Most Recent: Articles

Speed of Sound: The Music of Sonic the Hedgehog

Posted on November 27, 2012 by John Smith

Let’s pretend the year is roughly 2000. It’s Sonic’s tenth anniversary. It’s his first real debut into the third dimension. The game is Sonic Adventure. It will be heralded as a general success. It will set some major tropes for the future of the 3D series to come, though it’s a bit of an oddity. At worst, it will later be looked back upon as “good for its time.” You advance through the levels – suddenly you’re on Speed Highway. The dark of a city forever trapped in the night – highways impossibly bent and stretched along the sides of buildings, through the air. Clear signs of construction that is, considering the landscape, entirely unfinished. This, gamer, is your music. (more…)

Posted in Features, PS3, Retro, Top Story, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Daily Scoop: November 27, 2012 – The post-sales crash

Posted on November 27, 2012 by Nicole Kline

All of the crazy sales and deals and long hours at the mall and debating on what to get/not to get are over now. Cyber Monday left us in the dust. I managed to not buy anything yesterday, and as I watched the prices go back up on the items I wanted, I felt regret and satisfaction at the same time. Capitalism can be so confusing.

Amazon still has some deals going on, but nothing really of note. Resident Evil: Revelations is $18.99, The Secret World is $29.99, and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom is $24.99. See? Nada.

There are a few decent shirts up, though! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop |

Dishonored: Dunwall City Trials DLC scheduled for December 11

Posted on November 27, 2012 by John Scalzo

Bethesda has announced that the first Dishonored DLC, the “Dunwall City Trials,” will be released on December 11. The new content will be available on the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 for $4.99 (or 400 Microsoft Points).

“Dunwall City Trials” will add 10 challenge maps to the game “that will test your combat, stealth and mobility skills.” Players will be asked to “fight off waves of tallboys, guards, weepers and thugs, [and] take out targets in a non-stop run of drop assassinations.”

“Dunwall City Trials” will also add a new batch of Achievements/Trophies for your collecting pleasure and the first screenshots of the add-on can be found at the Bethesda Blog.

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

Nintendo launching Wii Mini in Canada on December 7

Posted on November 27, 2012 by John Scalzo

It looks like Nintendo isn’t done launching new consoles. After the Wii U’s release on November 18 (and the upcoming European launch on November 30), Nintendo plans to release the Wii Mini exclusively in Canada for $99.99 on December 7.

So what exactly is the Wii Mini? It’s a Wii system in a smaller form factor featuring a matte black finish with a red border. The included Wii Remote Plus and Nunchuk also feature bright red plastic.

The catch is that the Wii Mini is a Wii-only system. That means no GameCube support and no Internet capabilities either. That’s not ideal for a serious gamer, but it looks so snazzy!

Posted in News | Tagged

Nintendo adding classic Mario levels to New Super Mario Bros. 2

Posted on November 27, 2012 by John Scalzo

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata has unveiled the latest New Super Mario Bros. 2 downloadable content in Nintendo of Japan’s latest Nintendo Direct video. Available now in Japan, the “Golden Classic Course Pack” includes remade levels from Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. (1-1, the underground-based 1-2, and the Bowser Castle of 1-4) and Super Mario Bros. 3 (1-1 and 1-5) for the game’s Coin Rush mode.

Nintendo of America followed up this announcement with one of their own, confirming that the “Gold Classics Pack” is now available to download in North America for free. After February 1, 2013, the pack will be priced at $2.50.

Be sure to check out the sneak peek of the DLC in the video above.

Posted in News | Tagged ,

Nintendo sells 400,000 Wii U consoles in first week

Posted on November 27, 2012 by John Scalzo

Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime has confirmed to the CNET that the Wii U launch was a sellout. According to Fils-Aime, more than 400,000 Wii U consoles have been sold since the system launched on November 18.

“Wii U is essentially sold out of retail and we are doing our best to continually replenish stock,” Fils-Aime said. “Retailers are also doing their best to get the product to store shelves. But as soon as product hits retail, they’re selling out immediately.”

For comparison’s sake, Nintendo managed to sell 300,000 Wii consoles in the same timespan. Not bad for a six-year-old system that has lived in the shadow of the PS3 and Xbox 360 for years.

Posted in News, Wii U |

Just Stop! Consoles Are NOT Headed For a Crash

Posted on November 26, 2012 by John Scalzo

When the Internet decides to collectively believe something that’s just not true, we have to cry out… Just Stop! This is what’s making a Warp Zoned editor rip his computer from the wall in frustration today…

Over the last few weeks, you’ve probably seen more than a few articles bemoaning the financial health of the retail games sector. Analysts and journalists have been carrying on about how this is the end of the line. That even with a generational jump looming, the gaming community has abandoned disc-based games for their iGadgets and their free-to-play Facebook counterparts.

No! Just Stop! YOU. ARE. WRONG. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, DS, Opinions, PS2, PS3, PSP, Top Story, Vita, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360 |

Daily Scoop: November 26, 2012 – The sales continue on Cyber Monday!

Posted on November 26, 2012 by Nicole Kline

I managed to survive the entire weekend without buying anything (unless you count cat litter, which I don’t, in the scheme of Black Friday sales). Oddly enough, it’s today that’s tempting me the most, with Journey: The Collector’s Edition on sale for $14.99 at Amazon and GameStop, as well as Theatrhythm Final Fantasy on sale for just $19.99 at Newegg. Will I be able to survive this last day of sales? All signs point to no, according to my d20 magic eight ball.

Once again, John Scalzo’s got you covered for Amazon deals today. Is it just me, or have these sales been going on for way too long? Not that I don’t love being tempted (spoiler alert: I hate it!), but it just seems like it’s five full days of a shopping frenzy, followed by a lot of Christmas music. Am I right?

Let’s not forget that it’s the last day of the Steam sale as well. Get Alan Wake for $9.99, Castle Crashers for $4.99, and/or The Witcher 2 for $7.49. Oh, and Torchlight II is only $9.99, which you absolutely should get.

And now, time for the shirts! (more…)

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |