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: PC
New Releases: Madden NFL 16, Disney Infinity Star Wars, Until Dawn, More
Do you feel that nip in the air? And surely you’ve noticed that kids are gearing up for “back to school” time. And that can mean only one thing… the Fall gaming rush is upon us! While these tell-tale signs of the Fall are out there, the Summer’s not over quite yet. It’s still pretty warm in most of the United States and a majority of kids get to enjoy a few more weeks of Summer vacation.
And even though it’s still August, I think the Fall gaming rush has officially begun…
Everything begins, as it always does this time of year, with the release of Madden NFL 16 (PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One). The latest entry in EA’s long-running football simulation series features Odell Beckham on the cover and improved passing/receiver controls.
One of this Fall’s biggest “all ages” titles, Disney Infinity: Star Wars, will also be available this week. As the title says, Star Wars characters have been absorbed into the Disney Infinity universe for the first time. If you’ve already got a shelf of Disney’s popular figures, prepare to build a second one. And if you haven’t caught the Disney Infinity bug yet, you’re probably going to need a sturdy shelf to hold all your Star Wars figures.
On the complete opposite end of the age appropriateness spectrum is Sony’s Until Dawn. Available exclusively for the PS4, Until Dawn is one of the first games that attempts to recreate the horror (and excitement) of watching a slasher flick. Until Dawn’s star, Hayden Panettiere, even has plenty of experience running from crazed killers on screens both big (Scream 4) and small (Heroes).
Finally this week, a pair of remasters will give a new generation of players the chance to check out (or revisit) two PS3/Xbox 360 era classics. Dishonored: Definitive Edition brings its stealthy steampunk aesthetic to the PS4 and Xbox One, while Gears of War: Ultimate Edition upgrades the popular Xbox 360 shooter for the Xbox One. Microsoft will also release an Xbox One 500GB + Gears of War: Ultimate Edition Bundle if you haven’t picked up an Xbox One yet.
A complete list of all of this week’s new releases (which also includes the PS3/Vita debut of the SteinsGate visual novel) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Dishonored, Disney Infinity: Star Wars, Gears of War, Madden NFL 16, SteinsGate, Until Dawn
Lego Jurassic World Review: Spared (Mostly) No Expense
Jurassic Park holds a very special place in my heart. When I first read the novel at 12 years old, I remember closing it and saying to myself, “This needs to be made into a movie.” Little did I know that Stephen Spielberg was already filming the movie as I was reading it. And when the movie came out, it was an amazing experience. After seeing it in the theater, I remember being scared to death as I was riding my bike home, thinking that every noise was a Dilophosaurus hunting me down. Weeks later, I saved my Chuck E. Cheese tickets just to get a raptor stuffed animal and collected Jurassic Park trading cards. I even supersized my Extra Value Meals at McDonalds in order to get the collector’s cups. I was fully engulfed in the dino-mania that was sweeping the globe. Everything about Jurassic Park was amazing, with one exception… the video games.
The Jurassic Park games for the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis were completely different, but unfortunately, neither hit that high standard set by the book and movie. I rented Jurassic Park for the Super Nintendo and found the mixture of overhead exploration and first-person shooter to be quite shallow. My friend had the Sega Genesis game, and while I did enjoy the graphics, animation, and 2D style, I found it too difficult to enjoy. Since then, I haven’t really found a Jurassic Park game that I enjoyed – that is, until Lego Jurassic World. Playing it brought back fond memories of growing up watching these movies, and while it isn’t perfect, Lego Jurassic World is still a fun romp. (more…)
Square Enix is bringing playable demos of Just Cause 3, Final Fantasy XV, Dragon Quest Heroes, more to PAX Prime 2015
Square Enix has big plans for PAX Prime 2015 including half a dozen panels and playable demos of seven games.
A playable demo of Just Cause 3 will make its North American debut at the Square Enix booth (#3646), where it will share floor space with demos for Final Fantasy XV (Episode Duscae 2.0), Final Fantasy Explorers, Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward, Dragon Qest Heroes: The World Tree’s Woe and the Blight Below, Lara Croft Go, and Life Is Strange.
The publisher also plans to set up a “pop-up barber shop” in their booth to give fans of the Hitman franchise the chance to share Agent 47’s signature look. For every head they shave, Square Enix will donate $47 to the GameChanger Charity, which supports children with cancer. The shavee will even receive a Steam code for Hitman: Absolution. Though anyone who wants to donate their own money (and keep their hair) can do so at 47vsCancer.org.
Finally, Square Enix’s series of panels will fly in developers from all over the world to talk about Hitman, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, Just Cause 3, and more. The publisher even plans to host a “Final Fantasy XV Active Time Report Live” panel with Director Hajime Tabata.
The PAX Prime expo will be held from August 28-31 in Seattle, Washington. More details about all of Square Enix’s panels and playable demos can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Hitman: Absolution, PAX Prime 2015
Ubisoft will bring AC: Syndicate, The Division, For Honor, Rainbow Six: Siege to PAX 2015
As always, Ubisoft will have a commanding presence at this year’s PAX Prime expo. The publisher will ask players to take command of four demos on the show floor including Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, For Honor, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege, and Tom Clancy’s The Division.
More details on all four demos, courtesy of the UbiBlog, can be found right here:
Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
Head back to 19th century London during the Industrial Revolution, and explore the city as Master Assassin Evie Frye. Make your way through the Tower of London and forge your own path in a nonlinear Blackbox mission. Get the Assassin’s Creed Syndicate Rooks Initiation Kit by pre-ordering the game at booth #1040.For Honor
Carve a bloody path across the battlefield in For Honor, the epic melee combat game revealed at this year’s E3. Check out booth #1040 to get your hands on the valiant Legion knights and face off against other worthy foes in the 4v4 Dominion mode. While you’re at the booth, take a picture in the faction gear of your choice (Knight, Viking, or Samurai) and pre-order a copy of the game to get a PAX exclusive shirt featuring one of the factions. Attendees will also be able to check out the skinned For Honor consoles.Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege
The next leg of the Siege Games kicks off at booth #632. Come play Rainbow Six Siege for the chance to join us at the star-studded Siege Day launch event. Those who stop by the booth will receive the limited edition Rainbow Six Pinny Arcade pins.Tom Clancy’s The Division
Try your luck in The Division’s Dark Zone at booth #612. Form a group and see if you can extract the legendary loot before another team takes you down. Pre-order The Division at booth #1040 for an exclusive t-shirt.
PAX Prime is less than two weeks away and will be held on August 28-August 31 in Seattle, Washington. I hope you’ve already got your tickets because they’re currently all sold out.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Assassin's Creed: Syndicate, For Honor, PAX Prime 2015, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Siege, Tom Clancy's The Division
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege pushed back to December 1
Ubisoft has alerted us (via the UbiBlog) to the fact that Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege will miss its originally planned October 13 release date. Instead, the game will now be available on store shelves for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on December 1:
[W]e’ve decided to push the release date of Rainbow Six Siege to December 1, 2015 for all regions. This wasn’t an easy decision, but based on the feedback we’ve received, and based on our own internal tests, we felt there are adjustments and improvements we can make, including improving the co-op experience across all game modes, weapon and gadget balancing, as well as menu and interface navigation. We’re taking a little more time to make these changes, and we think it’s the right call.
The development team plans to go ahead with the game’s closed beta, which is still scheduled to begin on September 24. They believe that the extended development time, and the valuable feedback they’ll obtain from the beta, will allow them to make Rainbow Six: Siege the best game it can be.
A spokesman for Ubisoft Montreal reiterated that they believe this is the right move: “That extra testing and added polish will make [Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege] a higher-quality experience at launch.”
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Siege
Telltale has released a launch trailer for Tales From the Borderlands: Episode 4
If you’ve been following along with Telltale’s Tales From the Borderlands, you’ll definitely want to watch the launch trailer embedded above. And if you haven’t been playing it, you have two options. You can either avoid the trailer like the plague, or you can use it to catch up with what you missed and pretend that you’ve played the first three episodes:
In this penultimate episode of the season, captured by Vallory and her goons, Rhys and Fiona are forced to continue the search for the Vault beacon – at gunpoint. The beacon is on the Hyperion moon base – Helios – while our heroes are on Pandora… so there’s the pesky cold void of death known as “space” to overcome. Even with assistance from a familiar face, and with a worryingly helpful Handsome Jack hitching a ride in Rhys’ head, getting on board the ominous “H” is going to take every drop of guile, and quite possibly all the spunk you’ve got. Sacrifices will be made – can you make the tough choices needed to succeed?
Whatever your choice, Tales From the Borderlands: Escape Plan Bravo will be available to download through all the major digital storefronts this week:
- Tuesday, August 18: PC, PS3, and PS4
- Wednesday, August 19: Xbox One and Xbox 360
- Thursday, August 20: iOS and Android
And don’t forget, developers from Telltale will make the trip to this year’s PAX Prime expo to host a special “Crowd Play” presentation of Tales From the Borderlands: Escape Plan Bravo on Saturday, August 29 at 8:30 PM. There will be plenty of giveaways and the entire crowd is expected to help steer the events of the episode.
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged PAX Prime 2015, Tales From the Borderlands
Extreme Fallout: New Vegas “You Only Live Once” run comes to an end
On September 7, 2014, YouTuber “Many A True Nerd” posted the first video of a Fallout: New Vegas run that he referred to as “You Only Live Once.” Yesterday, nearly a year later, the series finally came to an end.
The name of the game is simple, or rather, the rule set is simple. “Many A True Nerd” wanted to beat Fallout: New Vegas, and all of its expansions, with a single health bar. “Many A True Nerd,” real name Jon, wasn’t allowed to heal his character’s wounds or radiation once in the entire series. If he took any damage, it would be a permanent strike on his health bar. His character’s name, Please Don’t Shoot, seemed rather apt.
In the final video, Jon reminiscences about the series and how it’s helped him and his YouTube channel, which grew from 10,000 subscribers to nearly 100,000. He beat the base game in February of this year and spent the last six months completing the game’s downloadable content, starting with Honest Hearts.
Jon admitted to making several mistakes over the course of the series, including underestimating certain enemies and walking into several traps including a bear trap and tripwire rigged shotgun. But he was able to beat the first three expansions, and entered Lonesome Road with less than 100 hit points. Coming into the final battle, he had all of 23 hit points to survive, and was on the verge of getting radiation poisoning, which would have dropped him down to three hit points. After coming so far, will Jon see it through to the end? You’ll have to watch the video yourself, embedded above, to see.
As for what’s next for Many A True Nerd, he wasted no time telling us how much more difficult the next challenge will be… An “You Only Live Once” run through Fallout 3. But hven he’s convinced he won’t get far.
The game where it’s absolutely, definitely, flipping impossible. There are only about 12 weeks left until Fallout 4 […] Honestly if I can get more than 12 or 13 parts through Fallout 3 “You Only Live Once” I will have surprised myself.
He’s laughing as he says this. Granted, he and everyone else said that about New Vegas. However, Fallout 3 is a much tougher game. With no gambling to quickly make money, a limited damage resistance system, a lack of different ammo types, more random events, and Fallout 3’s heavier reliance on combat, it will be truly remarkable if he can get through ten parts, much less beat the entire game (and all its expansions).
Starting next week, we’ll all find out together. Good luck, Jon, we have faith in you… somewhat.
Treyarch wants to show you that CoD: Black Ops III is all about momentum in new trailer
It’s time to start running!
Treyarch has a released a new video tutorial for Call of Duty: Black Ops III that delves deep into the game’s movement system. Developers David Vonderhaar and Dan Bunting talk about unlimited sprinting, thrust jumping, and wall running as they discuss the ways that momentum can be used to your advantage in the game.
Are you ready to try it out yourself? You won’t have to wait long. The Call of Duty: Black Ops III beta test begins next week for players who’ve pre-ordered the game on the PS4. And don’t forget, the game will be available for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One on November 6.