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CultureKotaku Game DiaryArdenweald Is The Best Shadowlands Zone And It’s Not Even Close
My Shadowlands experience has been an interesting curve. It started poorly in Bastion, picked up in Maldraxxus, and now, in Ardenweald, I’m at the top of the curve. Everything in this zone—the story, the questing, just being in Ardenweald is WoW at its best. Of all the new zones in World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, I…
By Ash Parrish Published December 3, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryCatching Covid-19 Sucked, Though Video Games Helped
Some call it a hoax. Others say it’s no worse than the common cold. But make no mistake: the covid-19 pandemic is very, very real. If you don’t believe the mountain of scientific literature, the army of medical professionals, the frontline reporting from countless reputable sources, the firsthand accounts, the secondhand accounts, the politicians, the…
By Ari Notis Published December 2, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryYakuza: Like A Dragon‘s Crowded Pharmacy Really Stresses Me Out
In addition to battling randos and dodging traffic in the streets of Japan, I’ve spent a lot of time in Yakuza: Like a Dragon browsing the wares of various pharmacies and convenience stores. But one store is always so crowded that it’s impossible to navigate without shoving my fellow patrons out of the way, which…
By Ian Walker Published December 1, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryAfter A Disappointing Start, WoW: Shadowlands’ Story Picks Up Big-Time In Maldraxxus
The more I think about Bastion, the more I’m glad I put the golden fields and star-dotted skies of that deceptively beautiful hell behind me for the pus-green, boil-covered and fleshy pastures of Maldraxxus. Seriously. Even though I knew I’d be trading one of the most beautiful zones ever designed in 13 years of World…
By Ash Parrish Published December 1, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryI Hate That Everybody In Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Can Read
As granite-hewn Viking woman Eivor, I’ve done a lot of things in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla: I’ve run across boundless landscapes. I’ve raided more churches than I can count. I’ve stabbed guys and thrown their bodies at other guys, who I’ve then proceeded to stab, thus beginning anew a process I like to call The Circle…
By Nathan Grayson Published December 1, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryWasting My Time In WoW And Destiny 2 Is Good Actually
In World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, I’m level 59 and 7/8ths, have completed three of the five new zones, and I still don’t think I’m enjoying myself. In Destiny 2, I’m stumbling around Europa while I clumsily figure out (sometimes embarrassingly late) what the hell all my warlock powers do. Other than a few, fleeting moments,…
By Ash Parrish Published November 30, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryWorld of Warcraft: Shadowlands Manages To One-Up War Crimes in New Questline
I can’t imagine a fate worse than death, but thankfully, the writers of World of Warcraft don’t suffer from my same lack of imagination. In a new campaign introduced in the Shadowlands zone Bastion, the WoW writers have managed to concoct a scenario as horrifying to me as when Sylvanas Windrunner decided to do a…
By Ash Parrish Published November 25, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryIn Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Nintendo Refuses To Acknowledge BotW’s Darkness
I had high hopes for Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, particularly for its story. As a prequel, it promised to tell a more in-depth tale of the fight against Ganon 100 years before Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. But AoC failed that expectation in nearly every regard. What I didn’t expect, and what…
By Ash Parrish Published November 25, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryRIP To Assassin’s Creed‘s Best NPC, A Real One
In gargantuan games full of quests and characters, it’s hard for any single moment to really stand out. Ubisoft has made a career out of this, with activity-dotted landscapes that lull you into a sort of dreamy adventure haze; when you come to, you know that something happened, but you’d be hard pressed to pick…
By Nathan Grayson Published November 23, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryBugsnax’s Ending Is Some Wild Shit, But It Doesn’t Really Work
If we’re talkin’ ‘bout games that have come out recently, Bugsnax is an alright, though messy attempt at doing something different. But if we’re talkin’ bout’ endings, its final act ranks among the wildest of the year—even if, much like many other elements of the game, it doesn’t entirely work. Bugsnax is the Bugsnax of…
By Nathan Grayson Published November 19, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryIt’s Really Fun To Crush Foes With Your Fists In Demon’s Souls Now
One of the best things about the Demon’s Souls remake is that every weapon now has unique animations. And not only does attacking look different on PlayStation 5, but so does backstabbing and riposting after a parry. This small change has encouraged me to try out new equipment, but, as in real life, nothing so…
By Ian Walker Published November 17, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryMissing Sequential Collectibles Is The Worst
In Sackboy: A Big Aventure, a mostly harmless platforming game for PlayStations 4 and 5, each level has a series of Imagination Orbs that Sackboy must find. As they are collected, the Imagination Orbs fill a little cloud-looking object in the order they appear in each level. Should the first Orb you collect show up…
By Mike Fahey Published November 16, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryI Love Being A Lazy Hacker In Watch Dogs: Legion
When it comes to finishing missions and doing side quests, Watch Dogs Legion gives you a lot of options. You can run in and shoot everyone, sneak around using stealth, recruit an enemy, and use them to walk into a hostile area unnoticed or you can just sit in your car and be lazy. This…
By Zack Zwiezen Published November 14, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game Diary‘Who Even Are These People,’ And Other Questions From A Newcomer’s Time With Destiny 2: Beyond Light
Over the past two days, I’ve played around 10 hours of Destiny 2. I have no idea what is happening. I’m a Destiny newcomer. While it is technically true that I played exactly one hour of the first Destiny back in 2014, I barely remember it. When I began playing Destiny 2 with friends a…
By Nathan Grayson Published November 12, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryDemon’s Souls Has Some Truly Fucked Up Teeth Options
With both the PlayStation 5 and its marquee launch game Demon’s Souls launching today, you’re going to see a lot about the latter’s character creator. And for good reason! The robust customization options give you the ability to make some very cool avatars for exploring Boletaria. The teeth, though. My god, the teeth. I don’t…
By Ian Walker Published November 12, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryWe Tested All The PS5 Demon’s Souls Graphics Filters
I’m happy to report that I’m finally playing Demon’s Souls, my most anticipated next-gen game. While full impressions will require more time, let’s take a look at the various visual filters the game provides to players on PlayStation 5. (These are 4K images captured via the console’s Create button, by the way, so be sure…
By Ian Walker Published November 11, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryI Just Want To Play Watch Dogs: Legion
Nearly two weeks ago, Watch Dogs: Legion came out. One day later, I booted it up on my PC for a breezy three-or-so-hour play session. One day after that, I once again tried to play the latest cyberpunk entry in a genre that, for expediency’s sake, we will just call “Ubisoft,” only for the loading…
By Nathan Grayson Published November 9, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryAs Destiny 2‘s Commander Zavala, Lance Reddick Finally Gets To Be The Good Cop
I am a lapsed Destiny 2 player. In anticipation of the Beyond Light expansion coming out November 10th, I thought I’d reacquaint myself with the game which I hadn’t touched in years. Even though I probably should have waited for Beyond Light and its promise of a revamped and heavily streamlined new player experience, one…
By Ash Parrish Published November 3, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryNo More Heroes On Switch Ruins My Favorite Part Of Its Loading Screens
I’m a simple man. Give me some rhythmic, monotonous task to carry out and I’ll be content. I think that’s why I found the loading screens in the original No More Heroes so engrossing, and why I’m now so bothered to find the recent Switch port screwed them up. I love games that give you…
By Ian Walker Published October 29, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryOn The Eve Of PlayStation 5 Season, Let’s Remember My PlayStation 2
Today, a handful of my colleagues have published PlayStation 5 impressions, detailing where the power button is, how it fits in various spaces, and how those slick-ass Dual Sense controllers feel. But did you also know that this week marks the 20th anniversary of the PlayStation 2? How can we appreciate where the next-gen consoles…
By Ash Parrish Published October 27, 2020