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
Industry analyst calls used game lockout rumors “so stupid as to be laughable”
Industry analyst Michael Pachter has some strong words to describe the rumors swirling around the used game compatibility of next-generation systems. The idea has been circling that the PlayStation 4/Orbis and Xbox 720 will feature a lockout system that would prevent players from playing used games. Whether it’s a simple online pass to pair a game with one console or going completely discless, there has been a lot of conjecture as to what will be happening with DRM in the future consoles.
Pachter provides a convincing argument that fear of competition will keep used games on the shelves and in your new next-gen console. He believes that if one of the consoles takes the chance on barring used games, the others will reap the reward by simply allowing them. It would be death for any new console to alienate such a huge base of gamers right out of the gate. Or, in other words, “so stupid as to be laughable.”
“Unless you believe in collusion – unless you believe that all the console manufacturers are going to get together and scheme to screw the consumer, and at least in the U.S. we have laws against that, so probably none of them would do that – then if one of them did that unilaterally (any one of those things), the others would say, “Hey wait a minute, we have a disc drive. Ours will play used games. Buy ours instead of there’s.”
“[It’s] not happening. Not even a prayer of that.”
Those words are music to the ears of every gamer on a budget. If everything happens like he says, used games will be here to stay and you won’t have to worry about your wallet being raided by your controller.
[Source: Game Informer]
Living in a Discless World?
A couple of weeks ago, a rumour spread like wildfire across the Internet, proclaiming that the next iteration of Microsoft’s Xbox console would have no optical disc drive (a similar rumour cropped up about the PS4/Orbis last week as well). Many wrote it off as idle speculation, although a minority seemed not only to believe the rumour as truth but welcome the news. Those who debunked the rumours cited the fact that the last console war between Sony and Microsoft was not actually about the consoles themselves, but the medium their respective consoles used. It seemed Sony had learned its lessons in its past defeats in format wars, from Betamax to Minidisc, with Blu-ray winning the battle against the slightly inferior HD-DVD for dominance in the home movie market. The suggestion now is that Microsoft would now have to kneel down and pucker up to Sony’s Blu-rimmed hole if it wished to brand their next console as a home entertainment system, and their strategy with the Xbox 360 would suggest as much. (more…)
Battlefield developer DICE is hiring for a next-gen game
Who wants to work in Stockholm?
DICE, the EA division of mad programmers that play with the Frostbite 2 engine and brought you titles such as Battlefield 3 and Mirror’s Edge, is looking for a senior software engineer to help them craft their next-gen titles. Next-gen as in PlayStation 4 (AKA Orbis), Xbox 720, and Wii U.
What do you need to work at DICE? Hit the jump to find out, complete with translations for those unfamiliar with video game employment vernacular. (more…)
Rumor: PS4 codenamed Orbis, all games will require online pass
Kotaku has published a detailed report on rumored specs for the PlayStation 4 that they say comes “from a reliable source who is not authorized to talk publicly about next-gen hardware.”
According to their source, the PS4 is currently codenamed Orbis, and sure enough, there’s an Orbis placeholder page at the Sony Computer Entertainment Developer Network (ps4.scedev.net results in a loading error). Alright, I’m sold. But then Kotaku posits that Orbis may be the final name of the system, especially due to it’s connection to the Latin phrase “Orbis Vita,” or Circle of Life.
Whatever it’s called, the system is said to make use of an AMD x64 CPU and the AMD Southern Islands GPU. The Southern Islands GPU platform is AMD’s newest chipset and includes the Radeon HD 7700 series, 7800 series, and 7900 series. This kind of power will be used to display stereoscopic 3D games in full 1080p and standard games at resolutions beyond 1080p.
So far, so good, right? Here’s where it gets tricky. Kotaku’s source is also claiming that PS3 backwards compatibility will not be present in the Orbis and that all games must be tied to a PSN account, essentially giving all games an “online pass” requirement. What that means is that any used game purchases will have to be reauthenticated on the new owner’s system… for a small fee, of course. Boo! Boo!
Obviously, all of this information is still unofficial and may prove inaccurate when the Orbis is launched. And according to their source, Kotaku believes the system will be available in 2013.
Bethesda hiring for “future-generation console” project
That’s right, the Wii U, PlayStation 4, and Xbox 720 aren’t next-generation systems, they’re “future-generation.” And Bethesda has a game in the works for at least one of them.
A job listing on parent company ZeniMax Media’s website revealed the following position today:
- Extensive experience programming and optimizing for the Xbox 360 and PS3
- Experience with DirectX 11 a plus
- Passion for making GREAT games, and being part of a GREAT team
- Ability to contribute innovative ideas towards all aspects of game development
- Must create amazing things with minimal oversight
- Experience playing Bethesda Game Studios games a plus
So what we can infer from this listing is that a PS4 and Xbox 720 release for this unannounced game is very likely with a PC release almost a certainty (it is Bethesda after all). And the requirement that applicants have experience playing Bethesda games possibly points towards a new entry in the Elder Scrolls or Fallout series.
I know it’s just speculation right now, but yes please!
Sony’s Kaz Hirai denies PS4 announcement at E3 2012
Round and round we go, where the rumor carousel stops, only Kaz Hirai knows. The Sony Computer Entertainment Chairman took to the stage at CES and shot down all the “PS4 at E3 2012” rumors in one fell swoop.
Once again citing the “ten-year life cycle” that the PS3 was designed with, Hirai hints that the PS3 isn’t going anywhere for a long, long time:
“[W]e are not making any announcements at E3,” Hirai said. “I’ve always said a 10-year life cycle for PS3, and there is no reason to go away from that.”
Oh well. It’s looking more and more likely that the Wii U will be the only next generation console to make an appearance at this year’s E3.
[Source: Wall Street Journal]
Rumor: Sony working on PS4 games, Xbox 720 coming in 2013
New rumors from Develop have hit the Intertubes and they once again concern the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox 720 (or Xbox Next if you prefer).
The latest round of rumors say that several internal studios at Sony have begun work on PS4 games. Supposedly, these games are still in the very early stages, but the projects could enter “full production” if given the green light. Naturally, Sony declined to comment.
While Develop’s source didn’t delve into which of Sony’s studios were working on next-gen games, it’s probably not hard to figure out. Almost all of the company’s high-profile teams (Polyphony Digital, Sony Santa Monica, Zipper Interactive, Sucker Punch, Guerrilla Games, and Media Molecule) have yet to announce their development plans for 2012 or beyond. What could they all be working on? PS4 games of course.
A different set of sources informed the magazine that the Xbox 720 will likely make its debut at E3 2013 ahead of a Fall 2013 release.
The rumors also mentioned that Lionhead is working on Fable IV for the system. Peter Molyneux previously mentioned the next numbered Fable game at this year’s BAFTA Games Awards. But he was very careful not to announce the game’s existence or mention what system it may appear on.
But the Xbox Next seems like a pretty safe bet.
Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Fable Legends
THQ taps Crytek to develop Homefront 2
Executives at THQ haven’t been shy about declaring Homefront the start of a new series, even before it was released. Today, the publisher made good on their promises by announcing that Homefront 2 is in development at Crytek (Crysis, FarCry).
“We see Homefront as a really strong universe that has a lot of potential and that has been expertly created and marketed by THQ,” said Cevat Yerli, Founder, CEO and President of Crytek. “We believe that bringing our level of quality, creativity and production values to the next Homefront title creates an opportunity for both THQ and Crytek to deliver a truly blockbuster game. It’s really important to us that THQ has the faith in giving us a lot of creative freedom over one of its most important properties to allow us to bring the Homefront world to life in a new and innovative way.”
Original developer Kaos Studios was shut down by THQ earlier this year, prompting the Crytek shift. As development of the series moves to Europe, so does the storyline. It’s just a tease so far, but here’s all we know about the plot of Homefront 2:
“[T]he splintered nations of Europe struggle to maintain peace at home, as the global economy continues its downward spiral, and civil order disintegrates. The world is teetering on the brink of ruin…”
According to THQ, Homefront 2 (which is just a working title) will be available on the PC and consoles during their 2014 fiscal year. For those without a THQ financial calendar handy, that means the game will be released between April 1, 2013 and March 31, 2014. So it’s very likely the “consoles” THQ is referring to are the Wii U, PS4 and Xbox 720.