Warp Zoned Presents
Video Game Canon- Angry Birds, Dragon Quest, FIFA Soccer, and Silent Hill are the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026
- 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
Warp Zoned Presents
- Video Game Research Library
- Spore: An oral history – Design Room (2026)
- 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)
Most Recent: Xbox One
Minecraft continues its quest for world domination after selling 100 million copies
Two years ago, Microsoft spent $2.5 billion to acquire Mojang and all rights to Minecraft. I think it was a wise investment… as Mojang announced today that more than 100 million copies of Minecraft (106,859,714 to be exact) have been sold since the game’s original release.
According to a nifty infographic on Mojang’s blog, the mobile version of Minecraft appears to be the most popular around the world. But over on the game’s official website, we can see that exactly 23,540,997 have been sold for the PC. That leaves console editions for the PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One to pick up the rest of the slack.
All told, more than 40 million people play Minecraft at least once a month, and that number probably won’t slow down anytime soon… more than 53,000 copies of the game are still sold each and every month.
Most Call of Duty: Black Ops III owners can now purchase “The Giant” Zombies map
Activision and Treyarch have announced that “The Giant,” a Zombies map that was previously only accessible by players who pre-ordered Call of Duty: Black Ops III, is now available as a standalone download for $5.99.
“The Giant” map, which is a remake of “Der Riese” and follows Dempsey, Richtofen, Nikolai, and Takeo as they battle the undead in a secret research facility, can now be purchased on the PC, PS3, PS4, and Xbox One. According to the Activision Games Blog, Xbox 360 owners will be able to download “The Giant” at a later date.
And in case you missed it last year, the trailer for “The Giant” has been embedded above.
BB-8 stars in the latest Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer
The time has come… the latest Character Trailer for Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens is an epic showcase for none other than BB-8. The breakout star of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, BB-8 certainly holds his own in the 30-second clip, and he looks like he’ll be a major part of the game.
Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens is less than a month away now, as the game will be released for the 3DS, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One on June 28.
Xbox Store Today: Dead Island Definitive, One Piece Burning Blood, Fragments of Him, more
BRAINNNNNNSSSSSSSSS! BRAINNNNNNSSSSSSSSS! BRAINNNNNNSSSSSSSSS!
Deep Silver is resurrecting the Dead Island series on new-generation consoles this week with the release of Dead Island Definitive Collection. Available to download now through the Xbox Games Store, the Xbox One re-release will include enhanced remakes of Dead Island and Dead Island: Riptide, as well as a brand new side-scroller titled Dead Island: Retro Revenge. Both games are also available to download separately, but Retro Revenge is only available in the Definitive Collection package.
Also available this week is a trio of titles for Xbox One owners… One Piece: Burning Blood is a fighting game based on the popular anime and manga, TurnOn is a puzzle platformer starring an electric alien, and Fragments of Him is a melancholy and emotional narrative game.
More information on all of these titles can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, Xbox One
Tagged Dead Island, Dead Island: Riptide
Unsurprisingly… Microsoft permanently lowers the Xbox One’s price to $299
Back in March, Microsoft temporarily dropped the price of every Xbox One console bundle by $50. But as of this week, the discount is now permanent, as Microsoft officially removed five Hamiltons from the price of every Xbox One console bundle.
The new prices for the 13 active Xbox One bundles are currently on display at Xbox.com:
Xbox One Bundles
- Gears of War: Ultimate Edition Bundle (500GB) – $299
- Gears of War: Ultimate Edition + Special Edition Console Bundle (500GB) – $299
- The Lego Movie Videogame Bundle (500GB) – $299
- Name Your Game Bundle (500GB) – $299
- Quantum Break + Special Edition Console Bundle (500GB) – $299
- Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege Bundle (1TB) – $319
- Rise of the Tomb Raider Bundle (1TB) – $319
- Spring Bundle (1TB) – $319
- Triple Game Bundle (1TB) – $319
- Kinect Bundle (500GB) – $349
- Tom Clancy’s The Division Bundle (1TB) – $349
- Elite Bundle (1TB) – $449
- Halo 5: Guardians + Limited Edition Console Bundle (1TB) – $499
Microsoft is believed to be working on a “Slim” model for the Xbox One, as well as an upgraded console that might be codenamed “Scorpio.” It’s unknown if either of these rumors are true, but we’ll probably hear more about Microsoft’s future plans for the Xbox One console during this year’s E3 Expo.
Skylanders Imaginators will let players create their own Skylanders when it launches in October
The sixth Skylanders game is a secret no more as Activision announced that Skylanders Imaginators will be available this October. Developed by Toys For Bob, Skylanders Imaginators will finally give players the opportunity to create their very own Skylanders characters.
“Since we launched the very first Skylanders game, we have received countless letters and drawings from kids all over the world sharing their vision for their own Skylanders. No matter how in touch with our ‘inner kids’ we might think we are as adults, nothing comes close to the endless creativity that springs from the mind of an inspired kid,” said Eric Hirshberg, the CEO of Activision Publishing. “We’ve turned this year’s game into the ultimate blank canvas for kids’ imaginations so they can create and play their own Skylanders.”
According to Activision, the creation tool in Skylanders Imaginators will include a huge number of customizable options, such as appearance, powers, abilities, names, catchphrases, musical themes, and more. But every hero needs a mentor, and Skylanders Imaginators has that covered too. Nearly three dozen Senseis, sorted into 10 “Battle Classes,” will offer guidance and training for your Skylanders creation, as well as “unlocking super-cool Imaginator weapons, providing access to special areas in the game, as well as bestowing Secret Techniques.” But if you’d rather stick with the heroes you know and love, Skylanders Imaginators will also be compatible with all previously-released Skylanders figures.
Skylanders Imaginators is in development for the PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. It’s scheduled to be released on October 16, but you can check out the debut trailer right now.
Gearbox adds Alani to Battleborn as a free download for all players; Pendles revealed
Battleborn got a little bit bigger today as Gearbox has made Alani, the game’s 26th playable character, available to download by all players. Alani’s attacks are water-focused, but the character’s main ability is healing:
Alani: Skills Overview
- Torrent: Through years of training in Ket, her order’s martial art, Alani has honed her ability to control water, hurling water bolts to damage enemies.
- Wellspring: Channeling her focus and strength, Alani heals herself for a small amount or envelopes an ally in water to heal them.
- Riptide: Alani sends forth a wave of water that deals damage to enemies, pushes them away, and leaves a trail hastening allies’ movement speed.
- Geyser: Calling upon the power of the oceans, a groundswell erupts, knocking enemies into the air, damaging and binding them.
- Emergence: Alani summons a water dragon that deals damage to everything caught in its wake.
- Osmosis (Passive): Alani’s healing abilities swell and recede like the tide. Successfully landing hits with Torrent grants up to three stacks to temporarily increase the healing power of Wellspring.
Gearbox has also given players a sneak peek at Battleborn’s 27th character, Pendles, on the Battleborn Blog. Pendles is a giant lizard with an even bigger scythe, and he’s not afraid to use it:
Hailing from the water world of Akopos, and pals with Alani, Pendles is a cold-blooded killer. No, literally. This anthropomorphized reptile will ssssneak up on you, poison you, perforate you with dual kamas then – poof – disappear without leaving a trace. Oh, yeah, and he wears a dope pair of sneakers. Get it? “Ssssneaky”?!? Wears sneakers?!? (Fine… fine.) This Rogue’s rogue may be a cold-blooded assassin-for-hire, but Ghalt felt was safer to have him on the team, than not.
And don’t forget… Alani, Pendles, and all of Battleborn’s post-launch characters will be available to download for free.
Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Battleborn
Resident Evil 5 will be released for PS4, Xbox One on June 28; Retail version coming July 12
Capcom has announced Resident Evil 5 will rise again on the PS4 and Xbox One this June. The co-op survival horror/shooter will be available to download through the PlayStation Store and Xbox Games Store on June 28. The game will also be released as a retail disc on July 12.
Like most other new-generation re-releases, Resident Evil 5’s rebirth on the PS4 and Xbox One will include all the previously-released downloadable content, including both story expansions (“Lost in Nightmares” and “Desperate Escape“) and the wave-based onslaught of No Mercy Mode. Every piece of content from the Mercenaries Mode will also be included in the brand new The Mercenaries United Mode.
Capcom has big plans for the Resident Evil franchise in 2016 and will also release team-based shooter Umbrella Corps on June 21 and Resident Evil 4 this Fall.