Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Meet the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025: Quake, GoldenEye 007, Defender, and Tamagotchi
- The BAFTA Games Awards Polled the Public and Shenmue is “The Most Influential Video Game of All Time”
- 2024 GOTY Scoreboard: Astro Bot, Balatro, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, More
- The Strong Museum of Play Acquires Prototypes and Development Documents from Volition’s 30-Year History
- Minecraft’s Volume Alpha Soundtrack Has Been Added to the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry
Warp Zoned Presents
- Video Game Research Library
- It’s beginning to feel like gaming isn’t for everyone – Digital Trends (2025)
- 22 years later, modders are keeping SimCity 4 alive – The Verge (2025)
- The B-movies of Paul W.S. Anderson double as acts of devotion to his muse, Milla Jovovich – The AV Club (2025)
- Breakout, Ripoff, Genre: How Fiction Outgrows Originality – Uncanny Magazine (2025)
- ‘I Could Make “Fart Fart Boobie Fart: The Game” and Maybe It Would Eventually Get Taken Down’ – Devs Reveal Why the Consoles Are Drowning in ‘Eslop’ – IGN (2025)
Most Recent: Vita
Today’s Bonus (and completely unexpected) PS Store Release: Misadventures of Tron Bonne
Sony already posted this week’s PlayStation Store update, but it looks like Capcom decided to wait a day before blowing everyone’s mind with a special addition to the digital storefront.
The Misadventures of Tron Bonne was originally released for the PSone in 2000. As a spinoff of the Mega Man Legends sub-series, it didn’t receive a whole lot of attention from gamers, possibly due in part to a small print run. But a forgotten Mega Man game (even if Mega Man is nowhere to be seen) won’t stay forgotten for long and interested collectors soon pushed copies on the secondary up to triple digits. Needless to say, I hope you cashed out yesterday as the game is now available to download through the PlayStation Store for $5.99.
Here’s what Capcom had to say about The Misadventures of Tron Bonne on the Capcom-Unity blog:
For the completely uninitiated, TMOTB is sort of a spin-off of a spin-off, building on the charming world, aesthetic, and characters of the Mega Man Legends games from a new angle: leaving MegaMan Volnutt and the Caskett brigade on the sidelines, the game focuses instead on the travails of beloved anti-heroine and “air pirate” extraordinaire Tron Bonne, who must take on a variety of missions to earn money to pay off her brother’s astronomical debt.
Gameplay is divided into several diverse mini-campaigns, each with completely different mechanics—some RPG-inspired, some adventure-inspired, some puzzular, and some very akin to the explosive action of the mainline Mega Man Legends games. All of this is tied together via a delightful central hub—the Gesellschaft airship (ironically the cause of the Bonnes’ debt in the first place)—where Tron can chat with, train, and recruit her lovable, motley army of Servbots. Servbot management is a highly addictive element that takes a cue or two from Japan’s well-established sports management genre and truly sets this game apart as a unique classic.
What are you waiting for? Head over to the PlayStation Store now to scoop up a piece of gaming history.
Wolfenstein: The Old Blood, Shadow of Mordor GOTY, AirMech Arena, more added to PS Store
Are you ready to head back into Nazi Germany with B.J. Blazkowicz and his particular set of skills (for dispatching Nazis)? I hope so, because Bethesda and MachineGames added Wolfenstein: The Old Blood, a standalone prequel to last year’s Wolfenstein: The New Order, to the PlayStation Store last night.
Other new games to download this week include…
- Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor – Game of the Year Edition, a special PS4 re-release of the well-liked game that includes all the previously-released downloadable content.
- AirMech Arena, a free-to-play strategy game on the PS4 that is currently available for PlayStation Plus subscribers.
- Ether One, a PS4 “first-person adventure that deals with the fragility of the human mind.”
More information on all of these games can be found after the break. And, as always, a full rundown of this week’s new add-ons and discounts can be found at the PlayStation Blog. (more…)
Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Vita
Tagged AirMech Arena, Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor, Wolfenstein: The Old Blood
Broken Age, Project Root, Omega Quintet, more added to PS Store
Sony has delivered another update to the PlayStation Store and it came packed with a dozen new games. Here’s what you can download on your PS3, PS4, and PS Vita today…
- Double Fine has released Broken Age for the PS4 and PS Vita as a Cross-Buy title. PlayStation players won’t have to do any waiting as both halves of the adventure game are now available on the PlayStation Store.
- Project Root is this week’s other PS4/PS Vita Cross-Buy release. It’s a retro-styled shoot ’em up developed by the Argentina-based OPQAM.
- Omega Quintet is a PS4 RPG that stars a five-piece girl group who battle “the dark forces of the world” with their music.
- And speaking of dark forces, a quartet of Star Wars games from the PS2 era are now available to download just in time for “May the Fourth Be With You.” The PS3 section of the store is now home to Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: Starfighter, Star Wars: Bounty Hunter, and Star Wars: Racer Revenge.
- Finally, El Presidente dictates that he’s available on the PS4 for the first time in Tropico 5.
More information on all of these games (and a few others) can be found after the break. And a complete rundown of this week’s new game add-ons and discounts can be found at the PlayStation Blog. (more…)
Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Vita
Tagged Broken Age, Project Root, Tropico 5
Mighty No. 9 gets September 15 release after Comcept signs publishing deal with Deep Silver
Some mighty news today for Comcept’s Mighty No. 9. Keiji Inafune originally planned a “Spring 2015” release date after his spiritual successor to the Mega Man franchise found great success on Kickstarter. But with the unofficial end of Spring looming, Inafune has confirmed what we all feared… Mighty No. 9 has been delayed.
But there’s good news too. Comcept has partnered with Deep Silver to publish the game worldwide with a digital download and a retail disc. Both versions of the game will be available on September 15 for the PS4, Wii U, and Xbox One. The PC version will also be released on that date for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 as a digital-only game. Sadly, the promised 3DS and PS Vita versions have been further delayed to a to be announced date.
In addition to having more time to complete the main game, Comcept will use this delay to produce some additional content for Mighty No. 9. A special bonus stage featuring a battle with Ray, Mighty No. 9’s rival, will be included. After besting Ray, players will unlock the robot, who has unique skills and all-new gameplay mechanics, as a playable character for the entire main game. New Japanese and French language tracks are also planned alongside eight subtitle tracks.
Even though Deep Silver will publish Mighty No. 9, Comcept will retain all rights to the characters and any future sequels.
The Strong announces finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2015
The Strong National Museum of Play and the International Center for the History of Electronic Games have announced the finalists for the inaugural class of the World Video Game Hall of Fame. More than a dozen classic games passed this first test on their way to video game immortality, which were selected from thousands of nominations that poured in from gamers all across the world. Nominations for the Class of 2015 were accepted from February 17 through March 31, but in case you missed out, the Hall of Fame is already accepting games for next year’s class.
This year’s inductees to the World Video Game Hall of Fame will be chosen from the finalist pool by an “international selection committee” made up of journalists, scholars, and other individuals. The inaugural class will be announced on June 4 at 10:30 AM (Eastern Time) during a ceremony at The Strong.
The finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2015 include:
- Angry Birds
- Doom
- FIFA International Soccer
- The Legend of Zelda
- Minecraft
- The Oregon Trail
- Pac-Man
- Pokemon Red/Blue
- Pong
- The Sims
- Sonic the Hedgehog
- Space Invaders
- Super Mario Bros.
- Tetris
- World of Warcraft
“The 15 finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame span decades, gaming platforms, and geographies… but what they all have in common is their undeniable impact on popular culture and society in general,” said Jon-Paul Dyson, the Director of the International Center for the History of Electronic Games.
Inductees into the World Video Game Hall of Fame will be selected based on the following criteria: “Icon Status,” “Longevity,” “Geographical Reach,” and “Influence.” All 15 finalists certainly qualify, but I know I’ll be rooting for Tetris.
Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Retro, Vita, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Angry Birds, Doom (1993), Minecraft, Pac-Man, Space Invaders, Super Mario Bros., Tetris, The Legend of Zelda, World of Warcraft, World Video Game Hall of Fame
Minecraft on consoles gets female character; Sony platforms receive Simpsons Skin Pack
Mojang made three big Minecraft-related announcements today…
First, Mojang has announced that all console players will be able to play as Alex, a female character, beginning Wednesday. According to Mojang’s Owen Hill (writing on the company’s official website), Alex was added to the game because “jolly old Steve doesn’t really represent the diversity of our playerbase.” All eight “Alex” skins will be available as a free update on the PS3, PS4, PS Vita, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
Alex has been available for PC players since last year.
Today’s second big announcement is that The Simpsons Skin Pack will be available to download on PlayStation platforms this Wednesday. It’ll be priced at $2.99 and include 24 of your favorite Springfieldians.
Finally, Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition will receive 30 additional Achievements that were introduced to the game in Minecraft: Xbox One Edition. A few extra music tracks will also be included in this update.
PS Store Today: Shovel Knight, Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China, more
Prepare thee, future Knights of Shovelry, for Yacht Club Games has added Shovel Knight to the PlayStation Store today. Shovel Knight is the final selection in Sony’s 2015 Spring Fever promotion, and it’ll be available for the PS3, PS4, and PS Vita as a Cross-Buy title. The game will also offer Cross-Save support across all three platforms and a special battle with God of War‘s Kratos that is sure to be epic.
Also available this week on the PS4 is Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China, Ubisoft’s first entry in the “Chronicles” sub-series of side-scrollers. In China, players will have to make good on the vendetta of Shao Jun, the last remaining Assassin of the Chinese Brotherhood, before venturing to India and Russia in two additional games scheduled to be released this Fall. The PS4 is also now home to LA Cops this week. LA Cops doesn’t take place in a foreign land, but its setting is no less different as this overhead two-man (but not two-player) shooter is set in a stylized version of the 1970s.
More information on all of these titles (along with a few additional new releases) can be found after the break. And a complete rundown of this week’s new game add-ons and discounts can be found at the PlayStation Blog. (more…)
Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Vita
Tagged Assassin's Creed Chronicles: China, Shovel Knight
Video Game Release Calendar Changelog #4: The 2015 Calendar is Taking Shape
Don’t Forget! This is just a changelog of recently announced release dates. Warp Zoned’s complete Video Game Release Calendar includes every title we could find with a 2015, 2016, or unannounced release date.
The 2015 E3 Expo is slightly less than two months away, and that means gamemakers have decided that now is the time to lock down those all-important Fall release dates while pushing some games to 2016. But first, some of this Spring’s biggest titles finally have confirmed dates including Project CARS (May 6 on PC and May 12 on PS4/Xbox One), Splatoon (May 29), and the full release of Heroes of the Storm (June 2)
But, I’m sure you’re going to ask next, what about the Fall? It kicks off in appropriate fashion with the launch of Madden NFL 16 on August 25 before moving into the crossover-craziness of Lego Dimensions on September 27. Nintendo’s Mario creation kit, Mario Maker, will also debut sometime in September.
No no, you say, Fall really begins in October and November. What’s on tap for then? Glad you asked, my overly pushy imaginary friend. On October 27, Microsoft will release Halo 5: Guardians on October 27. Electronic Arts will follow that up with another major sci-fi shooter, Star Wars: Battlefront, on November 17. In between, Activision will likely release Call of Duty: Black Ops III in early November, though that date is tentative for now.
Other Fall highlights this year include Guitar Hero Live and the North American release of Fatal Frame 5 on the Wii U. Both will set down roots on a specific date soon, but both are coming out in 2015.
However, two highly-anticipated games won’t be coming out in 2015 as previously thought. Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda Wii U and Remedy’s Quantum Break have both been pushed back to the nebulous “TBA 2016.” They’ve been joined by newly-announced entries from two well-liked franchises… Deus Ex: Mankind Divided and Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness.
The full list of games included in our fourth Video Game Release Calendar Changelog can be found after the break. (more…)