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
Mass Effect 3: N7 Edition is a collector’s dream
Are you a massive Mass Effect fan? If so, then listen closely, because BioWare wants to tell you all Mass Effect 3‘s “N7 Collector’s Edition.”
Retailing for $79.99 and available on the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360, the N7 Collector’s Edition includes a treasure trove of goodies that fans have been requesting for a long time. I refer, of course, to the commemorative tin case with artwork featuring the official female character model for Commander Shepard. Oh, and MaleShep is on there too… if that’s your thing.
What else can you expect to find in the N7 Collector’s Edition? Behold…
- Premium metal case featuring commemorative artwork of Commander Shepard.
- 70-page hardbound art book featuring hundreds of unique and gorgeous illustrations from the BioWare development team.
- Limited edition Mass Effect comic by Dark Horse Comics, complete with unique cover artwork.
- Join the ranks of the N7 with the premium fabric N7 patch.
- Exclusive 4×6 lithographic print featuring a one-of-a-kind piece of artwork.
- A full collection of in-game content that can’t be found anywhere else!
- N7 Arsenal Pack – Bring the firepower with the N7 Sniper Rifle, Shotgun, SMG, and Pistol.
- Robotic Dog – A faithful sidekick to keep you company on board the Normandy.
- Squadmate Alternate Outfit Pack – New appearances for your favorite squad members.
- N7 Hoodie – For Commander Shepard’s casual days on board the Normandy.
- Relive all the greatest moments of Mass Effect 3 with the digital soundtrack.
- Xbox Live Normandy prop for your Avatar. (Available on Xbox 360 version only.)
- Display your initiation in the N7 ranks with a collection of forum and social badges, avatars, and perks.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Mass Effect 3
Torchlight II suffers a slight delay to ensure it’s “awesome”
Travis Baldree, the President of Torchlight developer Runic Games, has announced that his company’s next project, Torchlight II, won’t make it out in 2011 as previously promised. Baldree wouldn’t commit to a new release date, but he did say, “The amount of time we need to take it the rest of the way is relatively small.” So I think it’s safe to assume that Torchlight II will make it out sometime in the first half of 2012.
In his quest to make Torchlight II “awesome… all the way through,” Baldree doesn’t feel too bad about delaying the game as he (rather correctly) reasons that everyone is already playing all of this Fall’s biggest reasons:
We feel pretty safe in saying that if you enjoyed Torchlight at all, this sequel is superior in every respect. Right now our job is to ensure that the quality level is consistent all the way to the end.
Besides, you’re all playing Skyrim right now anyway, aren’t you? Or Battlefield 3? Or Uncharted 3? Or Saints Row 3? Or Arkham City? Or Skyward Sword? Or Minecraft? Or Modern Warfare 3? Or Dark Souls? Or Assassin’s Creed Revelations?
You definitely can’t say he’s wrong. But he forgot Halo Anniversary.
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Torchlight II
CoD Modern Warfare 3 sets another record: $775 million/12.5 million copies in 5 days
Brace yourself, Activision has a new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 sales record to announce.
In its first five days of availability, Modern Warfare 3 has generated $775 million in sales worldwide. For those scoring at home, that works out to more than 12.5 million copies. That surpasses the previous record of $650 million, set a year ago by Call of Duty: Black Ops.
“As I have said all year, we have been singluarly focused on making a spectacular game for our fans, and nothing else. Our incredible teams at Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games have done just that,” said Eric Hirshberg, CEO, Activision Publishing. “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 continues to thrill core gaming enthusiasts as well as draw new people into the medium, which is not an easy balancing act. But it takes more than a great game. I would also like to thank our incredible team for the pulling off the launch of the year, as well as our retail partners around the world. But most of all, I want to thank our fans. They are our toughest critics, and our biggest supporters, and none of this would be possible without them.”
In addition to another sales record, Modern Warfare 3 has also set a new standard for simultaneous players on both the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live. According to Microsoft, 1.4 million were playing Modern Warfare 3 at the same time on November 8. The total number of simultaneous PS3 players was not released by Sony.
Check back with Warp Zoned one year from today, where I plan to copy-and-paste this article, replacing every instance of “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” with “Call of Duty 9.”
Skyrim ships more than 7 million critically acclaimed copies
When I went to pick up my copy of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim at a midnight release party I got there three hours early and I was STILL 150th in line at the store here in Phoenix. By 11:30, the line was in the 400s. It was then that I knew that Skyrim had one of the biggest openings of the year, and as it turns out, I was right.
A press release from Bethesda parent company Zenimax today revealed that seven million copies of their latest Action RPG/Soul-Consuming-Fantasy-Life-Simulator have been shipped to date, equaling about $450 million in revenue. Within 48 hours of it’s release on 11/11/11, more than 50% of all the shipped copies were sold, and massive re-orders for the game through many outlets are already expected. On Steam, Valve’s computer game distribution service, it was reported that over 280,000 players were playing the game simultaneously, shattering the previous record.
In addition to the huge sales numbers, Zenimax stated the game has seen “perfect” reviews from more than 50 outlets.
“Todd Howard and his team at Bethesda Game Studios have crafted a very special game,” said Robert Altman, Chairman and CEO of Zenimax media, “Anticipation for Skyrim has surpassed any game in our company’s history, and we are pleased that sales and reviews have reflected the quality and hours of amazing gameplay it provides.”
I for one have already thrown around 40 hours into this game, and think that this praise is, indeed, warranted. Now if you will excuse me, this news post is cutting into my precious adventuring time.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Daily Scoop: November 16, 2011 – Rainy day woman
It’s Wednesday, and it’s a beautiful rainy day – not too cold, not too rainy, just a general kind of soggy day. Back in high school, my soccer coach was obsessed with Bob Dylan, and named all of our plays after his songs – and nicknamed some of us as well. I was Rainy Day Woman, so when it rains, I always think about him.
Whew! Anyway! Amazon’s Deal of the Day in video games continues on their Black Friday Deals with up to 75% off Collector’s Editions! There’s Killzone 3: Helghast Edition for $39.99, Disney Epic Mickey Collector’s Edition for $34.99, and even the Bully Scholarship Edition for $5. Some interesting stuff there on the cheap! Oh yeah, and the Duke Nukem Forever: Balls of Steel Edition for $17.99. *snicker*
There are two awesome gaming shirts today, both of which you should buy immediately if not sooner… (more…)
Black Friday Game Deals 2011: GameStop
Black Friday is less than two weeks away (November 25, mark your calendars) and retailers have continued to release their annual Black Friday sales circulars.
If you want to fill your stocking with used games this holiday season, GameStop is the place to be on Black Friday. The retail giant is offering a special “Buy 2 Get 1 Free” promotion on any used item. This includes all games, accessories, and consoles.
GameStop also has a wide selection of deeply discounted new games including Battlefield 3, FIFA Soccer 12, Madden NFL 12, Need For Speed: The Run, Gears of War 3, and Forza Motorsport 4 for $39.99 as well as Rage for $29.99.
Hit the jump for a complete list of GameStop’s Black Friday sales. (more…)
Daily Scoop: November 15, 2011 – Make some noise
It’s Tuesday, yay! Not as good as Friday, but not nearly as bad as Monday. And my day started out with me nearly taking an adorable kitten home with me. How could a day start out better than that???
Anyway, Amazon continues their early Black Friday deals today with a “Digital Download Day” as their Deal of the Day in video games. It’s mostly Sims games, with a smattering of others, including Final Fantasy XI: Ultimate Collection Abyssea Edition for $9.99. If you’re into digital games and want to sweep a bunch up for cheap, this sounds like the perfect deal for you!
GameFly is also having a huge used sale, with more than a few games for under $10. There are PS3 games, Wii games, and Xbox 360 games in the sale. Duke Nukem Forever and Brink are $5.99 used, and that is about how much I would recommend paying for them!
No gaming shirts today, but TeeFury’s “That’s Frank, Folks” is amazing: (more…)
Black Friday Game Deals 2011: Target
Black Friday is less than two weeks away (November 25, mark your calendars) and retailers have continued to release their annual Black Friday sales circulars.
Target’s ad has sailed away from the bargain shopper’s bullseye with prices that are a tad higher than those found in the ads from Walmart and Best Buy. The list of games is very similar (Need For Speed: The Run, Gears of War 3, Battlefield 3, and Madden NFL 12), but each one has been priced at $37 each. However, Target is giving shoppers the chance to drive Forza Motorsport 4 home for $27, its lowest Black Friday sale price yet.
Hit the jump for the full details on that deal and all the rest of Target’s sale-priced games. (more…)