Warp Zoned Presents
Most Recent: Top Story
Bot Gaiden Is A Side-Scrolling Platformer With Style: An Interview With Doug Pohl of SwordSwipe Studios
MetroidVanias rose to fame in the 80s and 90s thanks to the popularity of the Metroid and Castlevania franchises, but the genre went dormant in the 2000s as developers pushed pixels aside for polygons and aspired to create sprawling 3D worlds. After being rediscovered and remixed by the indie community, the MetroidVania is finally having its moment here in 2018.
But what if you’re looking for something else from a side-scroller? What if you want the fast action and self-contained levels that characterized the Ninja Gaiden and Contra franchises? Enter SwordSwipe Studios, and their upcoming game, Bot Gaiden.
The gameplay style and artistic inspirations for Bot Gaiden came to us straight from the 80s, but unlike most side-scrollers now on the market, SwordSwipe’s platformer doesn’t look like it came from the 80s. We sat down with Doug Pohl, one of the developer’s co-founders, to find out exactly how he’s bringing back the fast action and precision platforming of those classics in a new package. (more…)
The Games of October 2018
The Fall is in full swing here in Warp Zoned’s northerly headquarters, and that means Apple Cider, Pumpkin Spice, a lot of talk about the leaves, and plenty of new video games. There are so many games set to launch this month, but one stands out head and shoulders above all the rest… I’m talking, of course, about Just Dance 2019.
Nah, it’s actually Rockstar’s latest magnum opus, Red Dead Redemption 2. You know you’re doing something right when you’re a developer with multiple magnum opuses (opusii?). And that is definitely the case with Rockstar and their newest trip back to the American West.
But there are other games we’re excited for this month, and you can read all about them after the break. (more…)
Posted in Features, PC, PS4, Switch, Top Story, Xbox One
Tagged Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Grim Fandango, Mega Man 11, Red Dead Redemption 2, Starlink: Battle For Atlas
The Games of September 2018
It’s Labor Day here in the US, but we’re busy working hard to catalog all of September’s biggest upcoming game releases. And there are a lot of them.
Like everyone else, the Warp Zoned staff is very much looking forward to Sony and Insomniac’s new take on Spider-Man. But we’re also excited to get our hands on Square Enix’s massive new RPG, Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age; Team17’s alien adventure, Planet Alpha; Crystal Dynamics’s “Young Lara Croft” finale, Shadow of the Tomb Raider; and Nintendo’s standalone RPG expansion, Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Torna – The Golden Country.
You can find out why each of these games has us so excited after the break. (more…)
The Games of August 2018
The Summer’s almost over, but game publishers have decided to fill these final school-free days with a steady stream of re-releases and a few side-scrollers that look very interesting.
We’re very excited for the console debut of Motion Twin’s Dead Cells, which looks to combine a retro-inspired look with roguelite elements and a MetroidVania style. Bread Machine will also try their hand at reimagining a popular genre on consoles, the party brawler, with Slam Land. Featuring a hand-drawn art style, Slam Land wants players to slam their friends to impress a mysterious Giant Blue Man.
Also this month, a few classic games will make their way to new locales, including Zeboyd’s Cosmic Star Heroine and Sega’s beloved Shenmue I & II. We may have missed them the first time around, but that’ll soon change.
You can find out exactly why the Warp Zoned staff is interested in these titles after the break, and take a gander at August’s full release schedule, which also includes WarioWare Gold, Madden NFL 19, Overcooked! 2, We Happy Few, The Walking Dead: The Final Season, and many more. (more…)
Posted in Features, PC, PS4, Switch, Top Story, Xbox One
Tagged Cosmic Star Heroine, Dead Cells, Shenmue, Shenmue II, Slam Land
E3 2018 Aftermath: 9 Games That Were Missing In Action
E3 brings developers, journalists, and fans together for a celebration that is like the video game version of Christmas (or at least, it’s the day when we find out what to ask Santa for six months later).
And while there were so many projects announced, revealed, discussed, and dissected, some people still felt let down because the games they were pining to see were a no show. There were no brief teasers, no tiny morsels of information, just nothing. Radio silence from their developers.
So what were the biggest games you were disappointed you didn’t see at E3 2018? Because I have a few of my own… (more…)
Posted in Features, PC, PS4, Switch, Top Story, Xbox One
Tagged Borderlands 3, E3 2018, Final Fantasy VII, Metroid Prime 4, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, The Avengers Project, Yoshi
Kickstart This! Guide to Getting Your Game Funded (Part 2)
Last time on the Kickstart This! Guide to Getting Your Game Funded, we talked about how to whip up a community around your project and keep them engaged through social media and other channels. Now we’re going to look at what they see, hear, and feel when they land on your crowdfunding page.
When I write Warp Zoned’s Kickstart This! spot, I usually focus on the Kickstarter crowdfunding platform rather than Indiegogo or the handful of other options available. I find it more intuitive, although recently Indiegogo has changed its page design to mirror its rival. As they say, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. All the aspects I’m going to touch on can apply across all platforms, so try both and see which one suits you best.
When I talk about design, don’t confuse this with the design of the game. This is all about how you design and lay out your Kickstarter page, although the aesthetics of your game should influence your Kickstarter page to make it connected for a smoother audience journey. (more…)
The Games of June 2018
We’re less than a week away from the unofficial opening of this year’s E3 Expo, and the new release calendar has begun to dry up in anticipation of gaming’s biggest showcase. But there will still be plenty to play in the month of June, including an off-kilter new puzzler from Nintendo (Sushi Striker: The Way of The Sushido), a side-scrolling sequel to one of the strangest games of the 90s (Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn), a dinosaur-themed theme park creator (Jurassic World: Evolution), and Mario’s latest sporting adventure (Mario Tennis Aces).
You can find out exactly why the Warp Zoned staff is looking forward to these games, and view the release schedule for all of this month’s new games, after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Features, PC, PS4, Switch, Top Story, Vita, Xbox One
Tagged Jurassic World: Evolution, Mario Tennis Aces, Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn
The Road to E3 2018: Sony’s Big Showcase… Featuring Death Stranding, Spider-Man, The Last of Us Part II, and More
The 2018 E3 Expo begins in exactly 18 days… so let the speculation begin! Today, we’re peering into our crystal ball at what Sony might have in store for gaming’s biggest showcase.
Sony Interactive Entertainment recently made “a rare break from tradition” and gave fans an early glimpse at the four games they plan to highlight during their 2018 E3 Showcase. As usual, Sony will shine a spotlight on several cinematic single-player adventures, including Kojima Productions’s Death Stranding, Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us Part II, Sucker Punch’s Ghost of Tsushima, and Insomniac’s Spider-Man. All four games are expected to launch later this year (though, full disclosure, only Spider-Man has an official release date), so Sony should have plenty to say. (more…)
Posted in Features, PC, PS4, Top Story
Tagged Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Death Stranding, E3 2018, Ghost of Tsushima, Spider-Man, The Last of Us Part II