Game Preservation All Articles - Page 1

Villager catching Mario in his net in the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U game Super Smash Bros.
News

3DS and Wii U Online Service Shutdown Date Revealed

Nintendo has officially revealed the date on which 3DS and Wii U online services will cease. In a post on its official website, the Japanese gaming giant reveals that online play and other online…

January 24, 2024 | 04:16 EST

A 3D representation of Mama, one of the ghost-like characters in Nier Reincarnation
News

Nier Reincarnation to Shut Down in April, Final Chapter Coming in March

Square Enix has announced that Nier Reincarnation will end service in March, after one last story chapter has been released. In a blog post on the official Nier Reincarnation website, Square Enix…

January 23, 2024 | 04:35 EST

A shot of The 400 Mini and its box alongside the classic Atari CX40 joystick recreation
News

Retro Mini-Machine The 400 Mini Recreates the Delights of the Atari 400 in March

Plaion and Retro Games have announced The 400 Mini, a new mini-console that aims to recreate the retro stylings of the late-70s Atari 400 computer. Launching in March, the machine will feature 25…

January 11, 2024 | 10:21 EST

Heavily stylized concept art for a character from the PlatinumGames title World of Demons, which is being delisted
News

World of Demons To Be Delisted Later This Month, PlatinumGames Reveals

Apple Arcade-exclusive hack-and-slash game World of Demons is to be delisted later this month, developer PlatinumGames has revealed. No reason for the game's delisting was given. In a rather short…

January 5, 2024 | 08:44 EST

A car skidding around a corner in Gran Turismo Sport
News

Gran Turismo Sport Delisted From PlayStation Store Without Warning

Gran Turismo Sport has been delisted from the PlayStation Store, meaning you can no longer purchase the game digitally. The delisting was first spotted by Reddit user MrBillz, whose post also…

January 2, 2024 | 12:45 EST

Three 3D renders of the scrapped character Walpeach, originally intended for the GameCube game Mario Power Tennis
News

Waluigi Creator Shares Scrapped "Walpeach" Character Design for Mario Power Tennis

Waluigi creator Fumihide Aoki has shared renders and sketches for a scrapped Mario Power Tennis character known as "Walpeach". The designs were discovered on Aoki-san's personal Instagram account by…

December 1, 2023 | 10:39 EST

Terra hugging a moogle while Kain Highwind looks on in Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia
News

Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia Is Shutting Down in February

Square Enix has announced that mobile RPG Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia is shutting down in February. In a post on the game's official X (formerly known as Twitter) account, the publisher…

November 29, 2023 | 03:57 EST

Coco holding her laptop and grinning in the midst of a futuristic city in the Activision Blizzard game Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time, to which Ubisoft now has cloud streaming rights
News

Ubisoft Exec Says Physical Media Will Never "Completely Go Away"

Ubisoft may have acquired the cloud streaming rights to Activision Blizzard's catalog, but that doesn't mean the company believes physical media is going away. That's according to a new Ubisoft News…

October 13, 2023 | 10:49 EDT

An imposing-looking Space Marine-like figure in Warhammer 40k: Inquisitor - Martyr
News

Warhammer 40k: Inquisitor - Martyr Isn't Being Delisted, Offline Mode On The Way

Warhammer 40k: Inquisitor - Martyr developer Neocore Games has taken to Steam to discuss the future of the game. In a post on the game's Steam page earlier today, Neocore addressed rumors that a…

October 6, 2023 | 09:54 EDT

An Inkling looking at the camera confidently in Splatoon, a Wii U game, meant to mark the passing of the Wii U and 3DS online services
News

Nintendo Announces Wii U And 3DS Online Service Shutdown For April

Nintendo has announced that Wii U and 3DS online services are to shut down in the coming months. Per an official announcement, from April next year, you won't be able to play Wii U and 3DS games,…

October 4, 2023 | 03:39 EDT

Two racers clasping arms with the Gran Turismo Sport logo in the foreground
News

Gran Turismo Sport Servers To Shut Down Next Year

Sony has announced that Gran Turismo Sport servers are to shut down in January next year, ending access to several of the game's online features. In a post on the official Gran Turismo website, Sony…

September 29, 2023 | 10:24 EDT

Jude Bellingham in EA Sports FC 24, the successor to the FIFA series, which has been delisted from digital storefronts
News

EA Has Removed The Entire FIFA Series From Digital Storefronts

EA has seemingly removed every single FIFA game from digital storefronts just a couple of days ahead of the upcoming release of EA Sports 24. As spotted by ResetEra user nolifebr, every FIFA game…

September 27, 2023 | 08:33 EDT

Marcus, Dom, Cole, and Baird from Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, which is a remaster of the Xbox 360 game Gears of War
News

Xbox 360 Store To Close Next July, Microsoft Announces

Microsoft has announced that the Xbox 360 store is to close its doors for good next year. According to a post on the official Xbox site, the Xbox 360 store will close down on July 29th, after which…

August 17, 2023 | 09:33 EDT

Steve Cottam against Manic Miner
Feature

Steve Cottam of Antstream Talks Nostalgia, Retro Games, and Streaming

This Friday Antstream Arcade expands their streaming service of 1,300+ retro titles to the Xbox family of consoles. With Antstream Arcade, an extensive catalog of arcade and other retro titles all…

July 21, 2023 | 10:03 EDT

Duke Nukem Forever sidescrolling screenshot with the King himself.

2D Sidescrolling Version of Duke Nukem Forever Leaked

It's a really good time to be a Duke Nukem fan, as another version of Duke Nukem Forever was leaked on Christmas day. First, we had the early versions of Duke Nukem Forever leak earlier this year--…

December 27, 2022 | 11:05 EST

The Epic Games logo over a shot of Rock Band Blitz
News

Epic Is Turning Off Servers For Unreal And Rock Band Games

Epic Games has announced that it will be sunsetting online services for various "older" games in its catalog. These include Rock Band and Unreal titles, as well as a handful of other Epic games you…

December 14, 2022 | 12:44 EST

Several characters wielding rifles in Hitman Sniper: The Shadows, one of the Onoma mobile games being delisted
News

Deus Ex And Hitman Mobile Games To Be Delisted Next Week

Four Onoma (formerly Square Enix Montreal) mobile games are to be delisted next week. The delisting, which applies to games from major franchises like Deus Ex and Hitman, doesn't just mean you won't…

November 23, 2022 | 09:43 EST

The Postal Dude holding a remote control and looking at the Postal 3 title screen
News

Postal 3 Delisted On Steam Due To DRM Problems

Unless you're a huge Postal fan, you might be pretty ambivalent about whether you want to see Postal 3 delisted from Steam, given its bad reputation. Still, that's exactly what's happened;…

November 21, 2022 | 10:53 EST

Screenshot from Google.play of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, where the player stands within the castle and it tells the player what the objective is: Jump, slash and dash your way through the castle.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night Handheld Port Unearthed

Footage of a Castlevania: Symphony of the Night handheld port that was never released has surfaced, and it has us pretty pumped, to say the least. The video brings back memories that we didn't even…

October 24, 2022 | 11:51 EDT

A player aiming at a monster (also controlled by a player) in Evolve
News

2K Looking At Evolve Revival As Fans Keep The Game Alive

Ill-fated multiplayer shooter Evolve could be revived, as 2K has acknowledged the diligent work of fans in keeping the game alive. 2K says it "hear[s] and appreciate[s]" the feedback from players…

October 21, 2022 | 10:37 EDT

Three marines walking towards the camera in Warhammer 40,000: Regicide
News

Warhammer 40,000: Regicide Delisted And Servers Closed

Without any prior warning, gory chess game Warhammer 40,000: Regicide has been delisted from Steam and mobile storefronts. The game's servers have also been shut down, and although offline play…

October 20, 2022 | 11:27 EDT

Fighting an enemy in Silent Hill
Feature

Where Can I Play Silent Hill This October?

Ah, October. In many parts of the U.S. the leaves are turning, the air is getting cooler, people are putting up their Halloween decorations, and survival horror fans are looking for the perfect game…

October 10, 2022 | 12:00 EDT

Mega Man leaping across platforms in the PSP game Mega Man Powered Up
News

Mega Man Powered Up Servers Shutting Down In November

Capcom has announced that it's shutting down the Mega Man Powered Up servers this November. This decision means that all of the user-created content in the game's level editor will be deleted, as…

September 23, 2022 | 10:59 EDT

A character kneeling before a demonic queen in Ascend: Hand of Kul
News

Ascend: Hand Of Kul Is Coming Back After Being Delisted

Remember Xbox 360 free-to-play title Ascend: Hand of Kul? It was an action RPG released back in 2013 and swiftly delisted in late 2014, meaning nobody can play it anymore. However, developer Signal…

September 6, 2022 | 11:24 EDT

A car skidding around a dirt track in Project Cars 2
News

Project Cars Games Being Delisted Due To Licensing Issues

Slightly Mad Studios has announced that Project Cars and Project Cars 2 will be delisted later this year. They're being removed from sale due to licensing issues, but you'll still be able to play…

August 22, 2022 | 12:07 EDT

The Analogue Pocket retro console
News

Analogue Pocket 1.1 Update Beta Arrives With New Features

The long-awaited Analogue Pocket 1.1 update beta is finally here, and it's bringing some cool new game preservation-related features with it. These features include the debut of the openFPGA system,…

July 29, 2022 | 12:17 EDT

Kratos in God of War Ragnarok
Opinions

Why Does the God of War Ragnarok Jotnar Edition Not Include a Physical Disc?

Arguably the most anticipated PlayStation 4 / PlayStation 5 game of the year, God of War Ragnarok will be hitting consoles on November 9. Those who have been eagerly awaiting to purchase a special…

July 18, 2022 | 11:00 EDT

A banner image for Computer The Golf, one of the early Falcom classics being translated by fan group The Geofront
News

Fans Are Translating The Earliest Falcom Games

Fan translation group The Geofront has announced that it will release fan translations of "the oldest jewels in the Falcom crown". Starting with 1983's Computer The Golf, The Geofront will translate…

July 15, 2022 | 10:53 EDT

No on Assassins Creed Liberation Digital Distributions and Downloads Bad
Opinions

Gaming has a Digital Distribution Problem

The recent news regarding the removal of Assassins Creed: Liberation HD from the Steam store has certainly stoked the fires of debate once more online. Many seemed surprised Ubisoft would remove…

July 12, 2022 | 12:00 EDT

An image of the StudioCanal property American Gods, overlaid with the PlayStation and StudioCanal logos
News

Sony Deleting Content From PlayStation Libraries

Sony is removing some StudioCanal content from users' PlayStation libraries in certain territories, meaning those users won't be able to view that content anymore. The removal will take effect in…

July 7, 2022 | 10:03 EDT

Several Xbox gaming icons alongside two Xbox Series consoles, both of which won't be able to play the icons' games offline because of Xbox DRM
Feature

Understanding The Online Xbox DRM That Disrupted Gaming

On May 6, Xbox tweeted that some users were struggling to access their Xbox games and content. This issue persisted throughout that weekend; several times, Microsoft announced that the problem was…

June 1, 2022 | 11:58 EDT

Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise Preserved Forest of Illusion cover
News

Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise Prototype Preserved by Forest of Illusion

Nintendo game preservationist team Forest of Illusion has announced that it has preserved a prototype version of Rare and THQ's Nintendo DS game Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise. Viva Pinata is fondly…

May 5, 2022 | 04:07 EDT

Half-Life Ravenholm Gameplay Arkane cover
News

Gameplay for Canceled Half-Life Ravenholm Game Revealed by Noclip

New gameplay footage of the canceled Half-Life Ravenholm game has been revealed by Noclip, giving us insight into a Half-Life game we never got to play. Back in 2020, documentary company NoClip…

May 4, 2022 | 03:43 EDT

The Wordle word game being played on a mobile device
News

Free Wordle Launched By Video Game Preservationists

The Free Video Games Project has launched a free version of popular word game Wordle. According to the Project, Free Wordle has been released in order to combat the original Wordle potentially being…

February 23, 2022 | 12:27 EST

Dolphin Emulator Steam Deck cover
News

Dolphin Emulator Steam Deck Release Teased by Devs

A Dolphin Emulator Steam Deck release has been teased by the developers of the popular emulation software for Nintendo Wii and GameCube. Valve's Steam Deck is an upcoming handheld gaming PC that is…

February 18, 2022 | 02:38 EST

Pokemon Gold and Silver Art
Feature

Exploring the Pokemon Cryptodex Project with Historian Aaron George

Back in 2018, players worldwide got their first glimpse into what could have been, when data from the Spaceworld 1997 Pokemon Gold and Silver demo was leaked to the public. The Spaceworld 1997 demo…

November 17, 2021 | 12:00 EST

Game Preservation Library of Congress
Feature

Game Preservation: What it Means to Protect the Past

Back in June, the Video Game History Foundation published a piece on the critical darling Earthbound. The news about Earthbound was not a long-lost demo or copy... but scripting code that was long…

October 18, 2021 | 12:00 EDT

A graveyard where the Eurogamer forums are burried.
News

Eurogamer Forums Suddenly Shut Down

A few days ago, the Eurogamer forums were shut down with little prior notice, a part of their website which had been running for over twenty years. The sudden death of a forum with so much history…

September 15, 2021 | 09:46 EDT

A screenshot of a zeppelin from the Castlevania Bloodlines beta.
News

Castlevania Bloodlines Beta ROM Released to Public

Twenty years ago, a beta ROM of the 1994 Genesis game Castlevania Bloodlines was sold at an eBay auction and vanished from the public eye. Now, this ROM has resurfaced and shared so that old-school…

August 13, 2021 | 10:08 EDT

Resistance:Burning Skies

Resistance: Burning Skies Pitch Presentation Leaked, Was Originally Resistance: Homefront

The pitch for Resistance: Burning Skies has leaked, leading to some fascinating info. For example, it was pitched on October 19, 2009 as Resistance: Homefront, 2.5 years before it was released on the…

July 15, 2021 | 11:18 EDT

Ocarina of Time Spaceworld 97 Demo Mod
News

Ocarina of Time Spaceworld 97 Mod Hopes to Recreate the Lost Demo

A few months back, the discovery of several beta maps and assets for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time from the Forest of Illusion team sparked a renewed interest in the history and development of…

July 10, 2021 | 05:47 EDT

Ness standing outside his house in EarthBound.
News

EarthBound Source Code Snippets Uncovered

A former Nintendo of America employee has discovered some raw scripting files from when he worked on the classic SNES RPG EarthBound. These files, donated to the Video Game History Foundation, gives…

June 4, 2021 | 12:57 EDT

A celebration image for the 18th birthday of Toontown.
News

Toontown Online Preserved in Massive Preservation Effort

Toontown Online, one of the oldest kid-friendly MMOs, has just turned 18 years old. To celebrate, the team behind the Toontown Rewritten private server have announced a massive preservation project…

June 3, 2021 | 12:00 EDT

PS4, Xbox One, PS5 UI
Opinions

PS4 & Xbox One Games Aren't Going Away Any Time Soon

The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X are celebrating their fifth month on the market right now. While the consoles have sold incredibly well according to sales reports released so far, there are still…

April 13, 2021 | 01:00 EDT

Play Has Limits Game Preservation
Opinions

Sony Might Be Making a Mistake that Will Harm Game Preservation

The recent rumors regarding the closure of Sony’s digital stores for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, and PlayStation Vita was no doubt shocking, yet not surprising. After all, on the…

March 26, 2021 | 12:00 EDT

Tetris and other things on display at the Strong National Museum of Play
Feature

How a Game Preservation Museum Is Keeping Your Favorite Games Alive

Avid gamers know how important video-game preservation is. So often it’s difficult to (legally) get our hands on a title because the hardware is outdated, or the original game has been region locked…

February 19, 2021 | 11:00 EST

OOT Link Zelda Key Art
Feature

Links to the Past: The Development Timeline of Ocarina of Time, Part 4

Last time, we went into the exhaustive development of Stage 3 of Zelda 64, at this point now officially called Ocarina of Time in development. From it, child Link was introduced, story beats were…

February 4, 2021 | 01:00 EST

OOT Cast Key Art
Feature

Links to the Past: The Development Timeline of Ocarina of Time, Part 3

Last time, we looked into the exhaustive development of Zelda 64 through Stage 1 and Stage 2 of the game's life, going into the limitations of the 64DD, the growing press buzz, and the beginnings of…

February 3, 2021 | 01:00 EST