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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
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- 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
CoD Black Ops Resurrection Pack coming August 23
Activision has revealed that the fourth (and likely final) Call of Duty: Black Ops map pack will be available for the Xbox 360 on August 23. The pack will be known as “Resurrection” (or possibly “Rezurrection”) and, as you may have guessed, will focus heavily on everyone’s favorite brain eaters.
The Resurrection Map Pack will resurrect the four Call of Duty: World at War Zombies Mode maps (“Nacht der Untoten,” “Verruckt,” “Shi No Numa” and “Der Riese”) in Black Ops. If you recall, these maps were included in the Hardened and Prestige editions of the game as a bonus download. So to sweeten the pot, Activision is including a fifth map, “Moon,” along with a 20-song soundtrack and an Xbox 360 theme. And yes, “Moon” features zommmmbbbbiieeeesssss innnnnnn spaaaaacccceeeee.
Like all other CODBLOPS packs, Resurrection will be available to download for 1200 Microsoft Points ($15), but Hardened and Prestige edition owners will receive the fifth map for free.
Oh, and if history is any guide, Resurrection will be coming to the PC and PS3 a month later on September 23.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Call of Duty: Black Ops
Blizzard trademarks Mists of Pandaria
World of Warcraft players have toppled dragons, demons and the dreaded Lich King, but nothing can prepare them for their next challenge: ninja pandas. Yes, you read that right.
WoW developer Blizzard has filed a trademark application with the US Patent and Trademark Office for Mists of Pandaria, likely making it the title of the next World of Warcraft expansion.
So where do the ninja pandas fit in? Check out this description of Pandaria from WoWWiki:
Pandaren hail from the distant island nation of Pandaria, which non-pandarens have never seen or ever visited to this day. The Pandaren Empire was founded before the Great Sundering of the world, and is believed to be just as old as the kaldorei civilization. It shared and traded resources, goods, ideas and mystic knowledge with the haughty night elves of central Kalimdor in the years before the War of the Ancients. As the night elves’ obsession with the forces of magic drove them to the brink of madness, the gentle pandaren severed ties, withdrew and closed their borders, and left the night elves behind forever.
Obviously, no further details about Mists of Pandaria was revealed by Blizzard.
Posted in News, PC
Tagged World of Warcraft
Borderlands 2 announced, playable at Gamescom 2011, PAX Prime
Well, that didn’t take long. Just after all the leaks and rumors about Borderlands 2, 2K Games and Gearbox Software officially announced that the sequel is in development. It will be coming to the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 sometime in fiscal year 2013 (after April 2012) and is going to have “all-new characters, skills, environments, enemies, weapons and equipment, which come together in an ambitiously crafted story.” Taking place on Pandora once again, it will not only feature new characters, but new character classes.
All of this information and more can be found in the latest Game Informer. Good thing I just re-upped my subscription! The game will be playable at both Gamescom 2011 (from August 17 – August 21) and PAX Prime (Booth #3417 from August 26 – August 28).
This comes on the heels of something I said just last night to Ryan Littlefield as we were blasting our way through Earl’s Scrapyard. Ryan said that he saw the GOTY edition in the clearance bin, and I replied, “Well obviously it’s because they’re making the second game.” DING! We have a winner! Now excuse me while I go change my pants.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Borderlands 2, Gamescom 2011, PAX Prime 2011
Lord of the Rings: War in the North goes forth into stores on November 1
Even though most online retailers still list an August 24 release date for The Lord of the Rings: War in the North, WB Games has officially announced that the game will be available in North American store shelves on November 1. Australian gamers will get it a day later on November 2 and the game will be available in Europe later in the week on November 4.
While this delay means gamers won’t be able to lead their fellowship into battle anytime soon, it does give them more time to save up for the absolutely insane War in the North Collector’s Edition, which will also be available on November 1.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged The Lord of the Rings: War in the North
True Crime: Hong Kong back in the game, thanks to Square Enix
It seems True Crime: Hong Kong is being given a new lease on life. Square Enix acquired the rights from developer United Front Games, who had ceased development after publisher Activision cancelled the game. The game will be managed by Square Enix London Studios and will continue to be developed by United Front Games, who is based in Vancouver.
Square Enix did not acquire the True Crime IP, and is currently working on re-branding the game. There’s also no word on when the game will be released, or what formats it will be released on. But one thing is clear – Square Enix is very excited about the game. Square Enix London Studios General Manager Lee Singleton said, “It’s one of those games where you don’t want to put the controller down; it’s what we call ‘sticky,'” and also mentioned the “incredible new game engine, rich new story with deep and complex characters, and gameplay features which have simply never been seen at this level in an open world game.”
This is great news. I got a chance to see True Crime: Hong Kong at last year’s E3, and frankly, I was completely blown away by it. I was shocked when Activision cancelled it and said it wasn’t good enough. I am eager to see what Square Enix and United Front Games are going to do with it.
[Source: Gamasutra]
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Sleeping Dogs
The Next Level: The Games of August 2011
Just 31 more days. That’s all that remains between the doldrums of August and the dam-breaking flood of new games coming this Fall. But that’s not to say that August doesn’t have a few important titles of its own. And the Warp Zoned staff is ready to dive into this month’s new releases and find those hidden gems (oh, and the juggernaut that is John Madden). (more…)
The Witcher 2 delayed into 2012 on Xbox 360; PC DLC announced
Were you all set to get witchy on the Xbox 360 this Fall? Well, you’re going to have to wait a bit longer as CD Projekt has announced that the Xbox 360 version of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings will now be released sometime during the first three months of 2012.
Production delays were cited in the developer’s official statement:
“As was previously announced, The Xbox 360 version of The Witcher 2 is an adaptation of the game to the new platform. This means that the process involves significant changes and improvements for the Xbox 360 console version – not a typical port of the game, which is usually much simpler and faster. The move of the release date allows the team to spend more time expanding and polishing certain elements of the gameplay.”
CD Projekt revealed that their ongoing legal battle with Namco Bandai also played a small role in The Witcher 2’s delay.
But some good news also witched its way out into the world. CD Projekt has confirmed that a DLC expansion of some kind is in the works for the PC version of The Witcher 2. But more information on that won’t be released until the Gamescom show.
Posted in News, PC, Xbox 360
Tagged The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings
EA enlists ex-SAS operator to write Battlefield 3: The Russian novel
Electronic Arts has announced Battlefield 3 will be getting a tie-in novel this October that’ll help fill in the game’s backstory. The novel, titled Battlefield 3: The Russian, is being written by ex-SAS operator (and Battlefield 3 military consultant) Andy McNab and co-author Peter Grimsdale.
In the game, the single-player storyline is revealed through a series of flashbacks as Marine Staff Sergeant Henry Blackburn races to prevent an attack on New York City by a deadly force known as the PLR. As Blackburn recalls key events leading up to the attack, players take control of several characters in heart-pounding missions across land, sea and air. One of these characters is Dmitri “Dima” Mayakovsky, a legendary and pragmatic GRU operator in the twilight of his Special Forces career. Known as a “cleaner,” Dima is the sort of person that does whatever it takes to get the job done. The book picks up where the game leaves off, allowing McNab and Grimsdale to give a thrilling new perspective into Dima’s own personal quest as well as the events of Battlefield 3.
“It is impossible for any single medium to fully capture the emotion and intensity of war. The Battlefield 3: The Russian novel is one window into the experience, and the game is another. They complement each other perfectly,” McNab said. “Working with DICE has been a fantastic ride. Battlefield 3 is going to surprise people this autumn. The story, the characters, the world and the intense action come together to create a resonant, memorable experience.”
Battlefield 3: The Russian will be published by Grand Central Publishing on October 25. Battlefield 3 will be released for the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on the same day.