Warp Zoned Presents
Most Recent: 3DS
Pokemon Sun and Moon demo will be available on October 18; New trailer reveals evolved forms of Starter Pokemon
If Pokemon Go has rekindled your desire for a new “main series” Pokemon game, then I’m sure you’re absolutely giddy about Pokemon Sun and Moon‘s impending launch. But you won’t have to wait until November 18 to try it out on your 3DS, because Nintendo and Game Freak will release a special demo for the game through the 3DS eShop on October 18.
Pokemon Sun and Moon’s “Special Demo Version” will introduce players to the game’s Alola region and features Ash-Greninja, a Pokemon that appears alongside Ash in Ash in the Pokemon XYZ animated series. Players who complete the demo will even be able to use Ash-Greninja in Pokemon Sun and Moon after its release.
In addition to the demo, a new trailer has revealed several new features for the game, including the evolved forms for the three Starter Pokemon. Another new feature that Pokemon players can expect to see is Festival Plaza, which will connect players with others playing online to battle, work together, and trade. Finally, the Poke Pelago lets Pokemon stored in a PC Box develop by exploring islands and tackling activities and challenges.
The trailer has been embedded above, and you can all about the evolved forms of the Starter Pokemon after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News
Tagged Pokemon Sun/Moon
New Retail Releases: Gears of War 4 Ultimate, Mafia III, Paper Mario Color Splash, More
After a brief surge in September, the “Fall Gaming Season” continues to ramp up with a trickle of big new releases during this first week of October.
It’s likely that none of this week’s new games will be bigger than Gears of War 4, which Microsoft is releasing in an Ultimate Edition ahead of its official launch next week. Fans will return to Sera alongside a new generation of heroes on the PC and Xbox One, and they’ll do it in style. The Ultimate Edition of Gears of War 4 will include a copy of the game, the Season Pass, and download codes for all four Gears of War games on the Xbox 360 (and yes, they’re backwards compatible).
If you’re looking to upgrade your Xbox One experience, Microsoft will also offer an Xbox One S 2TB + Gears of War 4 Limited Edition Console Bundle that includes a digital copy of the game, the Season Pass, download codes for the Xbox 360’s Gears of War title, and a custom “Crimson Omen” Xbox One S and Controller.
Not to be outdone, 2K Games will launch it’s own action epic that focuses on a new generation with Mafia III. Set to be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One, Mafia III is set more than 20 years after the second game in the franchise and relocates the action to New Bordeaux, a stand-in for New Orleans. Mixing the cultural upheaval caused by the Vietnam War with era-appropriate music, 2K wants to give a different kind of organized crime experience with Mafia III.
If you’re looking for something a bit more colorful, Nintendo will release Paper Mario: Color Splash for the Wii U this week. The RPG gives Mario a Paint Hammer and asks him to restore color to Prism Island. I don’t know if Nintendo was trying to make a comment on the current state of AAA games, but releasing Color Splash on the same day as Gears of War 4 is a rather obvious bit of counter-programming.
Finally this week, a trio of lower-profile games will be available on store shelves including Azure Striker Gunvolt: Striker Pack (a compilation of the 3DS platform shooter series from Inti Creates), Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide (a co-op survival game set in the Warhammer universe for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One), and Rocksmith 2014 Remastered (an updated version of the music tutor for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One).
That’s it for now, but we’ll be back later this week with details on all the new downloadable additions to the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS4, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged Azure Striker Gunvolt, Azure Striker Gunvolt 2, Gears of War 4, Mafia III, Paper Mario: Color Splash
Nintendo Download: Yo-Kai Watch 2, Azure Striker Gunvolt 2, Sonic Boom Fire & Ice, more
Nintendo’s versatile handheld steals the spotlight in this week’s Nintendo Download…
Leading things off is Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits and Yo-Kai Watch 2: Fleshy Souls, a pair of new 3DS games from Level-5. More than 350 troublemaking spirits will be added to the Yo-Kai universe in the sequel, and each game will include a batch of unique Yo-Kai. And Yo-Kai Watch fans will likely need all the help they can get, as players will have to travel back in time to save Springdale.
Also available for the 3DS this week is Azure Striker Gunvolt 2, the final featured title from Nintendo’s Nindies Summer Jam promotion. Developed by Inti Creates, Azure Striker Gunvolt 2 is a side-scrolling action/platformer that harkens back to the heyday of Super NES shooters.
However, if you were more of a Genesis fan in the early 90s, you grew up with Sonic the Hedgehog. And the Blue Blur is back this week in Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice, yet another 3DS game based on the new animated series.
Jumping over to the Wii U eShop, a pair of puzzling games are now available to download. First up, we’ve got Soul Axiom, a mysterious “cyber thriller” where players will have to unravel the mysteries of their digital afterlife to save the day. But a very different type of future can be glimpsed in Pikmin, the Wii original (which was itself a remake of the GameCube classic) that’s now available for the Wii U. Join Captain Olimar and his Pikmin pals and explore a strange new planet.
More information on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Azure Striker Gunvolt 2, Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice, Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits/Fleshy Souls
New Retail Releases: Forza Horizon 3, FIFA 17, Yo-Kai Watch 2, More
Soccer players (excuse me, footballers), racecar drivers, invisible Japanese spirits, a sneaker-wearing hedgehog, bloodthirsty aliens, and even bloodthirstier zombies highlight this week’s new release roundup…
FIFA 17 will be available in stores this week for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. In addition to a series of graphical upgrades and gameplay tweaks, the latest soccer simulation from EA Sports adds “The Journey,” a story-based single-player mode where players take control a teenager trying to make it in the Premier League.
Also new this week is Microsoft’s latest racing sim, Forza Horizon 3. The PC and Xbox One game recreates Australia as a playground for open-world racing, which players can dive into with more than 350 cars.
Away from the fast cars and furious footballers, Nintendo and Level-5 will release Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits and Yo-Kai Watch 2: Fleshy Souls. The creature-collecting games will include hundreds of new Yo-Kai, invisible spirits believed to exist out in the world. But with the game’s Yo-Kai Watch, players can see these supernatural creatures, and capture them.
Keeping with the otherworldly theme, 2K Games will bring XCOM 2 to the PS4 and Xbox One this week. After debuting on the PC earlier this year, the publisher is expanding the strategy game’s reach to new-generation consoles… and not a moment too soon. The alien invaders have enslaved humanity in the sequel and it’s up to players to guide the XCOM to victory against a foe that’s taken control of the Earth.
While the enemies of Dead Rising 2 are a bit dumber than a race of hyper-advanced aliens, they’re no less dangerous. Available this week for the PS4 and Xbox One, Dead Rising 2 was originally released for the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2010, but the re-release will still put a ravenous horde of undead between motocross racer Chuck Greene and the anti-zombie cure he needs for his daughter.
Hopefully, Chuck can avoid those zombies using Sonic-like speed, but a Blue Blur will be busy with Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice, which will be released this week for the 3DS.
Finally this week, Microsoft is cramming a free copy of Minecraft in with their newest Xbox One S 500GB Console Bundle. So if you’re interested in picking up an Xbox One S, and you love Minecraft, it’s a fairly good deal.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Dead Rising 2, FIFA 17, Forza Horizon 3, Minecraft, Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice, XCOM 2, Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits/Fleshy Souls
Nintendo Download: Severed, SMT4 Apocalypse, River City Tokyo Rumble, more
Summer might be over, but the Nindies Summer Jam rolls on with today’s selection… Severed. Available to download now for the Wii U, Severed is a touchscreen-based game from DrinkBox Studios where players take control of “a one-armed warrior named Sasha who wields a living sword” as she goes on a journey through “a nightmare world” in search of her family. Also available to download through the Wii U Shop this week is the slightly-more-normal Donkey Kong Country Returns, a side-scrolling platformer that was originally released for the Wii in 2010.
But “normal” is definitely not the word to describe Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse, an RPG now available to download for the 3DS. Players take control of a novice demon hunter who must battle for the very soul of humanity in a post-apocalyptic Tokyo… as one does.
Finally this week, a trio of beat ’em ups prove the genre is alive and well on the 3DS. First up, Final Fight 2 and Final Fight 3 made the jump from the Super NES to the handheld’s Virtual Console service. And River City: Tokyo Rumble will resurrect the famed franchise in a brand new adventure beginning on September 27.
More information on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Donkey Kong Country Returns, Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse
New Retail Releases: Destiny Collection, Killer Instinct Definitive, SMT4 Apocalypse, More
Believe it or not, but Bungie released the original version of Destiny nearly two years ago. After building up a devoted fanbase that continues to obsessively play the shooter to this day, the developer is gearing up to launch the final expansion this week. The Rise of Iron expansion will be available to download from the PlayStation Store and Xbox Games Store, but players who haven’t yet jumped into Destiny’s universe will be able to pick up Destiny: The Collection this week for the PS4 and Xbox One. In addition to the original game and Rise of Iron, The Collection will also include Expansion I: The Dark Below, Expansion II: House of Wolves, and The Taken King.
Killer Instinct made its debut during the Xbox One’s launch period, and it too will receive a collected edition this week. Killer Instinct: Definitive Edition will include all 26 characters and 20 stages from the game’s first three seasons, as well as a pair of bonus games (Killer Instinct Classic and Killer Instinct 2 Classic).
Fans of Japanese RPGs will also find a pair of new titles available on store shelves this week. Atlus will publish Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse, a side-story to the original Shin Megami Tensei IV, for the 3DS. And NIS America will bring a reworked version of Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters to the PS4.
Finally this week, the Air Conflicts: Double Pack, which contains Air Conflicts: Pacific Carriers and Air Conflicts: Vietnam, will be available for the PS4.
We’ll be back throughout the week with all the new additions to the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop.
Posted in 3DS, News, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Destiny, Killer Instinct, Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse
Madden NFL 17 rumbles its way to the end zone as the best-selling game of August 2016
A trio of new releases stood atop the NPD Group’s recounting of the best-selling games of August 2016, but Madden NFL 17 unsurprisingly took the top spot.
EA’s juggernaut is almost always unstoppable during the calendar’s eighth month, but it was equally unsurprising to see No Man’s Sky and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided take up residence at #2 and #3, respectively.
NPD analyst Sam Naji told GamesIndustry.biz: “The release of strong new titles such as Madden NFL 17, No Man’s Sky and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided bolstered console software dollar sales by 8%.”
The remainder of this month’s best-sellers included the usual mix of big titles from 2015 and 2016, with some Grand Theft Auto V (#4) and Minecraft (#9) tossed in for flavor.
A full look at August 2016’s best-selling games can be found after the break. (more…)
Nintendo Download: Dragon Quest 7, Noitu Love Devolution, WarioWare Smooth Moves, more
Copies of Dragon Warrior VII were rather hard to come by when the game was originally released for the PlayStation in 2001. But 15 years later, Nintendo and Square Enix are fixing that with the 3DS launch of Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past, which will be available to download from the 3DS eShop beginning tomorrow. The massive RPG has been “completely rebuilt from the ground up” for the handheld, so even experienced players may want to play it again.
Also new this week is Noitu Love: Devolution, the latest game in Nintendo’s Nindies Summer Jam promotion. Available to download for the Wii U and 3DS, Noitu Love is a side-scrolling platformer that asks players to save the city from an evil robot army lead by professor Darnacus Damnation.
Finally this week, WarioWare: Smooth Moves makes it Wii U debut as a downloadable title on the eShop. Originally released for the Wii back in 2007, WarioWare is packed with 200 insane minigames that ask players to “swing, spin, and squat” their way to victory.
More information on all of these games (and a few other new releases) can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U
Tagged Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past