Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Silent Hill, Dragon Quest, Skyrim, and More Announced as Finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Has Another Big Night and Wins “Game of the Year” at the 2025-2026 DICE Awards
- 2025 GOTY Scoreboard: In Progress
- The Game Awards: All the Winners from 2003 to Today
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Racks Up Nine Wins, Including “Game of the Year”, at the 2025 Game Awards
Warp Zoned Presents
- Video Game Research Library
- We Pitched a Museum a 1993 Game Hint Line (And They Actually Said Yes) – Yarn Spinner (2026)
- The History Of The Word “Metroidvania” And How It Spread – A Critical Hit (2025)
- Creator of Hit Game Shovel Knight Is at a ‘Make or Break’ Moment – Bloomberg (2025)
- Shadow of the Colossus: An oral history – Design Room (2025)
- In 2005, games started rewiring our brains – The AV Club (2025)
Most Recent: Wii U
Golden Pixel Awards 2013: What We Loved, What We Hated, and What We’ll Never Forget
2013 was an amazing year in gaming. While we got loads of sequels, we also got some beautiful new IPs, and plenty of new hardware to enjoy it all.
Naughty Dog took a break from Uncharted and gave us The Last of Us, BattleBlock Theater reminded us why we love The Behemoth, and Ken Levine and his crew unleashed BioShock: Infinite on the gaming world. And let’s not forget all the amazing ports, including Diablo III (on consoles), Fez (on the PC), and Hotline Miami (on the PS3 and Vita). Yes, this year took our breath away, and cramped our thumbs like the good old days of the NES. We here at Warp Zoned have been gaming our little fingers off the last 12 months, and we’ve been even harder at work the last few weeks trying to decide what we loved and hated about gaming in 2013. After several days of deliberation, here’s what we came up with. And now it’s time for us to get back to gaming… 2014 is ready for us. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Etcetera, Features, PC, PS3, Top Story, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360
Tagged BattleBlock Theater, Beatbuddy: Tale of the Guardians, BioShock Infinite, Dead Space 3, Diablo III, Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon, Fire Emblem: Awakening, Grand Theft Auto V, Legend of Dungeon, Ridiculous Fishing, Super Mario 3D World, Tearaway, The Last of Us, The Starship Damrey, The Wonderful 101, Tomb Raider, TowerFall, Typing of the Dead: Overkill
Nintendo Download: Mega Man X2, Bravely Default demo
Welcome to this week’s edition of the Nintendo Download… which is strikingly similar to last week’s.
As you might remember, the Nintendo Network suffered several terrible outages in the wake of an apparently successful Christmas for Nintendo. So rather than flood the eShop with a ton of new games, Nintendo has decided to remind everyone that a bunch of great games were added to the online storefront last week including Dr. Luigi (Wii U), Super Punch-Out!! (Wii U), CastleStorm (Wii U), Mario Tennis (3DS), and several others. You can read all about last week’s eShop update here.
One new game did make its way onto the Wii U eShop, Mega Man X2. Capcom’s Super NES is joined by a 3DS demo of Bravely Default, Square Enix’s upcoming RPG.
Enjoy! (more…)
Mojang is too busy to work on Wii U version of Minecraft
Bringing Minecraft to the Wii U seems like the most natural thing in the world. Kids love it and the GamePad’s screen would be perfect for crafting. But according to Minecraft’s creator, Markus “Notch” Persson, the game’s Wii U absence is solely because developer Mojang doesn’t have time to work on it:
I agree a Wii U version would make sense, btw. The only reason for no current plans is we've got too much work already. I <3 Nintendo.
— Markus Persson (@notch) December 27, 2013
That’s a bummer for Wii U owners. But maybe Nintendo can offer to pay for development themselves? That way, everybody wins.
Nintendo eShop will go offline for maintenance today at 4 PM
Nintendo has announced (via their Facebook page) that the Nintendo eShop will go offline for maintenance today beginning at 4:00 PM (Eastern Time). The online storefront will reopen tomorrow at 4:00 AM (Eastern Time). Due to this maintenance period, today’s release of the Pokemon Bank app has been delayed. A new release date hasn’t been announced, but hopefully it’ll be available soon.
Here’s Nintendo’s full statement:
We sincerely apologize for the connection problems in the Nintendo eShop. We understand this is taking longer than expected, but we can assure you that providing a solution is our top priority. We are determined to make sure everyone can enjoy all that Wii U and Nintendo 3DS have to offer. In an effort to manage the high volume of traffic and ultimately improve your experience, we are temporarily taking the Nintendo eShop services offline between the hours of 4 PM – 4 AM ET. Thank you so much for your continued patience. We will keep you updated.
Nintendo Download: Dr. Luigi, Super Punch-Out!!, Pokemon Bank, more
UPDATE: Nintendo has delayed the release of Pokemon Bank due to the eShop’s continued connectivity problems.
ORIGINAL STORY: Nintendo’s online marketplace is currently experiencing technical difficulties due to all of the people who found Wii Us and 3DSs under the tree yesterday. But that hasn’t stopped The Big N from updating their eShops.
Tuesday, December 31 will close out the “Year of Luigi” in style as Nintendo plans to add Dr. Luigi to the Wii U eShop before the calendar turns. But if you’re looking for something to download today, might I suggest two Virtual Console release: Super Punch-Out!! (Wii U) and Mario Tennis (3DS).
And if you’re a big Pokemon player, you might want to keep an eye out for Pokemon Bank, which will be added to the 3DS eShop tomorrow, December 27. The app allows Pokemon X/Y players to store/manage their captured Pokemon online. A $4.99 annual subscription cost will accompany the Bank, but Nintendo is offering a free trial until January 31.
You can find more details on all of these games and the rest of today’s eShop offerings after the break. (more…)
Wii U: The Little Engine That Could (and Should)
Ever since the launch of the PS4 and Xbox One, game journalists have pushed out editorial after editorial asking, “What can be done about the Wii U?” Brenna Hillier of VG247 says “Nintendo needs to reach beyond its catalogue to save [the] Wii U.” VideoGamer asked, “Is this the end for the Wii U?” And Gamenesia ran with a fanboy-baiting title pointing to the fact that the Wii U was outsold by the Vita in Japan, despite the release of a new Mario game. Yet looking at the sales figures in the same article, we can see that the margin the Vita outsold it by was a massive 42 units. Not only that, but the article fails to mention that the 3DS XL sold more than the Vita, the Wii U, and the original 3DS combined. The most ridiculous figure in that list is that the Xbox 360 sold 342 units in one week. The original Wii beat that with 457 sales.
But I digress. Hillier’s article is filled with vast generalisations quoting “the Twitterati.” Worse, she stuffs words in Nintendo’s mouth by using inverted commas as if the company has somehow uttered them, or, at the very least, thought them (“We’re Nintendo, and we do what Nintendo does.”).
Reading this article made me angry for a number of reasons. One, she is absolutely right – yet she has written this piece with a pessimistic crudeness – “Nintendo knows it bollocksed the Wii U marketing” – that also reeks of a self-aggrandising attitude toward the product itself. “It’s no longer fashionable to believe in the Wii U,” smirks the subheader.
And that made me even angrier, because this is where she is dead wrong. Why? Because it’s never been fashionable to believe in the Wii U. Ever since it was released, it has been a target for fanboy journalistic hooligans who would take shots at the console like Melissa Bachman would a sleeping lion. (more…)
Call of Duty: Ghosts getting four map packs and a season pass… surprised?
Activision has just announced that Call of Duty: Ghosts will receive four post-launch map packs (Onslaught, Devastation, Invasion, and Nemesis). Each pack will be priced at $14.99 apiece, with a $49.99 Season Pass also available. None of this should really be news. The last three or four CoD games got the same treatment.
Each map pack will include a new set of multiplayer maps, bonus weapons, and an “Extinction” scenario. Each “Extinction” scenario will build on the one before it to create what Activision is calling “an episodic Extinction experience.”
If you decide to spring for the Season Pass, you’ll receive access to the “Free Fall” multiplayer map as well as unique “Team Leader” in-game content: MP Character Head, Weapon Camo, Reticle, Player Patch, Player Card, and a Player Background.
The first map pack, Onslaught, will be released sometime in 2014 with the rest to follow.
Nintendo Download: Knytt Underground, 3D Streets of Rage, Castlevania, more
Nintendo delighted everyone with the surprise releases of NES Remix and Wii Sports Club: Golf on the Wii U eShop yesterday. And while today’s regular update isn’t quite that astounding, it is pretty good…
The last two “Sega 3D Classics” (for now) have been added to the 3DS eShop. 3D Streets of Rage and 3D Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master will ensure that plenty of punks will be punched in a side-scrolling setting this weekend. More punks can be pounded in the NES-era River City Ransom spinoff Crash ‘n the Boys: Street Challenge, which is also now available through the 3DS eShop. Wii U owners will get a chance to smack some side-scrolling baddies too as Konami has added Castlevania to the Wii U Virtual Console.
In original games this week, there’s Knytt Underground for the Wii U and Banana Bliss: Jungle Puzzles for the 3DS. Knytt Underground is a stylish and moody platformer that previously found a home on the PC, PS3, and Vita. Meanwhile, Banana Bliss is a puzzle game that takes place in the jungle.
More information about all of these games can be found after the break. (more…)