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E-Sports League Mined Bitcoins with Subscribers’ Computers [UPDATE]

ESEA League, one of the largest PC gaming leagues, has admitted to putting code into the league’s client software to “mine” bitcoins, the open-source Internet currency now exchanging for around $130 per. The league is offering free memberships as some members complain the code damaged their video cards. Eric Thunberg, a league administrator (who goes…

The New Call of Duty is Coming to Current and Next-Gen Consoles

Activision’s annual blockbuster military shooter returns in November with Call of Duty: Ghosts, and in addition to this debut teaser trailer, the game is getting an “exclusive first look” at Microsoft’s event for the next-generation Xbox on May 21. In a news release, Call of Duty: Ghosts was announced for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3…

NBA Live 14, assuming it ships, figures to add an Ultimate Team mode, if a developer’s bio is any indication. I asked and EA Sports said no comment. If true, it probably means they’re building a full retail product, not the $20 downloadable that NBA Live 13 was rumored to be.

The puck dropped an hour ago on the Stanley Cup playoffs, and NHL 13‘s official simulation has the New York Rangers winning the whole thing, beating Chicago in six in the finals. Get your bets down now. C’mon. No way you can lose.

Producer of Michael Vick’s Video Game Won’t Give Out His Real Name

In one of the more unusual interviews I’ve seen for a new, licensed sports game, the producer of Mike Vick: GameTime, on iOS, asked that his real name not be used. Might being associated with Vick, the NFL quarterback who did federal time for running a dogfighting operation, have something to do with that? “Not…

Here Are the Latest Trailers for Grand Theft Auto V

Rockstar promised new trailers for Grand Theft Auto V today, and here they are. Meet Michael, Franklin, and Trevor, the game’s three protagonists. Michael (above) is a wealthy man battling his cheating wife and a midlife crisis, evidently finding his adventure by getting over his head in criminal capers. Sounds like his character will draw…

Filmmaker Documenting Online Nastiness Doesn’t Plan to Feed the Trolls

The filmmaker preparing a documentary about the notoriously rancid and abusive behavior in online gaming says she’s not really interested in having a dialogue with the trolls. Her project aims to make their conduct morally taboo, if not stigmatized in mainstream society. GTFO, by Shannon Sun-Higginson, concentrates on the abuse directed at female gamers, where…

The NBA Player Who Came Out Was A Video Game Cover Star… Sort Of

Today’s big news—not just in sports, either—is 12-year NBA veteran Jason Collins revealing he is gay. Collins isn’t really a star; he’s a journeyman more known for getting destroyed by Shaq in the NBA Finals his rookie year. Perhaps you may have seen him somewhere else? Yes. He’s on the PS2 cover of NBA 2K6,…

Watch Dogs has been given a release date. It is Nov. 19. It will be available on PS3, 360, Wii U and PC “as well as at the launch of the PlayStation 4,” says Ubisoft. “The game is also planned for other next generation consoles,” meaning the next Xbox.

A Video Game in Which You Make Video Games Fights Pirates with Piracy

There’s a recent tradition of developers screwing with pirates—from releasing enormous, immortal pink scorpions on them, to booby trapping their games with glitches when they get cracked. This weekend, Greenheart Games, creator of Game Dev Tycoon, just blew the curve for everyone. This is fantastic. As the title suggests, the game is about video games…

As soon as the Oculus Rift came out, you knew it was going to happen. This guy (Cymatic Bruce) is running a Virtual Boy emulator on the headset, playing Insane Mouse Mansion

Some might call it a used 3DS or DSi. Nintendo, however, is selling “authentic refurbished” models of the handheld—with a warranty—on its U.S. online store. Take that, GameStop! [via Siliconera]

EA Sports Also Hurts After a Rough Week of Painful Cuts

Theoretically, sports should be one of the safer gigs in video games today. These are series that come out every year, they’re usually reliable sellers, the publishers have sunk a lot of money into a license, and often they’re the only ones holding it. It isn’t like taking a risk on a new concept that…

Monaco, the top-down perspective, co-op heist game that’s gotten raveson the PC, was held back from Xbox Live at the last minute because of a “minor but important bug” causing multiplayer disconnects. No release date is promised, but the game’s creator says he hopes to submit another fix this week.

Beyond: Two Souls Wants You to Know It’s a Film with Exclusive DLC

Beyond: Two Souls, the PS3 exclusive game coming from Quantic Dream was an official selection at the Tribeca Film Festival this weekend, and presented this, its official trailer. It’s a big deal for a video game to get that kind of serious treatment, so the trailer goes all out in presenting itself as a serious…

Kotaku ‘Shop Contest: Pot-Man

Yep. This guy was a lead-pipe lock for the ‘Shop Contest from the day we published his story—the story of a man getting busted with 55 pounds of doobage jammed in a Pac-Man arcade cabinet. Mugshots have a fine tradition here at the ‘Shop Contest so let’s add to it with Luis Tyler, who in…

The Zillion-Dollar Suit Over Who Made Today’s Madden Will Go to a Jury

Unless they settle beforehand, on June 10 a federal jury will hear some of the claims brought by one of the developers on the first John Madden Football, a lawsuit that alleges Electronic Arts owes him millions in unpaid royalties. On Thursday, a federal judge ruled that Robin Antonick’s claim for unpaid royalties could go…

Sunday Comics: Path of Least Resistance

Welcome to Kotaku‘s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics, chosen by our readership. The images enlarge if you click on the magnifying glass icon in the lower right corner. Penny Arcade by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik. Published April 26. Read more of Penny Arcade Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich. Published April…

Kotaku ‘Shop Contest: Ding: The Winners

Pop culture crossovers are always a fertile field for the ‘Shop Contest, and bad mute mofo Héctor Salamanca of Breaking Bad supplied a full 20-finalist week for our venerable parody. Overall No. 1 ithius made a timely reference to BioShock, whose punchline you’ll have to see inside. Last chance to look at me, Hector ……

Coming Soon to the Small Screen: EVE: The TV Show

EVE Online is getting a television series, thanks to a partnership between the MMO’s publisher and an Icelandic filmmaker, and it will take its inspiration from the stories EVE players left on a website honoring the game’s first decade. Baltasar Kormákur, the director, was behind 2012’s Contraband and is currently working on 2 Guns, which…