Warp Zoned Presents
Author: Melissa Niedringhaus
Square Enix Steam titles on sale for a short time
Square Enix is having a huge sale on Steam that’s running from now until March 26th.
All Square Enix games and DLC packs will be half off throughout the five-day sale period, and there will be additional “Daily Deals” that promise even greater savings (such as today’s offer of 75% off any Hitman title). Steam is also selling a “Square Enix Hit Collection” bundle with over 15 titles, including classics like Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Tomb Raider: Legend, Thief: Deadly Shadows, and Hitman: Blood Money.
Check out Steam for more details!
Nintendo Video service gets 3D music videos from The Shins, Wale, B.o.B., more
Nintendo recently announced they are teaming up with top musical acts to provide new music videos in 3D for users of its free Nintendo Video service on the 3DS.
Available for download now are “The Rifle’s Spiral” from The Shins’ new album Port of Morrow, “Sabotage” from Wale, and “So Good” from B.o.B. Additional 3D videos that will be available soon are “Skyscrapers” from OK Go, “Breakn’ a Sweat” from Skrillex, “Underneath the Sycamore” from Death Cab for Cutie, and “Save World Get Girl” from I Fight Dragons.
All 3DS owners have to do to get these awesome videos is connect their 3DS to the Internet and download the Nintendo Video application. The music videos that are currently available will download automatically!
Game industry giants join PlayJam advisory board
PlayJam, a “Smart TV” games platform that utilizes cloud technology to stream or download content to televisions, has managed to lure a few heavyweights to it’s corner.
Newly on board are GameStop President Tony Bartel, who will advise PlayJam on expanding it’s network of publishers and developers, co-founder of Red Octane Charles Huang, who plans to help the company develop original games in both the music and fitness genres, and co-founder of FreeStyleGames and Media Molecule Chris Lee, who will help build the global developer community for the company’s games network.
PlayJam has also recently signed a few developers to it’s beta program, including Relentless, First Star Software, GameHouse, and Slingo.
Jasper Smith, CEO and founder of PlayJam, sees this support from prominent figures in the industry as a “great endorsement”, and believes that “the market for TV gaming will see exponential growth” due to enhanced connectivity of modern TVs, Blu-ray, and other media players.
Posted in News
Dating site wants to go steady with struggling retailer GAME Group
A British dating website for gamers revealed earlier today that they approached troubled retailer GAME, and offered to transform the group’s 600 stores into “dating zones” in an effort to attract new business.
According to industry analysts, GAME Group needs the equivalent of $160 million to stay afloat or it will have to cut 10,000 jobs. To make matters worse, three of its key suppliers, Electronic Arts, Capcom and Nintendo, are refusing to do business with the retailer, and it’s stock of new titles has dropped dramatically.
In light of these events, Date A Gamer has offered to set up branded areas in each of GAME’s 600 stores where single gamers could meet and hook up. They’ve proposed one-hour dating sessions, twice a day, free for it’s members.
UK entrepreneur and TV personality Tom Thurlow, creator of the website, hasn’t heard back from Game HQ, but remains “optimistic” about a partnership. He considers it a “no brainer”, because there is a “clear demand” among single gamers for a dating service like Date A Gamer, and it would be a huge market for GAME to tap into.
Posted in News
NeoGeo X handheld, with 20 games, coming this Spring
This isn’t your momma’s NeoGeo Pocket.
North American video game distributor Tommo and European console maker Blaze today announced plans to release a limited edition NeoGeo handheld console sometime in the Spring of this year, following the 20th anniversary of the NeoGeo AES.
The “NeoGeo X”, as it will be called, will come with 20 officially licensed NeoGeo titles, including classics like Metal Slug, The King of Fighters ’94, and Fatal Fury. It will also feature an SD card expansion slot, a 3.5″ LCD screen, A/V output, internal speakers, and a headphone socket.
Jason Cooper, Founder of Blaze, hopes to “Re-ignite the excitement many of us felt twenty one years ago, in a more affordable manner, to a much wider audience.”
Visit NeoGeoX.com to register your interest in the handheld ahead of its Spring release. And start saving, rumors peg the UK price of the system at £500 (almost $800, or roughly the same price as a PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, 3DS, and Vita combined).
Hit the jump for a complete list of the included games. (more…)
Posted in News
Tagged Metal Slug
Us and the Game Industry showcases some of the unique thinkers in indy development
Us and the Game Industry follows three years of research and conversations with developers who were either starting or completing games in 2012. Director Stephanie Beth delves into the world of independent game making, and how developers are reinventing the medium of game design to create experiences far different from that of the ‘establishment’.
LA-based thatgamecompany is one of the development studios featured in the movie. Beth speaks with CEO and Creative Director Jenova Chen, as well as other members of the development team, throughout the three year production of Journey.
Also showcased is sole developer Jason Rohrer, creator of titles like Sleep is Death, and Inside a Star Filled Sky, and Daniel Cook, the Chief Creative Officer at Spry Fox.
Us and the Industry has a Kickstarter campaign going if you’d like to chip in a few bucks to help this movie reach theaters.
For more information on the documentary, or on Stephanie Beth and the developers featured in the film, visit the film’s website.
EA nabs new partners to provide content on Origin download service
Looks like Electronic Arts is aiming for bigger slice of the downloadable pie. Today, it announced partnerships with a number of publishers to provide content for it’s online download service, Origin.
Sega tops the list, bringing games like Total War Shogun 2: Fall of the Samurai to the table. Also new to the EA fold are Team 17 Software Limited, Rebellion, Kalypso Media Digital, and others, raising the number of Origin content providers to 35.
Origin provides features like built-in customer service, in-game overlay and chat, cloud saves, and live streaming demos, and has about 11 million subscribers, which is a little less than half the number Steam has.
To see what Origin has to offer, check out their website at Origin.com.
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Total War: Shogun 2
Pre-order Guild Wars 2 for early access and exclusive in-game gear
Starting April 10, players will be able to pre-order one of three editions of Guild Wars 2 and not only guarantee themselves a spot in beta weekend events, but also get a three-day head start before launch to rub into their friend’s faces.
But wait, there’s more! As a bonus, early birds will also receive a “Hero’s Band”, an exclusive item that will provide characters with a range of power boosts.
If you have the $149.99 to blow, you can get your hot little hands on a hand-painted 10-inch statue of the bestial warrior Rytlock Brimstone, a custom frame along with five Guild Wars 2 art prints, a 112-page Making of Guild Wars 2 hardback book, a “Best of Guild Wars 2” soundtrack CD, and five in-game items, including a Mistfire Wolf and a miniature Rytlock who will accompany players on their travels through Tyria.
If that seems a little pricey, you could always go for the “Digital Deluxe Edition.” It’s a slightly more affordable $79.99, and you’ll get the five in-game items that the Collector’s edition has.
For the complete scoop on the various Collector’s Editions, head over to the Guild Wars 2 website.
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Guild Wars 2