Nathan Grayson

Dual Universe sounds like an MMO take on No Man’s Sky. Announced during the E3 PC Gaming Show, it takes place in a single, seamless, fully editable shared universe. You can fly between planets and space, build civilizations, and explore a nearly infinite universe. Can developer Novaquark pull it off? Who knows.

The previously leaked Halo Wars 2 open beta is official. During their E3 conference, Microsoft showed gameplay footage and announced that the beta will run from today until June 20th. The game’s full release has been pushed to February 2017.

The Witcher Getting Standalone Card Game Spin-Off

Today during Microsoft’s E3 press conference, CD Projekt announced a standalone digital card game spin-off of The Witcher 3‘s Gwent. It’s a multiplayer game with crossplay, so you can battle people whether they use PC or console. It’s also got a single-player campaign. As you win, you gain the option to craft new cards and…

ReCore Shows Off Gameplay Footage, Dog Robots

Remember ReCore? It’s the game by Keiji Inafune’s that’s not Mighty No 9, being made in partnership with the ex-Metroid Prime devs at Armature Studios. Last year at E3, it broke and then warmed hearts with a self-destructing robo puppy. This year we got to see some gameplay. Here’s the new footage: It looks solid.…

Serious Sam is getting a VR game. It’s coming to Steam Early Access this summer, and it’s about shooting everything that moves. Finally, a killer app for VR. (Sorry, it’s early and I can’t do jokes yet.)

Our First Good Look At Dishonored 2

During Bethesda’s E3 conference, Arkane debuted the first gameplay footage of Dishonored 2. It looks very shiny. And French. In Dishonored 2, Emily rules over Dunwald with the aid of her Grizzled But Weirdly Hot Dad, Dishonored 1 hero Corvo. But then, bad dudes oust her, and Emily and Corvo (both playable) have to unravel…

Hey, remember that Elder Scrolls digital card game? It’s called Elder Scrolls Legends, and it’s about “a hero who changed the very course of history.” With trading cards. It’s in beta right now, and you can sign up on the game’s site

EA Lays Out Their Star Wars Plans For The Next Three Years

EA is working on more Star Wars games. I’m shocked, shocked I tell you. DICE and Motive (the company founded by former Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell producer Jade Raymond) are working on a new Battlefront for 2017. Visceral’s Star Wars game, headed up by former Uncharted maestro Amy Hennig, is coming in 2018. Respawn…

Overwatch Fan Dreams Up A Better Play Of The Game System

As we’ve pointed out on a couple occasions, Overwatch’s Play Of The Game feature, while excellent in concept, is kinda borked. It tends to focus on multi-kills or the occasional ult denial, as opposed to strong team play, vital supports, or truly tide-turning moments. One fan took a crack at making something better. Inspired by…

Valve just released Destinations, a tool for building locations in virtual reality. It’s powered by Source 2, and it lets you “create and share both real and imaginary places in virtual reality.” Right now the most popular thing on its Steam Workshop is a picture of popcorn

Custom Map Turns Doom Into A Fashion Show

Despite being somewhat limited compared to traditional modding, Doom’s SnapMap feature has helped produce everything from demonic farming simulators to demonic MOBAs. And now, it’s given us a demon fashion show. Demons are nothing if not well-rounded individuals. Kyle Pena put together a SnapMap scenario that’s all about stylish demons strutting their stuff. There are…

Watch Us Play Wasted, A Dungeon Crawler Inspired By Fallout And Booze

Wasted is a post-apocalyptic dungeon crawler that unabashedly takes the piss out of Fallout. It’s about exploring Coolers (read: Vaults), meeting and murdering zany characters, and getting so drunk that you acquire super powers. The game just launched on Steam earlier this week, and you can watch me play it in the video below. My…

The Reason Blizzard Can’t Make World Of Warcraft Legacy Servers (For Now)

In April, Blizzard finally dropped the hammer on one of the biggest fan-run World of Wacraft legacy (that is, running older versions of WoW) servers, Nostalrius. After sustained outcry, however, Blizzard agreed to have a meeting with the folks who ran Nostalrius. Here’s what came of it. According to Nostalrius’ project manager, who goes by…

Overwatch‘s Commendation System Is Great For Passive-Aggressive Jerks (Like Me)

Commendations are one of the coolest little things in Overwatch. After matches, you get to formally declare whose contributions you found to be most valuable, even if they’re on the other team. The system encourages good sportsmanship and a sense of camaraderie. That is, of course, not how I use it at all. I am…

A Closer Look At Overwatch‘s Generous Headshot Hitboxes

Does playing Overwatch make you feel like there’s something in the water? Something that magically transforms you into a sniper demon, or conversely, a tottering watermelon with legs? You might be onto something. Force Gaming decided to test Overwatch’s headshot hitboxes (that is, the area in which something counts as a hit as opposed to…

Transmission is a sci-fi exploration game that looks out of this world. It’s got a great sense of scale and style, and it’s not just for show. The game touts a high degree of environmental interaction as a key feature. Transmission is on Steam Greenlight right now.

UFC 199 Was The UFC At Its Best And Worst

UFC 199 was stacked with moments that reminded me why I love MMA. Michael Bisping’s championship win. Dan Henderson’s age-defying comeback KO of Hector Lombard. The last ten seconds of Max Holloway vs Ricardo Lamas. Shame the UFC had to mar it by being a petty wreck of an organization. It’s a storybook event whose…

The Making Of A Popular Counter-Strike Map

Santorini is one of Counter-Strike’s most well-regarded recent maps. It’s attractive, well-balanced, and compact enough to create tense showdowns. How do you make a map that stands out in a Dust2-obsessed CSGO landscape? Like this. Santorini creator Shawn “FMPONE” Snelling teamed up with Max Reiger to create a slick video of Santorini’s methodical evolution over…

How A Guy Nearly Broke Doom‘s SnapMap To Make A MOBA

Doom’s SnapMap feature is more versatile than a typical custom map creator, but it’s not quite on the level of full-blown mod tools. So, what happens when you try to recreate one of the more complicated game genres known to man in it? Kotaku reader Patrick Roeder just released a beta of his Doom MOBA…

Thousands Of Overwatch Players Have Already Been Banned For Cheating

Last month, Blizzard promised to ban anybody who cheats in Overwatch, no second chances. It looks like they’re following through. Overwatch has only been out for a bit more than a week, and Blizzard is already showing cheaters and hackers the door. First up, users of a popular Overwatch cheat program began reporting bans en…