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CulturePlayStation 5’s Backward Compatibility Won’t Arrive All At Once
PlayStation 5 will be backward compatible with PlayStation 4 games, but Sony said today to expect it to be a gradual rollout that needs to be tested on a per-game basis. “We recently took a look at the top 100 PS4 titles as ranked by play time, and we’re expecting almost all of them to…
By Chris Kohler Published March 18, 2020 -
CultureWhite House Doctor: We Need Millennials To Stay Healthy Because They Know How To Speedrun Video Games
During today’s White House press conference the Trump administration’s Coronavirus Task Force response coordinator, Dr. Deborah Birx, called on millenials to take the threat of infection more seriously. Why? Because they are “part of that group that brought us innovation, particularly throughout all of their ability to look around corners and skip through games.” “I…
By Ethan Gach Published March 18, 2020 -
CulturePhysical Copies Of Final Fantasy VII Remake May Be Delayed Due To Pandemic
The current covid-19 pandemic has left many things uncertain. As businesses struggle to adjust to the situation, video game publishers are preparing players for unexpected disruptions to their gaming plans. Square-Enix is now cautioning players that while the Final Fantasy VII Remake will release as planned, physical copies might not reach everyone who ordered them.…
By Heather Alexandra Published March 18, 2020 -
CultureTwitchSatirical Twitch Streamer Kaceytron Suspended For ‘Insensitive’ Coronavirus Joke
While Twitch has not explicitly stated that dark jokes about covid-19 are grounds for an indefinite stay in the site’s purple-barred slammer, it’s now spoken with its actions. Popular satirical streamer Kaceytron has been suspended after making such a joke last week. Kaceytron (real name Kacey Caviness) was on an episode of reality show streamer…
By Nathan Grayson Published March 18, 2020 -
CultureMicrosoft Adds More Stuff You Probably Won’t Use To Game Pass Ultimate
Today, Microsoft announced it’s expanding the Game Pass Ultimate subscription to include “perks,” extra goodies like in-game currency and cosmetic packs for certain games available through the service. While it’s a small gesture, it’s part of the company’s ongoing attempt to make subscribers feel like they’re getting their money’s worth. The first set of games…
By Ethan Gach Published March 18, 2020 -
CultureHere Are The PlayStation 5’s Technical Specs
It might only have 10.28 teraflops to the Xbox Series X’s 12, but the PlayStation 5 is still a pretty powerful machine. Check out the hardware powering Sony’s next-gen console, including its custom AMD Zen 2 CPU and super-fast SSD. As PlayStation 5 lead system architect Mark Cerny does a deep dive into the engineering…
By Mike Fahey Published March 18, 2020 -
CultureOverwatch‘s Newest Hero Is Echo, A Long-Awaited AI Robot
Seven months after the release of its last new hero, Overwatch is finally getting a new one. Echo, who players of the popular team shooter have been salivating over ever since she made her cinematic debut in the 2018 trailer that introduced Ashe, will be playable “soon.” Today, Blizzard posted a trailer officially introducing Echo.…
By Nathan Grayson Published March 18, 2020 -
CultureHow’s It Going?: Books Edition
Good morning! We’re back with our daily open thread for you to share, vent, and celebrate the good you can find going on around you. Last night I texted the other people living in my building to let them know I’m around if they need anything. I’d put it off for a while because it…
By Riley MacLeod Published March 18, 2020 -
CultureThere’s An Official MapleStory Gaming Chair And It’s Precious
Everybody deserves a fancy gaming chair. That includes players of a 17-year-old side-scrolling 2D Korean MMO. Nexon America has partnered with gaming chair maker DXRacer to create this adorable $380 pink, purple, and white seating surface based on MapleStory’s Pink Bean. Think all gaming chairs look like they rolled off the same assembly line? The…
By Mike Fahey Published March 18, 2020 -
CultureHearthstone Adds First New Class Since Launch: Demon Hunters
After six years of card-battling Mages, Priests, Shamans, Warriors, Rogues, Hunters, Warlocks, and Paladins, Blizzard’s World of Warcraft-inspired trading card game finally gets some new blood. The Demon Hunter arrives on April 7 as part of the Ashes of Outland expansion. The first new class added to Hearthstone since its 2014 launch, the Demon Hunter…
By Mike Fahey Published March 18, 2020 -
CultureAnimal Crossing: New Horizons Doesn’t Care If Boys Wear Skirts, Whatever, It’s 2020
Despite being pretty good about letting players do what they want, the Animal Crossing series only recently made clothing gender neutral. New Leaf, released on the 3DS in 2012, was the first game to allow players to wear clothes traditionally meant for a different gender, and New Horizons takes that a little further by removing…
By Ian Walker Published March 17, 2020 -
CultureThe Best Part Of Destiny 2’s New Exotic Quest Is The Mixtape In Zavala’s Office
Today’s Destiny 2 weekly reset marks the return of the Fourth Horseman shotgun from the original Destiny. Instead of grinding for it, though, I’m currently sitting in Zavala’s office getting pumped up on his workout mixtape. The first part of the “In Rides A Pale Horse” quest has you visiting the Vanguard titan’s personal workstation…
By Ethan Gach Published March 17, 2020 -
CultureAll The Announcements From Today’s Nintendo Indie Direct
Today’s indie-focused Nintendo Direct was chock full of timed Switch exclusives. Here’s a quick rundown of what you missed if you were spending your quarantine time staring at a wall in anticipation of Animal Crossing instead of staring at Nintendo’s YouTube channel in anticipation of Animal Crossing Today’s Direct was a rapid-fire machine gun blast…
By Nathan Grayson Published March 17, 2020 -
CultureGameStop Cancels Midnight Release Events For Animal Crossing And Doom
GameStop will be canceling midnight release events, like those for Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Doom Eternal, for the foreseeable future and shutting down demo stations in their stores, according to an internal memo sent to employees this morning and obtained by Kotaku “Until further notice, late night launch events are suspended,” the memo reads.…
By Ian Walker Published March 17, 2020 -
CultureUbisoft CEO Sends Comforting Note To Employees About Coronavirus
In a world where video game publishers frequently mistreat their workers, where companies often seem more concerned with profits than people, here is a refreshing note from one top executive about the covid-19 pandemic that has upended all of our lives. Ubisoft chief executive officer Yves Guillemot recently sent this message, obtained by Kotaku, to…
By Jason Schreier Published March 17, 2020 -
CultureHow’s It Going?
Good morning! We’re doing something different, starting today: every morning, Kotaku will be running an open thread where you can talk about what you’re playing, how you’re helping each other during this tough time in the world, and how you’re doing. I run the site’s weekly “What Are You Playing This Weekend?” post, where you…
By Riley MacLeod Published March 17, 2020 -
CultureNo Man’s Sky Is Getting Bobbleheads
Party like it’s 1999 by adding one of No Man Sky’s new custom bobbleheads to your spaceship cockpit. In Hello Games latest development update the studio announced the figurines will be a new exotic collectible sold by the Quicksilver Bot and can be installed in in any spaceship. The first two to be added to…
By Ethan Gach Published March 17, 2020 -
CultureYou Will Break A Lot Of Noses In Fights In Tight Spaces
A new indie game looks to take action movie brawls and gamify the hell out of them. The result looks like a lot of broken bones. From the indie studios Mode 7 (makers of Frozen Synapse) and Ground Shatter, Fights in Tight Spaces is a fighting game where all of your moves are performed by…
By Ethan Gach Published March 17, 2020
