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
World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria on track for 2012 release
During Activision’s latest quarterly financial report, Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime revealed that World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria is on track for a 2012 release. The expansion was previously given a “when it’s done” release window by the company.
After talking a bit about the expansion’s beta test and the steady subscriber numbers of WoW, Morhaime casually mentioned that Mists of Pandaria will be out by the end of the year:
At the end of Q1, global subscribership for World of Warcraft remained at 10.2 million. Maintaining our subscriber levels puts us in a great position as we drive toward the launch of Mists of Pandaria later this year. We opened the beta in late March and have rapidly expanded testing through a good portion of our community, including the 1.2 million players who signed up for the World of Warcraft Annual Pass.
Two Blizzard games in one year? That’s madness! But in case you were wondering, Morhaime didn’t have anything to say about StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm other than that the development team is still working on it.
Posted in News, PC
Tagged World of Warcraft
Hitman: Absolution targets November 20 release; Sniper Challenge officially announced
Square Enix has unleashed a double tap of Hitman: Absolution information today. First, they’ve tagged the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 game with a November 20 release date, putting Agent 47’s next mission at the tail-end of the Fall gaming frenzy.
But to assuage fans for that far-off release date, they’ve also officially announced Hitman: Sniper Challenge. The GameStop pre-order incentive was leaked a few days ago, so most of the details are already out there. But we now know that the fabulous prizes gamers will be competing for include in-game perks for Absolution such as “Controlled Breathing” and “Extended Clip.”
Oh, and a trip to Denmark to meet the team at IO Interactive (and have their likeness digitized into the next Hitman game) will be awarded to the top sniper. In-game unlockables are cool and all, but that’s a prize.
The Hitman: Sniper Challenge will be available to download on May 15 for anyone who pre-orders the PS3 or Xbox 360 version of Hitman: Absoluton from GameStop. PC players will be able to download it from Steam on August 1.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Hitman: Absolution
Daily Scoop: May 9, 2012 – Oh So Fine
It’s Wednesday, and it’s the last day of this season of Dungeons and Dragons Encounters. I am a little sad to see it go, but I’m eager to start the next season. I want to play as a kobold and be a necromancer so I can be Johannes Kobold: The Necromancer. Don’t get it? You should!
Amazon’s having a digital deal on Double Fine’s games, and they’re calling it the Oh So Fine Bundle. For just $9.99, you can get Costume Quest, Psychonauts, and Stacking, or you can get each one separately at a discount, if you don’t need them all.
Today is a fantastic day for t-shirts and a terrible day for my wallet. (more…)
Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News, PC
Celebrate Wolfenstein 3D’s 20th anniversary by playing it in a browser
Can you believe it’s been 20 years since Wolfenstein 3D introduced the world to mecha Hitler the first person shooter? Bethesda and id Software can, as today they’ve launched a free-to-play browsed-based version of the game for your enjoyment. Wolfenstein 3D: The Browser Game can be played at Bethesda’s Wolfenstein page or at the Wolfenstein Facebook page.
If you’d prefer to do your Nazi-killin’ on the go, Bethesda has also slashed the price on the iOS version of Wolfenstein 3D. It’s now available as a FREE download from the iTunes App Store for a limited time.
Finally, we’ve got a special edition of the Bethesda Podcast after the break with Wolfenstein creator John Carmack. He shares his insights into the creation and the development of the game while playing a few levels of his first industry-changing game. (more…)
Win Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition (and more cool stuff) with Raptr Rewards
Raptr, the online network that tracks what you (and your friends) play, recently launched the beta version of their Raptr Rewards program.
Now, playing games and unlocking Achievements/Trophies in your favorite will also unlock prizes and discounts through the Rewards program. Previously, Raptr gave away Diablo III and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier beta codes, as well as discounts on Logitech gear and add-on packs for the free-to-play games Pandora Saga and Blacklight: Rertibution. But the Raptr Rewards program will have its big coming out party tomorrow, May 10, when the company plans to give away 2,500 copies of Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition.
The requirements to unlock the reward haven’t been revealed yet, but Raptr representatives believe the offer is “going to go quickly,” so I’d sign up for Raptr Rewards today (unless you already have). And if Minecraft isn’t your thing, Raptr has also revealed that they’ll be giving away 350,000 other prizes throughout the month of May.
BioShock Infinite finitely delayed
When BioShock Infinite turned out to be a no-show at this year’s PAX East, many con-goers began to believe the game was headed for a delay. Today, 2K Games and Irrational have confirmed our worst fears, delaying the game into 2013.
BioShock Infinite will now be available for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on February 26, 2013. Irrational’s plan is to use the extra time to make the game “more extraordinary.”
“When we announced the release date of BioShock Infinite in March, we felt pretty good about the timing. Since then, we’ve uncovered opportunities to make Infinite into something even more extraordinary. Therefore, to give our talented team the time they need to deliver the best Infinite possible, we’ve decided to move the game’s release to February,” said Ken Levine, the Creative Director at Irrational Games and driving force behind the BioShock series.
This also means that BioShock Vita will be pushed further out as well. Levine previously revealed that the developer won’t give the handheld game their “full attention” until after Infinite ships.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged BioShock Infinite
Michel Ancel says Beyond Good & Evil 2 is still in development
Despite a whole decade since Ubisoft’s original appeared, it seems that Beyond Good & Evil 2 will prove naysayers wrong by climbing into the cold light of day. However, unlike the recent HD re-release on Xbox Live Arcade and the Playstation Network, the franchise will be seeking a home on the next generation of consoles, if we are to believe Michel Ancel, the original game’s creator. He has (once again) been quoted as saying the game is in “the active creation stage,” explaining further:
“I can say that it’s a very ambitious game and we need some tech to achieve that ambition. We focus on the game. We create it first, then we’ll see what can run it. We don’t say 2013 because we don’t know when it will come. We’re working to create a great game and it needs more tech.”
However, it has been four years since Ubisoft debuted a teaser trailer for the sequel at their short-lived Ubidays conference in 2008. A short time before that, Ancel himself stated at the Video Games Live show in Paris that BG&E2 had been in development for 18 months, suggesting that the project was perhaps put on hiatus, only to be revived by the original’s HD re-release in 2011, but retooled for the next generation. Could it be they are gearing it up for release on Nintendo’s Wii U (or perhaps the PS4 or Xbox 720)? The Wii U’s tablet controller would certainly be a good match with Jade’s camera.
[Source: Destructoid]
Pre-order Hitman: Absolution from GameStop, gain access to “Sniper Challenge”
Publisher Square Enix and developer IO Interactive are teasing a major Hitman: Absolution announcement this Thursday, May 10. But an ad in the newest issue of Game Informer has beaten them to the kill.
According to the ad, gamers who pre-order Hitman: Absolution from GameStop will receive access to the Hitman: Sniper Challenge downloadable level. The best part, it appears to be a standalone mini-game (“Available NOW,” according to the ad) that comes complete with prizes for high scores.
What kind of prizes? Will the mini-game be downloadable by regular joes who don’t plan to pre-order Hitman: Absolution? We’ll have to wait until the official announcement to answer those questions.
[Source: Push Square]
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Hitman: Absolution