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
- 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)
- In 2005, games started rewiring our brains – The AV Club (2025)
Most Recent: PS4
CoD: Modern Warfare Remastered’s Variety Map Pack is now available for the PS4
As promised, PS4 players can download the Variety Map Pack in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered beginning today.
Priced at $14.99, the Variety Map Pack includes the four multiplayer maps that were originally released as downloadable content for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare back in 2008. Players who purchase the expansion will receive 10 Rare Supply Drops.
To go along with today’s launch, Activision also released a brand new trailer showcasing the improved visuals in the Variety Map Pack’s four maps:
Multiplayer Maps in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered’s Variety Map Pack
- Broadcast: Based on the TV station from the campaign mission “Charlie Don’t Surf,” this map provides a unique blend of confined corridors and wide-open spaces. Outside the station, the parking lot contains long sightlines, but once inside, cramped hallways and a computer-cluttered broadcast room provide ample close-range combat opportunities.
- Chinatown: Set in a foggy downtown district, this nighttime map is lit up by flickering neon signs and a full moon. A re-imagining of the original Call of Duty multiplayer map “Carentan,” players will need to be careful on these streets, as almost every building in the map can be occupied, providing perfect cover for enemies waiting for a chance to line you up in their sights.
- Creek: Set in a wide-open village ravaged by combat where concealment is the difference between life and death, a gaping ravine divides this map into two. Open clearings with sheer cliff faces and ample forested cover make this map ideal for snipers and long-range firefights.
- Killhouse: A small training warehouse filled with various building mock ups that feature soft and hard cover points. Expect fast-paced and fierce firefights for maximum close-quarters chaos.
PC and Xbox One players will likely be able to download Call of Duty: Mordern Warfare Remastered’s Variety Map Pack sometime in April.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare
Play as Orisa in Overwatch beginning today
Overwatch players can now choose from 24 different Heroes before each match, as Blizzard added Orisa to the game on all platforms earlier today. According to her profile on PlayOverwatch.com, Orisa is a robotic centaur with a defensive-minded play style, but don’t worry, her attacks also pack a wallop:
Orisa’s Abilities
- Fusion Driver: Orisa’s automatic projectile cannon delivers sustained damage, but slows her movement while she fires it.
- Fortify: Orisa temporarily reduces damage she takes, and cannot be affected by action-impairing effects.
- Halt!: Orisa launches a graviton charge which she can detonate, slowing nearby enemies and pulling them towards the explosion.
- Protective Barrier: Orisa throws out a stationary barrier that can protect her and her allies from enemy fire.
- Supercharger: Orisa deploys a device to increase damage inflicted by allies within her line of sight.
Blizzard also released a new trailer for Overwatch featuring Orisa, and it’s been embedded above for your viewing pleasure.
Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory announced for Early 2018 release
Digimon fans will be ecstatic to hear that a new entry in the Digimon Story franchise is on the horizon and slated for a sooner release than some of us may have initially expected. Bandia Namco has announced that Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory will be released for both the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita in European territories in Early 2018. There is no definitive release date for the game as of yet in North America.
Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory picks up from the previous game, Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth, challenging players to uncover the truth about mysteries first revealed in the aforementioned title. Hacker’s Memory will put players in the shoes of protagonist Keisuke Amazawa, a young man falsely accused of a crime, who must team up with a band of hackers and enter the Digital World to investigate and clear his name. The game will also feature over 300 different Digimon, and players will be able to utilize a wide range of battle strategies, compatibilities, combos, and skills to use their Digimon to their fullest potential.
Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory will be available in both physical and digital formats for the PlayStation 4, but it’ll be digital-only on the PlayStation Vita.
In the meantime, check out some new screenshots showcasing the main protagonist, a few Digimon, and some of the settings players can expect to explore in the upcoming game after the break. Also, be sure to watch the Japanese-language trailer embedded above. (more…)
Posted in News, PS4, Vita
Tagged Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth - Hacker's Memory
NetherRealm releases a Gameplay Trailer for Cheetah in Injustice 2
NetherRealm Studios first revealed Cheetah’s inclusion in Injustice 2 as part of the “Here Come the Girls” trailer released on February 14. Today, the developer unleashed a full Gameplay Trailer for the Wonder Woman villain.
As you’d expect, Cheetah has lightning-fast reflexes and makes ample use of her enhanced agility to quickly dash across the screen. Also, Batman definitely needs to do something about that malfunctioning Batplane… someone could get hurt.
Injustice 2 will be released for the PS4 and Xbox One on May 16, and according to the game’s official website, NetherRealm will announce another playable character on March 23.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Injustice 2
Metalhead Software gives 110% in Super Mega Baseball 2’s “Customization Gameplay” Trailer
Baseball sims have made customizing players and teams a big part of the experience since the days of SNK’s Baseball Stars and Nintendo’s Ken Griffey Jr. Presents Major League Baseball. Metalhead Software plans to continue this tradition in Super Mega Baseball 2, and the developer released a brand new “Customization Gameplay” trailer today highlighting the many ways that players will be able to make the game their own.
Players can start by building their own leagues, specifying the total number of teams and the divisional alignment (though the entire process can also be automated). From there, they’ll be able to rename each team and redesign their logos (using a set of fully editable pre-made templates), as well as sketch out the uniforms.
Every aspect of each individual player can also be customized. Dozens of options are listed in the trailer, and players will be able to customize their physique, personality, gender, and how thick they like their Eye Black.
Super Mega Baseball 2 will be available for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One this Summer.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Super Mega Baseball 2
Battle Princess Madelyn smashes its Kickstarter goal in two days
Casual Bit Games’s latest crowdfunding project, Battle Princess Madelyn, has managed to hit its target of $60,000 CAD on Kickstarter in less than two days. Not only that, but the project has also burned through nine of its stretch goals with more than 24 days remaining on their Kickstarter clock.
And if backers help Casual Bit reach their last goal of $150,000 CAD, they have promised to port the game to the PS Vita. Though it is already heading for the Nintendo Switch, so backers will have at least option for a portable version of the game.
Battle Princess Madelyn takes its licks from Super NES classic Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts, and the titular trainee knight and her ghost dog Fritzy will embark on a similar journey to save the kingdom from an evil wizard. The spectral canine can be used to solve puzzles and deployed to tackle end level bosses.
The team at Casual Bit Games is now adding more features to the game as a result of the enthusiasm and support shown during the crowdfunding campaign, including an “Insanity’s Blade King Mode,” which ups the difficulty of the classic Arcade Mode. The developer expects to release the game for the PC, PS4, Wii U, Xbox One, and Switch in February 2018.
With fast-paced 2D action, silky smooth animation, and a retro soundtrack set against an epic fantasy story, Battle Princess Madelyn might just be the next Shovel Knight.
Uncharted 4 wins “Video Game of the Year” at the 2017 SXSW Gaming Awards
Naughty Dog’s Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End was named “Video Game of the Year” at the 2017 SXSW Gaming Awards last night, finally putting an end to Overwatch‘s winning streak. Nathan Drake’s final adventure also earned the big prize in the “Excellence in Narrative” and “Excellence in Animation” categories, and the treasure hunter himself won for “Most Memorable Character.”
However, don’t feel too bad for Blizzard, Overwatch took home three SXSW Gamnig Awards including “Esports Game of the Year,” “Most Promising New Intellectual Property,” and “Excellence in Multiplayer.”
The WWE’s Austin “Xavier Woods” Creed hosted the 2017 SXSW Gaming Awards, and he also handed out statuettes to a wide variety of other games including Pokemon Go (“Mobile Game of the Year”), Doom (“Excellence in Gameplay” and “Excellence in Musical Score”), Battlefield 1 (“Excellence in Technical Achievement” and “Excellence in SFX”), and Dishonored 2 (“Excellence in Design”). And this year’s “Tabletop Game of the Year” award was given to Fantasy Flight’s Arkham Horror: The Card Game.
You can find all the winners from last night’s SXSW Gaming Awards show at Video Game Canon.
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Batman: The Telltale Series, Battlefield 1, Dishonored 2, Doom (2016), Firewatch, Overwatch, Pokemon Go, Tabletop Games, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
New Retail Releases: Mass Effect Andromeda, Mario Sports Superstars, Zero Escape The Nonary Games, More
Venture into new worlds with this week’s new retail releases…
BioWare will help Mass Effect fans explore the unexplored this week thanks to the release of Mass Effect: Andromeda for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Leaving behind the rest of the universe, players will visit the Andromeda galaxy and discover “rich, alien worlds in the search for humanity’s new home.”
Mario and friends will also get to try new things this week in the biggest “Mario Sports” game ever. Coming to the 3DS on Friday, Mario Sports Superstars will include Mario-themed versions of baseball, golf, tennis, horse racing, and soccer. The game will also feature support for a new line of Amiibo Cards that’ll power up your favorite athlete in the Mushroom Kingdom.
Oculus VR owners will be able to become a different kind of superstar this week with the release of Rock Band VR. Harmonix’s latest rhythm game will offer “unprecedented stage presence” in virtual reality and a brand new soundtrack.
But if you’re worried about stage fright and would much prefer to battle giant beasts, Koei Tecmo and Omega Force will release Toukiden 2 for the PS4 and Vita. And if you’d rather explore a more familiar world, Aksys Games will bundle together Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors and Virtue’s Last Reward for the PS4 and Vita in Zero Escape: The Nonary Games.
You can find even more new releases after the break. (more…)