Stephen Totilo

How Sega Has Described Itself From ’89 To ’09

Nintendo is not the only company that has had to explain, in press releases, what in the world it does. For at least 20 years, so has Sega. That description has never been much fun, sadly. But it has changed. 1989 Press release announcing executive hiring at Sega of America… Based in South San Francisco,…

This Week In Video Game Comics

Here’s a rundown of the new video game-based comics going on sale in comics shops in the U.S. this week, including two from Blizzard’s biggest series. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic #43… Written by John Jackson Miller; Art by Bong Dazo Summary via publisher Dark Horse Comics: “Reaping”: An unprecedented new adventure begins…

The Trouble With Girls’ Games

If anyone is worried about what Grand Theft Auto games might do to boys, then, my former colleague Tracey John writes for Wired, you might want to worry how a different set of games influences girls. Tracey has pulled descriptions for 11 upcoming DS games aimed at girls. These are games about make-up, boyfriends or…

How To Stuff A Wii Nunchuk Into A Fishing Rod

You can stick a Wii remote in a guitar shell, a golf club, and, yes, even in the past, a fishing rod. But the way I saw it done today was clever. Here’s me holding the Wii version of the controller for this September’s Bass Pro Shops: The Strike, a fishing game. It sells for…

Talk Amongst Yourselves

The week is at the halfway point. The month is at the halfway point. Meet the rest of the Kotaku community halfway and please comment about video games today. Here. Thanks! Confused about commenting on Kotaku? Read our FAQ.

PSPgo Bound To Make Customers Re-Think Game Prices?

John Davison, chief of WhatTheyPlay and studier of all things iPhone believes the PSPgo is going to make PSP gamers re-think what they’re willing to spend on games. PSPgo, as we learned at E3, is a no-disc version of the PSP coming this October 1, one that will require gamers to download their games. Among…

Xbox 360 Gamers Nearly Double Battlefield Kill Count Of PS3 Users, Unlock Map

Last Friday, EA started the clock on its challenge for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 owners of Battlefield 1943 to score 43 million kills and unlock a Coral Sea map. The Microsoft gamers achieved that goal today. The new map, Coral Sea, adds a fourth playing field for the downloadable World War II multiplayer shooter.…

How Nintendo Has Described Itself From ’87 To ’09

Over the years, Nintendo, like most companies, has had to explain what in the world it is at the bottom of the press releases it issues. That description has changed. A lot. 1987 Nintendo financial earnings report… Nintendo of America Inc. is the U.S. marketing and sales arm of Kyoto, Japan-based Nintendo Co. Ltd., the…

The Thinning Video Game Fall Of 2009

It was a buzz topic last night at a still-embargoed event for an upcoming holiday 2009 game: Something’s wrong with this fall. At least for hardcore gamers. (Or maybe something’s finally right?) The delay to BioShock 2 was what was getting reporters and developers talking yesterday. This fall, stocked as it is with some very…

T2 Pubbing Next 4 Heavyweights In First Half 2010

Following the delay of BioShock 2, the game’s publisher announced that it expects to launch it, Red Dead Redemption, Mafia II and Max Payne 3 before July 1, 2010. Publisher Take Two announced its revised release slate during a call with investors on Monday afternoon, timed to elaborate on news of the BioShock 2 delay.…

Talk Amongst Yourselves

There’s disappointment brewing in the diner today. But don’t let there be disappointment in TAY. Please comment on video games with a cheerful heart. Confused about commenting on Kotaku? Read our FAQ.

Dragon Age: Origins Preview: About Those Xbox 360 Controls…

The Xbox 360 version of Dragon Age Origins, which we now know will be a massively-single-player role-playing game, was brought to New York City last week for a showcase and one of the shortest hands-on demos ever. Maybe a short demo’s for the best, though, because Dragon Age is one of those games that is…

They Remember Jedi, Jaws and Indiana Jones

1975, Jaws — “It was the Village East theater in Birmingham, Alabama. And we rode in my sister’s husband’s Trans Am…I have certain flashes of scenes, like the scene where Roy Scheider pulls the license plate out of the stomach of the shark. I remember that. They’re just flashes. I remember it being very scary.…

Talk Amongst Yourselves

Usher in the new week with your very own comment about video games. Please contribute below. Thanks. Confused about commenting on Kotaku? Read our FAQ.

Notebook Dump: Modern Warfare Wii, Shadow Complex iPhone, And A Sleeping Man

There comes a time in the week to reflect on what got into my reporter’s notebook but didn’t turn into Kotaku blog posts. Shall we? Shadow Complex‘s Apple Debut: On Tuesday, I met Donald and Laura Mustard, the developer and public relations rep couple who showed me the August-scheduled Xbox Live Arcade game Shadow Complex.…

Half-Minute Hero Preview: Don’t Blink And Miss It

This was the most pleasant surprise of my week. Half-Minute Hero is a PSP game that rested unattended at a New York City event for XSeed games that I attended last night. It was an assuming oddity in the corner, running on the console that doesn’t have many games that people are talking about these…

People Played Real Plane Crash Web Game 4.6 Million Times

Hero On The Hudson, a gameplay-light web game about Captain “Sully” Sullenberger’s successful landing of an Airbus A320 on the Hudson River, is just one popular game based on that stuff most commercial video games don’t deal with: current events. The LA Times’ Ben Fritz (formerly blogging about games for Variety) recently visited San Francisco-based…

One Weird Wii Control Scheme

Imagine, if you will, a flying game called Sky Crawlers controlled by Wii remote and nunchuck. Guess the control scheme. You probably guessed wrong. To control an airplane in a Wii game, I have held the Wii Remote like a paper airplane. I have held it like a flashlight, dipping and raising it to orient…

The Saboteur Impressions: A New Way To Kill Nazis

There is a game that will let you shoot Nazis, fire rockets at zeppelins, hang out in a brothel, climb the Eiffel Tower, oh, and try to maintain your career as a race car driver during all this. Sound good? Novelty is not a predictor of quality. So, really, who knows how good EA’s holiday…

Talk Amongst Yourselves (New Comments Edition)

No witticism today. But please read this important update about our new comments system and how it will affect TAY. We’re still working out the kinks of the new comments system (we know there are bugs, bear with us). But here are the key ways that I believe TAY conversation will be affected: -The new…