Culture

This is part 1 of 2Kawaii4Confort, a short film series about five friends going on a trip to an anime con. And…shit happens.

For Honor Viking Gets Whupped By The Invisible Man

Today on Highlight Reel we have Viking mimes, close shaves, gods worth dying for, 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! Mafia III –…

Korra Cosplayer Is Bending Fire Like A Pro

This is Van Helen as Korra, and that fireball she’s throwing around isn’t a simulation or photoshop, it’s the real deal. The top and bottom shots here were done using a method which basically has the person dip their arm in a (kinda safe) flammable solution then setting it on fire, creating a brief flash…

Ask Dr. NerdLove: Help, I’ve Got A Crush On A Twitch Streamer

Hello all you wheel-eyed death lemmings, and welcome to Ask Dr. NerdLove, the only dating column that survived all four days of Emerald City Comic Con. Barely. This week, we’re all about the hard questions. When you have a loving relationship and a new and exciting crush… which do you choose? Do you even have…

You Can Make A Game About Government Surveillance, But You Can’t Make People Care

Orwell’s central conceit is nothing if not timely. The game casts players as a fictional Big Brother, sifting through people’s private communications and picking info that might connect them to a terrorist plot. Months after its release, however, the game’s developers are worried about another timely issue: apathy. The team’s goal with Orwell wasn’t to…

We Talk To The Writer Of Planescape: Torment And Alpha Protocol 

Last week in San Francisco, veteran game designer Chris Avellone joined Kotaku Splitscreen to talk about Alpha Protocol, his time co-founding Obsidian Entertainment, and the Bethesda murder dungeon. In the video above you can catch that segment. For all of our GDC interviews—including Tim Schafer, Kim Swift, and many more—you can find Kotaku Splitscreen at…

Podcast: Why Zelda: Breath of the Wild Works So Well

It’s hard to talk about Zelda: Breath of the Wild in anything but superlatives, which is exactly what Kirk and I are doing on today’s gush-filled episode of Kotaku Splitscreen We also talk Shadow of War (which looks cool!), updated Destiny raids (which will bring us back for a bit!), and Switch hardware malfunctions (which suck!). You…

Need, Ahem, A Hand?

Robbie Trevino is an artist who has worked on games like Project Spark and Conker’s Big Reunion. You can see more of Robbie’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…

Track: Drugs on the Bus | Artist: Crystal Fairy | Album: Crystal Fairy Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

An App For People Going To Nerd Conventions

There’s a Kickstarter currently running for an app called Shout Around, which is designed specifically for anyone attending stuff like gaming, anime and cosplay conventions. Built on geolocation and friends lists, the idea is it can be used both to meet new people and catch up with the ones you already know. It works a…

The Nier: Automata Cosplay Keeps Coming

Nier: Automata isn’t just a very good video game, its star 2B is also a big cosplay inspiration, across both images and now videos as well. This is by CosplaySlayer

The Kick-Ass Capcom Art of Kinu Nishimura

Kinu Nishimura is one of the most accomplished artists to have ever worked in video games. She started out at Capcom in 1991, and in the two decades to follow worked on everything from Street Fighter II to Darkstalkers. It’s been over 25 years since then, and while she’s no longer a full-time employee, she’s…

That’s Not The Catbus I Was Thinking Of…

Jort van Welbergen is a freelance artist who most recently worked on Star Citizen and Horizon Zero Dawn You can see more of van Welbergen’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…

Track: Ceora | Artist: Lee Morgan | Album: Cornbread Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

Howdy, Lady McCree

This is Jelfishas Overwatch’s McCree, opting to restrict the crossplay changes to a very nice pair of boots. Photos by Falling Feathers

Beauty & The Beastplay

Oh hey, there’s a new Beauty & the Beast movie, and right on time here’s Knightmageand SuperKaycedoing their furry/elegant thing in tribute. Photos by The Portrait Dude, props assist by RKG Cosplay and the authentic dungeon/castle vibe is courtesy of Landoll’s Mohican Castle in Loudonville, Ohio.

Super Laser Star Wars Disco Party

Alex Heath is an artist based in the UK who has worked on games like The Division You can see more of Alex’s 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 of the…

Track: Big Time Sensuality | Artist: Björk | Album: Debut Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

Incredible Cosplay From The World’s End

Photographer EXPit captured these amazing costumes by the Zone Rats, a post-apocalyptic/LARP group out of the Czech Republic who take influence from everything from Fallout to Stalker They’re part of a wider European “Postapo” scene, whose main event is the annual Junktown festival, where everyone in attendance parties like the world has already ended. They’re…

The Soldiers Of The Future Dress Sharp

I know we’ve already looked at art from Infinite Warfare, but this collection of work from Aaron Beck—mostly very cool robots and future space armour—is just too good to let pass us by. You can see more art from Beck, who has worked on movies like The Hobbit, Elysium, Mad Max and Avatar, at his…