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
World of Warcraft’s Next Expansion Should Be Its Last
It’s no secret that Blizzard’s immensely popular MMORPG, World of Warcraft (WoW), has been suffering ever since the release of the game’s most recent expansion, Mists of Pandaria. Whether it’s the pandas, the retcon, or the multitude of changes to the game mechanics, World of Warcraft has lost over two million subscribers since Mists of Pandaria released last September. The most recent statistics released by Blizzard state that WoW has dropped to 7.7 million subscribers.
At one point in 2010, WoW boasted 12 million subscribers, so the number of subscribers has been steadily dropping, and is almost at only 50% of its highest number. Whether this is due to an influx of free-to-play MMOs, a lack of continued interest in the world of Azeroth, or the rise of the MOBA genre, World of Warcraft seems to be on its last leg. According to a recent comment from Game Director Tom Chilton to IGN, Blizzard may have read the writing on the wall. The announcement directly mentioned the next patch for Mists of Pandaria, stating that it would “bridge the storyline between Mists… and the next expansion.” He went on to hint that the next expansion for World of Warcraft would be announced at BlizzCon, which is set to happen this November. I personally believe that Blizzard should make this the final expansion for World of Warcraft, tying up the story of Azeroth. (more…)
Posted in Opinions, PC, Top Story
Tagged World of Warcraft
New Releases: Grand Theft Auto V, The Wonderful 101, More
This week’s edition of “New Releases” will be considerably shorter than normal because of one game: Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto V. Almost every other publisher is taking the week off to avoid the PS3 and Xbox 360 juggernaut. The theme of GTA5 is “The Almighty Dollar” and with almost no competition this week, Rockstar will be sure to rake in a lot of them.
But Nintendo has never been a company that cares about what other publishers are doing, so they’ve slotted The Wonderful 101 into the calendar as the week’s other big release. The Platinum Games-developed strategic superhero squad simulation is available in stores today for the Wii U.
The remaining new releases are made up of a smattering of budget titles including Hot Wheels: World’s Best Driver (3DS, PS3, Wii U, Xbox 360), We Sing: 80s (Wii), Takedown: Red Sabre (PC), and a boxed copy of Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded (PC).
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360
Tagged Grand Theft Auto V, The Wonderful 101
Full version of Legend of Dungeon now available
Robot Loves Kitty invited fans to play along as they released new builds of their PC-exclusive action RPG, Legend of Dungeon. Beginning in the Spring with the “Nearly Beta,” the team also released revisions known as the “Alpha Minotaur,” the “Alpha Nymph,” and possibly some others I may have missed. The official “Beta” version was uploaded for pre-purchasers at the beginning of August, so it was only a matter of time until the developers completed work on the final version of the game.
And like magic, the “Full Version” of Legend of Dungeon is now available on Steam as of yesterday, September 13.
The “Full Version” includes many new secrets as well as “an upgrade to monster AI, many new sound effects, and more weapons including a Shotgun and a Katana.” Robot Loves Kitty has also promised that the promised Unlockable Character Classes and Pet System will be available soon. Until then, enjoy the “Launch Party” trailer above.
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Legend of Dungeon
Quake 5 might be in development at id Software
An announcement was posted on the Bethesda Blog this morning, advertising a variety of job openings at id Software. While the famed development team’s troubles with Doom 4 have been well documented, these new job postings might give us a hint as to what’s in the works within the walls of id Software.
A job posting for a Lead AI Programmer states that prospective applicants would get a chance to work on “legendary id game properties” such as Doom and Quake. The people at id would also like to fill this job with someone who has “Next-Gen console experience,” preferably in the “first person shooter” or “action shooter” genres.
So what can we surmise from all of this? Well, id’s next project is likely the previously announced Doom 4 or the unannounced Quake 5. And if it is Quake 5, it’ll bring the franchise home after the Raven-developed Quake 4 and the Splash Damage-developed Enemy Territory: Quake Wars. It’s a stretch, but it’s rare for job postings to specifically mention titles like this. We also know it’ll be a first person shooter that is likely in development for next-generation consoles in addition to the PC.
Hmm… finding out the next title from id Software is an FPS set in a familiar universe probably isn’t the big scoop I was hoping for.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Doom (2016), Quake Champions
New releases lead the way in August 2013 NPD report of best-selling games
The NPD Group has released their monthly report on the financial health of the video game industry and, good news, retail game sales in August 2013 increased 21% over the same period last year. The entire retail game industry (games, consoles, and accessories) raked in $521 million, an increase of 1% over August 2012. Though the report estimates this number accounts for only half of all video game spending in August when you factor in used games, rentals, digital sales, add-on content, subscriptions, mobile apps, and social network microtransactions that the NPD doesn’t track.
Most of the increase in game sales was due to a stronger than usual slate of August releases. In fact, only two games in the August top ten are holdovers from previous months (Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition at #5 and NCAA Football 14 at #7).
The remainder of the top ten is populated entirely by new titles: Madden NFL 25 (#1), Saints Row IV (#2), Disney Infinity (#3), Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Blacklist (#4), Mario & Luigi: Dream Team (#6), Payday 2 (#8), Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (#9), and Pikmin 3 (#10).
If you’d prefer the top ten in list format, you can find it right here:
Bestselling Games in August 2013
1. Madden NFL 25 (Xbox 360, PS3)
2. Saints Row IV (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
3. Disney Infinity (Xbox 360, Wii, PS3, Wii U, 3DS )
4. Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Blacklist (Xbox 360, PS3, Wii U, PC)
5. Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition (Xbox 360)
6. Mario & Luigi: Dream Team (3DS)
7. NCAA Football 14 (Xbox 360, PS3)
8. Payday 2 (Xbox 360, PS3)
9. Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (PS3, PC)
10. Pikmin 3 (Wii U)
[Source: GameSpot]
Borderlands 2: T.K. Baha’s Bloody Harvest Preview: I Hope You Like Boss Battles
I finally got a chance to get back to PAX Prime this year after a two-year hiatus from what may always be my favorite gaming expo. And, unsurprisingly, the first thing I got to play on the show floor at PAX Prime was the new Headhunters Pack for Borderlands 2, T.K. Baha’s Bloody Harvest. This new series of smaller DLCs are heavily focused on boss fights, and that was immediately clear in what we got to play. We also got to spend some time with Josh Jeffcoat, the Game Designer on the Headhunters Pack. (more…)
Posted in PC, Previews, PS3, Top Story, Xbox 360
Tagged Borderlands 2, PAX Prime 2013
Activision has released a new campaign trailer for Call of Duty: Ghosts
Activision has released a new trailer focusing on the campaign from Call of Duty: Ghosts and it looks like Infinity Ward’s first person shooter franchise has been injected with a little James Bond flavor.
The trailer opens with a Moonraker-esque gun battle… IN SPACE! After the firefight, a massive satellite codenamed Odin unleashes a Die Another Day-like barrage of missiles on the United States… FROM SPACE! So yeah, in this version of the story, James Bond got his crotch lasered off by Goldfinger and the supervillain’s plan was a complete success. That’s where the Ghosts come in:
Ten years after a devastating mass event, the nation’s borders and the balance of global power have been redrawn forever. As what’s left of the nation’s Special Operations forces, a mysterious group known only as “Ghosts” leads the fight back against a newly emerged, technologically-superior global power.
Call of Duty: Ghosts will be released for the PC, PS3, Wii U, and Xbox 360 on November 5. The game will also be released for the PS4 and Xbox One sometime in late November.
Mighty No. 9 adds stretch goal for PS4/Xbox One edition
The Kickstarter train for Keiji Inafune’s Mighty No. 9 continues to steam ahead with the announcement of a third set of stretch goals. The newly expanded goals include another batch of bonus modes and the possibility that the game might be released for the PS4 and Xbox One if the pledge total reaches $3.3. million.
Inafune delivered the good news during yesterday’s update by saying: “We heard your calls and are proud to report we can finally offer next-gen versions of Mighty No. 9 here! We know by the time the game ships in 2015, many of you will be proud owners of one next-gen system or the other — or maybe both! If we reach this level of funding, we can add the PS4 and the Xbox One to the list.”
A possible PS4/Xbox One edition wasn’t the only addition to Mighty No. 9’s stretch goals. Here’s what else Inafune and his team at Comcept plan to add to the game if donations continue to flow in:
- REACHED – $1.2 Million: Two More Stages
- REACHED – $1.35 Million: Mac and Linux Versions
- REACHED – $1.5 Million: New Game Plus and Turbo Mode
- REACHED – $1.75 Million: The Making of Mighty No. 9 Video Documentary
- $2 Million: Boss Rush Mode
- $2.2 Million: PS3/360/Wii U Versions
- $2.4 Million: Challenge Mode!
- $2.55 Million: Extra End Stage & Boss!
- $2.75 Million: Beck & Call Online Co-Op Challenge Mode!!!
- $2.9 Million: ???
- $3.1 Million: ???
- $3.3 Million: PS4 & Xbox One Versions!
- ?: ???
As of this writing, backers have pledged a little over $1.96 million towards Mighty No. 9. With 21 days remaining, all of these stretch goals are certainly reachable.