Culture

Steam Has Added Over 1,000 Games Since Steam Direct Launched

When Valve first announced that it was taking a long-overdue crowbar to Steam Greenlight and replacing it with a new system called Steam Direct, people weren’t sure what would happen. Some thought Steam was about to get more exclusive again. Others feared that Valve was only widening the floodgates. Now we’ve got numbers. Since Steam…

Snacktaku Judges Lay’s 2017 Chip Flavor Contest Finalists

On paper, all three finalist flavors in Lay’s 2017 “Do Us A Flavor” potato chip contest—Crispy Taco, Fried Green Tomato and Everything Bagel—sound pretty delicious. But until science makes words edible, we’re forced to eat actual potato chips in order to determine this year’s winner. It’s the fifth year of Lay’s annual potato chip competition,…

Lawbreakers‘ Learning Curve Is Steep, But There’s Good Stuff There

Boss Key Productions’ Lawbreakers launched on PlayStation 4 and PC this week. Mike Fahey and Patricia Hernandez got together to discuss their first few hours in Cliff Bleszinski’s fast-paced take on the hero shooter. Fahey: So, Lawbreakers! Cliff Bleszinski’s big post-Epic game. A hero shooter with a gravity-defying twist. Had you played any of it…

The Internet Reacts To Valve’s New Game Announcement

Valve just announced a new game! It’s a card game based on Dota 2. The internet is confused and upset by this. Valve hasn’t stopped making games, but sometimes it sure feels like it. Their last release was The Lab, a VR collection of Portal mini games in 2016, and prior to that their last…

Track: Bittersweet Bundle of Misery | Artist: Graham Coxon | Album: Happiness in Magazines  Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Battlegrounds Players Take Off Pants And Infiltrate Big Group Of Enemies

Skrollox and his friends were playing a PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds squad match when they encountered an odd sight: roughly 20 enemy players prancing down the street. In their underwear. This would normally be cause for concern. After all, it’s technically against the rules for players to form alliances with folks outside their squad. Also, the whole…

Freak Cutscene Accident Ends Promising Banjo-Kazooie Speedrun

Speedruns are all about risk and reward, as runners perform dangerous tricks in search of the best time. Cutscenes are usually a safe space where runners can relax before the next big skip. Unfortunately for one Banjo-Kazooie speedrunner, cutscenes aren’t always as safe as they seem. dickhiskhan is a Banjo speedrunner who currently holds third…

Rad GTA Trick Backfires

Today on Highlight Reel we have new friends, cool tank jumps, detectives, FIFA poses, 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! L.A. Noire –…

Track: You’re Not Alone | Artist: Olive | Album: Extra Virgin  Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Mercy by ladymelamori, photo by Kirchos.

Bayonetta, by Ladee Danger. Photo by Martin Wong.

A Boy And His Sword

Valentina Remenar is an artist from Croatia who works in video games, books and digital illustration. You can see more of Valentina’s work at her 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 of the work…

Nintendo’s “Boob Shaped Controller” Was, Sadly, A Failure

One of Nintendo’s most important innovations in video games has been the invention of the d-pad, which is still used prominently on controllers today. To get there, though, they had to go through some less successful prototypes. Some with stupid names. While working on Game & Watch designs in the early 80s, Nintendo legend Gunpei…

Game Of Thrones Recap Podcast: Dragons Are The Napalm Of Westeros

Well, that sure was an episode of Game of Thrones We’re back with another bonus episode of Kotaku Splitscreen in which Jason Schreier and I talk about the latest developments on the hit HBO series Dragons vs. Crossbows. Today we discuss the fourth episode of season seven, “The Spoils of War.” We spoil the episode…

Track: Blue Rondo à la Turk (live) | Artist: Dave Brubeck Quartet | Album: Time Out Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

China Wins This Year’s World Cosplay Summit, Japan Comes In Third 

Team China won its first World Cosplay Summit championship with an impressive Blood: The Last Vampire performance. Cospalyer Tian Tian was Blood’s Saya, while Xue Yan Xue was a chiropteran monster. This was China’s first World Cosplay Summit grand prix win. Congrats! Below you can watch Team China’s performance: Mexico, which took the top slot…

Vancouver Put On A Cosplay Show

Anime Revolution, aka Anirevo, was held over the weekend in Vancouver, and photographer The Will Box was kind enough to share some of the shots he took of the cosplayers in action.

The Art Of Valerian

Like Ghost in the Shell, I’m willing to take temporary breaks on Fine Art to celebrate the work that went into good-looking movies, instead of just good-looking games. And so here we are, with the art of Luc Besson’s Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets First up is Ben Mauro, an artist we’ve…

The Week In Games: The Master Detective Returns

It’s time to go back to Gotham. Who else is going to solve all those Riddler boxes and quick time events? There’s a lot of other small stuff coming out this week, including ports of indie games. Miss Graceful Explosion Machine on the Switch? Well now you can play it on PS4! Miss Elminage Original…

Players Hone In On The Perfect Playthrough Of Marble Madness

What started as something of a gamified tribute to M. C. Escher has been reduced, in recent years, to dazzling, minutes long dance thanks to modern speedrunning. Marble Madness was in many ways a forerunner to the art, and this summer the players who know the game best are closing in on its limits. “I…