Warp Zoned Presents
Most Recent: Features
Mortal Kombat: Legacy Dissected
The first episode of Mortal Kombat: Legacy is here and it’s packed full of references to the rest of the Mortal Kombat franchise. You can watch it again above, or you can hit the jump to learn all of the episode’s juicy secrets.
Just a warning, SPOILERS follow. (more…)
Posted in Etcetera, Features, PS3, Top Story, Xbox 360
Tagged Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat: Legacy
Dead Presidents Battle Monsters in The Undead States of America
UPDATE: As you may have guessed by the publication date, The Undead States of America is an April Fools’ Day gag and not a real game. But if any developers out there in the great, wide world are interested in turning it into a real game, I’d love to hear about it.
The original article begins here:
With the continued success of Call of Duty: Black Ops and the recent release of new maps for the game’s online multiplayer, Activision has discovered the joy of American history. They’ve also realized that everything is better with zombies. And it looks like that trend will continue next year.
Warp Zoned has learned, from a source close to the development team, that the publisher has acquired the rights to create a game adaptation of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. The game will be released alongside the novel’s film adaptation, which is currently on track for a June 22, 2012 opening. We’ve also learned the game will feature more than President Lincoln’s battle with the bloodsuckers in the 1800s.
The current working title of the game is The Undead States of America and Honest Abe’s story will be just one of seven chapters, covering multiple eras in US history, that will appear in the game. It is also, in a small way, a retelling of some of the publisher’s best moments in gaming. (more…)
Posted in Features
The Next Level: The Games of April 2011
April is upon us! The Warp Zoned staff barely made it out of March alive – between PAX East and the release of the 3DS, we’ve had a lot on our collective plates. We’re all looking forward to April, which will give us a chance to catch up on what March unceremoniously dumped on our laps, as well as give our wallets a little break. There are a few huge releases coming out this month, though, and we’re trying not to freak out too much over them. So here’s what we want to play next month. (more…)
Posted in Features, PC, PS3, PSP, Top Story, Xbox 360
Tagged Mortal Kombat, Portal 2, SOCOM 4: US Navy SEALs
Warpback: What We Played in March 2011
Wow! March is already over. We’re all in a video game coma now, blinking our eyes and trying to remember what we did last night, and how we woke up next to this handheld. Awkward! Anyway, the Warpback is here to let you know if our predictions of what we wanted to play really came true or not. In most cases, our wallets gave out before our attention spans did! Read on to see how we fared. (more…)
Posted in Features
Interview: Zipper’s Kevin Schmitt Talks SOCOM 4 Multiplayer
At PAX East 2011, Senior Editor Nicole Kline and I got to have a lengthy chat with Kevin Schmitt, Lead Multiplayer Designer for SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy Seals. We got to talk extensively about the multiplayer, from game modes to progression paths, and how the buddy system plays a large role in the game. We also got some interesting insights from Schmitt, including what it’s like to be a lead designer on his first game at Zipper and the challenges and benefits of dealing with a long established fan base, whom he affectionately refers to as free labor. Playing the game got me really excited for its release and talking with Schmitt only compounded it. Hit the jump for the full interview on one of the most anticipated games of April. (more…)
Posted in Features, Interviews, Previews, PS3
Tagged PAX East 2011, SOCOM 4: US Navy SEALs
Portal 2 Interview: Valve Talks New Characters, 2 Campaigns, and… *Spoiler Deleted*
Valve had another one of their awesome theatre-style booths at this year’s PAX East. Outside, they had demos of Portal 2 running and were giving out t-shirts; inside, they were giving fans insight into two new characters in the single-player part of the game and giving me more spoilers than I wanted to see. But as faithful journalists, News Editor Mike Gutierrez and I were determined to bring the information back home and deliver it to our readers. Afterwards, we were able to interview one of the game’s writers, Erik Wolpaw, who left me wishing April 19th was tomorrow. (more…)
Posted in Features, Interviews, PC, Previews, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged PAX East 2011, Portal 2
The 2010-2011 Video Game Awards Season
Beginning with the Spike TV Video Game Awards in early December and culminating with last night’s BAFTA Games Awards, the 2010-2011 “video game awards season” has come to a close. And after four months of awards, acceptance speeches and arguments, we have a clearer picture of what really were the best games of the year.
The snobbier segments of the game community love to decry the Spike TV Video Game Awards as an embarrassment and not representative of the feelings of “real” gamers. Typically, the show’s world premiere trailers overshadow the actual awards themselves. But the event is spearheaded by Geoff Keighley of GameTrailers TV and the winners are voted on by a well-respected contingent of game journalists, so I guess it could be worse.
That said, this year’s Spike TV Video Game Awards “Game of the Year” was awarded to Rockstar’s epic western Red Dead Redemption. Keighley and company spread the love as the remaining major awards all went to other games: “Best PC Game” StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty; “Best PS3 Game” God of War III; “Best Wii Game” Super Mario Galaxy 2; “Best Xbox 360 Game” Halo: Reach; “Best Handheld Game” God of War: Ghost of Sparta; and “Best Downloadable Game” Costume Quest.
If Spike TV’s annual awards attempt to reach the mainstream, Time Magazine‘s top ten is the polar opposite, reaching into corners of the gaming world that are often ignored. This year’s selections are no different, including Alan Wake being awarded the #1 spot with iOS phenomenon Angry Birds at #2. The rest of the list was pretty typical, but the lack of Alan Wake’s spiritual twin, Heavy Rain, was the baffling part. Also, Limbo received its first love of the year-end awards with a sixth-place selection. (more…)
Interview: Augmenting Deus Ex: Human Revolution With Game Director Jean-Francois Dugas
One of the more high profile developers we got to interview at PAX East 2011 was Jean-Francois Dugas, Game Director on Deus Ex: Human Revolution. Eidos Montreal hopes the upcoming sequel will establish the franchise as a dominant force in gaming, but it’s been a long journey for Dugas and his team in their attempt to accomplish that. Throughout the interview we talk about the challenges of reviving an older franchise, their unique relationship with their Japanese publisher, Warren Spector’s feedback, and influences from movies to anime to Metal Gear to… Professor Layton? (more…)
Posted in Features, Interviews, PC, Previews, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Deus Ex: Human Revolution, PAX East 2011