Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- BAFTA Games Awards: All the Winners from 2003 to Today
- Clair Obscur Completes the Sweep by Winning “Best Game” at 2025-2026 BAFTA Games Awards
- Boss Fight Books to Get a New Look for Richard Moss’s “Age of Empires”
- GDC Awards: All the Winners from 1996 to Today
- Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Wins “Game of the Year” at 2025-2026 GDC 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: Xbox 360
Tales From the Borderlands: Episode 4 will launch on August 18
Telltale Games and Gearbox Software have announced that the fourth episode of Tales From the Borderlands will be available beginning August 18. The penultimate episode will be known as Escape Plan Bravo (screenshots are available at Telltale’s Blog) and it’s sending the game’s pair of anti-heroes to the frickin’ moon:
In this penultimate episode of the season, captured by Vallory and her goons, Rhys and Fiona are forced to continue the search for the Vault beacon – at gunpoint. The beacon is on the Hyperion moon base – Helios – while our heroes are on Pandora… so there’s the pesky cold void of death known as “space” to overcome. Even with assistance from a familiar face, and with a worryingly helpful Handsome Jack hitching a ride in Rhys’ head, getting on board the ominous “H” is going to take every drop of guile, and quite possibly all the spunk you’ve got. Sacrifices will be made – can you make the tough choices needed to succeed?
As with all of Telltale’s other episodic releases, Escape Plan Bravo will receive a staggered release schedule next week:
- Tuesday, August 18: PC, PS3, and PS4
- Wednesday, August 19: Xbox One and Xbox 360
- Thursday, August 20: iOS and Android
Developers from Telltale will make the trip to this year’s PAX Prime expo to host a special “Crowd Play” presentation of Tales From the Borderlands: Escape Plan Bravo on Saturday, August 29 at 8:30 PM. There will be plenty of giveaways and the entire crowd is expected to help steer the events of the episode.
Telltale’s Job Stauffer says, “Come equipped with your shouty voice.”
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged PAX Prime 2015, Tales From the Borderlands
Indie Megabooth announces massive PAX Prime 2015 presence
It’s that time gain! Those beautiful, brilliant minds behind the Indie Megabooth have announced the PAX Prime 2015 lineup, and it certainly IS mega! I see a lot of personal favorites in there, including Armello, Death Road to Canada, Hyper Light Drifter, Mushroom 11, Cinelinx: A Card Game For People Who Love Movies, Pleasant Dreams, Skiptrace, and two games I can’t keep my hands off of: Monikers and Mini Metro! And let’s not forget that this might be your best chance to check out Funomena’s Wattam!
If you’re in Seattle the last weekend in August for PAX Prime, trust me: you do not want to miss the Indie Megabooth. These are traditionally some of the best games on the show floor, and I don’t just say that because my own game (Resistor) has been part of the Tabletop Area. OK, maybe that might sway my opinion a little. But the team behind the IMB carefully curates some of the most amazing games, not just for your enjoyment, but as an installation of the best and brightest developers in indie gaming right now.
Enough of my gushing. Watch the trailer and hit the jump for the full list of developers and games (more than 70 in all)! (more…)
Grand Theft Auto V has sold 54 million copies; Single-Player DLC is still MIA
Take-Two Interactive didn’t have much to talk about during their quarterly financial report yesterday. Because XCOM 2, Battleborn, and Mafia III are still many months away, company executives mostly used the presentation to boast about the continued success of Grand Theft Auto V.
Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said that the game has sold more than 54 million copies since it was released in 2013. That number includes GTA5’s initial launch on the PS3 and Xbox 360, as well as its subsequent release on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC. It’s quite an impressive achievement for everyone involved, which is probably why Zelnick didn’t sound very appreciative when an analyst tried to compare Mafia III to a Rockstar-developed project during the Q&A portion of the presentation:
Mafia III is a completely different experience. I wouldn’t compare it to anything else out there. The reveal was great, but it stands alone. And no, we don’t use any other game in the same sentence as Grand Theft Auto. It is the industry’s standard bearer. It’s not up for comparison. So no, I think, it’s flattering to even think that may be the case, but it’s not.
I love Zelnick’s “take no prisoners” attitude and the defense of his developers, but there was also some bad news for GTA fans during the presentation as well. Karl Slatoff, the President of Take-Two Interactive, confirmed the publisher has no information to share about a single-player expansion for Grand Theft Auto V, telling one analyst, “[W]e really don’t have anything to say about that today.”
HBO’s Westworld looks to Red Dead Redemption and BioShock for inspiration
While many people only know Jonathan Nolan as Christopher Nolan’s less-famous brother, the younger Nolan has his own rather impressive career in Hollywood. In addition to co-writing The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, The Prestige, and Interstellar, he is also the creator of Person of Interest and the driving force behind HBO’s Westworld reboot. Originally released in 1973 (and parodied hilariously in the “Itchy & Scratchy Land” episode of The Simpsons), Westworld takes place within the walls of a futuristic amusement park where the life-like robots eventually run amok.
Before you ask, yes, the original movie was written and directed by Michael Crichton.
But in turning the story into a television show, Nolan wants to go beyond Crichton’s original concept and he’s looking to video games for his inspiration. Naturally, Rockstar’s classic western, Red Dead Redemption, is at the top of the list. However, Nolan told Esquire‘s Matt Patches that the underwater world of Irrational’s BioShock also informed his latest creation.
Finally, Nolan cited an “interactive play,” Sleep No More, as a third inspiration. A similar interactive theatre experience, Tamara, directly inspired Tom Zito to develop Night Trap, and other full motion video games, in the mid-90s.
HBO’s Westworld reboot will premiere sometime next year and will star Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Evan Rachel Wood, James Marsden, Thandie Newton, and Jeffrey Wright. The first teaser trailer, which was released yesterday, has been embedded above.
Activision adds 16 songs to Guitar Hero Live to bring its total to 100 (and counting)
Earlier this week, Activision announced another batch of songs that will be included in Guitar Hero Live, bringing the total number of tracks to 100. That triple-digit number means that Guitar Hero Live will have the largest selection of on-disc of any music game when its released this Fall. The previous record holder, Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock, topped out at 93.
And Activision isn’t looking to beat the Babe by a single home run like Roger Maris in 1961. They want to really push the disc capacity of the new-generation systems and the publisher plans to announce even more songs for Guitar Hero Live in the future. But for now, here’s a list of all 16 songs that are part of this announcement:
- Blink-182 – “The Rock Show”
- Boston – “More Than a Feeling”
- Charlie XCX – “Famous”
- Dream Theater – “The Looking Glass”
- Echosmith – “Cool Kids”
- In Flames – “Deliver Us”
- James Bay – “Hold Back The River”
- Kasabian – “Club Foot”
- Kings of Leon – “Sex on Fire”
- Megadeth – “Hangar 18”
- MGMT – “Time to Pretend”
- Panic! At the Disco – “Girls Girls Boys”
- Passion Pit – “Take a Walk”
- Royal Blood – “Come on Over”
- Rush – “Limelight”
- You Me at Six – “Lived a Lie”
Guitar Hero Live, and its brand new six-button controller, will be released for the PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One on October 20.
Posted in Mobile, News, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Gamescom 2015, Guitar Hero Live
Star Wars: Battlefront is crowned Best of Gamescom at Gamescom 2015
Heeding the words of Yoda (“Do… or do not. There is no try.”), Electronic Arts and DICE pulled out all the stops to win to five awards for Star Wars: Battlefront at Gamescom 2015, including the coveted “Best of Gamescom” title. The game also took home “Best Console Game – PS4,” “Best PC Games,” “Best Online Multiplayer Game,” and the “Most Wanted Consumer Award.” Strangely, Germany’s Digital Gaming Culture Foundation (Stiftung Digitale Spielekultur) didn’t even nominate it in the “Best Console Game – Xbox One” category.
Other multi-award winners at the 2015 Gamescom Awards include Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (“Best Console Game – Xbox One” and “Best Action Game”), FM6 (“Best Racing Game” and “Best Simulation Game”), and Super Mario Maker (“Best Console Game – Wii U” and “Best Social / Casual / Online Game”).
Not to be forgotten, the HTC Vive virtual reality headset, produced in conjunction with Valve, won for “Best Hardware / Peripheral.”
The full list of this year’s winners can be found after the break. (more…)
Ubisoft adds lip-syncing Showtime Mode and nine new tracks to Just Dance 2016
Ubisoft wants players to share their dancing with the world after they play Just Dance 2016. The new Showtime Mode will let players record themselves lip-syncing along to their favorites songs. After the song is over, Just Dance 2016 will create a shareable video for the world.
Showtime Mode will only be available on the PS4 (a PlayStation Camera is required), the Xbox One (a Kinect is required), and the Wii U (a Wii U GamePad is required, but that’s standard equipment for Wii U owners):
The new Showtime mode will allow players to unleash their inner star by creating unique music videos of themselves performing. Players lip-sync and perform along to hit songs in the game and the video footage is then turned into a fun shareable music video. The music videos pull in both creative visual elements and pop cultural references— each song will have a distinctive and visually original atmosphere.
Ubisoft also announced nine new tracks for Just Dance 2016 during this week’s Gamescom expo:
- Angry Birds – “Balkan Blast Remix”
- AronChupa – “I’m An Albatraoz”
- Britney Spears – “Circus”
- Ellie Goulding – “Lights”
- Iggy Azalea (Featuring Charli XCX) – “Fancy”
- The Lemon Cubes – “Boys (Summertime Love)”
- Pitbull (Featuring Chris Brown) – “Fun”
- Prince Royce – “Stuck On A Feeling”
- Shakira (Featuring El Cata) – “Rabiosa”
Just Dance 2016 will be released for the PS3, PS4, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One on October 20.
Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Gamescom 2015, Just Dance 2016