Cecilia D'Anastasio

Medieval fighting game For Honor just got a new limited time mode called Shadows of the Hitokiri. On Twitter, the mode’s description reads, “Face the Hitokiri, the ghostly Samurai fighting with their masakari in this limited time in-game event. Customize your Heroes with exclusive rewards only available June 10-27.”

Adventure Time’s Finn, Jake and Princess Bubblegum are now fighters in the irreverent and fun platform fighter Brawlhalla. And if you haven’t had a chance to give the game a try, quoth Adventure Time’s Jake, “Sucking at something is the first step towards being sorta good at something.”

South Korean Overwatch League Broadcast Apparently Omits Pride Day Festivities

If you tuned into the Overwatch League’s Friday games, you probably saw dozens of esports fans decked out in rainbow garb or flashing LGBTQ-themed signs as soon as the camera turned their way. It was Pride Day for the Overwatch League—a day that Overwatch publisher Blizzard put on for fans to “come together for diversity and…

It looks like League of Legends is getting in on the hype around the DOTA 2 mod Dota Auto Chess. Today, publisher Riot Games announced their upcoming turn-based autobattler Teamfight Tactics, a mode for League of Legends coming out later this month. 

Twitter User Who Leaked Most E3 Announcements Says Nintendo’s Lawyer Called Them

After promising early and unreleased information about Nintendo’s E3 reveals on Twitter this weekend, an account that’s been leaking the rest of this week’s announcements says they received a call and email from Nintendo asking them to stop. The leaker, who goes by Sabi, has been posting detail after detail for each E3 press conference,…

A Brand New Look At Halo Infinite, Which Will Be An Xbox Scarlett Launch Title

Microsoft finally showed off some more footage for Halo Infinite—a weighty name for the sixth major game in the 18-year-old franchise. Halo Infinite will launch on Windows 10, Xbox One and Xbox’s newly-announced Project Scarlett console fall, 2020. Rightfully so, Halo fans were very curious about what the actual game would look like. Today’s trailer…

New Microsoft Flight Simulator Looks Uncannily Like Real Life

Announced today and releasing in 2020, the upcoming Microsoft Flight Simulator looks greater than fiction. Apparently, its hyper-realistic graphics are a product of AI technology and satellite data. “From light planes to wide-body jets, fly highly detailed and stunning aircraft in an incredibly realistic world,” the trailer’s description reads. “Create your flight plan and fly…

One Arcade’s Homemade Super Smash Bros. Melee Cabinet

A 1980s style arcade cabinet for Super Smash Bros. Melee now exists, and it’s absolutely stunning. California’s High Score Arcade, which also has cabinets for Oregon Trail and The Legend of Zelda, yesterday announced it added a handmade Super Smash Bros. Melee cabinet. It’s red and blue with images of classic Smash Bros. fighters bordering…

I Foolishly Covered My Precious Gaming Keyboard in Slime

This is a story about the perils of homemade slime, over-intoxication, and one utterly defiled mechanical gaming keyboard. It is a story about what happens when these three things combine, and one that I am deeply conflicted about sharing. Unless you live under a rock or you’re my boss Stephen Totilo, you’ve noticed that slime—yes,…

For Men Who Hate Talking On The Phone, Games Keep Friendships Alive

Any time a friend of Eddie Gill’s calls him on the phone, his first thought is: “Why the fuck are you calling me?” Gill, a physician from Hingham, MA, is 30 years old—around the age when, according to an oft-cited study by Royal Society Open Science, the number of friendships the average man maintains dramatically…

New Apex Legends Update Lets You Drop Famously Crappy Gun In Disgust

The Mozambique still sucks, but at least Apex Legends now has a sense of humor about it. Much-bemoaned is the Mozambique, a crappy shotgun that holds only three rounds. Not only is it bad; it’s everywhere. The gun has a high spawn rate, so it’s likely that if you’ve ever played Apex Legends you’ve been…

Xbox Apparently Thinks Gamers Want Neon Green Body Wash

Actual marketing copy for Xbox’s upcoming body wash: “Lift Your GAME.” According to GameSpot, Xbox will release a line of personal hygiene products this summer called Xbox Lynx. Lynx is the name that Axe is marketed by in Australia, New Zealand, China and elsewhere outside the U.S. My Xbox isn’t something I associate with the…

Smash Ultimate In VR Was A Mistake

In the “Thanks, I hate it” category, Nintendo gave us Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in virtual reality last night. Nobody asked for this, and yet here we are—swiveling our heads left and right and withstanding gut-sinking nausea just to land a couple aerials on a computer-player Peach. Earlier this year, Nintendo introduced a VR kit…

This Venusaur Was Too Scary For Detective Pikachu

RJ Palmer, an artist on the film Detective Pikachu known for his hyper-realistic Pokémon drawings, posted his menacing vision for the Pokémon Venusaur yesterday—one that never made it into the blockbuster movie. If you saw Detective Pikachu, it’s likely you left the theater either in awe of its realistic imaginings of Pokémon or wondering where…

Nintendo Explains Why Its Official Smash Bros. Tournaments Are So Weird

“We used to have the perception he didn’t care,” said Super Smash Bros. pro Gonzalo “Zero” Barrios at Nintendo’s first tournament for Smash Ultimate last year. “He,” of course, was game director Masahiro Sakarai, the Smashdaddy himself, who was watching from the sidelines. Barrios had just won a glistening crystalline trophy, and holding it in…

Feedback Makes Me A Better Gamer–When You’re Not An Asshole

I’ve begun to think of my weekly, local Super Smash Bros. tournament as a sort of doctor’s appointment for my ego. Regulars tell me that it’s normal to just win one or two games at these things, yet selection bias mandates that the people who attend a lot tend to be confident that they’re really,…

Gorgeous fantasy adventure Sea of Solitude is coming to the PS4, Xbox One and PC on July 5, EA and Jo-Mei Games announced today. The game follows Kay, who navigates an abandoned, underground city and its huge, red-eyed monsters.

It’s A Very Fighting Game Weekend

It’s Memorial Day weekend, which means either chaining hot dogs, hamburgers and handfuls of chips or jab, jab, uppercut, jab, throw, special. Or both. Fighting game tournament Combo Breaker roils on all weekend in Illinois, where top competitors from titles ranging from Mortal Kombat 11 to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will vie to be their…

Shady Numbers And Bad Business: Inside The Esports Bubble

The mainstream narrative of esports has been lovingly crafted by those who benefit from its success. There’s big money in esports, they say. You’ve heard the stories. Teenaged gamers flown overseas to sunny mansions with live-in chefs. The erection of $50 million arenas for Enders Game-esque sci-fi battles. League of Legends pros pulling down seven-figure…

Riot Games To Make Mobile Version of League Of Legends With Tencent

Riot Games is developing a mobile version of League of Legends alongside Chinese tech company Tencent, Reuters said today in a report confirmed by Kotaku A source with knowledge of the upcoming mobile game told Kotaku that it “plays differently” from League of Legends, although it retains the hit MOBA’s general appearance. “The game is…