Super Mario Maker’s coolest player-created courses include a wild roller coaster, a shooter, a puzzle platformer, and more

Posted on August 24, 2015 by John Scalzo

Super Mario Maker‘s release is about three weeks away, but many press outlets have already gotten their hands on it and created a variety of amazing levels. Polygon collected their five favorites, and if this is just the start of the community’s creativity, I think we’ll all be playing Super Mario Maker for a very long time.

Out of these five, I think my personal favorite is “Super Shmup Bros.,” which transforms Mario’s traditional platforming antics into an auto-scrolling shooter. Apparently, all you need is a Koopa Clown Car for flight, a Fire Flower for ammunition, and a neverending stream of Flying Spinies. It actually reminded me quite a bit of the shooting sections of Super Mario Land, and I love that someone brought the idea back to the Mario series.

Other courses that made the list include “Enjoy Mr. Blue Bones’ Wild Ride,” a wild roller coaster that requires players to stand absolutely still; “The Riddler: Prologue,” a fiendish puzzle platformer take on Mario; “Vertical Bowling,” a level that asks players to kick an enemy into ten other enemies to score points; and “Winners Don’t Do Shrooms,” a course that requires players to stay small.

Super Mario Maker will be available exclusively for the Wii U on September 11.

Posted in News, Wii U | Tagged

Nintendo plans to reissue rare Amiibo figures (Little Mac, Villager, Marth, more) this Fall

Posted on August 24, 2015 by John Scalzo

noa-amiibosIt looks like several previously rare Amiibo figures will be reissued this Fall, including Little Mac, Villager, Marth, and many others. A re-release for these figures was confirmed after they were included in a list of “Certificates of Compliance” that Nintendo recently filed in accordance with the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act.

The full list of certificates available on Nintendo’s website also includes a number of figures announced as part of the company’s next wave of Amiibo figures. So it’s safe to assume that the restocked rarities will also appear on store shelves sometime in the next two months.

So which figures should Amiibo hunters be on the lookout for in the coming days? Here’s the complete list:

  • Bowser (Super Mario series)
  • Captain Falcon (Super Smash Bros. series)
  • Charizard (Super Smash Bros. series)
  • Inkling Boy (Splatoon series)
  • Inkling Girl (Splatoon series)
  • Ike (Super Smash Bros. series)
  • King Dedede (Super Smash Bros. series)
  • Little Mac (Super Smash Bros. series)
  • Luigi (Super Mario series)
  • Marth (Super Smash Bros. series)
  • Pac-Man (Super Smash Bros. series)
  • Peach (Super Mario series)
  • Pikachu (Super Smash Bros. series)
  • Splatoon 3-Pack (Splatoon series)
  • Toad (Super Mario series)
  • Villager (Super Smash Bros. series)
  • Wario (Super Smash Bros. series)

Hopefully, these re-releases will satisfy the demand of Amiibo fans everywhere as a huge number of figures have become impossible to find on store shelves since Nintendo introduced Amiibo figures in 2014. Personally, I’m just thrilled that my own white whale, Little Mac, is on the list. But even with renewed stock, I still might have to dance like a fly and bite like a mosquito to get one.

Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U | Tagged , , ,

Weekly Warp-Up: Knocking on Autumn’s Door 2015 Edition

Posted on August 23, 2015 by John Scalzo

No, that’s not a typo. Welcome to the Weekly Warp-Up, your weekly wrap-up of the biggest and the best articles posted at Warp Zoned this week…

This year’s Fall gaming rush is almost here, but first we’ve got to get the last few weeks of Summer out of the way first. For example, did you know Nintendo held a Splatoon Global Testfire this weekend? It’s still going on and today’s your last chance to get in on a free weekend for one of this Summer’s best games. And speaking of good games that were released this Summer, we recently posted a review of Lego Jurassic World. If you like Lego games, it’s very likely worth your time.

But it’s hard to think about the Fall without looking even further afield to this Winter, when Sony plans to host the second annual PlayStation Experience. The two-day expo moves to San Francisco this year and will likely be just as jam-packed full of demos and announcements as the 2014 edition.

More news from the week that was is available after the break.

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Posted in News |

New Releases: Madden NFL 16, Disney Infinity Star Wars, Until Dawn, More

Posted on August 23, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Do you feel that nip in the air? And surely you’ve noticed that kids are gearing up for “back to school” time. And that can mean only one thing… the Fall gaming rush is upon us! While these tell-tale signs of the Fall are out there, the Summer’s not over quite yet. It’s still pretty warm in most of the United States and a majority of kids get to enjoy a few more weeks of Summer vacation.

And even though it’s still August, I think the Fall gaming rush has officially begun…

Everything begins, as it always does this time of year, with the release of Madden NFL 16 (PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One). The latest entry in EA’s long-running football simulation series features Odell Beckham on the cover and improved passing/receiver controls.

One of this Fall’s biggest “all ages” titles, Disney Infinity: Star Wars, will also be available this week. As the title says, Star Wars characters have been absorbed into the Disney Infinity universe for the first time. If you’ve already got a shelf of Disney’s popular figures, prepare to build a second one. And if you haven’t caught the Disney Infinity bug yet, you’re probably going to need a sturdy shelf to hold all your Star Wars figures.

On the complete opposite end of the age appropriateness spectrum is Sony’s Until Dawn. Available exclusively for the PS4, Until Dawn is one of the first games that attempts to recreate the horror (and excitement) of watching a slasher flick. Until Dawn’s star, Hayden Panettiere, even has plenty of experience running from crazed killers on screens both big (Scream 4) and small (Heroes).

Finally this week, a pair of remasters will give a new generation of players the chance to check out (or revisit) two PS3/Xbox 360 era classics. Dishonored: Definitive Edition brings its stealthy steampunk aesthetic to the PS4 and Xbox One, while Gears of War: Ultimate Edition upgrades the popular Xbox 360 shooter for the Xbox One. Microsoft will also release an Xbox One 500GB + Gears of War: Ultimate Edition Bundle if you haven’t picked up an Xbox One yet.

A complete list of all of this week’s new releases (which also includes the PS3/Vita debut of the SteinsGate visual novel) can be found after the break.

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

Xbox Store Today: Clash, Bridge Constructor, Adventures of Pip, Pure Hold ‘Em

Posted on August 21, 2015 by John Scalzo

xboxgamesstore-logoFour new Xbox One games are now available through the Xbox Games Store…

  • Clash is a four-player “fantasy arena fighter” that forces players to dash at each other for the big kill, or hide behind a magical shield. Also… there’s adjustable gravity!
  • Bridge Constructor is exactly what it says on the box… a game where players become “an appraised bridge engineer and architect.”
  • Adventures of Pip is a puzzle platformer that asks players to grow by absorbing pixels.
  • Pure Hold ‘Em is… wait for it… yet another video game adaptation of poker.

More information on all of these games can be found after the break.

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Posted in News, Xbox One |

Pokken Tournament is coming to the Wii U in Spring 2016… anybody surprised?

Posted on August 21, 2015 by John Scalzo

About a year ago, Bandai Namco announced Pokken Tournament, a Tekken-styled fighting game that starred characters from the Pokemon franchise. At the time, the publisher said the game would only be available as an arcade machine, but we all knew that was a half-truth at best.

Today, the other Pokeball opened as The Pokemon Company announced that Pokken Tournament will receive a worldwide release on the Wii U in Spring 2016.

You can check out the announcement trailer above to get your fill of Pokemon-on-Pokemon violence, and be sure to stick around for the whole thing. The closing seconds of the trailer give us our first glimpse at “Pikachu Libre,” a never-before-seen evolution of Pikachu dressed in Lucha Libre garb. Pikachu Libre will make his debut in the Wii U version of Pokken Touranment.

Nintendo has been very quiet on the subject of Pokken Tournament ever since it was announced, but presumably they’ll have some part to play in publishing the game.

Posted in News, Wii U | Tagged

Lego Jurassic World Review: Spared (Mostly) No Expense

Posted on August 20, 2015 by Mike Ryan

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Jurassic Park holds a very special place in my heart. When I first read the novel at 12 years old, I remember closing it and saying to myself, “This needs to be made into a movie.” Little did I know that Stephen Spielberg was already filming the movie as I was reading it. And when the movie came out, it was an amazing experience. After seeing it in the theater, I remember being scared to death as I was riding my bike home, thinking that every noise was a Dilophosaurus hunting me down. Weeks later, I saved my Chuck E. Cheese tickets just to get a raptor stuffed animal and collected Jurassic Park trading cards. I even supersized my Extra Value Meals at McDonalds in order to get the collector’s cups. I was fully engulfed in the dino-mania that was sweeping the globe. Everything about Jurassic Park was amazing, with one exception… the video games.

The Jurassic Park games for the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis were completely different, but unfortunately, neither hit that high standard set by the book and movie. I rented Jurassic Park for the Super Nintendo and found the mixture of overhead exploration and first-person shooter to be quite shallow. My friend had the Sega Genesis game, and while I did enjoy the graphics, animation, and 2D style, I found it too difficult to enjoy. Since then, I haven’t really found a Jurassic Park game that I enjoyed – that is, until Lego Jurassic World. Playing it brought back fond memories of growing up watching these movies, and while it isn’t perfect, Lego Jurassic World is still a fun romp.

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Posted in PC, PS3, PS4, Reviews, Top Story, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged

Daily Scoop: August 20, 2015 – Lots of Might & Magic!

Posted on August 20, 2015 by Nicole Kline

Might & Magic is the newest Weekly Bundle at Humble! Pay $1 or more to unlock Heroes of Might & Magic II: Gold Edition, Heroes of Might & Magic IV: Complete Edition, Might & Magic IV-Pack, Might & Magic Heroes Online Angel Starter Pack, and Might & Magic Heroes VII Beta Key. Beat the average to unlock Heroes of Might & Magic V, Heroes of Might & Magic V: Hammers of Fate DLC, Heroes of Might & Magic V: Tribes of the East, Might & Magic Heroes VI: Gold Edition, Dark Messiah of Might & Magic, Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes: I Am the Boss DLC, and Heroes of Might & Magic.

Not enough for you? Well, if you pay $10 or more, you unlock Might & Magic X Legacy, Might & Magic X Legacy: The Falcon & The Unicorn DLC, Heroes of Might & Magic 3: HD Edition, Might & Magic Heroes VI: Shades of Darkness, and Might & Magic Duel of Champions Starter Pack. Whew. That is a LOT of games!

The Free Weekend at Steam is Payday 2! If you like what you see, buy it for just $4.99, or get a four pack for $14.99. You can also grab the Game of the Year edition for $12.49. The Daily Deal is the Capy Games Bundle! For just $9.99, grab Critter Crunch, Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes, Super Time Force Ultra, and Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP.

There are some super cute t-shirts today!

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Posted in Daily Scoop |