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
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.
Which Faction will you side with in Mortal Kombat X?
The launch of Mortal Kombat X is just one day away on the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Though if you’re planning to camp out at one of the many midnight launch parties, you could be playing it in as little as eight hours.
One of the first things you’ll do after loading up Mortal Kombat X for the first time is pledge your allegiance to one of the game’s five Factions. The Black Dragon, Lin Kuei, Special Force, White Lotus Society, and Brotherhood of Shadow are all fighting for new recruits and each has produced a Recruitment Video to help swell their numbers.
Which Faction will you join? You can preview all the Recruitment Videos after the break. And pay special attention to the Brotherhood of Shadow clip, which features cameos from Zombie Stryker, Zombie Sindel, and Zombie Kabal. (more…)
Destiny Expansion II: House of Wolves will be available on May 19
Activision and Bungie have announced the second major expansion for Destiny, House of Wolves, will launch on May 19 for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. To get gamers in the proper mood, the two companies have released the cinematic prologue, which has been embedded above. What else can players expect from House of Wolves? Well…
Expand your Destiny adventure with House of Wolves. Only the bravest Guardians will hunt down the rising Fallen threat and lay claim to the mysterious treasures of The Reef.
House of Wolves is being promoted as the “final” expansion to Destiny, but Activision executives confirmed that a “major content release” (rumored to be titled “Comet“) which will further expand the original game has been scheduled for release this Fall. Presumably, Destiny 2 will be released sometime after that, possibly as early as next year.
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.
Focus Home has planted a May 19 release date for Farming Simulator 15’s console debut
Focus Home Interactive has announced Farming Simulator 15 will be available for current-generation (PS4 and Xbox One) and previous-generation (PS3 and Xbox 360) consoles on May 19. As part of the move, developer Giants Software plans to add online multiplayer to Farming Simulator 15, a first for the franchise on consoles. For those of you that can’t wait for Farming Simulator 15 on your PlayStation or Xbox, here’s what else you can expect to get. And don’t forget to check out the new trailer embedded above.
With a brand new graphics and physics engine, Farming Simulator 15 offers an immense open world filled with details and visual effects! In solo, but also for the first time online on consoles with the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One, manage and develop your own farm: harvesting, animal husbandry (cows, chicken and sheep), sales of fresh products, investment in new and more powerful vehicles or tools… Discover also the new activity in Farming Simulator 15: woodcutting, and its selection of entirely dedicated vehicles and tools!
Across hundreds of acres of land offered by the new Nordic environment, and a renovated North American environment, use and drive over 140 authentic vehicles and farming tools, including new vehicles exclusive to consoles, from over 40 most famous manufacturers: New Holland, Ponsse, Case IH, Deutz-Fahr, MAN, Liebherr…
“Farm livin’ is the life for me…”
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.
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.
Bandai Namco parks motorcycle racer Ride until June 23
Bandai Namco has announced Ride, a motorcycle racer from developer Milestone, won’t cross the finish line on May 19 as previously thought. Instead, the game will be released on June 23 for the PC, PS4, Xbox One, PS3, and Xbox 360. No reason was given for the month-long delay.
Ride will launch as expected across Europe this Friday, April 10.