Culture

Some Theories About The Diablo Immortal Backlash

Why was the Diablo Immortal backlash so severe? Why didn’t Blizzard see it coming? Today on Kotaku Splitscreen, we discuss. Kotaku’s Maddy Myers returns to the show this week, joining me and Kirk to chat about last week’s big Diablo disaster. First we talk about some of the games we’ve been playing, including Assassin’s Creed…

Sunday Comics: Swimming Pool Lore

Hello! It’s time for Kotaku’s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics. The images enlarge if you click on the magnifying glass icon. Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich. Published November 5. Read more of Awkward Zombie Corpse Run by Alex Di Stasi. Published November 8. Read more of Corpse Run Double XP by…

‘Shop Contest: Fallout 76 Exploration Committee, Winners!

The weird wasteland of Fallout 76 is coming to wide release soon, and I asked you all to provide me with some interesting things that the characters of that game might see during their exploration. You did not disappoint. The unknown is a scary thing, and while Fallout 76 seems to be delivering what we…

This Week In The Business: Streaming Picking Up Steam

STAT | $143 million – The third quarter revenue generated by PlayStation Now, according to Superdata. The research firm says Sony’s subscription gaming service is the most successful on the market, with Electronic Arts’ trio of Access offerings (EA Access, Origin Access, and Origin Access Premier) accounting for $90 million while Xbox Game Pass brought…

Ninja’s Fallout 76 Stream With Rick, Morty, And Logic Did Not Go Well

People say they want good gameplay from streams, but what they’re really looking for is acceptable gameplay paired with great chemistry. Top Twitch streamer Ninja, rapper Logic, and cartoon characters Rick and Morty unfortunately do not have that. If nothing else, it was an ambitious experiment. Last night on Bethesda’s Twitch channel, Ninja and Logic…

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

The weekend is for making my second attempt at roasting a chicken, as my first attempt many years ago was a stunning failure. I look forward to failing again, and then consoling myself with video games. After spending the week immersed in Hitman 2, I’m looking forward to playing even more Hitman 2. I also…

Overwatch‘s Next Big Patch Will Require A Full Reinstall Of The Game [Update]

Overwatch has had a handful of sizable patches in the past, but the next major one—which presumably will include new hero Ashe—is going to necessitate a full reinstall of the game. Blizzard chalks the inconvenience up to under-the-hood changes that go deeper than just a fresh coat of paint. “The next major patch will have…

PSVR Remains My Sixth Choice For Gaming

When I’m in the mood to play a video game, I’ll grab my Switch, a PS4 controller, maybe my Xbox One controller or my 3DS or perhaps my phone. I’ve got lists of games I’m eager to start or continue on those devices. None of them require me to unwrap the cords of a special…

Strategy Guide Company Prima Games Is Shutting Down

Prima Games, the publishing company that has printed video game strategy guides since it was founded in 1990, is shutting down, parent company DK said yesterday. The label will no longer publish new guides starting now, and it will officially shutter in the spring. Thanks to the rise of sites like GameFAQs—and major gaming publications…

Warframe Fans Ask Developers To Avoid Crunch

This year, game players have learned many uncomfortable truths about video game crunch. If what happened on the Warframe subreddit in the runup to the increasingly MMO-ish co-op shooter’s latest expansion is any indication, we’re starting to see players push developers to take better care of themselves, even if that means slower game releases. Warframe…

All Hail The King Of Space

Ivan Shavrin is an artist and illustrator from Russia. You can see more of Ivan’s stuff at his ArtStation page

Black Ops 4 Zombies Won’t Stop Crashing, Frustrating Easter Egg Hunters

Frequent blue-screen crashes in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4’s Zombies mode has made it much more difficult for the community to find the game’s Easter eggs. After 25 frustrating days, the “Classified” map has been solved—but the players had to use exploits to do it. Black Ops 4 marks 10 years since Treyarch introduced…

Bethesda Says It Plans To Fix Fallout 76’s Item Storage Problem

Fallout 76 players are running out of room in their inventories, and the game’s not even out yet. Fortunately, Bethesda is promising a fix. Finding and crafting the best equipment is a major part of Fallout 76. The game’s world is full of junk you can pick up, useful for creating everything from guns and…

PlayStation Classic Plays Fine, But It’s A Bare-Bones Experience

With the PlayStation Classic’s release less than a month away, I went to PlayStation HQ this week for three hours of hands-on time with Sony’s nostalgic mini-console. It plays its selection of 32-bit classics like Final Fantasy VII and Resident Evil: Director’s Cut just fine, but the features of the device are pretty much the…

Track: One Armed Scissor | Artist: At The Drive-In | Album: Relationship Of Command Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Skatebird is a game about a bird who skateboards. Not sure what else you were expecting, really. In it, you skate around an “expansively tiny world,” do Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater-inspired tricks, and try to cheer up your “big,” probably human friend. It’ll be out sometime next year.

Welcome To Overwatch, Ashe

Kim-Seang “Nesskain” Hong, formerly a Blizzard fan artist, is now a Blizzard artist, and has worked on the last few character reveal trailers, including the latest one, Ashe. Here you’ll see loads of the illustrations he did for the trailer, which were storyboarded by Blizzard’s Mio del Rosario. You can see more of Nesskain’s stuff…

Jeff Kaplan’s Plans To Combat Overwatch Fatigue

This year’s BlizzCon was an odd one on a lot of levels, but I was personally stricken by the number of friends and acquaintances who told me they’d taken weeks or months off from playing Overwatch. Last year and the year before, it was an obsession. Lately, though, it’s felt a little stale. Despite that…

Castlevania‘s Netflix Showrunner On Humanizing Villains And What’s Wrong (And Right) With Games

Netflix’s Castlevania is a strong adaptation and expansion on Castelvania III: Dracula’s Curse. I spoke to showrunner Adi Shankar about why certain characters were added, which Castlevania stories he thinks could also make good shows, and his thoughts on the similarities between Hollywood and the video game industry. On creating the ‘Castlevania Cinematic Universe’: Adi…

One Of My Favorite Red Dead Redemption 2 Details Exists Outside The Game

Many a critic will discuss a game’s verbs: the things you do in the game. That’s too general an approach for me. I’m here to praise Red Dead Redemption 2’s present participles. If you’ve played Red Dead Redemption 2, you may have not noticed them. You may have not noticed them because you can’t see…