Jason Schreier

Today in New York City, Sony is expected to show off the top-secret PS4 Slim as well as the high-end PS4 Neo. We’ll be there, and you can find all the news on Kotaku as it happens. The event starts at 3pm Eastern. We’ll put up the stream closer to then.

How To Get Into Trails, One Of The Best RPG Series Out There

Don't be scared

Two Surprisingly Good Hours With Final Fantasy XV

You’ve gotta wonder how much it cost to make Noctis’s hair. I mean, look at it. It’s a tangled black crown of spikes that sometimes seems to have a will of its own, its strands flowing like octopus tentacles every time Noctis moves. How many animators did Square Enix hire just for those sweet locks?…

After a delay, Batman: Return to Arkham will be out on October 18, publisher Warner Bros. announced today. It’s a bundle containing remastered versions of Arkham Asylum and Arkham City—as well as all the DLC—and it’ll hit PS4 and Xbox One.

Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV: The Kotaku Review

Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV is what you’d get if you took two hours of JRPG cutscenes and edited them into a movie: It’s oddly paced, confusing, and full of corny dialogue. It’s also surprisingly fun to watch. As a standalone movie, Kingsglaive is kind of a mess. Most of the plot threads are left unresolved,…

Destiny Fans Raise $500,000 During Charity Stream

Destiny fans raised over half a million dollars this week for the St. Jude Children’s Hospital, thanks to a marathon full of streamers who encouraged fans to donate while they sweated it out in the Crucible. The stream, which was planned as a lead-in to the Destiny Community Con in Tampa, Florida this weekend, was…

Podcast: How Do You Deal With Backlogs?

Today on Kotaku Splitscreen we’re talking Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, my undying love for the Vita, and the Backlog Problem that so many of us deal with every day. Kirk and I dig into the mailbag for reader questions (reminder: you can send all questions and stories to [email protected]) and talk about this week’s PS4…

Go Set Up Two-Step Verification On Your PlayStation Right Now

This morning, Sony quietly added two-step verification to the PlayStation Network, allowing users to add an extra layer of security to their PS4, PS3, and Vita accounts. Finally. NOW GO DO IT. You can find the option by going to Settings -> PlayStation Network Account Management -> Account Information -> Security -> 2-Step Verification. It…

Final Fantasy IV Retrospective: Ahead Of Its Time

There’s a scene in Final Fantasy IV that’s always stood out to me. It centers around the elderly wizard Tellah, who starts off with a puny library of magic but eventually, thanks to divine intervention and a magical house of mirrors, remembers that he’s actually a talented badass with access to every spell in the…

The first DLC pack for Dark Souls III comes out October 25, Namco Bandai said today. It’s called Ashes of Ariandel and will add to the game “a brand new environment filled with terrifying new enemies, challenges, and exciting lore.” Costs $15.

Soon It’ll Be Way Easier To Use A PS4 Controller On PC

Sick of messing with drivers to get your DualShock 4 working on PC? Worry not. The solution, as always, is a dongle. Sony announced today plans to release a wireless adaptor for the PS4 controller that works on both PC and Mac. It’ll go on sale in early September for $25. It’s not 100% clear…

The next game from the makers of Sleeping Dogs is not Sleeping Dogs 2. It’s Smash + Grab, an online multiplayer game and “dystopic take on gang warfare” that will enter Steam Early Access in September. Trailer above.

PlayStation Plus Gets A $10-Per-Year Price Hike

PlayStation Plus will jump from $50/year to $60/year starting September 22, Sony said today. It’s the first price hike for the online service since it launched in 2010. The three-month plan will now cost $25, and the one-month plan will remain at $10. “If you are a current member, the new prices will take effect…

PSA: Don’t Buy A PlayStation 4 Right Now

The PlayStation 4 is an excellent console, one that I’d recommend to anyone who’s looking for a new video game system. Also, you should definitely not buy one. Patrick Redford, a writer for the Bleacher Report fan website Deadspin, has been asking me for the past month whether or not he should buy a PlayStation…

Beloved Destiny Community Member Dies At 33

Allen Carr Mackey, best known in the Destiny community as ‘DrDrizzay101,’ died on Friday from carbon monoxide poisoning, according to one of his friends. Mackey was 33. Mackey was well-known to other players—particularly on the Destiny NeoGAF community—as a kind, considerate, always-helpful Destiny addict with a seemingly endless amount of patience. He helped guide friends…

Apparent PS4 Slim Leaks On Auction Site

Apparent images of a slimmer, sleeker version of the PlayStation 4 have popped up on the UK auction site Gumtree (h/t NeoGAF), where a British seller claims to have obtained an unannounced model of Sony’s latest console. It’s going for only £295. We don’t know if this machine is real, but the pictures are compelling.…

Podcast: The NFL’s Biggest Nerds

Former NFL punter and prolific Kinja user Chris Kluwe joins us on today’s episode of Kotaku Splitscreen to talk No Man’s Sky, Path of Exile, and nerd war stories from the National Football League. We also take some reader questions and talk about our new corporate overlord, Univision. You can find this week’s episode on…

The No Man’s Sky Hype Dilemma

It’s become clear, a week after the launch of No Man’s Sky, that the much-hyped space game has not lived up to many players’ lofty expectations. But whose fault is that? Does it matter? And how could the backlash have been avoided? Critical assessment of the game’s achievements aside—go read Kirk’s excellent review if you…

The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II comes to North America on September 6, publisher XSEED said today. It’ll be out on PS3 and Vita. This is the direct sequel to Cold Steel, which you should play. I’m hoping to have a more timely review this time around.

Destiny Is Finally Getting Private PvP Matches

Destiny, a video game in which players travel through space trying to think up good snarky one-line openings for Kotaku stories, is getting private PVP matches. Finally. Bungie announced the news on a livestream at Gamescom in Germany today. Private matches will be introduced when Rise of Iron launches on September 20. Looks like you…