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CultureKotaku Game DiaryI’m Really Into That New Dragon-Dating Sim, Ring Fit Adventure
Can I tell you a secret? Is this a safe place? Because what I’m about to say could potentially expose some of my stranger… predilections, let’s say. Are you ready? Okay. I think the bad guy in Ring Fit Adventure is smokin’ hot. He’s a tall, dark, and dummy thicc dragon traipsing about in a wrestling…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureHere’s How Bugsnax Plays
Today’s PlayStation State of Play gave an in-depth look at gameplay for the “body-horror but make it cute” hit of the summer, Bugsnax. Check out the gameplay trailer below. “Use traps and sauces to capture Bugsnax,” developer Young Horses wrote in a press release. “On top of being tasty, each of the 100 different species…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureStriking Lovestruck Writers Challenge Bosses And Win
Today the writers of Lovestruck, a popular visual novel romance game, announced a successful end to their unprecedented strike. Two weeks ago Kotaku reported on a writers strike for the mobile app, Lovestruck. Now, the writers have come to an agreement with their bosses at Voltage Entertainment whereby all of the writers will receive significant…
By Ash Parrish -
Meanwhile in not Fall Guys news, check out the latest trailer for Mortal Shell Mortal Shell is a Souls-like action RPG where players possess the bodies of fallen warriors—y’know their mortal shells—and use them to fight. Coming to PlayStation, Xbox One, and the Epic Game Store August 18th, Mortal Shell looks like it’ll fill the Bloodborne-sized…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryJumpstart‘s The Only Way I Wanna Play Magic: The Gathering Arena
Magic: The Gathering’s new format Jumpstart is the only way I want to play Magic for the rest of my life. I love playing Magic, both paper and online with Arena. I love opening new cards. I love the art. I love beating dudes who are much better than me, like I did this weekend…
By Ash Parrish -
AnimeThe Cowboy Bebop Soundtracks Just Hit Spotify So Excuse Me While I Freak Out
OK. I need to take a deep breath and steady myself, because what I’m about to tell y’all has me vibrating with excitement. The vast majority of Cowboy Bebop soundtracks just hit Spotify That’s a lot of Bebop music. Of course Spotify has your staple soundtracks—Cowboy Bebop, Blue, Future Blues. But! And god bless whomever…
By Ash Parrish -
EsportsEsports Community Pissed Over Saudi Partnership Deal [Update: Riot Cancelled Deal]
Yesterday two major European esports brands—the Counter-Strike Global Offensive tournament organizer BLAST Premier and Riot’s League of Legends European Championship division—announced a sponsorship deal with NEOM, a 500 billion dollar techno-city funded by Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The announcement is drawing waves of criticism from esports personalities and fans. Update: 7/29/2020, 9:50…
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CultureOdds and EndsPut Chemical Plant Zone In The Sonic Movie Sequel You Cowards
Sonic The Hedgehog, possibly the only good motion picture that will come out of 2020, is getting a sequel. While I have every confidence the sequel will be just as sneakily good as its predecessor, I have one… no, two! suggestions on how Paramount Pictures can ensure a smash-hit follow-up. Suggestion Number 1: Make Miles…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureStar Fox 2 Almost Had A Black Female Pilot With Incredible Hair, And I. Am. Smitten.
One drip of information in the deluge coming from Nintendo’s latest “Gigaleak” was source code and unused assets for Star Fox 2, including a never-before-seen human character. Completed in 1995, Nintendo shelved the game out of fear it’d look inferior to the next-gen graphics of the PlayStation. (The game was subsequently released as an unlockable…
By Ash Parrish -
EsportsFastest-Ever Overwatch League Match Is 19 Minutes and 23 Seconds of Misery
The fastest match in Overwatch League history took place over the weekend, with last year’s champions, the San Francisco Shock, beating the brakes off the Vancouver Titans in a blisteringly fast match that ran just 19 minutes and 23 seconds. The extremely brief match surpassed a record set just the week before when the Los…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureApex Legends Developers Respond To Criticism Of Pandemic Work Schedule
Screenshots of a post on Glassdoor criticizing Apex Legends developer Respawn Entertainment appeared on Reddit yesterday. The anonymous poster described a negative work-from-home environment that severely impacted their mental and physical health. “I feel extremely stressed and burnt out trying to keep our seasonal releases on the same aggressive timeline as pre-shelter in place productivity,”…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryPaper Mario: The Origami King Is A Rare Game I Actually Want To 100%
I don’t 100% video games. Most of the time, I don’t even finishthem because I hate ending journeys I’m having so much fun on, or my brain goes “ooh shiny” and I bunny-hop to the next big thing. For the most part, all I want in a video game is to mainline rails of story.…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureFreelance Game Writers Band Together To Strike Over Poor Pay
Contracted freelance writers for Voltage Entertainment, publisher of notable dating game mobile app Lovestruck, are striking to protest what they describe as a history of low wages and unreasonable deadlines. In the Reddit post announcing the strike, the writers stated, “The writers of Lovestruck have come together to unanimously demand better working conditions, greater transparency,…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureOdds and EndsYoshi’s Tax Fraud Story: A Hardboiled Detective Tale
He came into my office, shadows trailing in behind him like he was being followed by the specter of Death. He was a short, squat man; Italian, by the look of him. Honest guy, works with his hands for a living. My guess: plumber. I don’t see too many plumbers on my beat. It’s mostly…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryBattle Chef Brigade Helps Me Navigate A Complicated Relationship With Food During Covid-19
(Note: This post contains discussions of disordered eating.) During the pandemic, there are days when I don’t eat. I’ll be hungry, and I’ll have food, but I’ll just simply decline to eat. Quarantine robs me of my desire to eat, and depression from said quarantine robs me of the energy to cook. But what I…
By Ash Parrish -
OpinionImpressionsWorld Of Warcraft‘s Improved Character Creator Will Enable A Lot More Diversity
My first World of Warcraft character is still around, largely unchanged even after 13 years. WoW’s character creator, too, exists in nearly the same, unchanged state. But with the upcoming Shadowlands expansion, character creation is getting a long-overdue upgrade that’ll give me something I’ve been yearning for: a real afro. This has been a long…
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EsportsPokémon Esports Broadcasts Are Simply The Best At Reaching Out To Newcomers
Maybe it’s weird, but I enjoy watching Pokémon far more than playing it. I haven’t seriously played a Pokémon title since SoulSilver in ‘09, and haven’t finished one since Pokémon Blue way back in the ancient yester-year of 1996. Yet despite my apparent aversion to all things Pocket and Monster I am obsessed with Pokémon…
By Ash Parrish -
CultureNBA 2K21 Will Cost $70 On PS5 And Xbox Series X
With the release of NBA 2K21, games on next gen consoles might see a price increase. In a press release this morning, Take-Two Interactive announced NBA 2K21 on the PS5 and Xbox Series X, as well as their current-gen counterparts. Noticeably, the next-gen standard versions of the game came with a suggested retail price of…
By Ash Parrish -
OpinionI Loved The Last Of Us 2 Except For All The Parts I Deeply Hated
I do not like The Last Of Us 2. I didn’t like the first one either (it kinda fell apart for me in the final act) and everything I’d heard about its sequel made it sound like a carnival of violence I’d feel okay about abstaining from. And yet, despite the foul taste left from…
By Ash Parrish