Warp Zoned Presents
Most Recent: DS
A Eulogy For Guitar Hero: The Day the (Plastic) Music Died
A wise man once said that it’s far better to burn out than fade away. Apparently Activision agreed with the sentiment, as after a bit more than five years of rapid-fire releases, the company has shuttered the Guitar Hero franchise. Just 40 months ago the music gaming business was at its absolute peak – Guitar Hero III sold roughly 2.45 bazillion copies across a half-dozen platforms – but now the series is in complete shambles, what with the latest installment releasing with the authority of a farting ant. This legendary tumble from grace is no doubt why the company canceled the forthcoming Guitar Hero 7 and put the entire series on hold, perhaps permanently. Rather than harp on all that went wrong and led to its untimely demise, let’s discuss what went right – and what the future may hold if Activision dares to bring the music back. (more…)
Posted in DS, Features, Mobile, PS2, PS3, PSP, Top Story, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Guitar Hero: World Tour
First look at Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters
The Green Lantern movie, starring Ryan Reynolds, will be coming to a theater near you this June. But did you also know that WB Games has a game adaptation, titled Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters, in the works? Well, they do, and you can check out the game’s debut teaser trailer above.
Green Lantern: Rise of the Manhunters is being developed by Double Helix Games and will be available on the PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 sometime this Summer. A DS version is also in the works at Griptonite Games.
Pucca’s Kisses Game plants a wet one on the Wii Shop
This week’s Nintendo Download is getting into the spirit of Valentine’s Day thanks to the new WiiWare release Pucca’s Kisses Game.
Pucca’s Kisses Game is an “interactive cartoon” that tells the tale of a young woman in love with a ninja and the lengths she’ll go to to cover that ninja in kisses. It’s like a ninja love story!
While Pucca’s Kisses Game is the only WiiWare release this week, it’s joined by a trio of new games in the DSiWAre Shop. Treasure Hunter X is a platformer set in a treasure-filled cave; Oscar in Toyland 2 is a platformer on a mission for missing toys; and Panda Craze is a platformer starring a panda. If you love platformers, this week’s DSiWare update might be for you.
More information on all four of these games can be found after the break. (more…)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon game details, teaser trailer roll out
I’m sure you’re shocked, absolutely shocked, to discover that Activision is hard at work on a game adaptation of Transformers: Dark of the Moon. The trilogy-capping entry in the Transformers film saga will be released this Summer and Transformers: War For Cybertron developer High Moon Studios has been hard at work on the PS3 and Xbox 360 edition for about a year now. The developer used this weekend’s New York Toy Fair to tease out a few details of the game to IGN along with that nifty trailer above.
According to Game Director Sean Miller, Dark of the Moon will feel instantly familar to anyone that played War For Cybertron as the game will feature a similar control and gameplay scheme. It will also feature an online multiplayer mode similar to War For Cybertorn, although Miller wouldn’t confirm or deny any game modes beyond Deathmatch.
Instead of following the movie’s script, the Dark of the Moon game will act as a prequel to the film, taking players through Detroit, Siberia and other locations. There will also be a third transformation option, Stealth Force, that IGN joked didn’t look very stealthy.
The Transformers: Dark of the Moon film will be released in theaters on July 1st and you can expect the PS3/Xbox 360 game to launch in a similar timeframe. A DS/3DS/Wii version is also in the works at Behavior Interactive.
New Releases: Marvel vs Capcom 3, Dragon Quest VI, Hyperdimension Neptunia, More
This week it’s all about RPGs, except for the return of a favorite fighting franchise…
The Marvel and Capcom universes will be colliding in a battle for one-on-one fighting supremacy again with the release of Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds this week for the PS3 and Xbox 360.
But every other major release will be much more enticing to RPG fans everywhere including Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation on the DS. Once Dragon Quest VI makes its way into stores on the 14th, it’ll mark the final game in the franchise’s main series to make its way across the Pacific. It just took a little over 15 years.
And speaking RPGs that are hard to find in America, Square Enix is bringing Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together to the PSP this week. Tactics Ogre has always been hard to come by in collector’s circles, so this new version means that everyone who wants to play it will finally get the chance to.
Also available this week is Hyperdimension Neptunia for the PS3. The game tells the story of the console war as if it were a typical Japanese RPG. Oh yeah, and a nearly naked girl representing “Sega” is the hero. Man, how can you not love NIS America?
Finally, Frictional’s Amnesia: The Dark Descent, which was originally released in 2010, will receive a retail release this week.
The full list of the rest of this week’s new releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in DS, News, PC, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation, Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds
Activision reveals new Family Guy game, X-Men: First Class, “unprecedented” new universe
Activision was very busy during their quarterly financial briefing yesterday. In addition to canceling Guitar Hero 7 and True Crime: Hong Kong, the company revealed a few details about their 2011 (and beyond) schedule.
New Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg did most of talking. He began by reiterating that Call of Duty 8 is on track for a 2011 release and officially announced a free-to-play Call of Duty game for China, which will be released in 2012.
Continuing with the Call of Duty theme, Hirshberg revealed that a new Activision in-house studio, Beachhead, will be creating an “all-new digital platform for the Call of Duty franchise.” The system sounds very similar to Halo Waypoint and promises to “support in-game integration and bring online experiences and console play together.”
Activision also has a slew of licensed games in development for 2011 including three never-before-announced games: Family Guy, X-Men: First Class and Wipeout 2.
A Family Guy game was released by 2K Games to tepid reviews in 2006. X-Men: First Class will likely launch alongside the film in June with the Silicon Knights-developed X-Men: Destiny still on track for a late 2011 release. And for those confused about Wipeout 2, it’s not the futuristic racing franchise, but a second game based on ABC’s obstacle course game show.
Several previously announced 2011 games, including Transformers: Dark of the Moon, a new Spider-Man game, more Cabela’s Hunting titles and a new Bakugan game were also discussed.
Bungie’s New Universe was briefly mentioned, but only to confirm that it won’t launch until 2012 at the earliest.
Finally, Hirshberg announced that Activision will be unveiling “an all-new gaming universes that brings together the worlds of toys, video games and online play.” in two days at the New York Toy Fair. Activision will release the game based on this new universe in the second half of 2011 and calls the franchise an “unprecedented” merging of different media.
Wow. We’ll likely learn more about a lot of these titles at E3.
Posted in 3DS, DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PSP, Vita, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Call of Duty Online, Destiny, Family Guy: Back to the Multiverse, Spider-Man: Edge of Time
Weekly Nintendo Download features Spot the Differences!, SCAT, more
As a young kid in the 80s, I knew even then that S.C.A.T. was an… odd… name for a game. Thankfully, the NES game didn’t involve bodily waste and instead was a shooter in the Contra mold. Anyway, this is all just to say that S.C.A.T. (which stood for Special Cybernetic Attack Team) is available on the Virtual Console this week.
Spot the Differences!, a picture comparing game, is the lone WiiWare original this week. Although demo versions of Lit and Urbanix will be available to download from the Wii Shop Channel as well.
The DSiWare Shop will receive a quartet of new games this week: G.G Series: Dark Spirits, a side-scrolling shooter; Boom Boom Squaries, a puzzle game; 505 Tangram, another puzzle game; and Shawn Johnson Gymnastics, a gymnastics simulator.
More information on all of these titles can be found after the break. (more…)
New Releases: Mario Sports Mix, Test Drive Unlimited 2, You Don’t Know Jack, More
After you’re done watching the Packers and Steelers in tomorrow’s Super Bowl, Mario and friends has five more sports for you to enjoy with Mario Sports Mix on the Wii.
Also available this week is Atari’s open world racer Test Drive Unlimited 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360) and the return of the irreverent trivia series You Don’t Know Jack (DS, PC, PS3, Wii, Xbox 360).
Speaking of returns, Dr. Kawashima is back in the brain training game with Body and Brain Connection, an Xbox 360 Kinect exclusive. And finally, Tecmo Koei plans to release Trinity: Souls of Zill O’ll, an action RPG for the PS3.
The full list of the rest of this week’s new releases can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in DS, News, PC, PS3, Wii, Xbox 360
Tagged Mario Sports Mix, Test Drive Unlimited 2