Culture

What Counter-Strike Mapmakers Think Of The New Dust2

Valve has once again tampered with the holy grail of Counter-Strike maps, Dust2. Long considered a gold standard not just for CSGO, but for multiplayer maps in general, it’s very difficult to tangibly improve without accidentally knocking the overall synergy of the map out of balance. Has Valve succeeded this time? I asked a handful…

People Are Speedrunning The Super Mario Odyssey Store Demos

Super Mario Odyssey comes out in two weeks. Some players are so eager to race through the game that they’ve started recording ‘speedruns’ at demo kiosks in department stores. Demo speedruns are mostly a chance to experiment with the game’s movement mechanics. Mario has some pretty great jumps in Odyssey and the ability to possess…

Tiny Cardboard Arcade Is An Awesome Kids’ Meal Toy

An ill-fated trip through the local Wendy’s drive through yesterday resulted in room temperature fries, the wrong size drink and confirmation of my children’s suspicions that not all chicken nuggets are created equal. But hey, check out this awesome little arcade building set that came in their kid’s meal. Wendy’s is pretty good if you…

Track: Holy Mountain | Artist: Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds | Album: Who Built The Moon? Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Track: Two Thousand And Seventeen | Artist: Four Tet | Album: New Energy Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Hanzo Cosplay Is Very Beautiful

Cherry blossoms fall / Look at his beautiful face / Do not main Hanzo. This is Stylouz Cosplay. Photos by FlaavTV. For more Overwatch haiku, please consult this collection

Blade Runner Inspired Two Very Different Video Games

While it's inspired many games, there have only been two Blade Runner games made

Track: Pills | Artist: St. Vincent | Album: Masseduction Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

1994 Nintendo Documentary Gives Us A Look At Miyamoto’s Desk

In 1994, Jean-Jacques Beineix made a documentary called Otaku. It features a nine-minute tour of Nintendo’s offices, and it is wonderful to watch. The original recording is in French (and has circulated online for a while), but ComputerTales recently uploaded a version featuring machine translation into English, which while jarring still at least lets you…

Rude Pass Forza Guy

Today on Highlight Reel we have close finishes, aquatic landings, FIFA invisibility cloaks 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…

Cosplayer Transforms Into Wonder Woman

Alyson Tabbitha, a regular around here for her astounding make-up and costume work, returns with this temporary diversion where she ceases to be a human cosplayer and becomes an Amazonian ass-kicker. Note that as amazing as this outfit is, it’s not yet done: the shot began as a simple test, because she still hadn’t done…

The Internet Reacts To Overwatch‘s Symmetra Halloween Skin

Overwatch’s Halloween event has been announced, along with new spooky skins. While there are a lot of great new skins on offer, the fandom has already been freaking out over Symmetra’s Halloween skin that depicts her as a Dragon. The fandom has been freaking out over Symmetra’s Dragon skin, which leaked over the weekend. There’s…

Track: Jump | Artist: Van Halen | Album: 1984 Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Counter-Strike’s signature map, Dust2, is getting an official rework from Valve. The “updated, refined” version will be playable in beta form “soon.” For now, enjoy one whole screenshot

Shadow Of War‘s PC Download Is Nearly 100 GB

Hoping to play noted orc dating/shaming simulator Shadow of War on PC when it launches early tomorrow? You’ll probably want to start pre-loading it asap. By default, the Steam download of Shadow of War weighs in at a whopping 97.7 GB, making it one of the largest game downloads on the platform in recent memory.…

Someone Beat Spider-Man 2 Without Any Web Swings

2004’s Spider-Man 2 is fondly remembered for being a pretty good movie tie-in game with some amazing web swinging. New York is a blast to zip through, but one speedrunner decided to see how fast they could complete the game without using its most exciting feature. Slyfincleton decided to speedrun their way through Spider-Man 2…

What We Liked (And Didn’t Like) About Blade Runner 2049

Last Friday, Blade Runner 2049, the sequel to the iconic cyberpunk film, hit theaters. Staff writers Gita Jackson and Heather Alexandra checked it out this weekend, and, as you might imagine, there’s a lot to digest in this nearly three hour film. Spoilers! Gita Jackson: Hello Heather! You and I watched Blade Runner 2049 over…

The Week In Games: Where Every Orc Knows Your Name

Who’s ready to make some friends? I grew to like Shadow of Mordor despite my best efforts. It turns out slicing and dicing orcs, no matter how brutal and repetitive, is a hell of a lot of fun. Still, Shadow of War and The Evil Within 2 leaves this week feeling pretty bleak. I guess…

Track: Buffalo Soldier | Artist: Bob Marley & The Wailers | Album: Confrontation Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to at the moment.

Glitch Upends Grand Theft Auto V World Record Attempt

The Big Score is the sixth and final heist mission in GTA V. If they player selects the “subtle” approach, they’ll need to drive their car onto a tractor trailer at a certain point or the mission ends in failure. Unfortunately, there’s a rare glitch that can make doing so impossible. DarkViperAU plays a lot…