When you think of the term "visual novel," you probably think of dating simulators stuffed full of anime tropes and hentai scenes. I am here to convince you that this is wrong. » 8/20/14 6:00pm 8/20/14 6:00pm

999 is coming to iOS, sort of: The cult Nintendo DS game 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors is coming to iOS in visual novel form on March 17th, according to localizer Aksys Games' Facebook page. Called 999: The Novel, it'll be a story-only version of the original game. Despite that, it should still be a good… » 3/11/14 5:30pm 3/11/14 5:30pm

Bad news for Virtue's Last Reward fans—director Kotaro Uchikoshi says he hasn't been able to get a third game greenlit yet, although he's optimistic it'll happen one day. He should start a Kickstarter! » 2/13/14 11:45am 2/13/14 11:45am

Crime is a constant feature of video games writing. Somewhere, someone is doing something illicit with them—sometimes comically stupid, sometimes tragic. Kotaku's Police Blotter is here to round up the latest in games crime. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. » 10/06/13 5:00pm 10/06/13 5:00pm

Leiji Matsumoto's Space Pirate Captain Harlock is one of anime's greatest classics—a story told and re-told many times over the last three-and-a-half decades. The past weekend saw the release of the latest version of the story: a CG feature film that is as beautiful and action-packed as it is disappointing. » 9/10/13 8:00am 9/10/13 8:00am

Sometimes prior to a game’s release, companies create a flash game tie-in and post it on the game’s official webpage. » 5/17/13 6:00am 5/17/13 6:00am

Late Saturday night, I finally finished Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward, the game that's been keeping me up every night for the past two weeks. I clocked 26 hours and 20 minutes. It was fantastic. » 10/23/12 6:30pm 10/23/12 6:30pm

A pre-order mix-up has left a number of gamers upset at both retailer Amazon and Aksys Games, the publisher behind the great adventure game Virtue's Last Reward. » 10/22/12 1:00pm 10/22/12 1:00pm

I wrote a bit yesterday about Virtue's Last Reward, the fantastic adventure game that has been keeping me up every night for the past week and a half. » 10/19/12 9:30pm 10/19/12 9:30pm

Last Tuesday, I went to bed at around 10:30pm, hoping to get a decent amount of sleep. Maybe I'd wake up early, go for a run before breakfast. You know, try to be a human being. » 10/18/12 5:00pm 10/18/12 5:00pm

I don't know how Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors slipped under so many peoples' radars. Maybe it was bad timing. Or that funky name. » 10/11/12 10:40am 10/11/12 10:40am

Have you played Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors? If not, you really should. It's a wonderful visual novel-slash-point-and-click adventure with a tendency to make your brain explode, and I recommend that everyone take the time to experience it. » 10/02/12 7:30pm 10/02/12 7:30pm

You have no idea how many press releases we see on a daily basis. From big companies, small companies, people selling iPhone games, people selling things that (purport!) to make your dick grow bigger. I've never had one read to me before, though. » 4/07/11 4:30am 4/07/11 4:30am

Now you can pretend you're about to die a horrible death by drowning upon a sinking ship with the Gamestop exclusive preorder watch for Aksys Games' DS thriller Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors. » 9/20/10 1:40pm 9/20/10 1:40pm

You're a college student who finds himself trapped on a sinking ferry with eight other passengers, forced to play a twisted game where losing means a watery grave. This is Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors for the Nintendo DS. » 7/12/10 11:30am 7/12/10 11:30am