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Track: Heavy Days | Artist: Grumbling Fur | Album: Furfour Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Speedrunning Turns Alpha Protocol Into A Very Fast Spy Thriller

The new world record for playing Alpha Protocol really fast in New Game+ is 1:39:15, and it was accomplished by TemA in a lightnight-quick speedrun of the weird RPG. Released by Obsidian back in 2010, Alpha Protocol is a truly unique spy thriller role-playing game that has you traveling the globe, managing relationships with allies…

‘Shop Contest: Watch Out In Firewatch

Firewatch is out for the Nintendo Switch next week, and they could have added anything to the game. There could be new secrets in the game! We’re speculating about Firewatch secrets in this week’s ‘Shop Contest. If you haven’t played Firewatch before, you should know that it is spooky. There’s some mysteries. There are disembodied…

How The Game Awards’ Big Announcements Came Together

How does a surprise Game Awards announcement come together? Host Geoff Keighley joins this week’s Kotaku Splitscreen to discuss. First up, we’ve got a very special surprise announcement for fans of the show. Then we talk about the games we’ve been playing, including Celeste, Obra Dinn, and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (33:28). Then Keighley joins…

Sunday Comics: Hammer Doctor

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. From the archive, originally ublished December 2017. Read more of Awkward Zombie Corpse Run by Alex Di Stasi. Published December 13. Read more of Corpse…

‘Shop Contest: Katamari Rolls Everywhere, Winners!

Katamari Damacy Rerolled is out on Switch now, and it’s had me thinking about where that big, weird ball is gonna roll next. I asked you all to show me what’s getting rolled up next. There’s nothing better than a big ole ball of trash running around the video game universe. Despite the fact that…

This Week in the Business: Have Those Opinions

QUOTE | “I know a lot of people are going to have some strong opinions about that. Cool. Have those opinions.” – Coffee Stain Studios community manager Jace Varlet explains why the company ditched a planned Steam launch for its first-person building game Satisfactory and will now release it exclusively on Epic Games Store QUOTE…

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

The weekend is for needing to buy gloves for a cold weather trip because you somehow don’t own gloves. Also, video games. I’m excited to play Below, even though I can already tell that everything being so tiny is going to be a strain on my old man eyes. I might also get back to…

Ask Dr. NerdLove: We Survived A Cult, But Our Marriage Didn’t

Hello all you gentlemen bastards of the Internet, and welcome to Ask Dr. NerdLove, the only dating advice column that helped tame the wild, wild west. This week, we’re tackling the challenges of marriage and long-term relationships. What do you do when you don’t work as a couple but you can’t leave your relationship? What…

Discord Thinks It Can Woo People With Yet Another PC Game Launcher

Last week, the store wars began, but now they’re really getting spicy. With Epic’s store up, running, and offering an 88 percent cut of earnings to developers (compared to Steam’s industry-standard 70 percent), Discord has fired back with an even more appealing offer: 90 percent. The revenue split will come to Discord’s game store in…

Forza Horizon 4‘s First Expansion Is Dull, At Least Right Now

Though I appreciate the rocky cliffs and craggy hills of Forza Horizon 4‘s new Northern Isles-inspired Fortune Island, I worry that once I finish all the expansion’s treasure hunts I’ll lose my appetite for brown emptiness. Fortune Island is Forza’s newest DLC. Located somewhere to the north of the main game’s English countryside, it’s a…

Track: She’s Lost Control (Live) | Artist: Joy Division | Album: Unknown Pleasures Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Lookin’ For Totoro

Atna Joy is an artist and illustrator from France. You can see more of Atna’s work at his ArtStation page

Gris Is Beautiful In Every Way

I don’t normally shed tears when a video game ends. I hardly ever pause in the middle of a playthrough to appreciate a clever game mechanic. I do stop to listen to game music, but it’s rare I spend minutes trying to get gameplay and soundtrack to sync in order to recreate a perfect moment.…

Ninja Addresses Fans Who Want The “Old Ninja” 

If you follow Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, you’re bound to come across those who like the “Old Ninja.” Last week, Ninja addressed the issue and, of course, he did it without profanity but rife with real talk. Besides these online laments, there are montages of “Old Ninja,” like this and this that showing Ninja’s previous streams…

Anyone For Some Gwent?

Lorenzo Mastroianni is an illustrator at CD Projekt Red, developers of The Witcher series. You can see more of Lorenzo’s work at his ArtStation page

Overwatch Map Pulled After Players Get Stuck In Spawn Rooms

Overwatch’s Blizzard World map has never been universally beloved, but shortly after Blizzard decked its halls with holiday cheer yesterday, the map apparently decided to go full Grinch. Teams found themselves beset on all sides by busted spawn rooms and glitched payloads. Now Blizzard World is shut down. In Overwatch, maps have spawn rooms that…

Dumb Kids Will Try Anything To Get Out Of An Xbox Live Ban

Back in the earlier days of Xbox Live, while the Xbox 360 was still in its prime, the platform’s support forums used to allow users to complain about bans they’d received, and Microsoft staff would actually reply. Even if the users were being racist little shits. It seems a universe away from how platforms are…

I Liked Hoverbike Racing Game Desert Child‘s Pitch More Than Its Execution

At E3, amid the booming explosions of big-budget game trailers and sterile setups for pricy gaming PCs, I stumbled upon a cute racing game called Desert Child. It looked like a western, cyberpunk racer and had some Cowboy Bebop flair, all rendered in chic pixel art, and immediately I was intrigued. Desert Child is a…

Show Us Your Smash Bros. Ultimate Controller Setup

Smash Bros. players are often as particular about the controllers they use as they are which characters they pick to go into battle. With the release of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for the Switch, there are more ways to control the game than ever. What’s your Smash Ultimate controller setup? Fine, we’ll share ours first.…