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
New Releases: Destiny: The Taken King, Forza 6, Skylanders SuperChargers, More
We’ve got a lot of ground to cover in this week’s new release report, so let’s get right to it…
Destiny’s “Year One” slate of content will come to a close as Activision and Bungie will release the last major update Destiny: The Taken King for the PS4, Xbox One, PS3, and Xbox 360. The expansion will add a variety of missions and tweaks to the team-based shooter, but the biggest is likely Nolan North’s replacement of Peter Dinklage as the voice of Ghost.
Microsoft and Turn 10 will release their latest automotive simulator, Forza Motorsport 6, for the Xbox One. It astounds me that while Sony continues to struggle with DriveClub and the seemingly non-existent Gran Turismo 7, Microsoft has developed and published two critically-acclaimed Forza games.
If you’re looking for something for the kids, Activision will release Skylanders SuperChargers this week. The popular game franchise has a racing theme this time out for the Wii U, PS4, Xbox One, PS3 and Xbox 360… and dozens of new Skylanders action figures have begun appearing on store shelves. A Dark Edition will also be released and a spinoff game, Skylanders SuperChargers Racing, will be available for the 3DS and Wii U (complete with an exclusive Skylanders/Amiibo hybrid figure for each platform).
To close out the week in new games, a pair of popular sports simulations will also be available. EA Sports will bring NHL 16 to the PS4 and Xbox One (and NHL: Legacy Edition to the PS3 and Xbox 360), while Konami will publish Pro Evolution Soccer 2016 for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
Finally this week, a number of new console bundles will be released. Sony will launch a 500GB PS4 + Destiny: The Taken King Limited Edition Bundle, while Microsoft is prepping a 1TB Xbox One + Forza Motorsport 6 Limited Edition Bundle. Both feature custom case designs (the Forza Blue color scheme is particularly nifty), one controller, and bonus downloadable content for their respective games. A 1TB Xbox One + FIFA 16 Bundle will also be available, but it doesn’t feature a custom paint job.
More information on all of these games can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Destiny, Forza Motorsport 6, NHL 16, Pro Evolution Soccer 2016, Skylanders SuperChargers, Skylanders SuperChargers Racing
BOOM! Madden NFL 16 is the best-selling game of August 2015
Whatever your opinion of Tom Brady and Deflategate (for the record, I agree with Tony Kornheiser, the suspension was “completely unjust”), it looks like nobody can take the air out of EA’s Madden NFL franchise. And don’t just take my word for it. The latest entry in the series, Madden NFL 16, topped the NPD Group’s newest monthly report and was declared the best-selling game of August 2015.
Madden NFL 16’s ascendance to the top of the list was a foregone conclusion, but August was an unusually quiet month for new releases. Just look at the three remakes/re-releases that broke into the top ten. Gears of War: Ultimate Edition chainsawed its way into the #3 spot, while the 30 games in the Rare Replay compilation collectively landed at #6. Finally, a Combo Pack containing Call of Duty: Black Ops + Call of Duty: Black Ops II claimed the #8 position (two spots ahead of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare at #10, I might add). The only other new release to crack the top ten was Sony’s Until Dawn at #7.
But the real story of the month might be that Minecraft continues to sell. Even though its been available on the PS4 and Xbox One since last year (and another year on the PS3 and Xbox 360), the game continues to sell month after month. Only Madden NFL 16 was able to outpace Mojang’s creation in August as Minecraft is sitting at #2 on the best-sellers list.
A complete look at August 2015’s top ten is available after the break. (more…)
Nintendo Download: Super Mario Maker, Tecmo Bowl, Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX, more
You couldn’t design a better Nintendo Download this week if you tried. But then, any designers in the audience will be quite busy beginning tomorrow when Super Mario Maker is added to the Wii U eShop. More than a mere Mario level editor, Super Mario Maker will include dozens of pre-built courses and the option to download an unlimited number of levels from the Wii U community. Also, you can use an Amiibo figure to drop Link (and many other characters) into a Mario game for the first time.
The Wii U eShop received a bounty of new releases this week in addition to Super Mario Maker. For starters, Tecmo’s famous football sim for the NES, Tecmo Bowl, is now available through the Virtual Console. Seems appropriate on Kickoff Thursday. Also available to download today are a pair of puzzling adventures including steampunk caper The Swindle and the first-person environmental brain-twister QUBE: Director’s Cut.
Finally this week, Sega will bring Japan’s most famous blue-haired idol, Hatsune Miku, to the 3DS in the rhythm action game Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX.
More information on all of these titles (and a few others) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Super Mario Maker
Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows will infect all platforms on September 17
Yacht Club Games has announced that Shovel Knight‘s Plague of Shadows expansion will be available to download on all platforms and in all regions on September 17. The free update will completely transform the game, allowing players to take control of the villainous Plague Knight as he does battle with his fellow knights of The Order of No Quarter.
However, this challenge is only for expert players as the Plague of Shadows campaign will remain locked unless you’ve beaten the game as Shovel Knight.
Unlike some cinematic knights, prospective Plague of Shadows players won’t need to choose wisely as Shovel Knight is currently available for the PC, 3DS, Wii U, PS3, PS4, Vita, and Xbox One. Yacht Club will continue to expand the world of Shovel Knight in the future as campaigns centered around King Knight and Specter Knight are in the works. In the nearer future, a Shovel Knight Amiibo figure, which will unlock a Co-Op Campaign on the 3DS and Wii U, will be released sometime this Fall.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows
Guitar Hero Live goes to 110 as Activision adds ten more songs to the game
After a few weeks of radio silence, Activision announced today that ten more songs will be added to Guitar Hero Live‘s gargantuan setlist. Once again, the selections run the gamut from radio friendly pop (Passenger’s “Let Her Go”) to indie favorites (Haim, Wavves) to the hard stuff (Lamb of God’s “Ghost Walking”). If you’re looking for all ten new tracks, they can be found right here:
- 36 Crazyfists – “Also Am I”
- Gerard Way – “No Shows”
- Haim – “The Wire”
- Lamb of God – “Ghost Walking”
- Orianthi – “According to You”
- Passenger – “Let Her Go”
- Pearl Jam – “Sirens”
- Surfer Blood – “Demon Dance”
- Tonight Alive – “The Ocean”
- Wavves – “Demon to Lean On”
Guitar Hero Live will be released for the PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and mobile platforms on October 20.
Wii U + Mario Kart 8 + Mario Kart 8 DLC Bundle races into stores today
Nintendo is upgrading their Mario Kart 8 Wii U Bundle by adding both of the game’s downloadable expansions. The Legend of Zelda X Mario Kart 8 Pack was released in 2014 to tremendous acclaim, while the Animal Crossing X Mario Kart 8 Pack crossed the finished line earlier this year to similar accolades. If you haven’t already, there’s really never been a better time than now to jump into the driver’s seat of Mario Kart 8.
The new Wii U + Mario Kart 8 Bundle will be available on store shelves beginning today. Priced at $299.99, the package will include a pre-installed version of Mario Kart 8 as well as a Nintendo eShop Download Card for the two DLC packs.
Posted in News, Wii U
Tagged Mario Kart 8
Video Game Release Calendar Changelog: September 2015 Update
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 that’s scheduled for release in 2015, 2016, 2017, or beyond.
We have officially turned the calendar over to September and that means the Fall gaming rush is right around the corner. Thankfully, that means a number of publishers have nailed down final release dates for many of their major releases. Nintendo has been especially busy filling in their monthly planner, announcing release dates for Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water (October 22), The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes (October 23), Yo-Kai Watch (November 6), Star Fox Zero (November 20), and Devil’s Third (December 11).
Looking beyond the end of the year, 2016’s Winter/Spring period is also filling up fast including a launch date for Lego Avengers in January (January 26) and a bevy of titles in February (XCOM 2 on February 5, Battleborn on February 9, and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided on February 23). A few weeks later, Nathan Drake makes his PS4 debut in Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End on March 18. Microsoft has also staked a Spring claim with the release of Quantum Break on April 5.
Finally, we circle back around to Nintendo with the announcement of an official launch window (“Spring 2016”) for the Wii U version of Pokken Tournament. We all knew it was happening, so I’m not sure what took them so long.
Even more new release dates from this edition of the Video Game Release Calendar Changelog can be found after the break. (more…)
Shigeru Miyamoto says Pikmin 4 is “very close to completion”
Nintendo (more specifically, series creator Shigeru Miyamoto) first revealed the existence of Pikmin 4 nearly a year ago during a Shareholders Q&A. Since then, the publisher has remained tight-lipped about the Wii U sequel, preferring to focus on this Fall’s major releases like Super Mario Maker, Star Fox Zero, and Xenoblade Chronicles X.
Today, the prolific developer returned with another Pikmin proclamation, this time revealing that development on the game is almost finished. “It’s actually very close to completion,” Miyamoto told Eurogamer. “Pikmin teams are always working on the next one.” Miyamoto’s claim was later substantiated by Nintendo in a separate statement.
Presumably, a splashy official announcement for Pikmin 4 will happen very soon.