Warp Zoned Presents
Author: Holly Scalzo
Go Set A Watchbird… and watch the first gameplay trailers for Angry Birds 2
Fresh from Rovio’s mystical ice castle comes a new addition to the Angry Birds roster. Angry Birds 2 arrives in app stores for iOS and Android devices tomorrow, July 30th, and two new trailers released late last night give a glimpse at some of the action. Fans of the franchise will see some par-for-the-course gameplay that looks fairly similar to the original game. Some slight variations on the formula can be seen in the trailers including giant inflating pig heads, different lush scenery, new fortifications that the pigs are hunkered down in, lots of dynamite, and what looks to be some wheeled contraptions a la Bad Piggies, also known as the franchise’s Bad Spinoff.
Fans of the slingshot genre will know what to expect, while those new to society who have just been released from prison will be confused that although there have been about 37 incarnations of Angry Birds, this one is entitled number two. (It is thus because it is a direct sequel of sorts to the original, and the other games all have different wacky themes which make them different somehow.)
Anyway, as I am the Senior Angry Birds Correspondent, I think it’s my place to just throw in here that if they’re still so angry, they should probably seek counseling. It’s just not healthy to hang onto that rage, you guys. You can find both gameplay trailers after the break. (more…)
Posted in Mobile, News
Tagged Angry Birds 2
Escape from the Man-Sized Cabinet: Stephen Colbert’s Excellent Text Adventure
Stephen Colbert will be returning to TV soon. And just in time, too. As The Daily Show draws to a close with Jon Stewart at the helm, an old familiar sadness — which I first felt at the end of The Colbert Report — has crept back into my life as another door shuts in the era of damn fine fake news reporting. I wish Jon Stewart well, and also ask that maybe he come over for Shabbos dinner some time (Spoiler: It will be Arby’s).
Although we don’t know what’s next for Mr. Stewart, fans of Stephen Colbert can begin to live again, damnit, for he will return to our television screens in September. The character Stephen Colbert’s Colbert Nation may be gone, but the man Stephen Colbert’s Colbert Nation is just beginning! Just two more months, people! During his onscreen sabbatical, however, he has been busy behind-the-scenes preparing for his new hosting gig with tweets and hijinks and posts on The Late Show site. His most recent engagement with his cabal of Colbert-ites is in the form of a really awesome point-and-click text adventure game that reminds me of a Choose Your Own Adventure book. But much better because in those books I was never locked inside of a cabinet so long that I DIED.
So check out Stephen Colbert’s Escape from the Man-Sized Cabinet and save Narnia a public domain fantasy kingdom from an evil wizard. Do what I did and read it in your head in his voice. Play it a few times to make sure you hit all your options. It’s the American way.
Shades Review: Do Mess Around With the Guy in the Shades
Lovers of puzzle games and easy-peasy mobile games will enjoy a fun new challenge with the recently released Shades, a puzzle game from Uovo that bears a resemblance to Tetris, except instead of using differently-shaped blocks, Shades requires players to consider the color of a series of rectangular blocks when placing them. The blocks are all uniform in size and shape; however, they are all different shades of one color (sort of like virtual paint swatches) which must be stacked to ultimately create rows of a single shade. Complete rows disappear, a la Tetris, and earn extra points as well as clearing the way for more blocks falling from the top, while like-shaded blocks stacked on top of one another meld together into a single block of the next darkest shade. Points accumulate through the placement of blocks, whether they blend into another shade, and when rows disappear. (more…)
Calzones For No One: How Mayfair’s Cones of Dunshire Kickstarter Campaign Flopped
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? (more…)
Posted in Opinions, Top Story
Tagged Tabletop Games
This parody is yours… watch 8-Bit Scarface now
First you collect the coins, then you get the power-ups, then you rescue the princess.
The most recent 8-Bit Cinema short features the classic 1983 film Scarface, which starred the once-amazing and now-terrifying Al Pacino as iconic drug lord Tony Montana. Fans of 8-Bit Cinema’s other works will know what to expect… Awesomeness. For everyone else, these shorts retell movies with 8-bit stylized graphics, appealing to both movie people and video game people, as well as lovers of cartoon violence everywhere.
“8-Bit Scarface” is modeled after the 1987 Tradewest game, Double Dragon, a side-scrolling beat ’em up with Tony in place of the Lee twins. Viewers familiar with the live-action Scarface will not be disappointed with the illustrious scenes included in this portrayal.
So say hello to his little friend, as well as the infamous chainsaw scene, and never forget, the world is yours.
Conan, Marshawn Lynch, and Gronk walk into “Clueless Gamer” to play Mortal Kombat X
“Gronk, use your bumblebees!”
Another segment of Conan O’Brien’s “Clueless Gamer” aired Thursday night, guest starring Marshawn Lynch of the Seattle Seahawks and Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots. If you’re anything like me, you don’t really know who they are and don’t really care. Evidently, there’s some sort of important American Football match this weekend that their two teams are playing, and as sort of a preamble to such frivolities, Conan invited them to square off against each other playing the soon-to-be released Mortal Kombat X.
While not as amazing as some previous “Clueless Gamer” segments, this one had its moments. See what horrific thing made Lynch briefly walk off the set and which allegedly gave Conan “a sexual thrill”! See what made Conan curl up on the floor in the fetal position! See one female character punch another in her downstairs lady-nuts!
Mortal Kombat X is set to be released April 14. Until then, enjoy this clip featuring Ferra-Torr, Kano, Cassie Cage, D’Vorah, Quan Chi, Raiden, Scorpion, and Sub-Zero.
Mayfair Games wants to make Cones of Dunshire game from Parks & Rec a reality
Fans of NBC’s Parks and Recreation will remember Ben Wyatt’s meltdown in season four when he spent some downtime from his career perfecting calzones, making a five-second stop-animation film, and working on The Cones of Dunshire, his delightfully dorky and complex board game that all the other characters thought was a massive cry for help. It came as no surprise that many a viewers’ interest was piqued by that episode, and that folks wanted to bring it to life. A prototype was available at last year’s Gen Con, and now efforts to bring Ben’s awesome fictional nerdiness to fruition are stronger than ever.
According to Entertainment Weekly, a playable version of The Cones of Dunshire may soon be available to regular nerds everywhere as long as they have $500 and a dream. Mayfair Games has launched a Kickstarter campaign to collect $300,000 in order to bring a deluxe edition of the game alive, and copies of the game will only be given to backers who pledge at least $500. Even if you can’t afford that (and who can?) there are various donation levels with corresponding swag packages — $20 can get you a Cones of Dunshire poster and a pin, for example. Starting at $650+ the rewards become more complicated with various caches of goodies including the game, t-shirt, baseball hat, pin, poster, tokens, stickers, figures, flags and bases, Parks & Rec replica script, etc. And add-ons, oh the add-ons!
Check out the Kickstarter for the scoop on the game, what’s included, a complete list of rewards, and pictures of the whole kit and kaboodle. As of this writing, the campaign has raised $21,000 towards its goal and appears to be well on its way with a little under two months left. If they do achieve their goal, Mayfair Games expects to ship The Cones of Dunshire out to backers sometime in or around July of this year.
Posted in News
Tagged Tabletop Games
Mario Kart 8 Mercedes GLA DLC officially coming to US this Summer
The Mario Kart 8/Mercedes GLA commercial is still as terrifying now as it was three weeks ago. But now, the terror is closer than ever. Nintendo has announced that the DLC will be available in the US this Summer:
We’re planning to release a GLA-Class kart from @Mercedesbenz for #MK8 this summer. Stay tuned for more info! pic.twitter.com/c5Gp886s7e
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) June 20, 2014
Look at that picture! Mario’s nefarious, wild-eyed and angry expression is only a prelude to his murderous overtures. Like he’s going to pull off to the side of the road and pretend he has car trouble. Then, when someone stops, he’s going to stab them with a hook and shove them into the GLA’s roomy trunk. The 14.9 cubic foot trunk of the GLA has enough space for Bowser, Yoshi, and Princess Peach. With the seats folded down, the trunk expands to 29.5 cubic feet, enough room for Donkey Kong too… if he sees something he shouldn’t have.
Posted in News, Wii U
Tagged Mario Kart 8