Nathan Grayson

Blizzard Creates Tool To Help Old World Of Warcraft Buddies Find Each Other

If you’ve been a lapsed World of Warcraft player for the past 10-plus years, you’ve probably let some relationships fall by the wayside—for example, the entire guild that formed the core of your social life when you were in a suffocatingly small Christian high school in Texas. Maybe you’ve found yourself sipping a beverage in…

As Police Investigate Threats To Twitch Offices, Employees Told To Work From Home

After multiple threats were sent to Twitch’s offices in San Francisco, California, the company has asked employees to work from home for the day. Police are investigating. Business Insider first reported on the situation earlier today. Twitch confirmed the publication’s report in an email to Kotaku “We were made aware of a threat against our…

Epic Store Rage Has Gotten Out Of Hand

The developers of cutesy Animal Crossing–Pokemon mashup Ooblets just had a weekend from hell. After trying to preempt a tidal wave of rage over their newly announced Epic Games Store exclusivity, they got hit with a swirling tsunami of foaming-at-the-mouth anger, up to and including death threats and anti-Semitic hoaxes. This is the worst overreaction…

Buildings Have Feelings Too is a city management game about buildings that can walk and talk to each other. They have hopes and aspirations, but also, they’re buildings, and the forces of change and expansion are rarely kind to buildings. Beginning in the Victorian era and progressing into the modern day, you’ve got to figure…

Epic Pledges To Support Developers After Intense Harassment Of Ooblets Team

By now, you probably know the drill: A developer announces that it will sell the PC version of its game exclusively through the Epic Games Store. Cue wailing, gnashing of teeth, and increasingly, harassment from folks used to smashing that “buy” button on Steam. The latest target of Epic exclusivity ire? The developers of Ooblets,…

Sigma’s New ‘Asylum’ Skin Raises Concerns About Overwatch‘s Handling Of Mental-Illness Tropes

Overwatch’s newest hero, Sigma, was introduced to the world on a gurney. Though the video was purposefully non-linear, Sigma had suffered a mental breakdown after attempting to harness the power of a black hole. He hollered half-coherently while being wheeled through what appeared to be a psychiatric facility: “Hold it together, hold it together!” Since…

Ooblets Is Epic Exclusive, Developer Puts Expected Backlash In Perspective

Ooblets is one of those games that just oozes effortless charm. It’s not even out yet, but the gooey, chewy mash up of Animal Crossing, Harvest Moon, and Pokémon has already earned its fair share of salivating admirers. Today, the game’s developers announced that, on PC, Ooblets will be an Epic Games Store exclusive. In…

Amidst Controversy, Twitch Confirms That Breastfeeding On Stream Is Allowed

Last week, Twitch partner Heather “HeatheredEffect” Kent breastfed her baby while talking to a friend and streaming on Twitch. She didn’t try to draw attention to the act; she did it then and there simply because babies gotta eat, too. However, Twitch ended up deleting a clip of the moment, and the incident sparked a…

The New Call Of Duty‘s Breezy Multiplayer Feels At Odds With Its Gritty Campaign

Earlier this week, the Call of Duty Twitter account tried to build hype for today’s Modern Warfare multiplayer reveal by announcing the return of killstreaks, which grant players access to tide-turning super weapons if they play well enough. Among these super weapons is white phosphorus, a chemical substance that can be used as a self-igniting…

Trying To Please Everyone In Fire Emblem Is Turning Me Into A Sociopath

I knew I had a problem when I saw a timer appear and my first reaction was to immediately hammer my Nintendo Switch’s power button until it fell into a merciful slumber. Fire Emblem: Three Houses has a feature called an “advice box” in which characters write you letters asking for aid. You’ve got to…

Streamer Sparks Debate Over Whether Twitch Should Allow Breastfeeding

When a Twitch streamer breastfed her baby on stream last week, clips of the moment ended up getting removed from Twitch, and it sparked a debate about whether or not the practice violates Twitch’s terms of service, with some arguing that breastfeeding constitutes “sexual” content. Being a parent on Twitch isn’t easy. As independent contractors, parents…

Characters’ Watches In The New Call Of Duty Will Display Real-World Time

Today in tiny, hyper-specific details that might end up having grave ludonarrative consequences: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)’s multiplayer avatars can wear watches. These watches display whatever time it is where you are, opening the door to a grim future in which somebody can land a perfect headshot on you and, as your character’s…

Steam Economy In Chaos After Team Fortress 2 Glitch Guarantees Players Rare Items

Hats. It’s always been hats. Ever since Team Fortress 2 first added cosmetics back in 2009, which was (oh no) a decade ago, they’ve been equal parts a cornerstone of Valve’s oft-forgotten multiplayer shooter and a meme at the hat-obsessed game’s expense. Now, however, TF2‘s maddest hatters are laughing all the way to the bank.…

Twitch Streamer PaladinAmber Does Not Have Time For Your Shit, Internet Creeps

Make creepy comments in PaladinAmber’s Twitch chat at your own risk. “How much for a hug?” somebody asked during a stream a few days ago. In the blink of an eye, PaladinAmber switched over to an infomercial-style overlay, complete with a (fake) phone number and a list of payment options. “You wanna know how much…

Dota Underlords has received an update intended to turn Primordials into a little less of an unholy force to be reckoned with. Instead of disarming enemies—functionally stunning them—Primordial units now have a chance to slow enemies’ attacks. Arc Warden, meanwhile, has been overhauled. Where once his clone ability was mana-dependent and could go on indefinitely…

Sigma Is Tearing Up The Overwatch Playbook

Sigma, Overwatch’s newest hero, has descended onto the PC public test server, and already, he’s making a craterous impact. The gravity-manipulating tank has an ult of otherworldly power, but ultimately, it hinges on a simple principle: What goes up must come down. Players are using it to pull off some absolutely devious plays. When people…

Overwatch‘s New Hero Sigma Is Slow But Scary

What would you do if you could control gravity? Would you float everywhere? Hurl boulders at people? Yell all the time about a mysterious melody that haunts your every semi-lucid moment? Overwatch’s newest hero, the unhinged, accidentally evil astrophysicist Sigma, can do all of that and more. He’s fun to play, but he definitely takes…

The Treacherous Tales Of The Red Dead Online Player Who Takes Pictures Of Strangers

More than half a year after release, Red Dead Online is still mostly what you make of it. As players await fresh content, it’s hard for some not to seethe in envy when they catch a glimpse of, say, Grand Theft Auto Online’s glitzy new casino. One Red Dead player, however, is making his own…

My Overpowered Dota Underlords Build Makes Me Feel Like A Glorious Scumbag

It’s another week in the world of Dota Underlords, which means there’s been yet another drastic balance shift that’s turned the still-early Auto-Chess-alike on its head and scattered pieces all over the floor. This time, it’s the freaky, amorphous Primordials who’ve risen to the top of the pile. My dilemma: I love playing Primordials. It’s…

Overwatch‘s New Hero Is Sigma, An Astrophysicist Who Doesn’t Know He’s A ‘Living Weapon’

After a series of teases that culminated in the apparent demise of Overwatch director Jeff Kaplan, Blizzard has revealed the game’s latest hero. His name is Sigma, and he has the power to see math. Also, perhaps related to that, he can control gravity. Today, Blizzard introduced Sigma in an animated story trailer. “Gravity is…