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Hey, Star Wars Grumps, You’re Making It Even Worse
It’s been popular for far too long to complain about Star Wars. I’m sick of it, because it all sounds to me like a bunch of old people complaining about kids these days. Sorry, haters, but you are living in an era of wonderful Star Wars, and your childhood isn’t being ruined. And I’m not…
By Stephen Totilo Published April 3, 2012 -
ReviewsKinect Star Wars: The Kotaku Review
If you know how to use the Internet, you will have little trouble finding people who will tell you that Kinect Star Wars is a bad video game. These people are correct. The combination of one popular thing (Star Wars!) with another popular thing (the magical hands-free Xbox 360 Kinect sensor!) has resulted in one…
By Stephen Totilo Published April 3, 2012 -
Mass Effect: The High School Years Could Fix The Game’s Beginning
Who cares about the ending of Mass Effect 3? The creators of the “young and sassy” Mass Effect: The High School Years know that the part of BioWare’s big sci-fi gaming series that most urgently needs work is the beginning. With this trailer, they’ve fixed it. Except… my Shepard would have been a girl in…
By Stephen Totilo Published April 2, 2012 -
Christian Allen’s Tactical Shooter Kickstarter Makes Its Money
We told you that former Halo developer Christian Allen wanted to collect $200,000 to start making an old-school tactical shooter. Then Christian confessed he botched the Kickstarter; tried to revive it. At the last minute, he’s hit his goal!
By Stephen Totilo Published April 2, 2012 -
Here’s the Great, Painful Trailer For Fake Assassin’s Creed Kinect
If Assassin’s Creed really was made to be played entirely with crazy gestures via the Xbox Kinect, it would be a) horrible, b) amazing or c) the cause for many, many injuries. Probably all of the above. Good work, fake Assassin’s Creed trailer-makers! This one made me laugh out loud. Assassin’s Creed for Kinect Announced!…
By Stephen Totilo Published April 1, 2012 -
A Message From Princess Leia Is Hidden In Every R2D2-Looking Xbox 360
The special edition Star Wars version of the Xbox 360, which our pals at Gizmodo ogled last summer, looks like R2D2. Fittingly, it packs a secret message from Princess Leia, as you can see from this video that we shot of the unit. We haven’t found any other surprises. And we’re sure there are no…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 30, 2012 -
He’s a Video Game Video Star, And He Wants Out
YouTube user KSIOlajidebt doesn’t know how to pronounce my name, but he figured out my Twitter handle and has convinced dozens and dozens of his fans to send me a video. KSIOlajidebt, I’ve learned, has a problem. He’s a hotshot video producer for Machinima, the online juggernaut that has partnered with some 4,000 other video-creators…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 29, 2012 -
The Two Best Things I’ve Been Told About Assassin’s Creed III
I recently rattled off 50 details about Assassin’s Creed III, details I learned when I sat through an hour-long demo of the October 2012 game with the lead creators on the project. There’s a 51st detail I’ve been waiting to tell you about (and a 52nd). As a longtime player of the series and, yes,…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 29, 2012 -
How to Migrate Your Commenting Account
If you’ve logged into your commenting account today with your username and password, you may have been prompted to convert your account to third-party authentication, using either Twitter, Facebook, or Google. It might seem like a pain, but it’s really quite easy and will hopefully make your Kotaku experience just a wee bit better, since…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 29, 2012 -
The Nasty Twitter Hate Sent To the Former Face of Call of Duty
We know that Twitter is a forum rife with negativity, just as surely as we know that Xbox Live contains the same. But it’s still sobering to look at the kind of venom that was spewed in the direction of Robert Bowling, who recently resigned as the public face and “creative strategist” of lead Call…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 28, 2012 -
Just Who Is Assassin’s Creed III‘s New Hero?
I’ve heard about three lines from Connor Ratohnhaké:ton, the hero of Assasssin’s Creed III and I don’t know what to make of him. The hero of Ubisoft’s massive October video game is no Ezio Auditore or even an Altair. He’s not a beloved rogue or a noble assassin. He’s not the star of multiple games.…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 27, 2012 -
Barack Obama Locks Up The Maple Story Vote, Cluelessness Takes Second
Barack Obama has triumphed over both ignorance and the Republican primary field, in an unofficial and moderately alarming poll of players of the cartoony multiplayer online video game MapleStory We will not pass judgment about 47.79% of respondents saying that Obama is the candidate who has left the most favorable impression of them. We will…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 27, 2012 -
Gears of War 3 is Secretly a Masterpiece of Landscape Art
The casual observer of the Xbox 360’s Gears of War 3 may notice the grunting warriors, the characters shooting each other to bloody bits or chainsawing each other in half. Refined eyes will spot beauty. They will see a triumph of modern landscape art, hiding in the background of a big action blockbuster. Watch these…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 27, 2012 -
You Don’t Really Want An Assassin’s Creed: Japan
Assassin’s Creed games can be set in any place at any moment of history. For a time, fans thought the clues in the early games ensured that Assassin’s Creed II or maybe Assassin’s Creed III would be set in Japan, the player’s assassin taking on the role of a ninja or other great martial artist.…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 27, 2012 -
A Tribute To Bert Sugar, Who Gave Me My Start
My father knew a guy who knew Bert Sugar. That’s how I wound up working for Bert, as a high school intern and then in my first job as a professional reporter. He was my first editor, my first mentor, my first journalism role model. He passed away yesterday at age 75 Back when I…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 26, 2012 -
What If The Next Generation Thinks Video Games are Stupid?
Maybe video games are stupid. Maybe they’re junk or trash or action movies, at best. Perhaps they are not at all making the world a better place. And maybe it’s not an old person—some out of touch politician who once bumped into a Pong machine—who will declare this. Maybe it will be someone young, someone…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 26, 2012 -
50 Things About Assassin’s Creed III That You Should Know
You can assassinate a bear in Assassin’s Creed III. You can run around the battle of Bunker Hill, flanking the British to surprise them in their camp. You can go to the frontier and relax in a tree. You can help found a nation. You will be able to do so many excellent things in…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 26, 2012 -
Last Week’s Most Persistent Rapper Is Actually Getting His Song in a Game
Some people have questioned the outreach strategy of hip-hop upstart Kadillak Kaz, who spent an hour or so last week Tweeting a plea to any vaguely video-game related Twitter feed he could find, imploring them to put any of his music in their games. Question Kadillak’s technique no longer. Indie game developer Michael Frauenhofer is…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 26, 2012 -
The Best Doom Painting Ever Is In John Romero’s House
This is a painting of Doom, one of the greatest games of all times. And surely this must be one of the coolest video game paintings of all time. It hangs in the home of Doom co-creator John Romero, who kindly took several high-res photos of the artwork for us and sent them along. Romero…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 23, 2012
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