Culture

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

The weekend is for going to a Kentucky Derby viewing party and losing some money. Then it’s for consoling myself with video games. I haven’t had much time to play more Baba Is You lately, which means my 10-year-old nephew has made it much further than me. This ends now. (He’s a really smart kid,…

I Forgot What It Was Like To Game Without Internet

I just moved to a new apartment, and we don’t have internet yet. Sure, I could read or explore the neighborhood, but sometimes I just want to sit down with a good video game and turn off my brain. Unfortunately, as I ran head-first into the reality of gaming without internet, I quickly realized that…

Track: The World Is Yours | Artist: Nas | Album: Illmatic Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Randolph’s Leap. Findhorn in Moray, Scotland, UK. By Cameron Griffiths. JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line! 

No, Pig, I Am Not Putting A Second Bathroom Downstairs

Ala Kapustka is a concept artist and illustrator who works for CD Projekt Red, the developers of The Witcher series and Cyberpunk 2077 You can see more of Ala’s stuff at her ArtStation page

The Comic Moments We Loved Most In Avengers: Endgame

Avengers: Endgame was three hours of wonderful fanservice in what was ultimately the first TV series finale we’ve seen in a movie theater. This week on Kotaku Splitscreen, we discuss. First, Kirk, Maddy, and I talk about the games we’ve been playing, like Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy XII, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, and Danganronpa. Then…

Ask Dr. NerdLove: I’m His Best Friend, But He’s Not Mine

Hello all you ordinary humans of the sexcrime twitternet, and welcome to Ask Dr. NerdLove, the only dating advice column to help you go from loving games to having game. This week, we’re navigating the tricky world of friends and romance. What do you do when you’re the only friend of a lonely, obnoxious geek?…

I’m Addicted To The First Three Stages Of Galaga

Stage one: Get one ship captured, then rescue it to double firepower. Stage two: Take advantage of doubled weaponry to wipe out aliens before they can even enter formation. Challenging stage: Kill 40 aliens for 10,000 points. Bonus stage: Feel deep satisfaction because nailing the first three stages in Galaga is one of the best…

Track: 202 | Artist: Bubbly Summer | Album: LSC Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Country Road. Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. By Ricardo Mejias. JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line! 

The Empire Had A Cocktail Party, No Rebels Allowed

In cosplay circles, just as in cinematic ones, it can sometimes feel like the Rebels have all the fun. So at this year’s Star Wars Celebration in Chicago, the Empire decided to have a party of their own, really let their (regulation-length) hair down. The event was called Cocktails Over Coruscant, and was actually the…

Robot Dinosaurs In The Mist

Richard Dumont is a freelance artist who has worked for companies like Ready At Dawn and Guerrilla Games. We’ve featured some of Richard’s Killzone stuff before here on Fine Art, but that was four years ago, so here’s a more recent showcase from games like Horizon You can see more of Richard’s work at his…

Track: FXMLDR | Artist: Thank You Scientist | Album: Terraformer Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Snakeybus is a game where you drive a bus that grows longer and longer as you pick up passengers. As in life, your only true enemy is yourself—your unpredictable backside, specifically. So it’s like classic game Snake, but in a big city where you’ve got to drop off passengers ala Crazy Taxi. It’ll be out sometime…

Speedrunner Smashes A Computer-Assisted Super Mario Bros. Record By A Single Frame

A tool-assisted Super Mario Bros. speedrun category that had seen no significant improvements for years may be getting a second wind after a single-frame improvement submitted by runner Maru370. Super Mario Bros. speedrunning is a highly popular activity, and today has hit a point where every significant improvement made is down to a matter of…

I’m Playing Six JRPGs At Once And You Can’t Stop Me

There are about four or five things I tell my friends that make them look at me like I’m deranged, and one of them is how I’m fond of playing the few hours of a Japanese role-playing game and moving on to another. (“It’s kind of like edging,” I say, “but with video games,” as…

Track: Paradise Is Under Your Nose | Artist: Peter Doherty & The Puta Madres | Album: Peter Doherty & The Puta Madres Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Here Are The Magic: The Gathering Cards That Caused Cheating Allegations

This weekend, Japanese player and Magic Hall of Famer Yuuya Watanabe was booted from Mythic Championship II in London after judges found markings on his cards’ sleeves. Here are said cards. After the disqualification, Watanabe released a statement regarding the cards and their sleeves. “I honestly don’t know how my Urzatron lands became marked, so…

Mission San Jose. Texas, USA. By Bill Staney | Flickr  JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line!  

A Different Age

Visual design studio Karakter (who we’ve featured for their Game of Thrones work) were brought on by Ubisoft to help out with Anno 1800, and for a niche strategy series the results are gorgeous You can see more of Karakter’s stuff at their company site and ArtStation page. As for Anno 1800, we probably won’t…