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
- 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
- Boss Fight Books to Get a New Look for Richard Moss’s “Age of Empires”
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: PS4
Kingdom Hearts 3 will take us into the world of Tangled
Sora’s adventures through the Magic Kingdom (and beyond) are about to get a little hairy. Today, Square Enix released a new gameplay video for the highly anticipated Kingdom Hearts III. The video shows multiple battle scenes with Sora and his companions Donald and Goofy, and also features a familiar-looking tower in the background. Eagle-eyed Disney fans may immediately recognize it as being from Tangled, Disney’s retelling of the Rapunzel story.
A release date has yet to be officially announced for the PS4 and Xbox One game, so stay tuned for more information. Until then, enjoy the E3 2015 trailer.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged E3 2015, Kingdom Hearts III
PS Store Today: Payday 2 Crimewave Edition, Nova 2001
We interrupt your regularly scheduled E3 extravaganza to bring you this week’s PlayStation Store update.
Just two games were added to Sony’s digital storefront today. First up is Overkill’s Payday 2: Crimewave Edition, an enhanced PS4 port of their heist simulator sequel, which was originally released for the PS3 in 2013. Also available this week is Nova 2001, an arcade shooter from 1983, and the latest addition to the Arcade Archives series.
Look below for more information on both games and don’t forget to visit the PlayStation Blog for a rundown of this week’s new game add-ons and discounts.
PS4 Games
Payday 2: Crimewave Edition ($49.99)
Payday 2: Crimewave Edition is an action-packed, four-player co-op shooter where you rob banks and get paid. The Crimewave Edition includes an enhanced graphic engine. Up to four friends cooperate on the hits and as the crew progresses the jobs become bigger, better, and more rewarding. Rebuilt visuals bring heisting into 1080p resolution. See every bank note fly & feel every bullet blast past your head in full HD.Nova 2001 ($7.99)
Nova 2001 is a shooting game that was released from the UPL in 1983.
Players control a fighter which can shoots in all directions. Its main purpose is to continue to defeat a variety of enemies that appear in each stage.
Destiny expands again with The Taken King on September 15
Activision and Bungie will continue to expand the world of Destiny this Fall with Destiny: The Taken King for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. Available September 15, The Taken King will add “an all-new campaign, three new Guardian subclasses, a massive arsenal of new armor, weapons and exotics, new Strikes and Crucible maps, a new Raid that will put players to the ultimate test, and more.” PS3 and PS4 players will also receive exclusive early access to an additional Crucible map, Strike, three sets of gear, and an exotic weapon.
So where will this new campaign take players? Here’s what Activision had to say:
Oryx, The Taken King has arrived in our solar system, bringing with him a corrupted army to exact revenge on the Guardians who destroyed his son, Crota, and to consume our worlds. Arm yourself with newfound abilities, weapons, and gear. Defeat the Taken hordes. Make your way aboard the Dreadnaught, and face Oryx himself within his inner sanctum.
For players who have yet to dive in to the world of Destiny, Activision and Bungie will release a special Legendary Edition of the game which will include Destiny, Expansion I: The Dark Below, Expansion II: House of Wolves, and The Taken King. A special Collector’s Edition of Destiny: Legendary Edition, packed with bonus items and in-game content, will also be available. More information on the Collector’s Edition can be found at Destiny’s official website.
Finally, Bungie has released a new behind-the-scenes video that goes deeper into The Taken King. You can find it after the break. (more…)
Square Enix confirms the next Hitman will be an episodic game
Not much was said about the latest Hitman game at Sony’s E3 Press Conference last night. We got our first look at a teaser trailer and the promise that a beta would be available exclusively for PS4 owners, but other than that, the announcement was as mysterious as Agent 47 himself. This morning, Sqaure Enix cleared up a few things by announcing quite a few more details about the next Hitman game.
Most importantly, Square Enix has confirmed that Hitman will be an episodic game with the first episode scheduled for release on December 8. Unlike traditional episodic games, Square Enix and developer IO Interactive are asking gamers to purchase the entire season up front for $60. After that, they’ll receive free access to every additional episode/add-on, which will be released throughout 2016.
But aside from a new distribution model, players should already be familiar with the concept behind the sixth Hitman game:
Hitman will see players perform contract hits on powerful, high-profile targets in exotic locations around the world, from the highly fashionable Paris and sunny coast of Italy to the dust and hustle of the markets in Marrakesh in this creative stealth action game.
Gameplay focuses on taking out targets in huge and intricate sandbox levels with complete freedom of approach. Where to go, when to strike and who to kill – it is all up to you.
“This is new ground for Hitman, coming out digital first enables us to do something new, bold and exciting,” said Hannes Seifert, Studio Head at IO Interactive. “We are building a live, expanding and evolving world of assassination where we continuously develop the game, listening closely to the players as we release new locations, missions and hits as soon as they are ready… where $60 and not a dollar more gets you full access to the experience.”
While the beta will be exclusive to the PS4, Hitman will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on December 8.
Shenmue III is already fully-funded on Kickstarter
Last night’s announcement of Shenmue III during Sony’s E3 Press Conference came with a caveat… the game had to reach a funding goal of $2 million on Kickstarter. However, fans of the franchise have been primed for this moment after more than a decade of waiting and they pounced on the “Back This Project” button with their wallets wide open. Less than seven hours after being available, the Shenmue III Kickstarter campaign is now fully funded.
As of this writing, the campaign is currently approaching $2.5 million and the first stretch goal, “Shenmue 1 & 2 Cinema Shorts.” The developers promised that more information about the stretch goals (which include subtitles in a variety of languages, a Skill Tree System, and the expansion of Baisha Village) would be revealed once the campaign reached its goal. With the $2 million mark well in the rearview mirror, a campaign update should appear sometime today.
If all goes according to plan, Director Yu Suzuki would like to release Shenmue III for the PC and PS4. After so many years, the fans have shown they may not be able to wait a minute longer.
Posted in News, PC, PS4
Tagged E3 2015, Shenmue III
EA unveils first Mass Effect: Andromeda trailer at E3 2015
It’s time to stop calling it Mass Effect 4. Electronic Arts opened their 2015 E3 Press Conference with a short glimpse at Mass Effect: Andromeda, the next game in the well-loved RPG franchise. In development at BioWare Montreal, Mass Effect: Andromeda will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One next Fall.
EA’s executives didn’t say much about the game during their E3 Press Conference, but developers at BioWare were all too eager to finally talk about their new project. According to the BioWare Blog, Andromeda takes place “far away from and long after” the events of the original Mass Effect trilogy:
While we aren’t ready to go into too many details just yet, as you saw in the trailer and can tell by the name, this game is very much a new adventure, taking place far away from and long after the events of the original trilogy. You will play a human, male or female, though that’s actually not the character you saw in the trailer (more on that later). You’ll be exploring an all-new galaxy, Andromeda, and piloting the new and improved Mako you saw. And through it all, you will have a new team of adventurers to work with, learn from, fight alongside of, and fall in love with.
BioWare describes the trailer as a “visual target for the final game,” so it’s possible Andromeda may not look like this when its released. But the inclusion of Johnny Cash’s “(Ghost) Riders in the Sky” was inspired. Along with the desert visuals, it gives the whole thing a Firefly vibe, though that was probably unintentional.
You can’t take the sky from me…
Activision officially announces Transformers: Devastation with E3 trailer
Even though Best Buy Canada spoiled the surprise, the official announcement of Transformers: Devastation is still pretty great… because it includes a trailer of the game in motion. Platinum’s decision to use cel-shaded graphics, and the original Generation 1 character designs, makes the game look like a lost episode of the 1980s cartoon series. I think I speak for every child of the 80s here when I say we couldn’t be happier.
The trailer also gives us a nice glimpse of Platinum’s patented brand of fast action as applied to the Transformers universe. According to the Activision Games Blog, players will even be able to string together combos using robot mode and vehicle mode:
If you’re in the mood for an iron-fisted rumble, your Autobot robot mode should fit the bill nicely. But when you need to race across the city to perform a few hit-and-run maneuvers, vehicle mode is just a button-touch away.
You can dynamically switch between modes to perform a seemingly endless stream of robot/vehicle combo maneuvers, reducing the Decepticon army to a pile of smoldering metal. It wouldn’t be a Transformers game without Optimus Prime, and Peter Cullen is once again lending his iconic voice to the character. Sideswipe, Bumbleebee, Wheeljack, and Grimlock are also playable, and each character has a unique set of maneuvers and combos.
Transformers: Devastation, which also features the vocal talents of Dan Gilvezan (Bumblebee) and Frank Welker (Megatron and Soundwave), will be released this Fall for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
Sony @ E3 2015: Four titles from Devolver Digital shine on PS4 and Vita
A video was shown during Sony’s E3 Press Conference showcasing a foursome of games from Devolver Digital for the PS4 and Vita, and they immediately caught my attention.
- Ronin is a 2D action game starring a sword-wielding ninja. The game looks to be similar to Guacamelee! and Shank.
- Eitr is an isometric action-adventure RPG. The dungeon crawler also features a very retro appearance.
- The two that really looked good to me were Mother Russia Bleeds and Crossing Souls. Both titles have a distinctive Streets of Rage-style look, with the former being hyper-violent amd almost Splatterhouse-like in appearance. I’m not sure what to expect with Crossing Souls, but the animation interludes looked liked the classic Don Bluth games Space Ace and Dragon’s Lair.
More on these four will be revealed at a later date.
Posted in News, PS4, Vita
Tagged E3 2015, Mother Russia Bleeds