Culture

PUBG Streamer Meets Fan, Defeats Him In Gentlemanly Duel

Jake “ChocoTaco” Throop closed in on his final enemy in a tense PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds match. One sniper shot. Missed. Two. Missed. Three. Then Throop noticed something. “Wait,” Throop asked, “is he trying to pan fight?” Throop cautiously approached his fated foe, who was, in fact, standing out with his pan out. “Hey!” the other player…

Monster Hunter Shoryukens Beast To Death

Today on Highlight Reel we have uppercuts, Assassin’s Creed myths, tough horses, and much more! Watch the video then talk about your favorite highlight in the comments below. Be sure to check out, like, and share the original videos via the links below. Subscribe to Kotaku on YouTube for more! Catch up on all the…

What We Loved About Black Panther

Black Panther came out last Thursday and it completely blew my mind. I’m joined by Patricia Hernandez and Mike Fahey to talk about the wonder of Wakanda, colonialism, and especially Erik Killmonger. Gita Jackson: Over the weekend, the long awaited Black Panther movie dropped. I was trying not to let the hype take me over,…

Track: In The Name Of The Father | Artist: Black Grape | Album: It’s Great When You’re Straight…Yeah Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Let’s Go

Farzad Varahramyan is a veteran artist who has worked on games like Oddworld and Darkwatch, and on movies like Jumanji, After Earth and Aliens vs Predator You can see more of Farzad’s work at his personal site To see the images in their native resolution, click on the “expand” button in the top-left corner. Fine…

What Made Dishonored 2‘s Time Travel Level So Good

Last fall, Dishonored 2 ripped me right out of my gaming funk. I tore through the game in two days, scouring every square inch of its wonderful setting, Karnaca. Dishonored 2’s brilliant self-assurance is compelling; I couldn’t stay away. Now, after the release of Dishonored: Death of the Outsider, I found myself craving a return…

The Week In Games: A Time To Survive 

The first Metal Gear game since designer Hideo Kojima and publisher Konami split is imminent. Breakups are always tough, but Death Stranding seems to be coming along nicely and I’m stoked to see how it shakes out in…2023? Meanwhile, Metal Gear Survive appears to be a perfectly timed pivot to the new games-as-service era between…

Track: Paper Crown (Live) | Artist: Liam Gallagher | Album: As You Were 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 Sunken City

Darius Kalinauskas is an artist based in the UK who has worked on games like Star Wars Battlefront II You can see more of Darius’ work at his personal site and ArtStation page. To see the images in their native resolution, click on the “expand” button in the top-left corner. Fine Art is a celebration…

Next Time You Play A Video Game, Ask Why You’re Enjoying It

Why do we play video games? That question and many more, tackled on today’s episode of Kotaku Splitscreen First, Kirk and I break down the news of the week before getting into some nitty-gritty about what we’ve been playing (25:48), including Civilization VI, Dragon Quest Builders, and Into The Breach. Why do we play games,…

Sunday Comics: Demo Dogs

Welcome to Kotaku’s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics that usually occurs on Sunday except when it doesn’t. The images enlarge if you click on the magnifying glass icon. Nerf NOW!! by Josué Pereira. Published February 16. Read more of Nerf NOW!!  Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich. Published February 12. Read more…

This Week In The Business: Legislators And Loot Boxes

QUOTE | “The prevalence of in-game microtransactions, often referred to as ‘loot boxes,’ raises several concerns surrounding the use of psychological principles and enticing mechanics that closely mirror those often found in casinos and games of chance.” – Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) has asked the ESRB to detail when loot boxes are used in physical…

Despite Player Decline, PUBG Isn’t Doomed

This week, portions of the PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds community whipped themselves into a tizzy over charts showing that the game’s active player base has been in decline since mid-January. This comes amidst a backdrop of growing dissatisfaction with the game. Sites like SteamDB and Steam Charts, which derive their numbers from publicly-available Steam data, show that…

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

The weekend is for doing something other than watching the Olympics. Probably. Maybe. OK probably just Olympics. And video games. I’ve got so many more things to be terrified at in Subnautica it’s ridiculous. I’ve gone to the edge of a ton of dark caves full of scary sounds without ever going in them and…

Captain Falcon Modded Into Dragon Ball FighterZ

Today on Highlight Reel we have Dragon Ball FighterZ mods, Shadow of the Colossus acrobatics, Fortnite plays, and more! Watch the video then talk about your favorite highlight in the comments below. Be sure to check out, like, and share the original videos via the links below. Subscribe to Kotaku on YouTube for more! Catch…

Super Mario Bros. Speedruns Are One Step Closer To Best Possible Time

Super Mario Bros. speedruns are almost as perfect as humanly possible. The swift sprint through the Mushroom Kingdom has only seen incremental gains over the last few years, with runners besting times by fractions of a second. Runs of the game have become so optimized that it seemed impossible to do any better. Last night,…

Track: Drivin’ on 9 (Live) | Artist: The Breeders | Album: Last Splash Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Welcome To Straw Island

Lee Griggs is a 3D artist from the UK who is currently based in Spain. You can see more of Lee’s art at his personal site and ArtStation page text To see the images in their native resolution, click on the “expand” button in the top-left corner. Fine Art is a celebration of the work…

Cosplay From A Con That’s Just For Final Fantasy Fans

Most cons are for all kinds of fans of all kinds of stuff, but not KupoCon: it’s a festival for fans of Final Fantasy, put on by fans of Final Fantasy The idea behind the show is that it travels around the world, both in the US and Canada but also in the UK. The…

Track: I’ve Been Hexed | Artist: Fu Manchu | Album: Clone of the Universe Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.