Maddy Myers

The Galaxy Is At Peace

Today is my last day at Kotaku It feels weird to write that, maybe because I didn’t think I’d ever work at Kotaku in the first place, let alone get promoted from staff writer to editor, and then managing editor, and then deputy editor. I definitely didn’t think I’d do all of that in three…

Cloud Can’t Close Doors

Final Fantasy VII Remake looks so damn good, and it’s full of tiny graphical flourishes. You can even see which color materia Cloud has equipped in his sword. That might be why it’s so much more noticeable to me that Cloud can’t close doors. I’m only eight hours into playing the game, so maybe Cloud…

The Best Kirby Game For Non-Kirby Fans

How can anyone not like Kirby? For this week’s episode of Kotaku Splitscreen, I got my two cohosts to try out Kirby: Planet Robobot because I won a bet. Kirk has never played a Kirby game before, whereas Jason is just a skeptic. By the time they’ve beaten this game, they’ll both be dedicated Kirby…

You know what’s still good? Dragon’s Dogma On this week’s episode of Splitscreen, Kotaku video producer Paul Tamayo came on as a guest and tried to convince Kirk and I to finally check out this gem of a game. Get the MP3 here

What We Loved And Hated About Mythic Quest, A TV Show About A Fictional Game Studio

My coworker Ethan Gach and I watched press screeners of the first season of Mythic Quest: Raven’s Banquet, a sitcom that premieres on Apple’s new streaming service on February 7. Mythic Quest is a workplace comedy about a video game studio. We’re pretty mixed: Parts of the show are hilarious, others are touching, and some…

A Raccoon Camped Out On My Back Porch This Week And I Couldn’t Stop It

This past Monday morning, as I walked out my back door to go to an early dentist appointment, I stepped right over a sleeping raccoon. He woke up and growled, a low rumble like an angry dog’s. I was surprised to see him there, but I shouldn’t have been. After all, the raccoon had been…

Sometimes Beating The Quest Is Its Own Reward (Because The Reward Sucks)

This week on Kotaku Splitscreen, Kirk Hamilton and I brought on Kotaku staff writer Ethan Gach to talk about the state of Destiny 2. Players felt let down by the reward for solving the Corridors of Time puzzle, but hey, MMOs are always more about the journey than the rewards, right? Still, it’d be nice…

What’s the hardest challenge you’ve beaten in a game? On this week’s Kotaku Splitscreen, we talk about tough fights we’ve had in Sekiro, Gears 5, and Hollow Knight, and invite listeners to tell us theirs via [email protected]. Get the MP3 here

The Internet Reacts To Yet Another Fire Emblem Character In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

There’s a lot to love about Professor Byleth, the protagonist of Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Given the game’s success, it makes perfect sense that Byleth would be a fighter in Super Smash Brothers: Ultimate. After all the buildup to the announcement of the final fighter in the game’s DLC pack, though, it did feel anti-climactic…

Fire Emblem: Three Houses will get some new story content in its upcoming DLC release on February 12th, 2020. In the “Cindered Shadows” side story, players will meet students from a hidden fourth house, the Ashen Wolves.

Kentucky Route Zero Will Finally End (And Come To Switch) Later This Month

Kentucky Route Zero, the beloved point-and-click adventure game that has been releasing in episodic increments since 2013, will put out its fifth and final act on January 28, 2020. The final act will appear as part of a complete edition of the game titled Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition, which will include all five acts…

The Cost Of Being A Woman Who Covers Video Games

Now that it’s 2020, I keep thinking about how it felt to be a woman writing about gender in video games back in 2010. Ten years ago, the gender imbalance in the video game industry was not seen as a problem to be solved so much as a mundane and largely unquestioned reality. It wasn’t…

If “Toss A Coin To Your Witcher” from The Witcher Netflix TV show is still stuck in your head, then check out this remix of the song by Kyle Reclaim, which is better than it has any right to be.

Tips For Playing The Video Games You Just Got

The end of the year is gift-giving season for many people, so chances are good that you, dear reader, just received at least one brand new video game. You’ve installed that thing, and you’re ready to dive right in. You just have a couple of questions about, uh, how to play it. We’re here to…

Let’s Talk About Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Spoilers

The end of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order totally rules, and it rules even more if you don’t know anything about it. If you have beaten this game, then you’ll enjoy this week’s episode of Kotaku Splitscreen, in which we dissect the game’s take on the Force, the Jedi Order, and also that one character…

Redheaded Guys Who Are Not The Hero Of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Ranked

1. Fry 2. Ron Weasley 3. Chuckie Finster 4. Chucky 5. Patrick Redford 6. Bobby Axelrod 7. Richie Cunningham 8. Scut Farkus 9. Alfred E. Neuman 10. Archie Andrews 11. General Armitage Hux 12. Jimmy Olsen 13. Getting hit by a car 14. The villain on Gotham who is clearly The Joker but can’t be…

J-pop legends Sheena Ringo and Hikaru Utada have collaborated once again on a new song that 1. is awesome, and 2. has a music video featuring a futuristic tabletop version of Tetris. I wish it were real so I could play it with Paul Tamayo (who would destroy me).

It’s Hard To Play Death Stranding When You Have An Actual Baby

All three of us on Kotaku Splitscreen have begun to play Death Stranding, but only one of us did so with a newborn baby in the mix. Jason explained to me and Kirk this week that it’s just not cool to put your baby down for a nap and then get prompted to rock your…

My Hideous, Comfortable Gamer Chair Fills Me With Existential Dread

For nearly 20 years, I’ve been sitting in the same piece of shit: a gray swivel chair that I got at Target as a teenager. It creaks if you look at it; it’s covered in enormous amounts of my hair. It does not do my body any favors. Very possibly it has been exacerbating my…

On this week’s Kotaku Splitscreen, staff editor Natalie Degraffinried comes on to discuss the best and worst exercise games with me and Kirk, from Ring Fit Adventure (fun!) to Wii Fit (ehh) to Dance Dance Revolution (classic). Get the MP3 here