Warp Zoned Presents
Most Recent: 3DS
Penny-Punching Princess, Toki Tori, Clusterpuck 99, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week
It’s Thursday, so it’s time for another Nintendo eShop update…
This week, NIS America will bring Penny-Punching Princess, an isometric brawler with a capitalist streak, to the Nintendo Switch on Tuesday, April 3.
If you’re a Switch owner who’s also a fan of JRPGs, you’ll be able to download Koei Tecmo’s Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings right now. And Coatsink Software’s Clusterpuck 99, an insane spin on air hockey (with spikes, speed boosts, and more), is also available to download for the platform now.
Finally, one of Two Tribes’s earliest side-scrolling platformers, Toki Tori, will launch for the Switch on March 30 (AKA, tomorrow).
You can learn more about all of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Switch, Wii U
Tagged Penny-Punching Princess
Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age will be released in North America for PC and PS4 on September 4
Dragon Quest fans have been patiently waiting for any information about the North American launch of the eleventh game in the series since its release in Japan last year. This morning, Square Enix finally gave us an official release date to add to our calendars.
Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age will be released for the PC and PS4 on September 4. Sadly, the 3DS version of the game won’t be released in North America, and the Switch version still has a long way to go. The publisher clarified the business reasons behind this decision in a statement made to IGN:
In a statement, Square Enix told IGN: “Our aim with Dragon Quest XI and the Dragon Quest brand is to grow the audience in the West. From a business point of view, it made strategic sense to release the 3DS version in Japan in 2017. For the West in 2018, it made the most sense to focus on the PlayStation 4 and PC (Steam) platforms.”
As for the Switch version, things are slightly less clear. “We are also developing the Switch version for Europe and North America,” reads Square Enix’s statement, “but development is expected to take a long time from a technological standpoint as well, so we still have a long way to go until its release”.
But on a happier note, we received a new gameplay trailer this morning (which has been embedded above), and the Dragon Quest franchise’s creative team (Series Creator Yuji Horii, Character Designer Akira Toriyama, and Composer Koichi Sugiyama) all returned for Dragon Quest XI. And Square Enix also confirmed the turn-based RPG will include several new features exclusive to North America/Europe:
Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age – North American Features
- English Voiceover
- Draconian Quest – A hard mode that offers additional challenges for more experienced players.
- Overhauled Menus & UI – With graphical enhancements and more intuitive navigation.
- Camera Mode – Allowing players to take in views of the beautiful landscape, character renders and ferocious monsters in detail.
- A New Dash Function and many other system enhancements such as improved character and camera movement
Finally, you can get a look at the Opening Movie for Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age, which can be found after the break. (more…)
World Video Game Hall of Fame announces finalists for Class of 2018
Curators at the International Center for the History of Electronic Games and the Strong Museum have announced the finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2018. Eight games will get their first chance to be inducted into gaming’s inner circle, including Asteroids, Call of Duty, Dance Dance Revolution, Half-Life, King’s Quest, Metroid, Ms. Pac-Man, and Spacewar!.
Two other games, Final Fantasy VII and Tomb Raider, were previously in the finalist pool for the Class of 2017. They’ll get another chance this year alongside John Madden Football and Minecraft, which were previously on the ballot in 2016.
The World Video Game Hall of Fame will announce the inductees for the Class of 2018 on Thursday, May 3, at 10:30 AM. But this year, fans will get a vote in the first-ever Player’s Choice ballot. According to the rules, “the three games that receive the most public votes will form one “Player’s Choice” ballot, which will join the 27 other ballots submitted by members of the International Selection Advisory Committee, a supporting group composed of journalists, scholars, and other individuals familiar with the history of video games and their role in society.” Fans can make their voice heard through the Player’s Choice ballot once a day until April 4th. So vote early and vote often!
And if, for some reason, you’re unfamiliar with this year’s finalists, the World Video Game Hall of Fame has put together a helpful cheat sheet that can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Retro, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Final Fantasy VII, Minecraft, Ms. Pac-Man, Tomb Raider (1996), World Video Game Hall of Fame
New Retail Releases: Far Cry 5, MLB The Show 18, The Alliance Alive, More
A nonet of new releases will be available to purchase from your favorite gaming establishment this week…
Ubisoft is leading the way this week with the launch of Far Cry 5, the latest game in their open-world shooter franchise. This time, players will have to infiltrate a doomsday cult and rescue the citizens of Hope County, Montana from the violent followers of “The Father.” As you might expect, Far Cry 5 will be available for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Far Cry 5 includes a nice variety of vehicles, and racing fans will get to explore an even bigger garage in THQ Nordic’s MX Vs ATV: All Out for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. MX Vs ATV: All Out will include several different race types (Supercross, Nationals, Opencross, Waypoint, Tag, and more), as well as stunt tracks, and online multiplayer.
Baseball fans will also get the chance to play ball this week with Sony’s annual entry in the MLB The Show series, MLB The Show 18, for the PS4.
If you’re looking for something a little off the beaten path, a big batch of JRPGs will also make their way to North America this week. Atlus will launch The Alliance Alive for the 3DS; Koei Tecmo’s Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings closes out the “Mysterious” saga on the PS4 and Switch; NIS America will release The Witch and the Hundred Knight 2 for the PS4; and Aksys will pull double duty with Code Realize: Bouquet of Flowers for the PS4 and Code Realize: Future Blessings for the Vita.
Finally this week, WB Games and NetherRealm Studios will launch the Injustice 2: Legendary Edition for the PS4 and Xbox One. The Legendary Edition will package together the original game, as well as every extra character from the Fighter Packs, and exclusive new content.
That’s it for this week’s New Retail Releases report, but we’ll be back in a few days with a look at all the upcoming additions to the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop.
Detective Pikachu, The Alliance Alive, Outlast II, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week
This week’s Nintendo eShop update is a bit smaller than normal, but Nintendo still wants to “clue” 3DS owners in on the upcoming release of Detective Pikachu on March 23. The mystery adventure will give the famed Pokemon a voice for the first time, and players will need to help him investigate the strange occurrences happening all over Ryme City.
3DS owners will also get the chance to download a new RPG from Atlus, The Alliance Alive, beginning on March 27. In The Alliance Alive, Daemons invaded the world of Humans over a thousand years ago. But a resistance is forming and players will need to band together a team of rebels and take back the world.
Speaking of demons, Switch owners will be able to download Outlast II beginning on March 27. Red Barrels’s first-person sequel introduces new characters and a creepy doomsday cult in this horror adventure. But if you’re looking for a few cute demons, isometric horror puzzler Slayaway Camp: Butcher’s Cut is now available to download for the Switch.
You can learn more about all of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Switch
Tagged Detective Pikachu, Outlast II
New Retail Releases: Sea of Thieves, Ni No Kuni II, Detective Pikachu, More
Game publishers love to launch highly-anticipated new games just before the end of a financial quarter, so we’ve got a bounty of new games to choose from in this week’s New Retail Releases report.
Leading the way is Sea of Thieves, a multiplayer pirate simulation for the Xbox One from Microsoft and Rare. But if you’d rather explore a different kind of world, Bandai Namco and Level-5 will bring Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom, an RPG sequel created in conjunction with animators from Studio Ghibli, to the PS4. Even players who are still attached to their 3DS handhelds will have new options this week with Nintendo’s launch of Detective Pikachu.
Several multiplatform titles will also make their way onto store shelves this week including Hazelight’s co-op prison break sim, A Way Out (PS4, Xbox One); MLB Advanced Media’s retro-styled baseball game, RBI Baseball 18 (PS4, Xbox One); and Koei Tecmo’s second adaptation of the Attack On Titan anime, Attack On Titan 2 (PS4, Switch, Xbox One).
Finally this week, THQ Nordic will bring back Titan Quest in an upgraded new re-release for the PS4 and Xbox One. And Badland Games will make Velocity 2X: Critical Mass Edition available on retail shelves for the PS4 and Vita.
That’s it for this week’s New Retail Releases report, but we’ll be back in a few days with a look at all the upcoming additions to the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop.
Posted in 3DS, News, PS4, Switch, Vita, Xbox One
Tagged A Way Out, Attack On Titan 2, Detective Pikachu, Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom, RBI Baseball 18, Sea of Thieves
Flinthook, Earthlock: Festival of Magic, Bleed 2, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week
We don’t know what Nintendo has planned for tonight’s Nintendo Direct presentation, but it looks like 18 new games will be available to download from the Switch eShop over the next few days.
Leading the way (because the hero carries a grappling hook) is Flinthook, a roguelike side-scrolling platformer from Tribute Games. Available to download tomorrow, players will get to take control of the famed space pirate, Captain Flinthook, and board ships to steal booty.
But set to launch for the Switch today is Earthlock: Festival of Magic, a turn-based RPG from Snowcastle Games that was inspired by the first wave of 3D RPGs from the late 90s. Also available to download today is Bleed 2, a manic side-scrolling shooter from Bootdisk Revolution.
You can learn more about all of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Switch
Tagged Earthlock: Festival of Magic, Flinthook
The Games of March 2018
Welcome to March, you’re cordially invited to a party for the Nintendo Switch’s first anniversary. While fans surely have plenty of backlogged Switch games to keep them busy, the consolemaker also has one new game on their schedule to mark this milestone. And if you’re a Switch owner, and you’re on the lookout for a new game, you might be interested in Kirby Star Allies.
Kirby’s adventures always feature a unique art style, and that’s something that’s very much in vogue with a few other games set to launch this month including The Behemoth’s Pit People and Level-5’s Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom. Elsewhere on the release calendar, after a short delay, it looks like Ubisoft is ready to delve deep into the heart of a doomsday cult in Far Cry 5.
Why is the Warp Zoned staff looking forward to these games? You can find out after the break, along with a complete release schedule for all of this month’s new releases. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Features, Mobile, PC, PS4, Switch, Top Story, Vita, Xbox One
Tagged Far Cry 5, Kirby Switch, Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom, Pit People