Culture

When Every Nintendo Game Looked The Same (And Was Better For It)

Outside of budget lines, video game box and disc art these days is a unique and varied art. No two games’ presentation looks the same. But for a short time, right back at the beginning of their days in the home console market, Nintendo bucked this trend. And it’s a shame they never stuck with…

The Best Games For Non-Gamers

If you know nothing about gaming, but you’re curious, what should you play first? If you’ve played hours of Candy Crush and you’re looking for something better, what’s the next step? Here are some suggestions for the best “gateway games”. This is just a list of examples based on some games that my own non-gamer…

Watch Arnold Schwarzenegger Cook Bacon On A Tank

When Arnold Schwarzenegger makes a sandwich, he makes the Steak & Egger sandwich. Here’s the thing about the Steak & Egger sandwich: it has so much protein, it could kill probably kill a man. But as always, the food showcased in Epic Meal Time is not the sort of thing anyone should try to eat…

The Unlikely Future Of Ordering At Pizza Hut

The first thing this concept video for a fully interactive tabletop Pizza Hut touch ordering system gets wrong is imagining a future where people still dine in at Pizza Hut. I have not sat down at a Pizza Hut in more than a decade, back when I worked out of an office in Alpharetta, Georgia,…

The Very Sneaky Art Of Thief

So, the new Thief kinda sucks. Shame, but then, this isn’t a feature about AI programming, or level design. It’s about art, and the art for the game was great. A little monotonous, perhaps, since everything is dark and busted, but then this is a Thief game, not Katamari Damacy. All the images you’re seeing…

The Week in Games: Humble Folks Without Temptation

This week we’re going down to South Park to have ourselves a time. Other releases include the next episode of The Walking Dead: Season Two and hot damn, some simulation farmin’, hell yeah. Tuesday, March 4 South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, 360) The Walking Dead: Season Two—Episode Two: A House Divided (PC,…

Sunday Comics: Served With a Smile

Welcome to Kotaku‘s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics. The images enlarge if you click on the magnifying glass icon. Penny Arcade by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik. Published Feb. 28. Read more of Penny Arcade Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich. Published Feb. 24 Read more of Awkward Zombie Brawl In The…

This Week in the Business: They Are the 0.15 Percent

STAT | 0.15%—Percentage of mobile gamers that provide 50% of the revenue for free-to-play games, according to analytics firm Swrve; this was taken from data for January from tens of millions of mobile game users Elsewhere in the business of video games this past week … QUOTE | “Every year there are fewer and fewer…

I Don’t Think Hearthstone Is Actually This “In Your Face”

Tyson Murphy is a character artist at Blizzard, where he’s worked on the Diablo and World of Warcraft series. You can see more of Tyson’s work at his personal site and CGHub gallery To see the larger pics in all their glory (or, if they’re big enough, so you can save them as wallpaper), click…

​Ask Dr. Nerdlove: How Do I Make Friends?

What’s up, Kotaku? Welcome to the latest installment of Ask Dr. NerdLove, the only advice column dedicated to helping make nerds sexy and the world a little more geek-curious. Before we get to your letters, I want to give a gratuitous plug: I’ve written a book! If you’ve ever been mystified by dating and wished…

The Beards, Beaus & Bad Guys Of BioShock Infinite

We’re on a bit of a BioShock Infinite runat the moment. Sue me, the game had some fantastic concept art. Today we’re looking at Robb Waters’ stuff. Robb is an Irrational veteran who has worked on everything from System Shock (he designed SHODAN!) to Freedom Force (I’ve sprinkled some comic-style goodness below) to the BioShock…

Track: When it Rains | Album: Largo | Artist: Brad Mehldau Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

Baskin Robbins Is Releasing Ice Cream Dolls in Japan

In Japan, March 3 is Girl’s Day (雛祭り or “Hinamatsuri”). It’s a doll festival. To celebrate, Baskin Robbins is releasing a set of five ice cream “dolls.” Delicious! Here is how the real dolls are displayed during Hinamatsuri. The dolls represent the Emperor and Empress—as well as their attendants. And now, in ice cream form,…

Track: Main Title Theme | Album: House of Cards | Artist: Jeff Beal Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to—and gaming to—at the moment.

In Samus We Trust

Jorge Lacera has spent the last six years at Irrational Games, working on the BioShock series (he was lead artist on Infinite). If that top image looks familiar, that’s because we actually featuredit a while back; today’s gallery however will have a lot of BioShock in it. You can see more of Jorge’s work at…

Tell Us The Best PS3 Game Of 2006. And 2007. And 2008…

Persona 5 just got announced for 2015. That means that there will be at least one game that’s a strong contender for getting people to turn on their PS3s next year. If new games keep coming for Sony’s previous video game console in 2015, the PS3 will have had a life cycle of at least…

A (Possibly Fake) Startup Is Proposing We Eat The Rich And Famous

BiteLabs has a modest proposal. Industrial farming is unsustainable, so why don’t we grow meat in labs? And if we’re growing meat in labs, why not make it the meat of celebrities? You know what, I don’t see any reason why not. Okay, so my first reaction to the BiteLabs site is that it’s way…

I Know The Air Conditioning Button Is Here Somewhere…

David Lesperance is an environment artist who works at Valve, and whose previous experience has seen him contribute at studios like Blizzard and 343 Studios. In that time he’s worked on games like World of Warcraft, Diablo III and Halo 4, so yeah, the art you’re about to see is pretty damn good. You can…

A History Of Video Game Consoles, In Commercials

It’s terrifying how long video games have actually existed. Utterly terrifying. Even more terrifying (and hilarious) are the commercials used to sell video games. Just for fun I decided to trail back through history to unearth almost a commercial for almost every single home console ever released. From the Magnavox Odyssey to the PlayStation 4…

Why Does Sriracha Taste So Good? Science Explains.

While snack traditionalists cling desperately to their ketchup and mustard, those possessing progressive taste buds have succumbed to the spicy siren song of Sriracha. What sorcery is this? It’s not magic — it’s chemistry. In the latest video from Bytesize Science’s wonderfully informative Reactions YouTube channel, we’re digging much deeper than spices, heat and garlic,…