Kotaku

Kotaku Originals: Hot Fun in the Summertime [Kotaku Originals]

Owen Good — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 08:00:00 MDT

This will be the first time I've ever worked on Crecentral Time, as I'm in Colorado hanging with Kotaku alum Adam Barenblat for the weekend. It's also a shortened two days thanks to July 4. But to...

What's you favourite intro. to a game? Not ... [From Comments]

Rhys — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 06:48:16 MDT

What's you favourite intro. to a game? Not just the opening cut scene but the very first bit of gameplay where you know "this is where it starts." I've been playing Oblivion and Fallout 3 lately and...

Tecmo Koei: Xbox 360 Is Doing "Well" In Japan [Japan]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:30:00 MDT

Remember when the Xbox 360 launched in Japan? Boy, that was embarrassing! Microsoft has turned things around of late and found a small degree of success in the region. "Xbox 360 as a business is...

Designing BioShock 2's Little Sisters [Bioshock]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:00:00 MDT

Like they did with the Big Daddies, 2K have released some concept art for BioShock's tiniest denizens, the Little Sisters. Unlike the first lot, which showed the initial designs for the original Big...

Tecmo Koei Boss: PS3 Price Cut Plskthx [Business]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 22:30:00 MDT

While not as belligerent as Activision's calls, newly-merged company Tecmo Koei would still like Sony to cut the price of the PS3. And are asking them publicly to do just that. Speaking with CVG,...

Better Look At Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Pre-Order Schwag [Pokemon]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 22:00:00 MDT

July 4 isn't only Independence Day, it's also the day pre-orders for Pokeémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver. We previously posted a blurry magazine scan of the pre-order goodies, and here's a crystal...

Japanese Games Market Down A Whopping 25% [Japan]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:30:00 MDT

Publisher/market research firm Enterbrain this week released some sales data for the Japanese market. And the data is not good. From a period roughly running from January 2009 to the end of June,...

A Week In Comments [Hyper Multi-tap]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:00:00 MDT

The Great Xbox 360 Robbery Comment by: The Swearing Gramps Nominated by: Mr Pappzy lurves Orange Soda Don't worry. Microsoft will get em all back within a year or so. Hey Americans, Why The BBQ?...

LittleBigPlanet: We're Ready To Believe You [Lbp]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:30:00 MDT

Not much of a teaser this, is it? Unless there's some obscure British pop culture icon that also says "who ya gonna call?" we're somehow not aware of, it's pretty clear we'll soon be getting some...

Do You Game During National Holidays? [Tell Us Dammit]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:00:00 MDT

Hi. How are you? I'm fine, thank you. And you? Today, right now at this very moment, it's Friday. Can you feel it? That means one thing and only one thing: It's time time to talk. Let's TUD it up,...

PS3 Bundle Includes MGS4, Killzone 2 [PS3]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:00:00 MDT

Normally, hardware bundles are a spotty affair. A game you don't really want, or two games, one you kinda want, one you just do not want. But this bundle, on sale at Best Buy next Sunday, looks...

It's EGM, But Not As You Know It [Kotaku Magu]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:00:00 MDT

Electronic Gaming Monthly died, then was risen. But when it makes its eventual return, it won't be in any form, shape or guise you're used to. Owner Steve Harris says: First and foremost, we're...

Blockbuster's Top Ten Selling New Video Games Includes... Haze? [Blockbusters]

Brian Crecente — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:30:00 MDT

Maybe it's because I don't really read newspapers anymore. Maybe it's that I just never noticed it. But I didn't realize that like the New York Times, Blockbuster has gotten into the bestsellers...

Gears of War In Red And Blue Bronze [Comic Con 2009]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:00:00 MDT

Via the Mindzeye Studios comes these three 12 inch tall Gears of War bronze collector's statues of a Boomer, Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago. All three are limited to a production run of one hundred...

Tim Schafer's Brutal Legend Intro Walkthrough [Clips]

Brian Crecente — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:30:00 MDT

In this set of videos Tim Schafer provides a sort of director's commentary for the beginning of his upcoming Brutal Legend. Packed from beginning to end with spoilers, I'd suggest giving it a pass...

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen Review: Clench The Difference [Review]

Mike Fahey — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:00:00 MDT

Getting the most out of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen requires a steady hand, a keen eye, and the ass muscles of an Olympic athlete. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is an action adventure...

Ninja Gaiden 2 Sigma Premium Box Pack Premium Price [Tecmo]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:30:00 MDT

Ninja Gaiden Σ 2 has been dated for Japan. Here are details about the ¥9,980 (US$104) Premium Box. It includes a soundtrack CD, an original accessory set and a special sleeve. Those who...

How Dead Space Extraction Controls On Wii, With Side-Shooting Twist [Clips]

Stephen Totilo — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:00:43 MDT

The Wii's September 29 prequel to last year's Dead Space has a control scheme EA's Visceral Games couldn't put on an Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. A new EA trailer shows how it works. Dead Space...

What Are You Playing This Weekend? [Lazy Sundays]

Michael McWhertor — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:30:00 MDT

Most of my weekend will be spent playing a little real-life Tetris, as I attempt to find open slots for all the boxes, furniture and knickknacks still in boxes from the Kotaku Towers West relocation...

Alpha Protocol Hits Oct. 6 [Sega]

Brian Crecente — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:00:00 MDT

Spy role-playing game Alpha Protocol will be hitting the PC, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 on Oct. 6, according to Sega. I took the game for a spin during the lead up to E3 and was quite impressed...

How To Name A Video Game Studio — And Hopefully Get It Right [Feature]

Michael McWhertor — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:00:00 MDT

The decision to give something a name, whether that be your struggling rock band, your first dog, your only child, or your game development studio is no simple task. For better or worse, you might be...

First Dante's Inferno Gameplay Footage [Clips]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:30:00 MDT

So Dante's Inferno is "EA does God of War". Doesn't bother us. Dead Space was "EA does Resident Evil", and it was great. These are the same guys, we expect the same results.

There Are "A Lot Of Factors" For Borderlands Demo [Gearbox]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:00:00 MDT

Trying before you buy. You might not be able to do that with upcoming multi-platform shooter Borderlands. According to Gearbox's Mikey Neumann, "We talk about a demo every day. We would love to do a...

Eat Up This God Eater Trailer [Clips]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:30:00 MDT

Namco Bandai's God Eater is coming to Japanese PSPs this fall, and it still really looks like Monster Hunter, giant swords and giant monsters and all.

Sesame Street Says Video Games Are OK [Research]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:00:00 MDT

We're not normally in need of celebrity endorsement of our entertainment medium of choice. But when it's Big Bird, Grover and Oscar the Grouch singing gaming's praises, we'll take it. Game Changer,...

Get Some Russian In Your Independence Day [Men Of War: Red Tide]

AJ Glasser — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 10:30:00 MDT

War movies, games and books are a great way to reinforce patriotism on Independence Day; so here's a trailer for a World War II game... that happens to be Russian. Men of War: Red Tide is a...

Yup, Looks Like There'll Be A Skate 3 [Rumor]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 10:00:00 MDT

Sounds like EA are already hard at work on Skate 3. Not the most shocking thing you'll read today, since it is an EA title, but still, it's a great series, so news of more games is always welcome....

Cute, Fighting And Totally Free [Clips]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:30:00 MDT

Vanguard Princess is a totally moe old school freeware 2D fighter from developer Tomoaki Sugeno. Who's he? Apparently an ex-Capcom employee. The game can be downloaded here. Enjoy! 生存確認 [Sugeno's...

How Many Hours People Play Nintendo's Wii Games (Sorry, Donkey Kong) [Nintendo]

Stephen Totilo — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:00:00 MDT

Never mind what's at the bottom of this barrel, here's a list of 29 Wii games from Nintendo and the amount of hours people play them, per gamer. (The following stats are pulled from the usage data...

The Characters of Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles [Clips]

Brian Crecente — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 08:30:00 MDT

This new look at Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles gives us a better sense of all of the characters appearing in the game. We also get yet another chance to see how they handi-cam look and feel...

Battlefield Heroes Review: The Great (Cartoon) War [Review]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 08:00:00 MDT

EA have really got behind the whole "free to play" thing of late, announcing it'll form the basis of future Tiger Woods and Need for Speed titles. The first such game to test those waters, however,...

Talk Amongst Yourselves [Official Kotaku Forum]

Stephen Totilo — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 07:40:57 MDT

Happy (uh, early) Independence Day, my fellow Americans. Happy Friday, everyone else. It's time to talk about video games like you've never talked about them before. 3...2...1... start. Confused...

Hey Americans, Why The BBQ? Why? Why? Why? [Note]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 07:20:00 MDT

To: American People From: Bashcraft Happy Independence Day! Mrs. Bashcraft wants to know why Americans BBQ or have cook-outs on the Fourth of July. So, why? Is it symbolic? Side note: OH! One...

British Lifetime Console Sales Figures Get! [Britain]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 06:00:00 MDT

According to figures released by GfK-ChartTrack, there are now 24 million current-generation consoles in the UK. Let's see how those numbers break down. The numbers can be found in the latest report...

Nice To See Capcom Can Take A Joke [Screengrab]

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 04:30:00 MDT

As seen on Capcom. For reference, see here.

Holy Crap, These Queen's Blade Promo Images Are Suggestive [Maximum Risky]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 03:00:00 MDT

If Namco Bandai didn't have an issue with splattering milk on characters for simulation role-playing-game Queen's Blade Spiral Chaos, than these promotional cards should pose zero problems. These...

Sony Motion Control Patent Shows Coffee Mug Gaming [Sony]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:30:00 MDT

We know about the EyeToy. We've seen that motion controller Sony showed at E3. But there is another motion controller Sony has been working on. This new patent filing reveals a Sony motion...

Milla Jovovich Confirms "Number Four" [Resident Evil: Afterlife]

Brian Ashcraft — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 MDT

Chatter is swirling that the newest Resident Evil film, Resident Evil: Afterlife, is aiming for a September 17, 2010 release. Last night, Milla Jovovich said this to a crowd of paprazzi: We're...

How One Man Spent $17,500 On A Video Game [Nintendo]

Luke Plunkett — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:30:00 MDT

JJ Hendricks, an avid games collector, recently paid $17,500 for a single video game. If you've ever wondered what it feels like to spend that much on a video game, Hendricks has written all about...

President Of Russia In Erotic Game [Maximum Risky]

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:00:00 MDT

No, not Vladamir Putin, but Elena Vladimirovna Putin — think Putin if he was a girl with white hair, red eyes and a shapely figure. Her name is also a reference to a Grand Duchess of Russia....