Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Meet the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025: Quake, GoldenEye 007, Defender, and Tamagotchi
- The BAFTA Games Awards Polled the Public and Shenmue is “The Most Influential Video Game of All Time”
- 2024 GOTY Scoreboard: Astro Bot, Balatro, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, More
- The Strong Museum of Play Acquires Prototypes and Development Documents from Volition’s 30-Year History
- Minecraft’s Volume Alpha Soundtrack Has Been Added to the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry
Warp Zoned Presents
- Video Game Research Library
- It’s beginning to feel like gaming isn’t for everyone – Digital Trends (2025)
- 22 years later, modders are keeping SimCity 4 alive – The Verge (2025)
- The B-movies of Paul W.S. Anderson double as acts of devotion to his muse, Milla Jovovich – The AV Club (2025)
- Breakout, Ripoff, Genre: How Fiction Outgrows Originality – Uncanny Magazine (2025)
- ‘I Could Make “Fart Fart Boobie Fart: The Game” and Maybe It Would Eventually Get Taken Down’ – Devs Reveal Why the Consoles Are Drowning in ‘Eslop’ – IGN (2025)
Most Recent: 3DS
Nintendo Switch is not a replacement for 3DS; Also “can’t say no” to possibility of VR support in the future
Nintendo’s Tatsumi Kimishima recently sat down with Bloomberg to talk about his first year as company president after the untimely death of Satoru Iwata, as well as what the future may hold for the 3DS, Switch, and virtual reality.
When discussing the Switch, Kimishima said that it wasn’t designed as a successor to the Wii U or the 3DS, instead referring to the hybrid console as a “new experience.” He also promised that the 3DS will continue “in its own form” because of growing sales:
Bloomberg: Will you discontinue the 3DS?
Kimishima: Thanks to our software, the 3DS hardware is still growing. So that business still has momentum. And certainly rather than being cannibalized by the Switch, we think the 3DS can continue in its own form.
Nintendo made similar comments back when the DS first launched (calling it a “third pillar”) and said it shouldn’t be looked at as a replacement for the Game Boy line. However, that’s exactly what happened, so Kimishima is possibly being diplomatic about the future of the 3DS.
The President was also rather diplomatic about Nintendo’s attitudes towards virtual reality, refusing to confirm that they have a Switch-compatible headset in the works, while also admitting that he can’t say it could never happen:
Bloomberg: Will Switch have VR capabilities? Are you developing VR that will connect to Switch?
Kimishima: If you asked as if this might be possible in the future, certainly we can’t say no. In terms of how it can be used for gaming, it’s something we must consider. It depends on the system specifications.
The Nintendo Switch will be released in March 2017, and Nintendo will fully unveil the console during a special presentation on January 12.
New Retail Releases: CoD Infinite Warfare, Mario Party Star Rush, SteamWorld Collection, More
After the Battlefield franchise brought the fight all the way back to World War I, Activision decided to take the Call of Duty series even further into the future with this week’s release of Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Developer Infinity Ward has fully embraced the science fiction genre this time around with lasers, robots, space battles, and a whole lot more.
This pivot to the future shouldn’t be that surprising as the Call of Duty franchise first broke through in a big way with the release of 2007’s Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. PS4 and Xbox One owners will get a chance to relive that seminal entry in the entry if they purchase Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare – Legacy Edition, which includes access to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered.
A different kind of war will take place this week in Mario Party: Star Rush for the 3DS. Nintendo’s series of Mario-themed board games has always provided plenty of multiplayer shenanigans, and Star Rush will likely be no different.
Finally this week, a handful of games that were previously only available as digital downloads will be released in special retail version this week. Image & Form will package together SteamWorld Dig and SteamWorld Heist in SteamWorld Collection for the PS4 and Wii U. 13AM Games will release a Runbow: Deluxe Edition for the Wii U. And Bandai Nacmo will bring Pac-Man Championship Edition 2 + Arcade Game Series to the Xbox One.
The full list of this week’s new releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Mario Kart 8 sells 8 million copies as Nintendo updates their best-selling Wii U and 3DS titles
Nintendo fans are absolutely giddy with excitement about the company’s upcoming Switch console, but we shouldn’t forget about the Wii U and 3DS. Earlier this week, the consolemaker updated investors on their best-selling titles for the Wii U and 3DS, as of September 30, 2016.
As the biggest-selling Nintendo-published game on the Wii U, Mario Kart 8 recently tallied total sales of eight million copies. The game’s success was measured using worldwide numbers for retail sales and digital downloads. While Mario Kart 8 is far and away the most popular game for the Wii U, Splatoon’s sales (4.57 million copies) are pretty impressive for a new franchise. Here’s the full top ten:
Best-Selling Nintendo-Published Games on the Wii U
- 1. Mario Kart 8 — 8 Million
- 2. New Super Mario Bros. U — 5.45 Million
- 3. Super Mario 3D World — 5.19 Million
- 4. Nintendo Land — 5.13 Million
- 5. Super Smash Bros. For Wii U — 4.99 Million
- 6. Splatoon — 4.57 Million
- 7. Super Mario Maker — 3.73 Million
- 8. New Super Luigi U — 2.74 Million
- 9. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD — 1.98 Million
- 10. Mario Party 10 — 1.94 Million
Over on the 3DS, Pokemon X/Y proved that the RPG franchise is still first in the minds of Nintendo fans, with total sales of 15.64 million copies. Once again measured using worldwide numbers for retail sales and digital downloads, it finished slightly ahead of Mario Kart 7, which almost lapped its console-based big brother with total sales of nearly 14 million copies. Here’s the full top ten:
Best-Selling Nintendo-Published Games on the 3DS
- 1. Pokemon X/Y — 15.64 Million
- 2. Mario Kart 7 — 13.94 Million
- 3. Pokemon Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire — 13.18 Million
- 4. Super Mario 3D Land — 10.98 Million
- 5. New Super Mario Bros. 2 — 10.6 Million
- 6. Animal Crossing: New Leaf — 10.34 Million
- 7. Super Smash Bros. For 3DS — 8.35 Million
- 8. Tomodachi Life — 5.3 Million
- 9. Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon — 5.03 Million
- 10. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D — 4.52 Million
The Wii U has struggled on store shelves since it was released in late 2012. The console currently has an install base of just 13.36 million, which is just a shade over 10% of the Wii’s final sales total. Meanwhile, the 3DS can claim an install base of 61.57 million, which is impressive, but still a far cry from the record-breaking sales of 154.02 million units for the DS.
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Animal Crossing: New Leaf, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, Mario Kart 7, Mario Kart 8, Mario Party 10, New Super Luigi U, New Super Mario Bros. 2, New Super Mario Bros. U, Nintendo Land, Pokemon X/Y, Pokemon: Alpha Sapphire/Omega Ruby, Splatoon, Super Mario 3D Land, Super Mario 3D World, Super Mario Maker, Super Smash Bros. For 3DS, Super Smash Bros. For Wii U, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Tomodachi Life
Nintendo Download: Just Dance 2017, Corpse Party, Lost In Shadow, more
Nintendo is planning a spooky dance party for this week’s Nintendo Download.
Kicking things into high gear is the Wii U release of Just Dance 2017 from Ubisoft. Now available to download through the Wii U eShop, Just Dance 2017 will include more than 40 new tracks to test your dancing skills featuring musicians like Justin Bieber, DNCE, and Britney Spears.
Also available to download this week on the Wii U eShop is Lost In Shadow, a moody puzzle platformer from Hudson Soft. Originally released for the Wii in 2011, Lost In Shadow asks players to help a young boy find his missing shadow.
Finally this week, things get a little scary on the 3DS eShop with the launch of Corpse Party. Corpse Party was originally released for the PSP in 2011, and this remake from XSEED adds four additional chapters, redrawn high-resolution character sprites, and new musical arrangements to the adventure game.
More information on all of these games (and the rest of this week’s new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Corpse Party, Just Dance 2017, Lost In Shadow
Take on Medal Challenges in this new Super Mario Maker For 3DS trailer
Nintendo is creating 100 new pre-built Courses for Super Mario Maker For Nintendo 3DS, and the consolemaker will also add a series of “Medal Challenges” to the game when it launches on December 2. If this recent trailer is any indication, the demanding new mode definitely won’t be for the faint of heart.
For example, in Course 1-3, players will have to defeat only Piranha Plants to win the Medal. That doesn’t sound so hard, but then Nintendo ramps up the difficulty considerably in Course 3-1 (“Reach the goal without releasing Right on the Control Pad”) and Course 5-2 (“Reach the goal without pressing the jump button”). But even those like a piece of cake when compared to the Medal requirement for Course 9-2… “Lure all flying Boos to the goal.”
Hopefully Nintendo will also bring these new courses (and the Medal Challenges mode) to the Wii U version of Super Mario Maker, but no official announcement has been made as of yet.
Posted in 3DS, News
Tagged Super Mario Maker
New Retail Releases: Titanfall 2, World of Final Fantasy, Skyrim Special Edition, More
EA and Respawn Entertainment will storm their way into stores this week with Titanfall 2 for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. In addition to expanded multiplayer options, Titanfall 2 will include a single-player campaign for the first time. We can finally say it… Your Titanfall sequel is ready.
Also available this week is World of Final Fantasy, a new “chibi” RPG from Square Enix that celebrates the grand history of the Final Fantasy franchise. Designed primarily for a younger audience, PS4 and Vita players will still need to save the world from an evil mastermind. Thankfully, they’ll be aided by dozens of heroes from previous games in the series.
If you’d rather skip all the fighting and just dance, Ubisoft has you covered with the launch of Just Dance 2017 on the PC, PS3, PS4, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. Just Dance 2017 includes dozens of songs, and the new Just Dance Machine mode, which will throw an assortment of different dance styles at players.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Special Edition will make its PC, PS4, and Xbox One debut this week, as Bethesda plans to relaunch their epic RPG on a new generation of platforms. And Telltale will bring together Minecraft: Story Mode – The Complete Adventure on a single disc for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
Finally this week, one of my favorite puzzlers of the year, Tumblestone, will receive a retail release on the PS4 and Wii U.
A complete list of this week’s new retail releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Just Dance 2017, Minecraft: Story Mode, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, TitanFall 2, Tumblestone, World of Final Fantasy
Voice actor strike reveals unannounced games like Lego Marvel 2, Brothers in Arms, more
SAG-AFTRA, a union representing voice actors and stunt performers, authorized a strike against game developers that began this morning. As part of the process, the union has published a list of projects that members are no longer allowed to work on, and it includes several unannounced games.
It wasn’t much of a shock to learn that EA Sports is already hard at work on Madden NFL 18 and NHL 18, but listings for Lego Marvel 2 and Brothers in Arms were a bit more surprising (though not unexpected). While WB Games has yet to make any noise about a new Lego Marvel game, Gearbox confirmed the existence of a fourth Brothers in Arms game last year.
A large number of mobile games also make up a large part of the list, as well as a few games that are denoted only by codenames. For example, Take-Two is working on something called “Alligator,” while EA is developing games under monikers as diverse as “Odin,” “Fearless,” “Scorpion,” and “Timbits.” We may never know what these codenames refer to (they may even belong to games that have already been released), but one of the union’s major demands is for developers to be more transparent during the hiring process and to use a game’s actual title when contracting with vocal/stunt performers.
Finally, several highly-anticipated 2017 titles will be affected by the strike including Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8: Final Chapter Prologue, Injustice 2, and Crash Bandicoot Remastered. So hopefully the two sides can reach an equitable agreement soon.
UPDATE: A representative from WB Games has informed us that the inclusion of “Lego Marvel 2” in the SAG-AFTRA strike list is actually a reference to Lego Avengers, which was released earlier this year. However, Lego Avengers was announced in January 2015, several weeks before the union’s deadline for projects that must be part of the picket line.
I’m not sure why it was included on the list (it’s possible the union goofed), but the official line from WB Games is that “Lego Marvel 2” is definitely not a reference to “Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2” or any other unannounced game. That said, I’d be very surprised if WB Games isn’t working on another Lego Marvel game, and we’ll likely hear more about “Lego Marvel 2” in the future.
Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Brothers in Arms 4, Crash Bandicoot, Injustice 2, Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8: Final Chapter Prologue, Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2, Madden NFL 18, NHL 18
Voice actors represented by SAG-AFTRA union go on strike against game developers
Negotiations between game developers and the voice actors and stunt performers represented by the SAG-AFTRA union began in February 2015, but after more than 18 months of discussions, the two sides appear no closer to an agreement. Because of the impasse, and to protest against a contract they believe is decades out of date, the members of the union went on strike this morning.
“SAG-AFTRA has gone to the negotiations table with serious concerns affecting voiceover and stunt performers,” said Ray Rodriguez, the Chief Contracts Officer for SAG-AFTRA. “It’s time for video game employers to take our concerns seriously and negotiate a modern contract based on actor safety, industry precedent and best practices.”
This strike won’t affect all developers, and currently only applies to games that went into production after February 17, 2015 at Activision, Electronic Arts, Insomniac Games, Take-Two Interactive, and WB Games. However, the strike also extends to several independent vocal production studios that do a lot of contract work with the big publishers.
The game developers are offering an immediate 9% salary hike for all performers, and “additional compensation” depending on the number of recording sessions. However, the union’s demands for better working conditions went unmentioned in a statement from the Chief Negotiator for the game developers.
The SAG-AFTRA union plans to push the game developers for a better deal over the next few weeks, and their first order of business is encouraging all members to join a picket line in front of EA’s headquarters this Monday, October 24.