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CultureOdds and EndsSkate 3’s Sickest Trick Is A Rube Goldberg Machine
“Do a kickflip!” Yeah, yeah, yeah. How about this: “Create an elaborate Rube Golberg machine and then use it to do the sickest trick maybe ever!” Reddit user Skate3Tommy would probably be, like, “Okay.” In a video posted to the Xbox One subreddit today, Skate3Tommy showcased “the culmination of 13 years of play and dedication”…
By Ari Notis -
ReviewsBacklogThat’s A Wrap On Backlog Month
This past month was Backlog Month at Kotaku. April, our thinking went, would be fairly slim in terms of new games, bookended by two blockbusters (Outriders and Returnal) but devoid of tentpoles in the interim. What better time to play the games we already have? May, however, looks a lot busier. Today, the much-anticipated Resident…
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CultureKotaku Game DiarySkate City Filled The Skate-Sized Hole In My Heart
Help, I can’t stop playing Skate City, a lo-fi skateboarding game that landed on consoles and PC yesterday following a period of exclusivity on Apple Arcade. I’m of the belief that, when it comes to games based on action sports, players fall into one of two camps. You’ve got your players who favor impossible tricks…
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CultureDon’t Worry, You Can Still Make-o The Mako Horrible In Mass Effect Legendary Edition
If there’s one universal truth about the original Mass Effect, it’s that the Mako is the worst. Or the best? I don’t know, I’ve never played the first Mass Effect, so I will think whatever you want me to think—which puts me in lockstep with developer BioWare. In the upcoming remaster, you’ll be able to…
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CultureBeloved Gun ‘Hung Jury’ Is Coming Back To Destiny
Step aside, extraterrestrial babies that may or may not be grenades. There’s a new sheriff in Destiny-town. A beloved weapon, Hung Jury, is apparently coming back to Destiny 2, Bungie all but announced in a blog post detailing the upcoming Season of the Splicer today. The season focuses on the Vex and an “endless night,”…
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CultureOdds and EndsReturnal Weapons, Ranked
Returnal, a new PS5-exclusive action game, is tough as nails. But, as with many games that feature roguelike elements, all sorts of weapons can turn up on your runs. Each one can help you, with various degrees of efficacy, on your quest of “not dying.” Here, according to the tried-and-true scientific method of our long-running…
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Tips & GuidesSo, Is It Safe To Play Returnal Now?
Over the past 24 hours, Returnal, the PS5-exclusive action game about getting repeatedly bullied by space tentacle monsters, has weathered a serious patch of turbulence. Two patches in 12 hours. Myriad reports of corrupted save data. Me, getting killed over and over again by an irritating boss. Okay, fine, maybe that last one’s not Returnal’s…
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CultureOutriders Is Finally Giving Some Players Back Their Lost Gear
Of all the many (many) issues to plague Outriders since its early April launch, few have caused more pain than the insidious inventory-deletion bug. As of today, affected players should start to see lost gear return, developer People Can Fly announced via the game’s subreddit. Shortly after the loot-shooter launched for basically all the platforms,…
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CultureReturnal Patch Aims To Reduce Crashes, Increase…Corpses? [UPDATE: Save Corruptions Reported, Patch Pulled]
Update: May 6, 9:45 a.m. ET: Housemarque released patch 1.3.4 overnight. Here are the notes Update: May 5, 5:20 p.m. ET: The latest patch for Returnal has been pulled and the game reverted to the prior patch, developer Housemarque announced via Twitter. “We are fixing the issue now and a new patch will be published…
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CultureGamesCom Wises Up, Goes Fully Digital
GamesCom 2021 will be a fully digital event this year, GamesCom officials announced in a press release today. The move is a reversal of earlier plans for a semi-live event, inadvisable given the, y’know, roiling pandemic that’s still an ever-present aspect of everyday life. Held annually in Cologne, Germany, GamesCom is one of the more…
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CultureLatest Outriders Bug Is Killing Players Instantly
To follow Outriders’ post-launch journey is to watch an Olympic game of whack-a-mole. Developer People Can Fly will stamp out one issue, only for another to pop right up. The latest: Some players are apparently getting instantly killed by attacks that otherwise would not cause instantaneous death. “We are aware of the issue whereby damage…
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CultureOdds and EndsUnlucky Returnal Player Goes For Loot, Dies Immediately
No matter how badly you get screwed by Returnal’s luck-of-the-draw roguelike gameplay, you’re not nearly as down on your luck as a player who desperately tried to get some loot, only to meet a grisly fate. Player Nalotaib shared their misfortune on Reddit, which started when they opened a malignant chest in Returnal’s second area.…
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CultureReturnal’s Lack Of A Save Feature Is Ruining Players’ Runs
I made a mistake. Yesterday, I had to stop playing Returnal, a tough-as-nails action game released last week exclusively for PS5, mid-run to tend to some chores. You know, like shopping for groceries and drinking rosé on my roof. When I returned to my PlayStation 5 this morning, a pop-up notification informed me that Returnal…
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CultureSony Plans To ‘Integrate’ Discord With PlayStation
Sony Interactive Entertainment has invested a minority stake in the popular communication app Discord, SIE president Jim Ryan announced today in a blog post. The companies plan to “bring the Discord and PlayStation experiences closer together on console and mobile starting early next year.” Sony didn’t detail much about what it plans to do with…
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CultureHere’s Everything Coming To And Leaving Game Pass Soon
Members of Xbox Game Pass will soon lose the ability to play Remedy’s beloved Alan Wake at no extra cost. On the other hand, the gnarliest extreme snow sports game since SSX Tricky will become available in a matter of days. Fair trade, if you ask me. Here’s everything coming to Xbox Game Pass in…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Beat Returnal’s Early Bosses
Returnal, the PS5-exclusive action game about pretending you’re in the Tom Cruise film Edge of Tomorrow, is no cakewalk. The rank-and-file enemies are one thing, what with their tentacle laser beams and relentless volleys of neon death basketballs. But it’s the boss fights that will really give you a run for your money. Read: Kotaku’s…
By Ari Notis -
CultureOne Month Later, Outriders Still Can’t Catch A Break
Baffling nerfs. Connection issues. Inventory wipes. Since Outriders launched a month ago, the game has been plagued by issues. For every step forward, the loot-shooter seemingly takes two back. Today’s update, the first significant one in several weeks, is no exception. Amajor patch released this morning is billed as the “biggest” one yet, and purports…
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Tips & GuidesHow To Not Die (As Much) In Returnal
The science-fiction action game Returnal, out today for PlayStation 5, drops you all by your lonesome on a haunting, uncharted exoplanet. It’s a gorgeous, fresh, fascinating game that’s well worth sticking with. It’s also quite difficult. As with any game built around a live-die-repeat structure, you will die—a whole, whole lot—on your escapades through Atropos.…
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CultureHere’s A Whole Lot Of Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart Gameplay
Today, during Sony’s State of Play event, developer Insomniac Games revealed new gameplay footage from Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, the latest entry in the long-running series of oddball action games. The 17 minutes of gameplay opens with Ratchet, absent Clank, alone in a metropolis (dubbed Nefarious City) that looks straight out of Coruscant. Ratchet’s…
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