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: PS3
ToeJam & Earl boogie to PSN, XBLA this November
Sega announced recently that classic 16-bit characters ToeJam & Earl will be crash landing onto the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network on November 7th. Don’t get your hopes up for a new outing, though; we’re just getting emulated versions of ToeJam & Earl and its sequel, ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron. The two titles will be available separately on PSN for $4.99 each and available as a bundle, Sega Vintage Collection: ToeJam & Earl, on XBLA for 800 Microsoft Points ($10). Per the Sega Blog:
In the original ToeJam & Earl, players have to help the alien duo explore the craziest planet they’ve ever visited: Earth! After a rough crash landing, pieces of their spaceship have been scattered across a giant, constantly-changing landscape. Help them avoid hazards and collect all the pieces so they can get home to planet Funkotron.
Genesis sequel ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron, meanwhile, has our alien heroes return safely to their home planet only to discover that their ship had stowaways! Funkotron is now infested with wild Earthlings who need to be put into jars and shipped back home.
I know a lot of people are looking for a new TJ&E; let’s hope enough people purchase these re-released games to warrant a new title.
Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Sega Vintage Collection: ToeJam & Earl, ToeJam & Earl, ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron
Gearbox releases Borderlands 2 Mecromancer, Pirate’s Booty trailers
It’s a good day to be a Borderlands 2 player. Today, Gearbox released the game’s first DLC expansion, “Captain Scarlett and Her Pirate’s Booty” as well as officially launching the fifth character class, Gaige the Mechromancer. You can check out the launch trailer for the expansion above as well as read up on exactly what you’re getting yourself into.
In Captain Scarlett and her Pirate’s Booty, up to four players cooperatively enter the hostile sand dunes and wastelands of Pirate Bay in search of ancient treasures. The add-on content campaign features new characters, including the eccentric and eager Shade; locations such as the town of Oasis; enemies including the Sand Pirates and Anchormen; and special weapons and loot that make it a must-play experience. No trip to Pandora is complete without a stop in Pirate Bay.
Both add-ons have been priced at $9.99/1200 Microsoft Points apiece and you can get a closer look at the Mechromancer’s skills in another brand new trailer after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Borderlands 2
PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale beta begins today for PS Plus members
PlayStation Plus members and Vita owners are about to get a special treat: starting today, October 16, the PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale beta will be available. It will open up to the general public on October 23, but Plus subscribers and Vita owners will get a full extra week of full-on brawling. The beta will close on October 30.
According to the PlayStation Blog, here’s what you can expect:
- Playable characters are Kratos, Sweet Tooth, Colonel Radec, Sly Cooper, PaRappa, and Fat Princess
- Stages are Metropolis and Hades
- Tournament types will be four-player online tournaments and 2 v 2 online tournaments (For the latter, friend invites will be supported, meaning you and friend can take on another team online)
They’ve also unveiled all of the pre-order bonus skins. Check the image after the jump to see what you’ll be getting! (more…)
Posted in News, PS3, Vita
Tagged PlayStation All-Stars: Battle Royale
CoD Elite goes free for all; CoD Black Ops II getting Season Pass
As the old saying goes, there is no such thing as a free lunch. So it was surprising that Activision, a company very much concerned with the bottom line, has announced that the Call of Duty Elite service for Call of Duty: Black Ops II will be free. FREE!
Essentially, the new service is retooling the already available free Elite service, to answer the growing concerns that players who had the Elite package and players who didn’t were unable to play together. As Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg stated, “What we have realized is that several of the Call of Duty Elite services which are currently only available to our premium members for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 are things that would further unite, engage and delight our player community. So we are going to make them free for Call of Duty: Black Ops II.”
These features include Player HQ stat tracking, Clan HQ, Zombies stat tracking, Call of Duty Elite TV, and Social Sharing and Notifications.
For this the company should be commended; they have effectively flattened the multiplayer field and granted everyone the same service with a purchase of the game, yet the new announcement is rather misleading. The main selling point of Elite was the free DLC packs Activision gave subscribers. With the new CoD Elite, DLC packs have become separate purchases again, priced at $15 each. Four packs will be released and CoD players can pre-purchase them as a Season Pass for $49.99, a savings of $10. Naturally, all DLC packs for CoD Black Ops II will be available on the Xbox 360 first with PC and PS3 players getting them later.
Activision also stated on their website that they are working with Nintendo on making the DLC and Season Pass available on the Wii U version of Call of Duty: Black Ops II as well.
New Releases: 007 Legends, Doom 3 BFG Edition, Dance Central 3, More
This week’s new releases are shaken, not stirred, and plenty scary. Don’t believe me, check ’em out…
Just like he likes his martinis, James Bond has been shaken out of his MGM bankruptcy-imposed slumber for 007 Legends on the PS3 and Xbox 360. Bringing together the plots of six different Bond movies (including next month’s Skyfall), the game promises to be an excellent history lesson on the last 50 years of Her Majesty’s greatest secret agent.
Also like Mr. Bond’s martinis, you’ll want to not stir, but shake it for Dance Central 3. The Xbox 360-exclusive is Harmonix’s third trip on the dance floor and this time they’re bringing “Ice Ice Baby.” It’s about time.
For scares, we’ve got a trio of choices this week: id’s reworked Doom 3: BFG Edition (PC, PS3, Xbox 360), Konami’s Vita-exclusive Silent Hill: Book of Memories, and Atari’s Roller Coaster Tycoon 3D (on the 3DS, naturally). Boo!
Skylanders Giants will also be available this week, but not on Tuesday. The toy-powered game will be released in both a Starter Pack and a Portal Owners Pack across the 3DS, PS3, Wii, and Xbox 360 on Sunday, October 21.
You can find more new releases after the break… and some of them even fit the theme. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, Vita, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged 007 Legends, Dance Central 3, Doom 3, Roller Coaster Tycoon 3D, Silent Hill: Book of Memories, Skylanders Giants
Guillermo Del Toro is looking for a new developer for Insane
When THQ gave the publishing rights to Insane back to Guillermo Del Toro, I (and many others) assumed that that was the end of it. But apparently the director is not giving up his game development dreams so easily.
“When something doesn’t happen in one way, I just continue pursuing it in another way. I own the property and I control it. I’m not giving up on Insane,” Del Toro said. See? Told ya.
When asked what his ideal destination for Insane was, Del Toro quickly replied “Valve.” Never stop believing Mr. Del Toro.
[Source: GameSpot]
Mass Effect 3: Omega single-player expansion available November 27
BioWare is at it again, announcing even more downloadable content for Mass Effect 3 at today’s New York Comic-Con.
“Omega” will be released for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 on November 27 and it promises to be the biggest Mass Effect expansion ever. The single-player content has been priced at $14.99/1200 Microsoft Points and is said to be “double the size” of the previous single-player pack, “Leviathan.”
In the expansion, players will join up with former Omega ruler Aria T’loak in a mission that will ask players to storm the station and take it back from Cerberus.
[Source: Eurogamer]
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Mass Effect 3
Call of Duty: Black Ops II will be coming at you in 3D this November
Activision and has announced that Call of Duty: Black Ops II will launch with 3D display support this November on the PC, PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii U.
The publisher has also teamed up with LG to give gamers a discount on Black Ops II if they purchase an LG Cinema 3D TV and a copy of the game between November 13 and November 21. To further sway you, an exclusive 3D trailer for the game is now available for viewing at your local Best Buy.
“As game developers and storytellers, we want to take advantage of every opportunity to immerse players in the Call of Duty: Black Ops II experience and LG’s 3D technology helps to do just that,” said Mark Lamia, studio head of developer Treyarch. “We are thrilled to team up with LG, which shares this same passion to bring gamers to the edge of their seats with realistic visuals and heart-pounding gameplay. And with LG Dual Play, for the first time ever, two players can each have their own full-screen experience while playing Multiplayer or Zombies split-screen.”