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
- 2025 GOTY Scoreboard: In Progress
- 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”
Warp Zoned Presents
- Video Game Research Library
- With Grand Theft Auto 6 poised to take over the world, I reached out to Jack Thompson and it did not go well – PC Gamer (2026)
- Vib-Ribbon: An oral history – Design Room (2026)
- How a Second-Grade Teacher Revived a Beloved Video Game – The New York Times (2026)
- Spore: An oral history – Design Room (2026)
- Diablo IV PC Cooled With Real Human Blood Is Still Going Strong Two Years Later, Says Guy Who Won It – Aftermath (2026)
Most Recent: PC
Dead Island 2 will now be released in 2016
Deep Silver originally planned to unleash Dead Island 2 on the world in Spring 2015. But with the end of Spring rapidly approaching, that seemed less and less likely by the day. And today, the publisher made it official, announcing on Twitter that the game has been delayed into 2016.
Elaborating on their decision in a TwitLonger post, Deep Silver said: “We have been looking at the game long and hard, and we have decided we didn’t reach that goal we set out to achieve quite yet. This is why we have decided to delay Dead Island 2 to 2016. Right now we are focusing purely on development, and we will have more info to share at a later stage.”
Deep Silver also said they’ll share more about Dead Island 2, which is in development with Yager for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One, at “a later stage.”
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Dead Island 2
White Night Review: This Old House
I’m a real sucker for horror games. Ever since I played Shadowgate for the NES, scary and macabre games really struck a chord with me. One of the things I love most about horror games is that there is so much variety. I can paint a wall with zombie brains in one game, outrun a silent killer in the woods in another, and avoid an unstoppable space creature in a third. In the case of the recently-released downloadable title White Night, I found myself in one of my favorite horror settings: the haunted house. Nothing spooks me more than being stalked by an unseen entity. Add in a dark, decrepit mansion and an ever-dwindling supply of light, and you’ve got all the makings of a real fright fest. But where White Night shines in style, the substance makes you feel a bit like you’ve been left in the dark. (more…)
Playtonic’s Project Ukulele becomes Yooka-Laylee as Kickstarter launches tomorrow
Back in February, Playtonic Games announced they were developing Project Ukulele, a spiritual successor to Banjo-Kazooie. The developer might just have the chops to back up its boast as many former members of Rare, including Steve Mayles, the Character Artist behind the bird-and-bear duo, now call Playtonic home.
Today, Playtonic revealed that Project Ukulele will officially be known as Yooka-Laylee. As expected, the ridiculously great pun hiding in the title is also proof that Yooka-Laylee will also star a pair of animal friends. Yooka is a chameleon with a grapple tongue, while Laylee is a bat with a sonar blast. Both characters will have to work together to traverse their massive world, which you can get a taste of in the gameplay trailer embedded above.
Playtonic wants to bring Yooka-Laylee to “your platform of choice,” but we don’t know yet where the duo will take their platforming act. However, Playtonic plans to launch a Kickstarter campaign for the game tomorrow, and presumably, it’ll reveal quite a bit more about the game.
Overkill’s The Walking Dead is coming to the PC, PS4, Xbox One
Overkill’s The Walking Dead, a cooperative shooter based on the popular comic series, was announced last year from the developers of Payday and Payday 2. Today, Overkill announced they’re partnering with 505 Games to publish the title for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Bo Andersson Klint, the CEO of Overkill’s parent company, Starbreeze Studios, said: “Partnering with 505 Games on the console publishing for Overkill’s The Walking Dead will streamline the distribution and marketing of the title in the traditional space and on the digital console marketplace. Having worked together before on the successful Payday franchise, we are certain this will be a fruitful collaboration.”
Overkill’s The Walking Dead will be released sometime in 2016.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Overkill's The Walking Dead
Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor gets Game of the Year Edition next week
Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor took home a truckload of Game of the Year awards from various publications, so WB Games has decided to capitalize on its reputation with the release of a special Game of the Year Edition of the game. Oh, and it’ll be released next week.
Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor – Game of the Year Edition will be available for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on May 5. The Game of the Year Edition will include the main game as well as all previously-released downloadable content:
- Every Mission – Including The Lord of the Hunt Mission, The Bright Lord Story Mission, Guardians of the Flaming Eye Warband Mission, The Berserks Warband Mission, and more!
- Every Rune – Including the Hidden Blade Rune, the Deadly Archer Rune, the Flame of Anor Rune, and the Rising Storm Rune.
- Every Skin – Including the Dark Ranger Skin and the Captain of the Watch Skin.
- Every Challenge Mode – Including the Test of Power Challenge Mode, the Test of Speed Challenge Mode, the Test of Wisdom Challenge Mode, and the Endless Challenge Mode.
Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor was also released for the PS3 and Xbox 360 last November, but it looks like the previous-generation platforms won’t receive the Game of the Year Edition.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor
Kickstart This! The Silent Roads, Dimension Drive, Wildfire
So it finally happened. Almost three years after discovering the weird and wonderful world of crowdfunding, and having backed several projects along the way, I have finally joined our Senior Editor Nicole Kline in going from backer to Kickstarter campaigner. I am trying to raise £15,000 to produce a series of three short films dubbed The Illuminant Midnight Project. It’s no easy task, and I am taking in all the lessons I have learned from the campaigns I have covered for Warp Zoned over the years. With a bit of luck, I just might make it.
With that ghastly piece of self-promotion firmly behind us, let us cast our eyes over three video game projects vying for your contributions. Up first we have post-apocalyptic adventure The Silent Roads, followed by space shooter Dimension Drive. Last, but not least, we have Wildfire, a stealth game where everything burns. (more…)
Codemasters has revealed Dirt Rally… and it’s on Steam Early Access right now
It’s been a long time since Codemasters last decided to play in the dirt. It’s been three years since the last game in the rally racing franchise, Dirt: Showdown, was released. Though many fans ignore the arcade-style spinoff and choose to remember the last game in the main series, four since Dirt 3, which was released in 2011.
So it was a bit of a shock when Codemasters announced the PC-exclusive release of Dirt Rally yesterday. And it was even more of a shock when the developer revealed that it’s available to buy now (for $34.99) through Steam’s Early Access program.
The developer is currently looking for feedback from fans to shape the future of the franchise, but Dirt Rally has launched with the following features already available:
- 17 Cars in 6 New and Classic Classes – Including BMW M3 Evo, Audi Quattro S1, Lancia Delta HF Integrale, and Subaru Impreza.
- Diverse Locales – 36 challenging stages set across Hafren, Wales; Monte Carlo, Monaco; and Argolis, Greece.
- Team Management – Hire up to four engineering staff to work on your car between stages.
- Rally Async – Daily, weekly, and month-long challenges against fellow players from around the world without the need to be online at the same time.
- Rally Seasons – Compete in a succession of events with the aim of gaining promotion to the next rung on the driving ladder.
- Custom Rally Events – Take any car on any track and configure and compete in single or multi-stage events against the AI’s times.
- Upgrades – Unlock the full potential of your car with meaningful improvements to its handling and performance.
- Tuning – Tweak your car set-up based on car, track and weather conditions to best suit your racing style.
- Physics-Based Assists – Dirt Rally allows players to experience cars in their purest form. It also offers a selection of real world assists similar to those seen in race and road vehicles as traction control and ABS.
- Damage and Repairs – Wear and tear is faithfully recreated with a comprehensive and realistic damage model. Damage can be repaired by hiring Engineers to work in the team’s Service Area between stages but with a finite amount of time available.
Codemasters will bring “regular free updates” to Dirt Rally throughout the Early Access period, which is expected to last into 2016. It’s unknown when, or even if, Dirt Rally will make an appearance on consoles.
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Dirt Rally
Mighty No. 9 gets September 15 release after Comcept signs publishing deal with Deep Silver
Some mighty news today for Comcept’s Mighty No. 9. Keiji Inafune originally planned a “Spring 2015” release date after his spiritual successor to the Mega Man franchise found great success on Kickstarter. But with the unofficial end of Spring looming, Inafune has confirmed what we all feared… Mighty No. 9 has been delayed.
But there’s good news too. Comcept has partnered with Deep Silver to publish the game worldwide with a digital download and a retail disc. Both versions of the game will be available on September 15 for the PS4, Wii U, and Xbox One. The PC version will also be released on that date for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 as a digital-only game. Sadly, the promised 3DS and PS Vita versions have been further delayed to a to be announced date.
In addition to having more time to complete the main game, Comcept will use this delay to produce some additional content for Mighty No. 9. A special bonus stage featuring a battle with Ray, Mighty No. 9’s rival, will be included. After besting Ray, players will unlock the robot, who has unique skills and all-new gameplay mechanics, as a playable character for the entire main game. New Japanese and French language tracks are also planned alongside eight subtitle tracks.
Even though Deep Silver will publish Mighty No. 9, Comcept will retain all rights to the characters and any future sequels.