Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Jordan Minor’s “Boss Fight Books: Super Mario Galaxy” is Now Available for Pre-Order
- 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
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
Evolve takes home Best of Gamescom 2014 Award
Evolve continues to add to its list of pre-release accolades as it took home five 2014 Gamescom Awards including the coveted “Best of Gamescom Award.” Turtle Rock’s 4v1 shooter also earned the awards for “Best PC Game,” “Best Console Game (Sony PlayStation),” “Best Console Game (Microsoft Xbox),” and “Best Online Multiplayer Game.”
Super Smash Bros. 4 and LittleBigPlanet 3 were the only other games to win multiple awards. The 3DS version of Nintendo’s fighter was selected by the judges as “Best Mobile Game” while both versions were picked by attendees as “Most Wanted.” Meanwhile, LittleBigPlanet 3 was awarded “Best Social / Casual / Online Game” and “Best Family Game.”
The full list of winners can be found after the break. (more…)
The Last of Us returns to the top of the best-seller list in July 2014 NPD report
In previous years, the best-sellers chart for the month of July would normally be dominated by the latest entry in the NCAA Football series. But EA Sports canceled the series last Fall, so a new emperor is sitting upon the July Throne in 2014. Or rather, an emperor we’ve seen before in a spiffy new set of clothes.
This is a roundabout way of saying that the Remastered re-release of Sony’s The Last of Us (combined with more sales on the PS3) pushed the game to the top of the best-sellers chart. July was a pretty sparse month as far as new releases go, but 505’s Sniper Elite III also cracked the top ten. It was number eight… with a bullet.
You can check out July’s complete top ten list (which includes May releases Watch Dogs and Mario Kart 8 hanging tough in the top five) after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Call of Duty: Ghosts, FIFA 14, Grand Theft Auto V, Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Mario Kart 8, Minecraft, NBA 2K14, NPD, Sniper Elite III, The Last of Us, Watch Dogs
World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor will march into stores on November 13
Today, during a special Gamescom presentation, Blizzard announced that the fifth World of Warcraft expansion, Warlords of Draenor, will be released on November 13.
Warlords of Draenor adds a world’s worth of exciting new content for World of Warcraft players to discover. As Azeroth’s displaced heroes venture across Draenor, they’ll build and manage a mighty Garrison, a customizable fortress that grows with them on their journey; delve into otherworldly draenei temples and clash in the heart of hostile orc clans’ territory; fight the opposing faction for control of Ashran, a huge and dynamic PvP zone featuring a variety of personal and cooperative objectives; and take on a wide array of Dungeons, Raids, Battlegrounds, Challenge Modes, and more. No matter what kind of content you enjoy, your legend is waiting to be forged on Draenor.
As part of their presentation, Blizzard unveiled Warlords of Draenor’s opening cinematic, which you can view above. They also debuted the first episode of Lords of War, an animated miniseries that will introduce players to some of the expansion’s major characters. The premiere episode is known as “Shattered Hand” and is available after the break. Additional episodes will be posted on WorldofWarcraft.com “in the weeks ahead.” (more…)
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Gamescom 2014, World of Warcraft
Is Mortal Kombat X the end for the Mortal Kombat franchise?
NetherRealm Studios has an ambitious plan for Mortal Kombat X‘s Story Mode. After recreating the first three entries in the long-running franchise for 2011’s Mortal Kombat, Ed Boon and company want to visit the far-flung future in next year’s sequel. Ultimately, the campaign will send the player 25 years into the future, but Mortal Kombat X will begin by examining the direct aftermath of Shao Khan’s defeat in the previous game. From there, NetherRealm will check in on characters both old and new in five-year intervals. So after this epic bit of storytelling, what do you do for an encore?
IGN asked Ed Boon this question at Gamescom today and the answer is that this could be the end of the Mortal Kombat saga:
“One thing that’s certainly on my mind after jumping ahead 25 years, is I don’t know where we’d go from here,” Boon tentatively begins. “We wanted to do something bold, and this is a bold new story, despite the fact it’s the tenth game. But when you jump ahead 25 years it’s like… what do you do now? Do you jump in time again? Do you go back 25 years? Do you introduce a whole new cast? We’ll worry about it when we reach it, but I do think it could be hard to continue, if we do another one.”
While Boon might be willing to walk away from the franchise, the hard reality of financial success may force the developer to reconsider. The 2011 reboot became the best-selling game in the entire franchise and if Mortal Kombat X lives up to the early hype, it may sell just as well. If Boon really is out of ideas, WB Games might “persuade” him to think harder.
But that’s all far in the future. Check out the IGN interview and read up on some of the neat ideas Boon has for Mortal Kombat X.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Gamescom 2014, Mortal Kombat X
Geometry Wars 3 coming to PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One; first screenshots inside
I think it’s safe to say that if you’ve played Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2 for any length of time, finding out that Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions is in the works is like Christmas, Hanukkah, and Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day all rolled into one. But what do Sierra and Lucid Games have planned for the threequel? Thankfully, IGN is on the ground in Cologne, Germany with the first preview.
According to the report, Geometry Wars 3 will expand the horizons of the series in new ways. Instead of a flat plane, Dimensions will warp the playing field into 3D shapes such as spheres, cubes, and cylinders. Players will be able to completely circumnavigate the shape and fire bullets all the way around:
Right from the very first stage, Dimensions was as hectic and maddening as the Geometry Wars I fell in love with back on the 360. Additions such as a customizable drone ally, landscapes that morph throughout the round, and bullets that fire all the way around the circumference of a level make each round even more chaotic, but the smart design, easily-digestible color pallette, and UI make sure that the action never becomes truly disorientating.
Wow. Each level in Dimensions will also include its very own leaderboard and a variety of special objectives that players will have to complete to earn Stars. Like many games nowadays, Stars are the currency required to open up new levels and modes in Dimensions. Finally, IGN was able to confirm that the game will appear on the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One before the end of the year.
If you’d prefer to see it for yourself, you can find Geometry Wars 3’s first screenshots after the break. And by the way, Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day is January 27. (more…)
Posted in News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Gamescom 2014, Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions
BioWare reveals the game “You’ve Been Chosen” for is called Shadow Realms
BioWare has been teasing out new trailers for their “You’ve Been Chosen” project for a few weeks now. We knew that the game was set in the modern day and centered on superpowers in some way, but the developer was saving the full reveal for Germany’s Gamescom event. Today, BioWare’s Austin team unveiled Shadow Realms, their new 4v1 RPG.
With its 4v1 structure, BioWare wants to make Shadow Realms resemble the pen-and-paper RPGs that many gamers grew up on. Four players will battle hordes of monsters as Hero characters while the fifth will control the Shadowlord, a evil mastermind who can set traps, possess monsters, and cast spells in opposition to the Heroes:
In Shadow Realms, Modern Heroes on Earth are being awakened and recruited, because of magical powers they never knew they had, to fight in a new and dangerous war against the Shadow Legions of Embra. The Shadow Legions, who have been battling on Embra for years against the members of the Radiant Empires, have gained new strength with the coming of a powerful, unknown force that we call the Shadowlords. And, they have just figured out how to leave Embra and invade Earth.
BioWare will release Shadow Realms episodically through EA’s Origin service, though a release date for the first episode wasn’t announced. Prospective players are encouraged to visit the game’s official website to sign up for a closed alpha test. Once you’re there, you can also read up on some behind-the-scenes secrets courtesy of the BioWare team.
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Gamescom 2014, Shadow Realms