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
- 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)
- In 2005, games started rewiring our brains – The AV Club (2025)
Most Recent: PC
Overwatch Anniversary event is now live with over 100 new Anniversary-themed items
It’s hard to believe that Overwatch only launched a year ago, because it feels like Blizzard’s team-based “Hero Shooter” has always been with us. But a year it has been, and Blizzard kicked off a massive in-game event today, Overwatch Anniversary, to celebrate.
Like previous seasonal events, players will be able to obtain more than 100 new Anniversary-themed items in special Anniversary Loot Boxes. These Loot Boxes will feature new Legendary Skins, as well as new Voice Lines, Sprays, Player Icons, and a series of “dancing” Emotes. You can get a look at the new Skins and Emotes (including a very smooth Winston shuffle) at PlayOverwatch.com.
Three new Arena Maps will also make their debut in the Arcade as part of the Overwatch Anniversay event:
New Arena Maps in Overwatch Anniversary
- Necropolis: Ana Amari has made Necropolis her personal hideout—and an impromptu field base where she can keep an eye on things. Head to Ana’s preferred vantage point at the top of the ruins, and use the high ground (and the element of surprise) against the enemy team. Or walk the stone corridors below, and take the fight to them directly—just watch out for pits!
- Castillo: Castillo is an old fort looking out over Dorado’s bay. It’s the location of Calaveras, a bar frequented by questionable patrons; a graffitied Los Muertos hangout; and Sombra’s hacking den. Test your skills against the enemy team throughout Castillo’s multiple levels, and use its winding stairs for cover and strategic advantage.
- Black Forest: On the outskirts of Eichenwalde, the misty Black Forest map wraps around a long-overlooked battlefield dotted with the wreckage of Bastion units.
Flank your opponents on pathways between the castle and woods, and use the wooden balconies to move between the second stories of houses throughout the forest.
Finally, Blizzard has uploaded new Patch Notes for Overwatch’s latest update, as well as a new trailer for the Overwatch Anniversary event and a new “Developer Update” video hosted by Director Jeff Kaplan. Both videos can be found after the break.
The Overwatch Anniversary event will end on June 12, but remember, fans who don’t already own the game can try it out for free this weekend on the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. (more…)
It’s 2017 and Adventure Games Are Mainstream Again
“What kind of video games do you play?” It’s a broad question that I often find myself faced with, to which I’d respond “adventure games.” That answer is then followed with an exhausting amount of game name dropping, that, in most cases, have nothing to do with the type of games I’m talking about. “You mean, like Zelda?” Not quite.
The easiest way to reiterate what I’m talking about is by calling them “point-and-click” adventure games, which is a genre and style of game most notable on the PC in the mid- to early 90s. It’s a genre that was also declared dead after the commercial failure of the critically acclaimed Grim Fandango; a genre that, over the past few years, has slowly but surely been coming back into the mainstream. (more…)
Posted in Opinions, PC, PS4, Top Story, Xbox One
Tagged Broken Age, Day of the Tentacle, Full Throttle, Grim Fandango, Thimbleweed Park
Ubisoft offers a first look at Far Cry 5’s sinister Montana setting
The Far Cry franchise is best known for its exotic locales, but a new teaser trailer for Far Cry 5 has revealed the next game in the series will be set in the fictional Hope County, Montana. Popularly known as the state where people go to live “off the grid,” the publisher introduced Far Cry 5’s Montana in a series of brochure-worthy snapshots that were sadly interrupted by scenes of grisly violence:
A man screaming in pain in the middle of a peaceful mountain forest… A dead body floating down an idyllic stream… Another man running through an open field as a gunshot rings out… and a quiet church where one man is brutally beating another in the belltower…
We don’t yet know how all of these images are connected, but Ubisoft has promised to fully unveil Far Cry 5 with a “Worldwide Announcement Trailer” this Friday, May 26.
Cliff Bleszinski’s LawBreakers is also in the works for the PS4
Cliff Bleszinski has revealed (via the PlayStation Blog) that his upcoming first person shooter, LawBreakers, is also in development for the PS4.
LawBreakers is currently in the works at Bleszinski’s studio, Boss Key Productions, and it’s expected to launch for the PC and PS4 later this year. After his “retirement” from the Gears of War franchise, the developer decided to create a multiplayer shooter with a variety of characters, wide open “omni-directional” environments, and an interesting anti-gravity mechanic:
During my “retirement”, honestly, I was bored as hell. My waifu and I were ready to strangle each other. I was getting fat. Ultimately, I couldn’t ignore the creative need to make something new. During this time, I was inspired by a childhood dream about gravity being disrupted in a BIG way. I also took a Zero G flight once. That was pretty crazy. So, LawBreakers is the culmination of my dreams as a kid, my career in this industry and my lifelong passion for games. So there we have the inception (HORN SOUND) of LawBreakers. A new futuristic world where the Moon mysteriously exploded, an event known as The Shattering, that devastated Earth. Afterward society recovered, using new gravity anomalies to rebuild and advance.
Like Overwatch, Quake Champions, Battleborn, and a number of other shooters currently on the market, each character in LawBreakers will have access to a unique set of abilities and weapons:
The setting is the perfect backdrop for a super fast, omni-directional team-based FPS where we challenge players to get the hell off the ground. The floor is lava, bruh. It’s the skill-based competitive shooter made by shooter fans for shooter players that my team and I have always wanted to play. It honors the old and embraces the new. Old being the feeling of soaring through the air at mach-speed and rocket-jumping and such. The new as offering a variety of characters each with different movement abilities, multiple weapons, combos and more.
Our “healer” in LawBreakers can be an offensive powerhouse. In the hands of a skilled player, this role can simultaneously heal two teammates at once, all while lobbing grenades from high above like some flying human artillery cannon. Stuff like that is what LawBreakers is all about. Also we’ve added a few new things too, like being able to blind-fire behind you with any ranged weapon. Yep.
Finally, a brand new Cinematic Trailer, “Rise or Fall,” should give you a good idea of how combat will work in LawBreakers.
Posted in News, PC, PS4
Tagged LawBreakers
Housemarque will release Nex Machina on June 20
Housemarque has announced that Nex Machina, their upcoming twin-stick shooter, will be released for the PC and PS4 on June 20. The developer also unveiled a new trailer for the game, which confirms that two-player local co-op will be included in Nex Machina.
In Nex Machina, humans have become deeply dependent on technology, while around them, machines have reached consciousness and surpassed human intelligence ten-fold. The machines turn on their creators and make it their mission to eradicate human life. Nex Machina features explosive classic arcade gameplay, while making full use of today’s technology to complement highly developed twin-stick play.
While Nex Machina is being promoted as an homage to the arcade classics of the 80s and 90s, Housemarque actually went out and recruited one of the genre’s pioneers. Eugene Jarvis, the creator of Robotron 2084 and Smash TV, has been collaborating with the team on the game’s development.
“I’d buy that for a dollar!”
Posted in News, PC, PS4
Tagged Nex Machina
Destiny 2’s Story Campaign, and more, unveiled by Bungie
Bungie’s Destiny 2 is less than four months away, and earlier this week the developer revealed more details about their upcoming game in an hour-long livestream.
The biggest change coming to the Destiny universe is the brand new Story Campaign, which will include a dramatic and cinematic narrative structure that can be played solo or with friends:
In the story of Destiny 2, the last safe city on Earth has fallen and lay in ruins, occupied by a powerful new enemy and his elite army, the Red Legion. Every player creates their own character called a “Guardian,” humanity’s chosen protectors. As a Guardian in Destiny 2, players must master new abilities and weapons to reunite the city’s forces, stand together and fight back to reclaim their home.
The livestream also offered the first details on new game types (“Countdown,” a competitive multiplayer mode), new subclasses (“Sentinel Titan,” “Dawnblade Warlock,” and “Arcstrider Hunter”), and an online matchmaking service that Bungie is referring to as “Guided Games.”
Destiny 2 will be available for the PS4 and Xbox One on September 8, and a release date for the game’s PC launch will be announced at a later date. A closer look at the Story Campaign, and a playthrough of the first Story Campaign mission, can be found after the break. (more…)
Blizzard announces Overwatch Anniversary event, an upcoming Free Weekend, and Game of the Year Edition
In case you missed it, Blizzard has announced that Overwatch will play host to a special Anniversary in-game event beginning on May 23. The Overwatch Anniversary festivities will continue until June 12, and Blizzard kicked things off earlier this week with a “Year One” video thanking their fans for a great launch.
And if you’re someone who hasn’t joined the Overwatch community yet, Blizzard wants to entice you with an upcoming Free Weekend, scheduled for May 26-29, and a brand new Game of the Year Edition. The Game of the Year Edition will be available to download on May 23, and it’ll offer a range of goodies for all of Blizzard’s games:
Overwatch: Game of the Year Edition Contents
- Overwatch – 10 Bonus Loot Boxes — Enjoy 10 bonus Loot Boxes, which each contain random items that can be used to personalize your heroes. Loot Boxes may include skins, emotes, victory poses, voice lines, sprays, and highlight intros, as well as credits you can use to acquire many different customization options.
- Overwatch – Hero Skins — Pay homage to the original Overwatch strike force by wearing the vintage Blackwatch Reyes or Strike-Commander Morrison skins. Explore other heroes’ origins with Overgrown Bastion, Security Chief Pharah, and even Slipstream Tracer.
- Heroes of the Storm – Tracer Hero — Jump into the Nexus with Tracer and surprise your enemies in the blink of an eye.
- World of Warcraft – Baby Winston Pet — Adorably cuddly and highly intellectual, the Baby Winston pet will be at your side as you fight your way through Azeroth.
- Diablo III – Mercy’s Wings — Slay demonic forces throughout the High Heavens and Burning Hells as you don Mercy’s wings. All of Sanctuary will know of your allegiance to Overwatch!
- StarCraft II – In-Game Portraits — With portraits of Tracer, Reaper, Pharah, Winston, Bastion, and Soldier: 76, you’re sure to become a champion of the Koprulu Sector.
- Hearthstone – Card Back – You can also battle it out in Hearthstone with an Overwatch-themed card back fit for a hero!
Blizzard likely has big plans for Overwatch’s second year, and hopefully we’ll hear more about them soon.
New Retail Releases: Ultra Street Fighter II, Disgaea 5 Complete, Rime, More
After recording a huge retail victory in April, Nintendo and its third-party partners are storming back this week with another batch of fresh Switch software.
Leading things off, Capcom will release Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers for the Switch on Friday, May 26. The publisher is hoping that this re-release will introduce the arcade classic to an entirely new generation, but it also includes a brand new first-person minigame, new color variations for all characters, and two new fighters (Evil Ryu and Violent Ken). Another re-release will make its way to the Switch this week courtesy of NIS America. The import house will launch Disgaea 5 Complete on Nintendo’s console, which will include the original strategy RPG and all of its downloadable content.
If you’re looking for new and never-before-seen games this week, Tequila Works will bring their puzzle platformer Rime to the PS4 and Xbox One. Featuring a unique and moody graphical style, the exploration game should offer an interesting change of pace.
Finally this week, THQ Nordic will bring the original Darksiders to the Wii U as Darksiders: Warmastered Edition. This new version of the action/adventure game include enhanced visuals and redone graphical effects.
A complete list of this week’s new releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged Darksiders, Disgaea 5: Alliance of Vengeance, Rime, Street Fighter II