Patrick Klepek

Rocket League Has Made Nearly $50 Million

Rocket League has been one of 2015’s biggest surprises, and it’s paid off handsomely for the game’s developer, Psyonix. A Wall Street Journal profile of the company also revealed they spent roughly $2 million developing Rocket League. Game developers are notoriously tight-lipped about financials (see: the many ways Activision has avoided discussing Destiny sales), so…

Super Mario Maker Is Forcing Me To Leave My Wii U On All Day

My Wii U’s been on for over 24 hours, and that won’t change anytime soon. While probably bad for my Wii U (and electricity bill), I have a good reason: I’m in the middle of a hard Super Mario Maker stage, don’t want to lose any progress, and the game doesn’t save checkpoints. When Nintendo…

The Banner Saga, one of 2014’s best (and most depressing) games, will hit Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on January 12. The next installment is supposed to hit all of those platforms sometime in 2016. The sooner, the better! Contact the author at [email protected]

Valve’s revealed the massive changes and tweaks coming to DOTA 2’s upcoming Balance of Power update, which brings Zet the Arc Warden, one of the last holdouts from original DOTA. The whole list of patch notes is huge, and despite the winter release, it comes with a “desert terrain” for custom games.

The latest fighters for Super Smash Bros.—Bayonetta, Cloud, Corrin—are all getting amiibo sometime next year. The only amiibo I own is the one from Wii Fit, but I might be tempted by Bayonetta. Contact the author at [email protected]

It’s Not Clear What A ‘Spoiler’ Is Anymore

The hype for tonight’s Smash Bros. presentation, possibly the game’s final Nintendo Direct, is real. So real, people are trying to avoid spoilers for what’s basically a marketing video. It initially struck me as odd, but as someone who’s avoiding spoilers for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, maybe it shouldn’t. “just a friendly reminder: tomorrow’s…

From Japan, With Changes: The Endless Debate Over Video Game ‘Censorship’

One of Nintendo’s biggest releases in 2015 is the sprawling 100-hour adventure Xenoblade Chronicles X, released earlier this year in Japan. It’s great-looking and fun. That’s not in dispute. The most heated debate about the game—making it the latest flashpoint in ongoing skirmishes over censorship, creative freedom and sexual politics—involves a pair of changes made…

That Time Final Fantasy VII Ended Without Explaining Anything

When Final Fantasy VII arrived in 1997, it was unlike anything I’d ever played before. Late nights, lots of grinding, and hundreds of hours later, I’d reached the end. A few friends were watching as I took down the final boss, and we eagerly waited for the ending to play out. What we saw was…uh,…

Few games announced in 2015 looked as charming as Unravel, which we’ll get a chance to play on February 9. Kotaku’s Jason Schreier spent time with the game earlier this year and said it’s “stellar.” Not a bad way to start 2016!

A Linguist Explains Why Popular YouTubers Sound The Same

It’s Friday, which means it’s time for Worth Reading, our weekly guide to the best games writing that doesn’t show up here at Kotaku Hey, You Should Read These “Open World Games Are Changing the Way We Play” by Jake Muncy Fallout 3 finally made open world games click for me. I’d previously looked at…

I’ve Found My New Favorite Mario Maker Level Designer

I’ve got no problem with make-you-want-to-scream Mario stages. There are plenty in Super Mario Maker’s community, and I’ve been playing ‘em for months! But it’s not often you encounter levels as inventive as Nintendo’s own creations, yet that’s exactly how I felt while playing Stank’s—yes, Stank!—stages today. As part of my Mario Maker Morning series,…

YouTube Bans Another Game Channel For Mysterious Reasons [UPDATE]

Valkyrie Drive Bhikkhuni is an action game released for Vita in Japan today, but trailers for the game seem to have gotten one of Marvelous’ YouTube channels banned. I say “seem” because there’s no way to be sure—YouTube is confusing that way—but, uh, the anime it’s based on is one step away from pornography. Update…

Elite: Dangerous will let players to roam planets in the Horizons update on December 15. It’s coming to PC first, but will arrive on the Xbox One down the line. The game’s coming to PS4 eventually, too. The expansion is pricey: $60 for new players (base game + expansion), $45 if you already own the…

Bloodborne Player Defeats DLC’s Hardest Boss Using Only His Fists

Few Souls players are more talented than Lobos Jr—he once beat the game upside down! Like many Souls enthusiasts, he’s digging through the Bloodborne DLC, The Old Hunters. Just recently, he pulled off something incredible: beating the crazy hard first boss on New Game+++++++ (that’s 7!) with only his fists. Ludwig is the first monstrosity…

Media critic Anita Sarkeesian, in collaboration with other activists, has published Speak Up & Stay Safe, a guide to navigating harassment on the Internet. Even if you’ve been lucky enough to never deal with harassment, it’s a great reference guide to avoid sharing too much about yourself on the Internet, and to determine how much…

The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth+ is coming sometime in 2016, according to the game’s publisher, bringing official mod support, a bestiary, and more. The game’s latest expansion, Afterbirth, only launched a few weeks back. It’s unclear if this update will cost any money, but the game’s gotten lots of free updates. You can reach the…

That Time Kojima Deceived Everyone About Metal Gear Solid 2‘s Main Character

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty was one of the most anticipated games ever. 1998’s Metal Gear Solid blew everyone away with its attention to detail and imaginative world. The sequel, one of the first big PS2 games, would herald Solid Snake’s triumphant return. Snake came back…but not for the entire game. In 2015,…

Two Very Different Ways to Play Fallout 4

As temperatures continues to drop, there’s little reason to leave your computer! Instead, cuddle up with Worth Reading, our guide to the best games writing. Hey, You Should Read These “Playing Fallout 4 without ever leaving Sanctuary” by Christopher Livingston “I Just Said Yes to All the Drugs in Fallout 4” by Emanuel Maiberg As…

Bloodborne’s New Bow Absolutely Wrecks

One of the more interesting new weapons in Bloodborne is Simon’s Bowblade, giving players the unique opportunity to inflict long distance damage. With the proper stats, it can turn otherwise brutal boss battles into trivial affairs. krump0 posted a video of his fight against Ebrietas, one of the hidden bosses in Bloodborne and notorious for…

The next slate of Mortal Kombat X characters includes Texas Chainsaw Massacre’s Leatherface, Alien’s xenomorph, Bo Rai Cho, and Tri-Borg. Bo Rai Cho is described as “master of the drunken fist” and Tri-Borg is a mashup of Cyrax, Sektor, and Robot Smoke. They’re arriving “first quarter of 2016.” You can reach the author of this…