Up: Time to Look Back at the 2016 Game Awards and 2016 PlayStation Experience
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…
One of the best weeks on the gaming calendar is the one-two punch of The Game Awards and Sony’s PlayStation Experience. This year was no different.
Overwatch won the coveted “Game of the Year” prize at the Game Awards, and new trailer were unveiled for Death Stranding, Telltale’s Guardians of the Galaxy, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment, and Mass Effect: Andromeda.
This year’s PlayStation Experience gave us an even bigger look into gaming’s future with announcements for The Last of Us Part II, Marvel Vs Capcom: Infinite (which is also coming to the PC and Xbox One), and dozens more.
Elsewhere on Warp Zoned this week, we published Warp Zoned Wish List to offer suggestions on What We Want From the Resident Evil 2 Remake. And Andrew Rainnie is back with a new Kickstart This! column, this time focusing on Nuclear Fiction’s Ariel.
More news from the Game Awards, the PlayStation Experience, and the rest of the week can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News
New Retail Releases: The Last Guardian, Dead Rising 4, Werewolves Within
In development since 2007, and first unveiled at E3 2009, The Last Guardian‘s disappearance from the public eye during the first part of the decade lead many to believe the game would never see the light of die. But some kept hope alive… even after Director Fumito Ueda parted ways with Sony a few years ago. That faith will be rewarded this week when The Last Guardian, a story of a boy and the gentle giant that follows him around, launches for the PS4.
Another long-awaited game will make its Xbox One this week. Capcom’s Dead Rising 4 marks the return of photojournalist Frank West and the Willamette Mall in a Christmas-themed zombie game that also brings back the franchise’s trademark zany setpieces and insane action.
Finally this week, Ubisoft will release Werewolves Within for the PS4. The publisher plans to recreate the real-life party game using a PlayStation VR headset, and five-to-eight players will get the chance to play “a fast-paced game of hidden roles and social deduction” online.
That’s it for the Retail Release Report, but we’ll be back later this week with a complete rundown of the new digital downloads coming to the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Dead Rising 4, The Last Guardian
Surprise! Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3, Let It Die, Lara Croft Go, more added to PS Store
While the majority of Sony’s PlayStation Experience Showcase presentation focused on the future, the consolemaker also highlighted a handful of games that are now available to download through the PlayStation Store right now.
Leading the way (and tying in rather nicely with the Marvel Vs Capcom: Infinite announcement) is the PS4 debut of Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3. This port of the one-on-one fighting game includes all the previously-released downloadable content as a visual upgrade promising full HD 1080p resolution at 60 frames per second.
Keeping with the fighting theme, SNK brought back another of their classic fighters this weekend, Garou: Mark of the Wolves, on the PS4 and Vita as a Cross-Buy title.
However, if you prefer your punching and kicking with a bit more of a beat ’em up flair, then you might be interested in Le Cartel’s Mother Russia Bleeds. Featuring a violent and surrealist take on the genre, Mother Russia Bleeds exists “somewhere between the classic style of Streets of Rage and the ultra-violence of Hotline Miami,” according to its developer.
Ultraviolence also sits at the center of Let It Die, a free-to-play multiplayer hack and slash for the PS4 from Goichi “Suda51” Suda. Players will need to be smart as they take on their opponents, which is also an important facet of Lara Croft Go, a strategic Tomb Raider experience from Square Enix. It’s now available to download for the PS4 and Vita.
Finally this weekend, PlayStation VR owners will get the chance to get their hands bloody with Bossa Studios’ Surgeon Simulator: Experience Reality.
More information on all of these games can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PS4, Vita
Tagged Lara Croft Go, Let It Die, Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, Mother Russia Bleeds, PlayStation Experience 2016
Wipeout series speeds onto PlayStation 4 with the Omega Collection
Sony Liverpool, the studio formerly known as Psygnosis, sadly closed its doors four years ago, but it’s legacy lives on with the Wipeout Omega Collection, which was announced yesterday for the PS4 at the PlayStation Experience.
Blistering sci-fi racers used to be all the rage, with the likes of F-Zero and Extreme-G racing up the charts, but Wipeout is fondly remembered for its breakneck speed, heart-pumping soundtrack, and challenging competitive modes. The collection is comprised of all the tracks and vehicles from three entries in the series – Wipeout HD, the expansion pack Wipeout HD: Fury, and the Vita title Wipeout 2048 – while featuring classic music as well as new hits from hot up-and-coming artists.
Every element has been remastered to look stunning in HDR and 4K on the PS4 Pro, with the game targeting an ultra-smooth 60FPS. According to the PlayStation Blog, the game will also feature 26 tracks and 46 unique ship models, as well as nine styles of play. Players can choose Single Race, Time Trial, Speed Lap, Zone, and Tournament from the original game, with added modes from Fury like Zone Battle, Eliminator, and Detonator. The much-loved Career Mode from 2048 will also make a welcome return.
Although a date was not specified, get ready to race sometime in 2017.
Posted in News, PS4
Tagged PlayStation Experience 2016, WipEout Omega Collection
PaRappa the Rapper, LocoRoco, and Patapon remasters coming to PS4
Not content with remastering the Wipeout series for 4K and HDR gaming, Sony also announced during the PlayStation Experience that a trio of classic musical games would be getting the remaster treatment. Hip-hop pooch PaRappa the Rapper, the colourful characters of LocoRoco, and the marching armies of Patapon are all getting updated to HD on the PS4 (and 4K on the PS4 Pro).
Not only will the games be remastered in terms of graphics, but the controls will be retooled specifically for the DualShock 4, so players will be able to better feel the musical beats. LocoRoco will also incorporate motion gestures from the controller to make it easier to control the vibrant worlds.
Although Sony seems to be trying to out-do Nintendo with the amount of remasters it is pumping out, these three games, that were so original and possibly ahead of their time, will be a welcome addition to the current console generation.
[Source: PlayStation Blog]
Posted in News, PS4
Tagged LocoRoco, PaRappa the Rapper, Patapon, PlayStation Experience 2016
Marvel Vs Capcom series returns with “Infinite” possibilities
It’s been rumoured for a while now, but Marvel and Capcom unveiled their fourth collaboration at this year’s PlayStation Experience. The new Marvel Vs Capcom title drops the number at the end and replaces it with a subtitle, Marvel Vs Capcom: Infinite. Marvel fans will have already guessed that the title comes from the legendary Infinity Stones, the MacGuffins at the centre of Marvel’s Infinity War, which is due to start filming next year.
The game features a slew of characters that will be seen on screen, including Iron Man and the newly announced Captain Marvel. They take on Capcom legends such as Street Fighter’s Ryu or Mega Man X, both of whom are old hat at the fighting game, having been playable characters in Super Smash Bros for Nintendo’s Wii U and 3DS.
Capcom teased other characters, more of whom will be revealed throughout 2017 before the game debuts at the tail end of the year. The developer shared several single player modes, including Arcade, Training, and Missions, on the Capcom-Unity blog, plus a cinematic Story Mode where the heroes will battle against a mysterious new villain, all rendered by the immersive Unreal 4 Engine technology.
There will also be dynamic online and multiplayer features, including online lobbies and spectator modes. Players will also be able to take part in ranked games, or casual ones that do not affect their leader board status. The six Infinity Stones – power, space, time, reality, soul, and mind – will influence the game and force players to change their strategies, based on the power that they, or their opponent, wields.
Finally, Capcom confirmed that Marvel Vs Capcom: Infinite is also in development for the PC and Xbox One.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Marvel vs Capcom: Infinite, PlayStation Experience 2016
Ellie and Joel return in The Last of Us Part II at PlayStation Experience 2016
You didn’t think Naughty Dog was coming to the 2016 PlayStation Experience to just unveil a co-op expansion for Uncharted 4 did you? The powerhouse developer also wanted to give us a taste of their next game… The Last of Us Part II.
In development exclusively for the PS4, The Last of Us Part II takes place several years after the first game, and first trailer shows an older, and heavily scarred, Ellie (again played by Ashley Johnson) strumming a guitar while surrounded by bodies. Joel (once again voiced by Troy Baker) also makes an appearance.
As of right now, The Last of Us Part II doesn’t have a release date.
Posted in News, PS4
Tagged PlayStation Experience 2016, The Last of Us Part II