All Articles: Splatoon

Tonight’s Splatoon update will add eight new weapons to the game

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Almost three months after delivering the final “major” update to Splatoon, Nintendo is putting the final brush strokes on a “minor” update to the game. The “Version 2.7.0 Update” will go live at 10:00 PM (Eastern Time) tonight and apply a number of bug fixes and adjustments to Splatoon. The patch will also include “Sheldon’s Picks Volume 1,” a new series of weapons that can be purchased from the Ammo Knights weapon shop.

Naturally, the ever-reliable Squid Research Lab is on the case with details and screenshots for all eight new weapons including the Wasabi Splattershot, Berry Splattershot Pro, Fresh Squiffer, Permanent Inkbrush, Soda Slosher, Bamboozler 14 Mk III, Tempered Dynamo Roller, and Refurbished Mini Splatling.

Full patch notes for the “Version 2.7.0 Update” will be available on Nintendo.com shortly.

Posted in News, Wii U | Tagged

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt wins “Game of the Year” at 2016 SXSW Gaming Awards

sxsw-logoCD Projekt’s The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was on target once again as it collected another “Game of the Year” win this weekend at the SXSW Gaming Awards. In addition to its big win, The Witcher 3 won two other awards: “Excellence in Technical Achievement” and “Excellence in Narrative.”

The Witcher 3 faced stiff competition from several of last year’s other big releases, including Bloodborne and Rise of the Tomb Raider, both of which won a pair of 2016 SXSW Gaming Awards. From Software’s gothic RPG was recognized for its gorgeous environments in the “Excellence in Art” and “Excellence in Design” categories. Meanwhile, Lara Croft herself was named “Most Enduring Character” and her tomb raiding skills were honored with an “Excellence in Animation” win.

Finally, Her Story picked up some more hardware this weekend, winning SXSW’s “Mobile Game of the Year” award.

A complete look at all of this year’s winners can be found after the break. (more…)

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Splatoon’s first global Splatfest will pit Pokemon Blue fans against Pokemon Red fans

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Get ready! Splatoon‘s next Splatfest is going global to celebrate Pokemon’s 20th anniversary.

For the first time ever, players in North America, Europe, and Japan will be asked to make the same choice before the Splatfest begins. And it’s one that will certainly resonate with a big portion of the game-playing public… do you prefer Pokemon Blue or Pokemon Red? Players can pledge their loyalty to either game in Inkopolis Plaza right now, with the Splatfest scheduled to begin on Saturday, February 20, at 1:00 AM (Eastern Time). Like the other Splatfests, the contest will be open for 24 hours and conclude on Sunday, February 21, at 1:00 AM (Eastern Time).

Players will get matched with other players from their region, and a winner will be chosen for each region. So what are you waiting for? Go splat ’em all!

Posted in News, Wii U | Tagged

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt nabs eight nominations at 2016 SXSW Gaming Awards

sxsw-logoSouth by Southwest Gaming recently announced the nominees for this year’s SXSW Gaming Awards and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, not surprisingly, has captured the most accolades. CD Projekt’s sprawling RPG is up for eight awards, including “Game of the Year.” It was also nominated for “Excellence in Gameplay,” “Excellence in Art,” “Excellence in Technical Achievement,” “Excellence in Visual Achievement,” “Excellence in Narrative,” “Excellence in Musical Score,” and “Most Enduring Character.”

Competing against Geralt of Rivia for “Game of the Year” is a familiar-looking quartet of games including Bloodborne, Fallout 4, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, and Undertale. Bloodborne was actually a close second to The Witcher 3 with seven nominations.

Who wins at the 2016 SXSW Gaming Awards will be determined in part by a public vote that will hosted by IGN from Monday, February 1 through Friday, February 12. The winners will be announced on Saturday, March 19 at 9:00 PM (Eastern Time) and you can watch it live on Twitch.

The complete list of this year’s nominees can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Splatoon’s final new map, Ancho-V Games, is now available to download

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Nintendo aped Steam’s Early Access model when they launched Splatoon nearly nine months ago. During its first few weeks of availability, the game had relatively few maps and an even fewer number of game modes. But Nintendo slowly and steadily added new content to the game through a series of free updates… ultimately offering more weapons, more modes, and more maps at regular intervals. But that all came to an end this week with the release of “Ancho-V Games,” Splatoon’s final new map.

Here’s what the always-entertaining Squid Research Lab had to say about the map:

The setting this time around is inside the offices of the developers of hit indie games like “Squid Jump.” Keep an eye out for some of the jellyfish development team, hard at work (and under a strict NDA!) on their next title. Hope they don’t mind the mess!

One feature of this stage are the PC-fan shaped propellers that can be inked to move portions of the floor. Use these to exploit the stage’s verticality and gain the high ground over your opponents. What role do these things play in game development, anyway?

It’s been quite a ride for Splatoon and the many players who populate its ink-filled arenas. I’m sure the game’s lobbies will stay crowded for a long time, and it looks like the consolemaker will continue to offer monthly Splatfest events for the foreseeable future.

Nintendo has a fantastic new franchise on their hands with Splatoon, and I can’t wait to see where it goes next.

Posted in News, Wii U | Tagged

Splatoon’s next Splatfest will pit the Flintstones against the Jetsons… sort of

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Nintendo has announced the theme for Splatoon‘s upcoming North American Splatfest… “Would You Rather Travel to the Past or the Future?”

Scheduled to take place on Saturday, January 16, this Splatfest is basically asking participants to pledge allegiance to their favorite fictional universe. Did you prefer Back to the Future or Back to the Future Part II? Would you side with Sarah Connor or the technological terror that is The Terminator? And do you consider yourself a Jetsons junkie or a Flintstones fan? Though there was that time the Jetsons met the Flintstones…

It really is a tough decision. Thankfully, the Squid Research Lab has compiled a list of pros and cons to help you make your choice.

Posted in News, Wii U | Tagged

Warp Zoned’s 2015 Golden Pixel Awards: Honoring Our Favorite Games From Last Year

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The conventional wisdom will tell you that 2015 was a down year for games and that all the good stuff got pushed back to 2016. But how can you trust the conventional wisdom when last year featured a ridiculously entertaining string of good games starring kid squids, gothic hunters, glitchy sci-fi heroes, and the lone survivor of a nuclear war. And all that’s before you dip into the millions of user-created levels from Super Mario Maker.

Yup, we think 2015 was a pretty great year for games, especially the ones that took home some hardware during our annual Golden Pixel Awards… (more…)

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Nintendo is adding two new stages to Splatoon soon: Piranha Pit and Ancho-V Games

Splatoon‘s absurd sense of humor has been one of the shooter’s strongest selling points, and this new “Squid Dance” trailer is no exception. And not only can you get your groove on with the Inklings in the one minute and 40 second clip, but you can also get a glimpse at two new stages: “Piranha Pit” and “Ancho-V Games.”

More screenshots are available at Splatoon’s Tumblr page, but I think “Piranha Pit” looks a little like those floating atolls from Kevin Costner’s Waterworld. And “Ancho-V Games” looks to take place inside the loft office of an Inkopolis-based video game developer.

We don’t know when “Piranha Pit” and “Ancho-V Games” will be available in Splatoon, but we do know a small Maintenance Update will be applied tonight from 7:50 PM to 9:00 PM (Eastern Time).

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