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: PS4
New Releases: Theatrhythm Final Fantasy 2, Cooking Mama 5, Fairy Fencer F, More
The spotlight is on oddities from Japan in this week’s new release report. Chief among them is Theatrhythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call, a sequel to the popular Final Fantasy-based rhythm game for the 3DS. The first printing comes with a special soundtrack CD, so you’ve ever felt the urge to tap Final Fantasy themes with a stylus, now’s the time.
And speaking of sequels to handheld favorites, Majesco is back with a new Cooking Mama game for the 3DS, Cooking Mama 5: Bon Appetit!. Also available this week is Fairy Fencer F, a turn-based RPG for the PS3 from NIS America, and Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Revolution (PC, PS3, Xbox 360), the latest game to star the whiskered ninja.
Finally this week, Majesco will release an “Ultimate Edition” of Air Conflicts: Vietnam for the PS4.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360
Tagged Cooking Mama 5, Fairy Fencer F, Theatrhythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call
GTA5 hijacks PS4, Xbox One on November 18; PC version delayed to January 2015
After months of waiting, Rockstar Games has officially announced that Grand Theft Auto V will be released for the PS4 and Xbox One on November 18. Sadly, the PC version has been slightly delayed and won’t make it out before the end of the year. But PC players won’t have to wait long, Rockstar has confirmed that the PC version of the game will launch on January 27.
Rockstar is packing Grand Theft Auto V for the PS4 and Xbox One with “a range of major visual and technical upgrades” to make the game “more immersive than ever.” In addition to higher resolution visuals and increased draw distances, PS4/Xbox One owners can look forward to:
- New Activities
- New Weapons
- New Vehicles
- Additional Wildlife
- Denser Traffic
- New Foliage System
- Enhanced Damage and Weather Effects
- 100 New Songs and New DJ Mixes
- And Much More
In addition to the improvements to the base game, Grand Theft Auto Online players will be able to transfer their character onto the platform of their choice. The online component has also received a major boost as 30 players will be able to join in at the same time. And everyone who who pre-orders the game will receive $1,000,000 in in-game cash.
Finally, Rockstar released a new next-gen-specific trailer for your viewing pleasure. “A Picket Fence and a Dog Named Skip” is embedded above.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Grand Theft Auto V
Madden NFL 15 spikes the competition by outselling all games in August 2014
Even though his stance said, “stop,” Richard Sherman took it to the house as the cover athlete of Madden NFL 15. While it’s too early to be concerned with The Curse, EA Sports’ latest football sim, as expected, toppled the competition and emerged as the best-selling game of August 2014, according to The NPD Group.
Only a small number of new releases made their way onto store shelves last month and many of them were re-releases of older titles. This tactic helped Diablo III: Reaper of Souls reach the #2 spot as the “Ultimate Evil Edition” is now available for previous-generation and current-generation consoles. And thanks to its PlayStation debut, Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare cracked the top ten for the first time at #7.
Joystiq posits that this lack of major releases is the reason why game sales were down when compared to last August. The eighth month of 2013 saw the release of Madden NFL 25 as well as Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Blacklist, Saints Row IV, and Disney Infinity.
A full look at the top ten best-selling games of August 2014 can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Battlefield 4, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Madden NFL 15, Minecraft, NPD, Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare, The Last of Us, The Lego Movie, Watch Dogs
Ray Rice removed from Madden NFL 15 in today’s update
Ray Rice was suspended from the NFL indefinitely after TMZ published video footage of the former player punching his then-fiancee in a hotel elevator. Today, EA Sports has confirmed that Rice will no longer be a part of Madden NFL 15 as of the latest roster update:
With Ray Rice’s indefinite suspension from the NFL, he will be removed from Madden NFL 15. The roster change will take place by this Friday.
— EA SPORTS Madden NFL (@EAMaddenNFL) September 9, 2014
Rice’s de facto expulsion from the game (the CFL honors NFL suspensions and will not allow Rice to play north of the border) came after the NFL viewed an abbreviated version of the video and initially suspended him for two games. Public outcry led to a new domestic abuse policy for the league and the Baltimore Ravens have since terminated Rice’s contract.
This isn’t the first time EA Sports has removed a player from a Madden game due to legal trouble. Aaron Hernandez was removed from Madden NFL 25 after he was arrested for murder last July.
Dying Light parkours to an earlier release date: January 27
Previously pegged for a February release, Techland has announced the release date of Dying Light is moving up to January. January 27, 2015 to be exact. In development for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One, Dying Light adds a free running/parkour element to evading zombie hordes, which you slightly get a taste of in this promotional image for the new release date released by Techland:
January | 27 | 2015
#DyingLight pic.twitter.com/JYeCQCWSJP
— Dying Light (@DyingLightGame) September 11, 2014
Techland has another unconventional first-person game planned for 2015, the medieval melee monster hunter known as Hellraid, which will be released digitally for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Hopefully, it’ll get an official release date soon as well.
Telltale on PS4/Xbox One: Walking Dead S1/S2 in October, Wolf Among Us in November
After months of waiting, Telltale Games has announced exactly when three of their most critically-acclaimed games (The Walking Dead, The Walking Dead Season 2, and The Wolf Among Us) will be available for the PS4 and Xbox One.
Posting on Twitter, Telltale has said they will release both The Walking Dead and The Walking Dead Season 2 for the PS4 and Xbox One (as a downloadable game and as a retail disc) sometime in October. In addition to The Walking Dead’s next-gen debut, Telltale will also release a retail disc version of The Walking Dead Season 2 for the PS3, Vita, and Xbox 360 in October.
In a second Twitter update, the publisher also confirmed that The Wolf Among Us will be available for the PS4 and Xbox One (again, as a downloadable game and as a retail disc) sometime in November. And just to make everything nice and official, retail disc versions for the PS3, Vita, and Xbox 360 will also be released in November.
With Telltale putting the final stamp on their Summer games, we’re that much closer to the Fall release of Tales From the Borderlands and the (eventual) reveal of Game of Thrones.
Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Vita, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged The Walking Dead Season 2, The Wolf Among Us
Destiny, NHL 15, Mega Man X5 added to PS Store
Did you check out yesterday’s PlayStation Store update, or were you too busy playing Destiny? If the answer to both of those questions is no, you’re in luck! Activision added Destiny to Sony’s online storefront for the PS3 and PS4 yesterday. This week’s otherwise subdued update also included the latest hockey sim from EA Sports, NHL 15 (PS3 and PS4), and Mega Man X5 (PS3), a Capcom Classic from the PSone era.
More information on this trio of games can be found after the break. And be sure to head over to the PlayStation Blog for a complete rundown of this week’s new game add-ons. (more…)
Sega releases “No Escape” trailer as Alien: Isolation goes gold
Ash: You still don’t understand what you’re dealing with, do you? Perfect organism. Its structural perfection is matched only by its hostility.
The Alien (or Xenomorph, if you prefer) is one of film’s greatest killing machines. This October, it will turn it’s rage and hostility towards Amanda Ripley, the only daughter of Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), in Alien: Isolation. Developed by Creative Assembly and published by Sega, the survival horror has terrified early players in a series of pre-release appearances at events such as Gamescom and PAX Prime. Today, Sega announced that the game has “gone gold” and will officially be in stores on October 7 for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
To make this final month a little more bearable, Creative Assembly has together a series of short trailers showcasing the many ways in which the Xenomorph can end your life. The first trailer, “No Escape,” is available above and it proves that running is definitely not the answer to the question, “How Will You Survive?”
A number of additional trailers will be released over the next few weeks ahead of the game’s launch. Maybe we’ll even get to the inevitable correct answer… nuke it from orbit, it’s the only way to be sure.