Jason Schreier

Watch Us Play Final Fantasy XIV‘s New Dungeon

Today’s Final Fantasy XIV patch opens up the Palace of the Dead, a fascinating new dungeon that has randomized floors and self-contained equipment and leveling systems. Let’s check it out. Watch Fahey, Cecilia and I take a trip through this new dungeon, seeing how far we can get before Fahey gets stuck in a trap…

Gravity Rush 2 comes to PS4 on December 2, Sony announced this morning on the PlayStation Blog. It sure is looking pretty.

I Am Setsuna: The Kotaku Review

The name “Tokyo RPG Factory” conjures a dreary image. An assembly line for role-playing games, perhaps, where dozens of masked workers flank a conveyor belt, smashing together parts: an oversized sword here, a Firaga there, a melancholy hero to tie it all together. Every day they must crank out a new RPG to be shipped…

Rise of the Tomb Raider will finally come to PS4 on October 11, Square Enix announced today. It’ll come with all the old DLC as well as a new pack, Blood Ties, that will also be sold separately for the Xbox One and PC versions of the game.

Check out this awesome-looking Zelda-styled action-RPG, Blossom Tales. It’ll be out on Steam this fall. More info here

Top Smash Bros. Player Loses Sponsorship After Allegedly Groping Woman While She Slept

High-profile Super Smash Bros. player Cristian “Hyuga” Medina lost his team and sponsorship Sunday at Evo 2016 after allegedly touching another player’s body while she slept. “VikkiKitty,” who asked that we redact her real name and who streams and commentates on several games including Smash, said Sunday that Medina groped her several times while she…

Podcast: Final Fantasy XIV Is The Best Final Fantasy In Years

Kirk’s off this week, so today on Kotaku Splitscreen I’m joined by Mike Fahey to talk Final Fantasy XIV, 7th Dragon III Code VFD, and fanservice games. Also: the story of why he wasn’t allowed to go to the Tokyo Game Show. Originally posted on 7/14/2016. Seriously, guys, if you’re into JRPGs and have the…

How To Watch Evo 2016 This Weekend

It’s time again for Evo, the fighting game tournament extravaganza that takes place in Las Vegas every year. From Friday July 15 to Sunday July 17, the top fighting game players in the world will be competing for our entertainment with games like Smash Bros. Melee and Street Fighter V, and it’ll all be streamed…

‘SQUIRTLE!!!’

A ridiculous end to a ridiculous week. Have a good weekend, folks. Try not to get decked while chasing Squirtles. (h/t Tech Insider)

South Park: The Fractured But Whole Is Full Of Surprises

I’ve been a fan of South Park for nearly 20 years. I’ve watched every episode, played every game, and at one point even dug up a copy of series co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone’s first movie, Cannibal: The Musical (unexpectedly good!). In other words, you’d think they wouldn’t be able to keep surprising me.…

The Mini-NES Won’t Get Games Beyond The Ones That Were Announced

Announced this morning to much fanfare, the classic-playing mini-NES is an exciting prospect for both old and new Nintendo fans. It’s a $60 device that plays 30 classic NES games ranging from Final Fantasy to Super Mario Bros. If you don’t like that list, you’re out of luck: Nintendo says this mini NES won’t be…

Nintendo Announces The Mini-NES, Will Play 30 Classic Games

Looks like we might be playing Zelda this holiday after all—just not the one we expected. Nintendo today announced the mini-NES, a new $60 machine that will come pre-installed with 30 classic Nintendo games. It’ll also come with an HDMI cable, a power adapter, and what Nintendo is calling an NES Classic Controller, “patterned after…

StarCraft II‘s Ladder Gets A Massive Revamp

Blizzard made some major changes to StarCraft II’s ladder system this week, adding tiers and new visual cues that will help players determine just how well they’re doing—and why they can’t get out of Silver. The revamped ladder, which went live yesterday, will now display your Matchmaking Rating (MMR) as a number that goes up…

Pokémon Go Update Fixes Crashes, Google Security Concerns

An iOS update that went live for Pokémon Go this afternoon fixes some bugs and will stop the popular app from requesting access to your entire Google account. Now the game will only ask for basic information like your name and email—and now it’ll give you a warning first. The update also promises added stability…

Blizzard Announces Overwatch‘s Next Hero: Ana

Get ready for heal-snipes. Blizzard today revealed the next playable character in Overwatch, and as had been rumored, it’s a long-range healer. Meet Ana. Ana, who is Pharah’s mother and a sniper support character, has a Biotic rifle that both heals allies and does “ongoing damage” to enemies. She’s also got a sleep dart (putting…

The Best Speedruns From SGDQ 2016

Last week, a lot of people played through a lot of video games very, very quickly. Here are some of the best. I haven’t watched EVERY run from Summer Games Done Quick 2016, which ended late Saturday night after raising close to $1.3 million for Doctors Without Borders, but I’ve watched a lot, so I’ve…

PSA: Pokémon Go Gets Full Access To Your Google Account On iOS [UPDATE]

Watch out: if you’re using your Google Account to sign into Pokémon Go on iOS, you may have allowed the developers at Niantic to have access to your e-mail, documents, and anything else attached to that account. Unlike other applications that link to Google, which typically ask for your basic account info, Pokémon Go gets…

FTC Slams Warner Bros. For ‘Failing To Adequately Disclose’ Sponsored Gameplay Videos

The Federal Trade Commission came out hard against Warner Bros. today, banning the game publisher from misrepresenting sponsored content as part of a settlement that will force WB to offer clearer disclosure practices in their marketing campaigns. Under new rules laid out by the FTC today, Warner Bros. will have to monitor the YouTubers who…

Speedrunner Crushes Super Mario World Without Using A Single Power-Up

There were some remarkable speedruns at Summer Games Done Quick 2016, but this might be the most impressive: Rezephos blazing through Super Mario World without getting a single mushroom, fire flower, cape, star, or Yoshi. You can watch the astounding run here (starts at 7:50): Those shell jumping tricks are just out of this world.…

Satoru Iwata died on July 11, 2015—one year ago today. Let’s look back at the former Nintendo president’s storied career and remarkable accomplishments. I bet he would’ve really loved Pokémon Go