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
Nintendo Download: Just Dance 2017, Corpse Party, Lost In Shadow, more
Nintendo is planning a spooky dance party for this week’s Nintendo Download.
Kicking things into high gear is the Wii U release of Just Dance 2017 from Ubisoft. Now available to download through the Wii U eShop, Just Dance 2017 will include more than 40 new tracks to test your dancing skills featuring musicians like Justin Bieber, DNCE, and Britney Spears.
Also available to download this week on the Wii U eShop is Lost In Shadow, a moody puzzle platformer from Hudson Soft. Originally released for the Wii in 2011, Lost In Shadow asks players to help a young boy find his missing shadow.
Finally this week, things get a little scary on the 3DS eShop with the launch of Corpse Party. Corpse Party was originally released for the PSP in 2011, and this remake from XSEED adds four additional chapters, redrawn high-resolution character sprites, and new musical arrangements to the adventure game.
More information on all of these games (and the rest of this week’s new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Corpse Party, Just Dance 2017, Lost In Shadow
New Retail Releases: Titanfall 2, World of Final Fantasy, Skyrim Special Edition, More
EA and Respawn Entertainment will storm their way into stores this week with Titanfall 2 for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. In addition to expanded multiplayer options, Titanfall 2 will include a single-player campaign for the first time. We can finally say it… Your Titanfall sequel is ready.
Also available this week is World of Final Fantasy, a new “chibi” RPG from Square Enix that celebrates the grand history of the Final Fantasy franchise. Designed primarily for a younger audience, PS4 and Vita players will still need to save the world from an evil mastermind. Thankfully, they’ll be aided by dozens of heroes from previous games in the series.
If you’d rather skip all the fighting and just dance, Ubisoft has you covered with the launch of Just Dance 2017 on the PC, PS3, PS4, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. Just Dance 2017 includes dozens of songs, and the new Just Dance Machine mode, which will throw an assortment of different dance styles at players.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Special Edition will make its PC, PS4, and Xbox One debut this week, as Bethesda plans to relaunch their epic RPG on a new generation of platforms. And Telltale will bring together Minecraft: Story Mode – The Complete Adventure on a single disc for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
Finally this week, one of my favorite puzzlers of the year, Tumblestone, will receive a retail release on the PS4 and Wii U.
A complete list of this week’s new retail releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Just Dance 2017, Minecraft: Story Mode, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, TitanFall 2, Tumblestone, World of Final Fantasy
Voice actor strike reveals unannounced games like Lego Marvel 2, Brothers in Arms, more
SAG-AFTRA, a union representing voice actors and stunt performers, authorized a strike against game developers that began this morning. As part of the process, the union has published a list of projects that members are no longer allowed to work on, and it includes several unannounced games.
It wasn’t much of a shock to learn that EA Sports is already hard at work on Madden NFL 18 and NHL 18, but listings for Lego Marvel 2 and Brothers in Arms were a bit more surprising (though not unexpected). While WB Games has yet to make any noise about a new Lego Marvel game, Gearbox confirmed the existence of a fourth Brothers in Arms game last year.
A large number of mobile games also make up a large part of the list, as well as a few games that are denoted only by codenames. For example, Take-Two is working on something called “Alligator,” while EA is developing games under monikers as diverse as “Odin,” “Fearless,” “Scorpion,” and “Timbits.” We may never know what these codenames refer to (they may even belong to games that have already been released), but one of the union’s major demands is for developers to be more transparent during the hiring process and to use a game’s actual title when contracting with vocal/stunt performers.
Finally, several highly-anticipated 2017 titles will be affected by the strike including Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8: Final Chapter Prologue, Injustice 2, and Crash Bandicoot Remastered. So hopefully the two sides can reach an equitable agreement soon.
UPDATE: A representative from WB Games has informed us that the inclusion of “Lego Marvel 2” in the SAG-AFTRA strike list is actually a reference to Lego Avengers, which was released earlier this year. However, Lego Avengers was announced in January 2015, several weeks before the union’s deadline for projects that must be part of the picket line.
I’m not sure why it was included on the list (it’s possible the union goofed), but the official line from WB Games is that “Lego Marvel 2” is definitely not a reference to “Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2” or any other unannounced game. That said, I’d be very surprised if WB Games isn’t working on another Lego Marvel game, and we’ll likely hear more about “Lego Marvel 2” in the future.
Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Brothers in Arms 4, Crash Bandicoot, Injustice 2, Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8: Final Chapter Prologue, Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2, Madden NFL 18, NHL 18
Voice actors represented by SAG-AFTRA union go on strike against game developers
Negotiations between game developers and the voice actors and stunt performers represented by the SAG-AFTRA union began in February 2015, but after more than 18 months of discussions, the two sides appear no closer to an agreement. Because of the impasse, and to protest against a contract they believe is decades out of date, the members of the union went on strike this morning.
“SAG-AFTRA has gone to the negotiations table with serious concerns affecting voiceover and stunt performers,” said Ray Rodriguez, the Chief Contracts Officer for SAG-AFTRA. “It’s time for video game employers to take our concerns seriously and negotiate a modern contract based on actor safety, industry precedent and best practices.”
This strike won’t affect all developers, and currently only applies to games that went into production after February 17, 2015 at Activision, Electronic Arts, Insomniac Games, Take-Two Interactive, and WB Games. However, the strike also extends to several independent vocal production studios that do a lot of contract work with the big publishers.
The game developers are offering an immediate 9% salary hike for all performers, and “additional compensation” depending on the number of recording sessions. However, the union’s demands for better working conditions went unmentioned in a statement from the Chief Negotiator for the game developers.
The SAG-AFTRA union plans to push the game developers for a better deal over the next few weeks, and their first order of business is encouraging all members to join a picket line in front of EA’s headquarters this Monday, October 24.
Nintendo Download: SteamWorld Heist, Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks, Pirate Pop Plus, more
Don’t worry, Nintendo didn’t forget about this week’s Nintendo Download amidst all the hoopla for the Switch reveal…
This week, Wii U owners will be able SteamWorld Heist, a side-scrolling strategy game from Image & Form. Players will be able to take part in “turn-based tactical shootouts” and perform “awesome bullet-bouncing trick shots” while they scour the universe for treasure.
Also available to download for the Wii U this week is The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, Link’s second adventure on the DS. Originally released for the DS in 2009, Spirit Tracks offers plenty of exploration and dungeons for Zelda fans… as well as a Spirit Train to travel around New Hyrule.
Wii U and 3DS owners will also get the chance to try out Pirate Pop Plus, a retro-styled bubble-popping arcade game that emulates the monochromatic colors of the Game Boy. Best of all, players who purchase Pirate Pop Plus will receive access to it on both platforms.
Finally this week, the classic Super NES RPG Breath of Fire is now available to download for the 3DS. Originally released in 1994, the Capcom-produced game was eventually followed by five sequels.
More information on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged SteamWorld Heist
Nintendo Japan releases four Zelda: Breath of the Wild trailers ahead of NX unveiling
Nintendo will unveil their NX console in less than an hour, but did you know that the consolemaker secretly uploaded three new Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild trailers yesterday? Courtesy of Nintendo Japan, the trailers are titled “Risk,” “Revitalization,” “Weather,” and an untitled fourth clip.
Link explores the Temple of Time in “Risk,” and he also climbs Hyrule’s highest peaks and snowboards back down on his shield. Our hero takes care of some business in “Revitalization,” bashing monsters and putting his bow skills to good use. At one point, he even lights a club on fire and uses it to deliver a flaming knockout blow to an enemy.
“Weather” is a nearly static four-minute shot of a ruined boat that’s sitting in front of an equally dilapidated building with a formidable castle and Death Mountain loom in the background. Finally, the untitled trailer features an extended time-lapse of the game’s day-night cycle. All four trailers can be found after the break.
And don’t forget about the many (many, many, many) mini-trailers Nintendo has released for the game over the past few months.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will be released for the NX and Wii U sometime next year (more…)
Posted in News, Switch, Wii U
Tagged The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The apocalypse is delayed… THQ Nordic will release Darksiders: Warmastered Edition on November 22
THQ Nordic has announced the Darksiders: Warmastered Edition won’t be finished in time for its previously-announced October 25 release date. Instead, the remaster will now be released for the Wii U (eShop only), PS4, and Xbox One on November 22. PC players will also be able to pick it up on November 29, but Wii U owners looking to purchase a disc-based copy of Darksiders: Warmastered Edition will have to wait until “a later date” to find it on store shelves.
The Warmastered Edition of Darksiders will take the original apocalyptic action game and polish it up for today’s newest platforms using improved graphical rendering to present the action in 60FPS (30 FPS on the Wii U) with 1080p visuals, better shadow quality, doubled resolution on all textures, and new post-processing effects.
THQ Nordic is also working on a third entry in the Darksiders franchise, but it may be quite a while before we hear anything official about Darksiders III.
New Retail Releases: Battlefield 1, Civilization VI, Skylanders Imaginators, More
While the Call of Duty franchise continues to push further and further into the future, EA and DICE are taking the Battlefield franchise back to The Great War for Battlefield 1. The shooter will be available for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One this week, and Microsoft is even offering a special Xbox One S + Battlefield 1 Bundle in two sizes… 500 GB and 1 TB.
Firaxis Games and 2K will return with a different sort of trip through time this week with Civilization VI. The strategy game will be released for the PC, and it’ll once again ask players to battle it out with famous world leaders and grow their civilization.
Skylanders fans will get the chance to try out a new entry in the franchise, as Activision will bring Skylanders Imaginators to the PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One this week. For the first time, players will be able to design their own Skylanders characters with the brand new Imaginators system.
In what has become a regular occurrence in the New Retail Releases report, another batch of games will get the re-release treatment this week. WB Games will swoop down to save the day in Batman: Return to Arkham, a PS4 and Xbox One compilation featuring Arkham Asylum and Arkham City. The publisher will also package together Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4 and Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7 in Lego Harry Potter Collection, exclusively for the PS4. WayForward will give 3DS owners another chance to pick up Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse, this time in a new Retail Edition. Finally, Harmonix will release the Rivals expansion for Rock Band 4 this week, and launch a special Rock Band 4 + Rivals Expansion pack for the PS4 and Xbox One.
A complete look at this week’s new releases can be found after the break. (more…)