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
Take a gander at the new Guitar Hero Live controller
I guess this morning’s announcement of Guitar Hero Live was just the opening act as Activision has now given us an even better look at the game’s brand new guitar controller.
Owing to the more realistic tone and first-person viewpoint, Guitar Hero Live’s guitar controller will use a simple two-tone color scheme. The new button setup will be included on the neck while the familiar Strum Bar and Whammy Bar will be part of the body. A Hero Power button will activate one of several Hero Powers, though a simple tilt of the guitar will also do that. Finally, GHTV button will launch GHTV Mode. More images can be found at the official Guitar Hero website.
Guitar Hero Live will be released for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Wii U this Fall.
Guitar Hero Live brings back franchise as a first-person live-action experience this Fall
Back in February, unnamed insiders said that Activision would relaunch the Guitar Hero franchise this year with “more realistic” graphics. That report has turned out to be accurate… but in the absolute strangest way possible. The next game in the series, Guitar Hero Live, will launch this Fall as a first-person, live-action experience that attempts to put players on stage for real. Shred that perfect solo and the crowd will cheer wildly for you. But if you screw up, you’ll be begging for the fenced-in stage from The Blues Brothers. That’s if your bandmates don’t kill you first.
Guitar Hero Live will also include a constantly changing catalog of songs in GHTV Mode, which overlays a note track on top of hundreds of different music videos. You can get a glimpse at how both modes will work by viewing the game’s debut trailer, which has been embedded above.
Unfortunately, your old guitars will no longer work in Guitar Hero Live. Activision is throwing out the old design and creating a new design featuring two rows of three buttons each. According to Activision, “beginners can feel like a rock star by mastering play with just the bottom three buttons.” Meanwhile, veterans will take on the new challenge of “creating complex chord-like shapes and finger combinations.”
Guitar Hero Live’s tracklist is still being finalized, but a wide variety of bands and singers will make the cut including The Black Keys, Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Gary Clark, Jr., Green Day, Ed Sheeran, The War on Drugs, The Killers, Skrillex, The Rolling Stones, The Lumineers, Carrie Underwood, and Pierce the Veil and Blitz Kids. More will be announced as we get closer to launch.
Guitar Hero Live is in development for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Wii U at FreeStyleGames, the same team behind DJ Hero and DJ Hero 2. Somehow, Guitar Hero Live will also be playable on mobile devices and tablets, but details on that version of the game will be announced at a later date.
Activision is going to announce Guitar Hero 7 tomorrow… but don’t tell anyone, it’s a secret
This morning, Activision released a teaser trailer touting an April 14 announcement of a “Mystery Game.” Could it be more Destiny? Or an official unveiling of Skylanders 5? Maybe the Call of Duty: Black Ops III reveal got pushed up two weeks? I should probably just watch the trailer…
Let’s see what we’ve got. There’s a kid with a guitar… and a band about to go on stage… and a cheering crowd. There’s also a tagline: “It’s About To Get Real.” Hmm, it’s a toughie, but I think I’ve got it… Activision is bringing back Crash Bandicoot! Wait a minute, that doesn’t sound right. Meh, it’s probably just a tease for Guitar Hero 7.
It’s not like there were a bunch of rumors back in February that said the franchise would return this Fall with a “more realistic” graphical style. Oh wait, there were. OK, it’s probably Guitar Hero 7.
I’ll keep waiting for you, Crash.
Kickstart This! Ira, Izle, Upside-Down Dimensions
Apologies for the absence of Kickstart This! on Warp Zoned in March, but my sister decided to get married and then invite a few of us to join them in New York for the first leg of their honeymoon (not as weird as it sounds). While seeing the many sights the Big Apple had to offer, and munching my way through the trifecta of pizza, pretzel, and hot dog, I managed to pop into Nintendo World at Rockefeller Plaza. It was great to meet and play with some American gamers, though my girlfriend dragged me out before I was able to buy some of the amazing tees on sale. It re-invigorated my love for video games, which everyone needs once in a while. Sometimes we all go through slumps where our enthusiasm wanes, and for much of March I was stuck in one.
But I have crossed back over the Atlantic buzzing to play some great games, and help fund some beautiful and unique ones on Kickstarter. This week, I’m travelling into space with Ira, creating new lands in Izle, and becoming a papercraft samurai in Upside-Down Dimensions. (more…)
Insert Quarter: Should Mega Man Make a Comeback? Maybe We Don’t Need Him…
Insert Quarter is our showcase for some of the best and most interesting writing about video games on the Internet.
With Shovel Knight, 20XX, and the upcoming Mighty No. 9 giving the gaming populace their fill of homages/spiritual successors to Mega Man, some people have started to wonder if a new game starring the original Blue Bomber is even necessary. GameRadar’s David Roberts is one of those people.
According to Roberts, Capcom is so handcuffed by the Mega Man formula that we might just be better off with the imitators. I’m not sure I agree, but he makes an interesting case:
It’s been nearly five years since Capcom released the last official Mega Man game. Mega Man 10 was just like all the other Mega Man games (Mega Mans?) that came before it; crunchy 8-bit graphics, a series of themed robot bosses, and soul-crushing difficulty. Since then, Capcom has released a fan-made Street Fighter/Mega Man crossover and let the Blue Bomber fight against a stable of Nintendo characters in Super Smash Bros. That’s all Mega Man has to show for the last five years; everything else has been cancelled. And you know what? Maybe that’s for the best.
The full article is available for your perusal at the GamesRadar.
See how much faster Mario Kart 8 is about to get in these 200cc vs 150cc videos
Mario Kart 8 is about to get a lot faster with the pending release of the 200cc Class update. But just how much faster is it than 150cc Class? Quite a bit, actually. And we can see for ourselves in a pair of side-by-side comparison videos recently released by Nintendo UK.
The video above showcases a single lap in Piranha Plant Pipeway. In 150cc, Mario zooms around the entire track in about 50 seconds. That’s a pretty respectable time, but in 200cc, it’s possible to do it in about 35 seconds. The difference is just as pronounced in the Dolphin Shoals video, which has been embedded after the break.
Are you ready for 200cc? Is your braking technique solid? We’ll all find out together when it’s released as a free update for Mario Kart 8 on April 23. (more…)
Posted in News, Wii U
Tagged Mario Kart 8
Nintendo Download: Xenoblade Chronicles 3D, Pokemon Rumble World, more
It’s a big week for the Nintendo eShop as Xenoblade Chronicles 3D is available to download for the 3DS. But remember, not just any 3DS system can handle Xenoblade Chronicles 3D. You’ll need a New 3DS XL in order to play Nintendo’s beautiful remake of the Wii hit. But if you’ve got one, you’ll be able to download the game through the 3DS eShop on April 10 (AKA tomorrow).
If you’re looking for something on the 3DS eShop today, you’ve got a few options. Atlus has released Etrian Mystery Dungeon, a procedurally-generated dungeon-crawler that merges the Etrian Odyssey and Mystery Dungeon franchises. Also available today is Pokemon Rumble World, a free-to-play arena brawler starring all 700 of your favorite Pokemon.
Over on the Wii U eShop, players will be able to download a pair of DS games through the Virtual Console and Affordable Space Adventures. Affordable Space Adventures offers exactly what it says on the tin… a space simulator on the Wii U that is completely affordable by the average person. And players with a love for the DS will want to know that minigame collection WarioWare: Touched! and stylus-based platformer Yoshi Touch & Go are both now available to download.
More information on all these games (and one more new release) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Xenoblade Chronicles
Move over Skylanders… Lego Dimensions enters the toys-to-life game on September 27
Who knew that Activision’s “toys-to-life” initiative with Skylanders would lead to multiple franchises and multiple toy lines that meld little figurines and video games? In the immortal (and paraphrased) words of Chief Brody… we’re going to need a bigger toy aisle.
That’s because WB Games and The Lego Group have announced Lego Dimensions, a game that brings specially-designed Lego sets into a game that mashes together different Lego universes such as DC Comics, The Lord of the Rings, The Lego Movie, The Wizard of Oz, Lego Ninjago, and Back to the Future. As expected, TT Games will develop the dimension-hopping game, which will be released on September 27 for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Wii U. The Starter Pack will include three minifigs (Batman, Gandalf, and Wyldstyle), a Lego Toy Pad to bring the figures into the game, and 269 Legos for fans to customize their own Lego Gateway.
A variety of expansion packs will also be available this Fall that will add “new buildable characters, vehicles, tools and gadgets, as well as compelling game content with new mission-based levels and unique in-game abilities” to Lego Dimensions. The first wave of expansions (though more will be announced and even more are coming in 2016) include:
- Back to the Future Level Pack with Lego Marty McFly
- Lego Ninjago Team Pack with Kai and Cole
- Lego Ninjago Fun Pack #1 with Jay
- Lego Ninjago Fun Pack #2 with Nya
- Lego Ninjago Fun Pack #3 with Zane
- DC Comics Fun Pack #1 with Wonder Woman
- DC Comics Fun Pack #2 with Cyborg
- The Lord of the Rings Fun Pack #1 with Lego Gollum
- The Lord of the Rings Fun Pack #2 with Lego Gimli
- The Lord of the Rings Fun Pack #3 with Lego Legolas
- The Lego Movie Fun Pack #1 with Emmet
- The Lego Movie Fun Pack #2 with Bad Cop
- The Lego Movie Fun Pack #3 with Benny
- The Lego Movie Fun Pack #4 with Unikitty
- The Wizard of Oz Fun Pack with Lego Wicked Witch of the West
“When kids play with Lego bricks, they build beyond the singular brands, intermixing all of their favorite characters and universes, and we have come up with a way for players to experience that in games,” said Jon Burton, the Founder and Creative Director of TT Games. “Now for the first time in a videogame, Lego fans can play in the virtual world and in the real world – combining everything without restrictions. Imagine putting Lego Gollum from The Lord of the Rings behind the wheel of the Lego DeLorean Time Machine in New Ninjago City – the creative play is endless.”
If Lego Dimensions has piqued your interest, be prepared to open your wallet real wide, the Starter Pack has been priced at $99.99.