Culture

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.

PUBG Players Gifted Chicken Dinner By Strange Naked Man

Sometimes, you’ve just gotta know your limits. For R0b113 and a friend, it was just another duos match in PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, albeit one they were winning. With only two enemies left, they wasted no time dispatching the first, whose last-ditch effort to grab a better position didn’t end so well. And then there was one.…

Metroid Prime Speedrunners Spent Nine Years Figuring Out How To Skip A Boss

Metroid Prime is a massive game, but speedrunners bypass most of it with complicated glitches and special tricks. A new trick just before the final boss cuts off nearly a minute of the game and helps solve the nine-year mystery of how to skip directly to the final battle. Crater Tunnel B is one of…

Track: Apocalypse | Artist: Cigarettes After Sex | Album: Cigarettes After Sex Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

There Are Always Rupees In The Kitchen

Ann Maulina is an artist from Indonesia working in games and comics. You can see more of Ann’s art at her webcomics (Raruurienand Varunair) 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 of the work of video game…

Track: Milestones | Artist: Miles Davis | Album: Milestones Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

The Internet Reacts To Riku’s Keyblade In Kingdom Hearts III

Riku has a new Keyblade in Kingdom Hearts III. People have opinions about it. Let’s see what they are! Here is said Keyblade: And the reaction:

Recreating Monster Hunter: World Food Is A Delicious Idea

Why just look at the food in Monster Hunter when you can make it in real life? Just look at how the real deal compares to the in-game version. Twitter user Ki-ki’s wife created this real-life version of “Hunter food.” It looks way better than the official version being served up at the Capcom Cafe…

The Great Beard Under The Mountain

Joshua Brian Smith is an artist at Riot, the team behind League of Legends You can see more of Smith’s work at his 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 of the work of video game artists, showcasing…

BioShock Infinite Speedrun Scene Revitalized By Mutual Agreement To ‘Cheat’

Under ideal conditions, BioShock Infinite’s speedrun should be a short rush full of shotgun blasts and level skips. Instead, it’s often a dice roll to see if runners get an item that saves them time. Fed up with random chance ruining their attempts, speedrunners have agreed on a solution to remove the problem: cheat. One…

Monster Hunters Kill In Perfect Sync

Today on Highlight Reel we have dramatic turns, stylish monster hunter kills, 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…

Sex, Pong, And Pioneers: What Atari Was Really Like, According To Women Who Were There

Back in 1973, Steve Miller Band’s “The Joker” was blaring from the PA in a California warehouse as two dozen women in flared jeans assembled Pong circuit boards. The smell of corned beef and marijuana wafted down the manufacturing line. Orders for Atari’s landmark table tennis video game were still pouring in on the crisp…

Track: Taiiku Okazaki | Artist: Music Video | Album: Basin Techno Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.