Nintendo confirms development of the NX “dedicated game system”

Posted on March 17, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Nintendo has had a very busy morning. As a coda to the announcement that they’ve partnered with DeNA to produce mobile games based on Nintendo characters, the company also confirmed it is not leaving consoles and handhelds in the past by announcing the “NX,” their next “dedicated game system.”

Details about the NX are currently pretty sparse. At this point, we don’t even know if it’ll be a handheld system, a home console, or some hybrid of the two. Nintendo President Satoru Iwata confirmed the NX’s existence during a press conference this morning (which is archived on Nintendo’s Investor Relations page) and said that Nintendo will talk more about the system, which uses a “brand-new concept,” next year:

As proof that Nintendo maintains strong enthusiasm for the dedicated game system business, let me confirm that Nintendo is currently developing a dedicated game platform with a brand-new concept under the development codename “NX.” It is too early to elaborate on the details of this project, but we hope to share more information with you next year.

The NX will also be built to take advantage of the new online membership service that DeNA will produce for Nintendo:

Nintendo, together with DeNA, will jointly develop a new membership service which encompasses the existing Nintendo 3DS and Wii U systems, the new hardware system with a brand-new concept, NX, and smart devices and PCs, and Nintendo will be the primary party to operate this new membership service. Unlike the Club Nintendo membership service that Nintendo has been operating, the new membership service will include multiple devices and create a connection between Nintendo and each individual consumer regardless of the device the consumer uses. This membership will form one of the core elements of the new Nintendo platform that I just mentioned.

If you ignore the Virtual Boy (and everybody does), the NX would be Nintendo’s tenth platform, making its codename rather appropriate. Personally, I hope they keep it, it has a nice ring to it.

Posted in News, Switch |

Nintendo partners with DeNA to produce mobile games and unified network

Posted on March 17, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Nintendo and mobile devices have had a shaky relationship for years now. Investment analysts called out the company for ignoring the market (and thus, forgoing the giant piles of money they’d surely make from mobile games), while Nintendo executives reiterated that the time wasn’t right for a mobile move. I guess today’s the day as Nintendo has announced a partnership with Japanese developer DeNA to produce original mobile games based on existing Nintendo characters.

The word “original” is key here as DeNA and Nintendo will definitely not be producing mobile ports of existing 3DS and Wii U games. All Nintendo-branded mobile games will be built from the ground up exclusively for mobile devices and no characters will be off-limits. That means franchises as varied as Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Star Fox, Mario Kart, or even Pikmin could soon appear on your iPhone or Android device. Who knows, something as niche as Earthbound could even be on its way to an app store near you.

Leveraging the strength of Nintendo’s intellectual property (IP) and game development skills in combination with DeNA’s world-class expertise in mobile games, both companies will develop and operate new game apps based on Nintendo’s IP, including its iconic game characters, for smart devices. The alliance is intended to complement Nintendo’s dedicated video game systems business and extend Nintendo’s reach into the vast market of smart device users worldwide.

To support this move into the mobile market, Nintendo and DeNA will also collaborate on a unified online membership service that will accessible from mobile devices, PCs, the 3DS, and the Wii U. It’s unknown if this service will replace the existing Nintendo Network as details are currently scarce, but we know it will launch in Fall 2015.

Nintendo and DeNA will announce the first titles for their mobile initiative soon.

Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, Switch, Wii U |

The PAXpocalypse List: The Best of PAX East 2015

Posted on March 16, 2015 by Warp Zoned Staff

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Most of the big publishers chose to skip the 2015 edition of PAX East and even those that did attend (like Nintendo and Microsoft) kept their most anticipated projects home. But that didn’t stop a wide variety of indie developers from setting up shop in the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center to wow the assembled masses. These developers set the tone for this year’s expo, which featured a heavy focus on games that attempted to reinterpret classic gameplay concepts for a new generation of players. And the crazy thing is that many of the developers hyping these games looked like they would have been in diapers the first time I fired up an SNES.

It was a welcome sight with the rest of the industry pivoting away from those types of games and towards a competition to see who can push the most polygons. So if you were a fan of gaming in the NES, Super NES, and Genesis days, this PAXpocalypse List is for you. Because these are the games we would have played over and over again if some horrible snow storm had trapped us inside the convention center beyond the last day of the expo.

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Posted in Features, Mobile, PC, PS3, PS4, Top Story, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Daily Scoop: March 16, 2015 – Sick edition

Posted on March 16, 2015 by Nicole Kline

Well, it seems all of the excitement has caught up with me. After launching a Kickstarter, exhibiting to PAX East, and then spending a full week working and talking, my laryngitis turned into a full-blown infection. I’m home today not talking at all and sipping tea with honey. We also finally set up the humidifier, which I’ve been napping next to. Hopefully this infection goes away quickly! I miss talking.

Let’s talk a bit about deals, shall we? There are quite a few new games on sale at the Humble Store this week. You can pick up TRI for $7.47, Zombie Kill of the Week – Reborn for $5.94, and get early access to Coffin Dodgers for $12.99.

At Steam, there are 125 new Weeklong Deals. Get Tabletop Simulator for $10.49, AaAaAA!!! – A Reckless Disregard for Gravity for $4.99, and The Wonderful End of the World for $3.39. They’ve also got a new Daily Deal today, which is Magicite for $4.99.

How about some t-shirts?

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Posted in Daily Scoop |

EA Sports confirms Rory McIlroy PGA Tour will tee off in June

Posted on March 16, 2015 by John Scalzo

After nearly a year without a title, EA Sports has announced that this year’s PGA Tour game will officially be known as Rory McIlroy PGA Tour. The game, which will star the top-ranked golfer in the world right now, will tee off for the PS4 and Xbox One in June.

Rory McIlroy PGA Tour is being developed by EA Tiburon and will be the first EA Sports game to use the Frostbite engine popularized by the Battlefield franchise:

Rory McIlroy PGA Tour truly delivers “Golf Without Limits,” opening up the experience like never before. Gorgeous real-world courses and epic fantasy tracks provide players with not only the most realistic representations of their favorite locales, but the opportunity to explore brand-new locations. Full course loading offers limitless options when attacking the green and zero wait times when moving from one hole to the next. Experience the next generation of golf and play where you want, when you want, how you want.

According to EA, the use of Frostbite will also enable Rory McIlroy PGA Tour to process the entire course at once, eliminating load times between holes. Take that, Tiger Woods!

Posted in News, PS4, Xbox One | Tagged

First Lego Jurassic World gameplay trailer turns the raptors into cuddly pranksters

Posted on March 16, 2015 by John Scalzo

Perhaps to get us ready for a motorcycle-riding Chris Pratt leading a pack of friendly raptors into battle, WB Games has released the first gameplay trailer for Lego Jurassic World… which comes complete with cuddly raptors. But we also get dialogue and audio clips pulled directly from the films as well as plenty of exciting Lego action. But for some reason, I don’t think the kid-friendly Lego games will include Lego Jeff Goldblum telling us all just how big that pile of **** is. Feel free to prove me wrong, WB Games!

Lego Jurassic World will be released for the 3DS, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One this June.

Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged

Life Is Strange Episode 2: Out of Time will be available next week

Posted on March 16, 2015 by John Scalzo

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As part of this weekend’s EGX Rezzed expo, Dontnod Entertainment announced the release date for “Out of Time,” the second episode of Life Is Strange. The further adventures of time-bending Max and blue-haired Chloe will be available for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One on March 24:

Couldn’t make it to EGX? You can watch Dontnod’s full presentation at the EGX YouTube Channel. But the spoiler-averse should be warned, the video does contain a few scenes from “Out of Time.”

Posted in News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged

Calzones For No One: How Mayfair’s Cones of Dunshire Kickstarter Campaign Flopped

Posted on March 15, 2015 by Holly Scalzo

As we reported in January, Mayfair Games, the publisher of Settlers of Catan, took to Kickstarter with the dream of making Cones of Dunshire, a fictional board game from the Parks & Recreation universe, into a real game. Fans of the NBC show and of intricate and/or confusing cooperative board games rejoiced. It seemed like an impossible task to raise $300,000 to create a deluxe version of the game… and it was. So Mayfair canceled their original campaign and relaunched it in early February with some adjustments, including a lowered project goal ($125,000) and reworked pledge levels and rewards.

Even at the reduced levels, it still took at least $400 (and a dream!) to reserve a copy of the game. As before, additional goodies and enhancements to the game were available at higher pledge levels. For example, backers would receive the game at $400, but at $550 they would receive the game with metal “Hero Bases,” and at $700 they would get the game with metal figures.

During the original campaign, pledges were slow to come in and it did not appear that Mayfair would meet its goal in the 60 days allotted. The second Kickstarter, which after a 30-day run ended on March 12th, fared no better. At its conclusion, Mayfair had raised $48,696 from 194 backers, only reaching 39% of its goal.

So how did it all go wrong?

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Posted in Opinions, Top Story | Tagged