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The Long-Forgotten Threat That ‘Always’ Made Madden Nervous
So much is made of NFL 2K5 and the blaze-of-glory conclusion to its rivalry with Madden NFL that it’s easy to forget another title once threatened EA Sports’ glamour franchise. In fact, the Madden team also feared NFL GameDay until the end. “We were always nervous about GameDay,” an unnamed EA Sports developer said in…
By Owen Good -
Reviews
Wired for Great Sound, Just Not for Convenience
Making a consumer recommendation on a video game is rather simple: new ones typically cost $60, so the question is whether the thing is worth that. Hardware and peripherals are a bit trickier as a manufacturer can pile on features and conveniences, jacking up the price but, inevitably, making a recommendable luxury. Truth is, not…
By Owen Good -
EA Sports Drafts Two from MIT, Colorado State
Four months ago, EA Sports opened up applications for a four-month fellowship meant to invite former college athletes into video game design careers. Today, the label awarded its first two, to graduates who played football at Colorado State University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Clint Oldenburg, an offensive lineman at Colorado State and a…
By Owen Good -
Doom Is Back Up on Xbox Live
Doom, one of the progenitors of the first-person shooter genre, has returned to the Xbox Live Marketplace after a mysterious three-month hiatus. The classic PC title is available for 400 Microsoft Points ($5). The game was removed in October with no explanation from Bethesda Softworks, the current rights-holder to the game (as the parent compabny…
By Owen Good -
Government Affirms Mom’s Right to Confiscate PS3 Until Piano Practice is Finished
The police in Lake Oswego, Ore., a Portland suburb, pride themselves on the motto “no call is too small.” And they took one, yesterday, that comes straight from the Sheriff Andy Taylor manual of community policing. Yesterday, an 11-year-old picked up the phone and dialed 911 to report that his mother had taken away his…
By Owen Good -
What the Hell is Mutant League Football Doing in NFL Blitz?
Finish off the “Blitz Gauntlet” mode in the recently released NFL Blitz for PS3 and Xbox 360 and you’ll unlock a team full of zombies. And the logo on their jersey isn’t that of the National Football League, but of another league, one from a future of decaying flesh and dismembered bodies. That shot above…
By Owen Good -
NBA Jam: On Fire Edition Will Get Roster Updates, EA Sports Says
EA Sports has confirmed to Kotaku that NBA Jam: On Fire Edition will be getting a roster update. The publisher’s preceding silence on the subject had led some to believe it had abandoned post-release support for the 2-on-2 arcade basketball game. Responding to a Kotaku request for comment, an EA Sports spokeswoman said that’s not…
By Owen Good -
THQ Wipes Out Games Planned for 2014 to Ready Itself for Sale, Says Games Insider [Update]
Rumor spreading fast via Twitter on Sunday holds that THQ has canceled its entire 2014 slate of releases to position the company for sale. Kevin Dent, a games industry veteran, tweeted late yesterday that THQ had canceled an MMO it was developing under license from The Games Workshop, meaning Warhammer 40,000: Dark Millenium Online (pictured…
By Owen Good -
Half-Knife
There’s trolling, counter-trolling, and counter-counter-trolling. And then there’s “STFU about Half-Life 3 or I will cut you,” as Valve boss Gabe Newell seemed to say in this display of his knife collection. But what does it all mean? That’s where you guys come in with this week’s ‘Shop Contest challenge. Gabe is a regular ’round…
By Owen Good -
Weekend Talk Amongst Yourselves
Talk is cheap. But Talk Amongst Yourselves? Priceless. Welcome to your morning call to discuss all things video games amongst yourselves. While you’d do it anyway, I’d like to think that giving you my permission to do so is what makes it special. Big thanks to Mr Marsu for today’s TAYpic. Join in the fun…
By Owen Good -
Culture
Sunday Comics: Blow Me
Welcome to your Sunday read of the week’s best in web comics. Make sure to click on the expand button in the bottom right to enlarge each comic. Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich published Jan. 9.—Read more of Awkward Zombie Nerf NOW!! by Josué Pereira published Jan. 11.—Read more of Nerf NOW!! Penny Arcade by…
By Owen Good -
Bullet Blender: The Winners
Yes, yes, yes, I know that’s a mixer, not a blender. Look, I play video games and write about sports, I’m not the goddamn chef de cuisine. Anyway, we asked you to blend that mixer with some twisted humor, and we’ve got 20 winners inside, including overall champ Ryan! Getting started, power_overwhelming (14) became an…
By Owen Good -
Everything Must Go
Three weeks past the holidays, retailers still are clearing off stock to make room on shelves or in the warehouse for the storm of new releases yet to come. Yes, this is the bargain bin, but there within it are someone’s treasures. The Moneysaver marches on! Software • Feb. 21 release Syndicate (360, PS3) pre-orders…
By Owen Good -
Meet Kotaku’s Special Weekend Guest Star: Dave Oshry
In fifth grade we had two teachers and one of them would routinely be (finger quotes) sick, because her (finger quotes) medicine sometimes had (finger quotes) side effects. That’s sort of what is going on while I am out this weekend. See gang, I am on vacation, having spent much of the week on a…
By Owen Good -
Lego My Mario
Lego My Mario | A childhood friend of mine fooled around with his wife’s LEGOs and came up with this, working without any notes. (Full size here) Image and LEGO Mario by Richard Tysinger. Watch a WWE Legend Burn Down a Village in Skyrim I believe the famous professional wrestler, given name Randall Mario Poffo,…
By Owen Good -
Two Call of Duty Gamers Ponder the Easiest Kill They’ll Ever Get
[EXT—ROOFTOP—DAY] Two soldiers are wearing ghillie camouflage suits to blend in with the urban setting. Their adversary is frozen in a mysterious forcefield. Ghillie Suit No. 1: “Whut th’ hail you think’s goin’ on?” Ghillie Suit No. 2: “Looks like he’s in one-a-them Force Grips, you know whar the Sith choke you and stuff?” Pending…
By Owen Good -
Diablo III Has Not Been Dated for Release, Says Blizzard
Micah Whipple, the Diablo III community manager, says that rumors the game will suddenly release on Feb. 1 are false. “Diablo III does not have a release date, Whipple said via Twitter about an hour ago. “Any store or person claiming otherwise is guessing.” [h/t Dave O.]
By Owen Good -
Culture
Zen and the Art of Pinball
The new year is still getting off to a slow start. Highlights this week are entirely downloadable titles, for PS3, Xbox 360 and on the 3DS eShop, where Zen Pinball releases on Thursday. Tuesday • Choplifter HD (PC, PSN) Wednesday • AMY (XBLA) • Choplifter HD (XBLA) Thursday • Zen Pinball 3D (3DS eShop) Sources:…
By Owen Good -
Petition for PC Dark Souls Actually has Legs; Will Namco Listen?
“Internet petitions” rank right up there with “zillion dollar Xbox Live DLC” on my list of favorite subjects. We could spend all day writing about them, and they’re still worth the paper they are printed on*. That said, a drive to get Dark Souls ported to the PC has traction, thanks to a Namco Bandai…
By Owen Good -
The King of Rock and Roll, in Video Games
Each week throws off several new video game lists ranging from the humorous to the trivial. What’s better? A list of those. Here’s a roundup of the rundowns out there. •Top Five Video Game Elvises [Houston Press] On a cold and gray January mornin’ another video game Elvis is born in the Top 5 (in…
By Owen Good
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