Warp Zoned Presents
Most Recent: Wii U
Igarashi teams up with 505 Games to publish Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
In the latest Kickstarter update for Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, Koji “Iga” Igarashi has announced that he’s signed an agreement with 505 Games to publish the side-scrolling “IgaVania” game. To seal the partnership, “Iga” sat down to showcase some new footage from the game in the trailer embedded above.
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night will be released sometime in 2018 for the PC, PS4, Vita, Wii U, and Xbox One.
Rain Games might release World to the West on Nintendo NX
Rain Games will release World to the West, an overhead action-adventure game, for the PC, PS4, Wii U, and Xbox One in Early 2017. But during a recent interview with Miketendo64, the developer hinted the game might also be released for Nintendo’s NX next year:
Artist Ole Ivar Rudi spilled the proverbial beans during this exchange:
Miketendo64: “Since World to the West will be coming to the Wii U, and the NX is set to release next year, are there any plans to release it on the NX as well?”
Ole Ivar Rudi: “Hehe, gotta keep answers straight here. As we mentioned earlier it’s very unlikely to come out on 3DS, but it *will *show up on additional platforms. Maybe even another Nintendo platform, but our lips are sealed though.”
World to the West is a sequel to Teslagrad, a side-scrolling puzzle-platformer that’s now available for the PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, and Xbox One. The developer clearly has experience working with many different platforms, but they also have a fairly cozy relationship with Nintendo (the consolemaker demoed the Wii U version of World to the West at PAX West this year).
With all this evidence, I’d be shocked if World to the West doesn’t make its way to the NX eventually.
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
Max Brooks is writing an “Official” Minecraft novel for Mojang
There are lots of novels based on Minecraft on the shelves at your local bookstore, but Mojang has announced they’ve partnered with Max Brooks to produce a series of official novels based on the blockbuster game.
Brooks is best known as the author of World War Z, an “Oral History of the Zombie War” that was recently adapted into a movie starring Brad Pitt. But Brooks is also the author of The Harlem Hellfighters (which features many of the same events and people as this Fall’s Battlefield 1) and The Zombie Survival Guide. He’s also the son of legendary parodist Mel Brooks and Oscar-winning actress Anne Bancroft.
The first novel will be titled Minecraft: The Island, and according to Mojang Blog, readers should expect “cuboid Robinson Crusoe, but madder: a hero stranded in an unfamiliar land, with unfamiliar rules, learning to survive against tremendous odds.”
“I’m very excited to be part of this new venture,” Brooks said. “Finally I can justify all those hours I’ve spent playing Minecraft.”
“From our first meeting with Max, we knew he would be a perfect fit for our first foray into novels based on Minecraft,” said Lydia Winters, the Brand Director at Mojang. “His enthusiasm and understanding of all things related to the game bring out the sense of wonder and possibility that so many players love about Minecraft… ourselves included.”
We don’t know when Minecraft: The Island will be released, but we do know it’ll be published by Del Rey Books.
Playtonic digs up a cameo for Shovel Knight in Yooka-Laylee
Playtonic plans to pack their upcoming 3D platformer, Yooka-Laylee, with a ton of quirky and colorful characters. In addition to the original characters Playtonic is creating for the game, Yooka-Laylee will also feature a guest appearance by the one and only Shovel Knight! You can get your first peek at the chivalrous character in Yooka-Laylee’s latest trailer, which has been embedded above. It’ll also give fans a chance to reintroduce themselves to the villainous Capital B, the cunning Trowzer, and many others…
- Capital B – Cunning bizzness executive Capital B is the CEO of diabolical corporation Hivory towers, which has recently joined forces with ingenious tech firm Quack Corp. Together, they’re about to launch their most devious scheme yet: To absorb all of the world’s books and take over the world!
- Trowzer – The serpent salesman claims to be the most skilled and knowledgeable character in the game, though Laylee suspects he’s little more than a dodgy dealer. During their adventure, Yooka and Laylee can purchase advanced manoeuvres from Trowzer’s travelling moves shop.
- Dr. Quack – The former partner of Dr. Puzz, Quack’s increasingly wild experiments lead him down the path of corruption. Now fully clad in a not-so-hi-tech “biosuit,” the “good” doctor uses his scientific expertise to power up Hivory Towers’ Corplet employees
- Dr. Puzz – A hapless scientist who’s experience more than her share of tentacle – erm “technical” issues, Dr. Puzz will use her D.N.Ray to transform Yooka and Laylee into a plethora of crazy critters and help them on their adventure.
Yooka-Laylee will be released for the PC, PS4, Wii U, and Xbox One in Early 2017.
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
If Link can cook, so can you in the latest Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild mini-trailer
Link is going to have plenty of dinner options when The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is released for the Wii U and Nintendo NX next year. In the game, players will be able to find food and cook it to restore Hearts, but certain foods will contain special ingredients that can temporarily boost Link’s resistance or stamina. Some of these superfoods are on display in the latest mini-trailer for Breath of the Wild:
— Nintendo of Europe (@NintendoEurope) September 20, 2016
To give you an idea of how food conveys bonuses in Breath of the Wild, Link received ten minutes of “Cold Resistance” after eating a Spicy Pepper in the trailer. But not all foods are recommended by Hyrule’s equivalent of the Food and Drug Administration. If Link adds a Hylian Shroom to his pot, he’ll scoop out a bowl of “Dubious Food” and receive the message: “Eating it won’t hurt you… probably.”
I don’t think Nintendo would send Link on a bad trip… but you never know. Maybe his buddy Mario can offer him some advice on the proper preparation of mushrooms.
Posted in News, Switch, Wii U
Tagged The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild