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: Switch
New Retail Releases: New Super Mario Bros. U, Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story, Tales of Vesperia, More
2019 promises to be a big year for video games (and possibly the last hurrah for the PS4 and Xbox One), and it looks like we’re starting things off with a trio of major re-releases.
Nintendo leads things off with a Switch re-release of New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, which originally launched for the Wii U in 2012. This new version will include new playable characters (Toadette and Nabbit), as well as the New Super Luigi U expansion.
The 3DS will also receive a classic Nintendo re-release this week in the form of Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story + Bowser Jr.’s Journey. The RPG relaunches the 2009 game with Amiibo support and the brand new “Bowser Jr.’s Journey” adventure.
The last re-release of the week comes from Bandai Namco, who will bring Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition to the PS4, Switch, and Xbox One (the game will also be available to download for the PC). The Definitive Edition will include the original game, as well as “beautifully remastered HD graphics, new musitc tracks, exciting minigames, bosses, and a collection of previously unreleased costume DLC.”
Finally this week, you might have missed it, but Nintendo snuck Fitness Boxing onto the Switch last week. Fitness Boxing features a wide variety of boxing-based rhythmic exercises and personalized workout options for everyone interested in getting a jump on their New Year’s Resolutions.
That’s all for now, but we’ll be back later this week with a look at the new additions coming to the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop.
Posted in 3DS, News, PS4, Switch, Xbox One
Tagged Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, New Super Mario Bros. U, Tales of Vesperia
Red Dead Redemption 2 leads the way with 7 nominations at 2019 GDC Awards
It looks like Red Dead Redemption 2, Spider-Man, and God of War will be taking over another awards show, as the three games lead the way at the 2019 Game Developers Choice Awards. Rockstar’s “Cowboy Game” secured the most nominations with seven, but Sony’s Spider-Man and God of War were close behind with six apiece.
As you might have guessed, all three games are in the running for the coveted “Game of the Year” trophy, and they’ll be competing against Lucas Pope’s Return of the Obra Dinn and Matt Makes Games’s Celeste.
A handful of other games will attempt to push their way into the spotlight at this year’s GDC Awards, including Mountains’s Florence (four nominations), Enhance’s Tetris Effect (three nominations), and Nomada Studio’s Gris (two nominations).
In addition to the main awards ceremony, the GDC Awards will also present a Lifetime Achievement Award to Amy Hennig, the creator of Naughty Dog’s Uncharted franchise.
The 2019 GDC Awards ceremony will take place on on Wednesday, March 20, at 6:30 PM (Pacific Time). The full list of nominees, and all the Honorable Mentions, can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One
Tagged Celeste, GDC 2019, God of War 4, Red Dead Redemption 2, Return of the Obra Dinn, Spider-Man
NIS America delays RPG Maker MV for consoles to “later in 2019”
NIS America’s RPG Maker MV was expected to make its PS4, Switch, and Xbox One debut on February 26, but the publisher has confirmed that the game creation tool will now be released “later in the year.”
Citing “ongoing issues with development,” NIS America decided to delay RPG Maker MV to make sure they were able to deliver “the best possible product to our fans.”
NIS America has been regularly updating RPG Maker MV’s official website, and they’ve promised that more information regarding the game’s new release date will be announced soon.
Return of the Obra Dinn was nominated in five categories at 2019 IGF Awards
Papers Please, Lucas Pope’s puzzle game about censorship in a dystopian dictatorship, was a huge hit when it was released for the PC all the way back in 2013. And thanks to today’s announcement of the finalists for the Independent Games Festival Awards, it looks like his latest project, Return of the Obra Dinn, will reach similar heights.
Return of the Obra Dinn is an “innovative and uniquely stylized murder mystery” set aboard an abandoned ship in the early 1800s. Using “1-Bit” graphics reminiscent of early Macintosh games, players had to explore the ship and discover what happened to the crew. These elements helped Obra Dinn receive nominations for the “Seumas McNally Grand Prize,” as well as “Excellence In Audio,” “Excellence In Design,” “Excellence In Visual Art,” and “Excellence In Narrative.”
Return of the Obra Dinn will be competing against five other games for the Seumas McNally Grand Prize, including Zachtronics’s Opus Magnum, Nolla Games’s Noita, Fictiorama Studios’s Do Not Feed the Monkeys, Hypnospace Outlaw (developed by Jay Tholen, Mike Lasch, Xalavier Nelson Jr., and Corey Cochran), and Minit (developed by Kitty Calis, Jan Willem Nijman, Jukio Kallio, and Dominik Johann).
A complete list of the nominees and honorable mentions from the 2019 Independent Games Festival Awards can be found after the break. (more…)
Who is the new character in Mortal Kombat 11’s New Year’s teaser?
Mortal Kombat fans have been speculating about the possibility of time travel shenanigans in Mortal Kombat 11 ever since the fighter’s Announcement Trailer at the 2018 Game Awards featured a pair of Scorpions and a brief glimpse at a mysterious woman standing in front of a giant hourglass. Ed Boon and company gave us a closer look at this new character yesterday as they were counting down to New Year’s Day on Twitter:
(Let’s try this one more time)
It is only a matter of time. #MK11 pic.twitter.com/dqxbnTJR2s
— Mortal Kombat 11 (@MortalKombat) December 31, 2018
Is she a playable character? If so, who is she? And if not, what role will she play in Mortal Kombat 11’s storyline and the stalemate between “Evil” Liu Kang and “Evil” Raiden?
Thankfully, we won’t have much longer to wait for answers to these questions as NetherRealm Studios is planning a “Community Reveal Event” for Mortal Kombat 11 on January 17. And the fighting game will launch shortly after that on April 23 for the PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
This “Fan Animation” of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is amazing
It’s been several decades since Nintendo tried their hand at an animated series based on The Legend of Zelda, but several fans recently made a very compelling case for why they should try again.
The “Fan Animation” embedded above was recently uploaded by Qianya Yin and Youyang Kong. Based on a short scene from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the dialogue-free film features Link doing battle with a pair of Guardians and rescuing an adorable Korok. It’s impressive, very slick, and the perfect way to spend two minutes on a lazy holiday afternoon.
Those rumors of a live-action series from Netflix may have turned out to be a bust, but I would very happily sit down to watch an entire series of animated episodes created by this duo.
Posted in Etcetera, News, Switch, Wii U
Tagged The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends, Puzzle Bobble, Donkey Kong Jr., more coming to Nintendo eShop this week
Nintendo never sleeps… and that definitely applies to this week’s regularly scheduled Nintendo eShop update.
This week, Switch owners new and old will get the chance to download Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends – Definitive Edition, a fully-updated port of the eighth addition to Koei Tecmo’s hack-and-slash franchise, as well as the original arcade renditions of Puzzle Bobble (better known in North America as Bust-A-Move), and Donkey Kong Jr.
You can read more about these three games, and the rest of the new releases now available to download through the Nintendo eShop, after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, Switch
Tagged Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends
Insight Editions will release The Elder Scrolls: The Official Cookbook in March 2019
It looks like Insight Editions will expand their line of game-themed cookbooks in March 2019 with the release of The Elder Scrolls: The Official Cookbook.
The Elder Scrolls: The Official Cookbook will be written by Chelsea Monroe-Cassel, an author who previously cataloged the fictional cuisines from Hearthstone and World of Warcraft. Readers can expect to find more than 60 recipes from “Skyrim, Morrowind, and all of Tamriel” in the book:
Feast on all of the delicious dishes found in Skyrim, Morrowind, and all of Tamriel in this beautifully crafted cookbook based on the award-winning Elder Scrolls game series. Immerse yourself in the diverse cuisines of the Nords, Bosmer, Khajit, and beyond with these recipes inspired by food found in the Old Kingdom, across Tamriel, and more. With over sixty delicious recipes for fan-favorite recipes including Apple Cabbage Stew, Sunlight Souffle, Sweetrolls, and more, The Elder Scrolls: The Official Cookbook will delight every hungry Dragonborn.
The Elder Scrolls: The Official Cookbook will be released on March 26, 2019.