Culture Archives - Page 1519 of 1593

Wow, There Was A Daytona USA That Was Also A Little Bit…RPG

It wasn’t made by Sega, sadly, but whatever: around 2003-04, there was an arcade version of Daytona USA going around that added RPG elements to the famous racer. Put together by modders, it was called Daytona USA : GTX 2004, and featured a range of little changes and improvements to the original like upgraded visuals. The…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 29, 2013

Culture

The Week in Games: Onward to August

Interceptor Entertainment’s revival of Rise of the Triad highlights this week as video games close out a slow July and look to a hotter August. Other releases include Cloudberry Kingdom and a collector’s edition for Terraria Tuesday • Realms of Arkania: Blade of Destiny (PC) • Terraria: Collector’s Edition (360, PS3) • Cities in Motion…

By Dealzon Published July 28, 2013

Culture

Sunday Comics: Extreme Makeover

Welcome to Kotaku‘s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics, chosen by our readership. The images enlarge if you click on the magnifying glass icon in the lower right corner. Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich. Published July 22. Read more of Awkward Zombie Penny Arcade by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik. Published July…

By Owen Good Published July 28, 2013

Culture

This Week in the Business: Used Games Put Consumers in ‘Awkward Spot’

What’s happened in the business of video games this past week … QUOTE | “We need to curb [used games] on the retail side. We’re putting the consumers in an awkward spot and we shouldn’t have to.”—Ready at Dawn boss Ru Weerasuriya, saying that GameStop and other outlets exploit developers and consumers QUOTE | “Publishers…

By Steve Peterson Published July 27, 2013

Culture

It’s Late. Let This Computer Buy You A Drink.

Darren Bacon is a senior concept artist at Bungie, where he was part of the team that designed the world of its upcoming shooter Destiny. Before that, he’d had experiences both in games and with TV, working with EA on the Command & Conquer franchise and with Disney on the gorgeous Tron: Uprising animated series.…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 26, 2013

Culture

Popeyes Wins The Fast Food Wars With Chicken Waffle Tenders

They’re trying to keep it a secret, and it’s much more fun and childish to imagine every beeped word in this video is “penis”, but thecat is out of the bag — Popeyes Chicken Waffle Tenders arrive July 29. AdvertisingAge has the skinny (probably the wrong choice of words) on Popeyes’ latest creation, chicken tenders…

By Mike Fahey Published July 25, 2013

Culture

Watch Top Speed-Runners Take on Tough Games for Charity

You want to help a worthy cause like Doctors Without Borders, don’t you? And you love seeing great games like Okami HD, Metal Gear Solid and Dark Souls being finished in record-beating time, right? Then you should watch the Summer Games Done Quick streaming marathon from Speed Demos Archive in the stream above. Some of…

By Evan Narcisse Published July 25, 2013

Culture

Tali’s “Official” Face, A Cyborg Shepard And Other BioWare Sketches

OK. This is awesome. Matt Rhodes, one of the best concept artists in the business, has opened up the vaults and shared some of his work on the Mass Effect and Dragon Age series from before you’d seen a screenshot. Suffice to say, things are different When I say the images are from the earliest…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 24, 2013

Culture

Guys, Shut Up, The Giant Robot Is Sleeping

Mikhail Rakhmatullin is a concept artist who works at Russian indie developers Nival. He does good sci-fi. And fantasy. And sharp-dressed robots. You can see more of his work at his personal site and CGHub page To see the larger pics in all their glory (or, if they’re big enough, so you can save them…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 24, 2013

Culture

A Tribute To One Of The Greatest Cars Ever Made

The Ford GT40. So fast. So gorgeous. Even decades later, it still turns heads, and it still stops hearts. So if a guy who draws cars in video games for a living wants to pay tribute to a vehicle, there aren’t many better options. The work you’re seeing here is that of Luis Nieves, who’s…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 23, 2013

Culture

The Week in Games: The Smurfs? The Smurfs.

Well alright then. The Smurfs 2 it is this week, a movie adaptation doing every single platform like it’s still 2008 or something. Not much else to discuss. Monday • RuneScape 3 (Online) Tuesday • The Smurfs 2 (360, PS3, Wii U, Wii, DS) • The Raven – Legacy of a Master Thief Deluxe Edition…

By Dealzon Published July 21, 2013

Culture

Sunday Comics: Barter Economy

Welcome to Kotaku‘s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics, chosen by our readership. The images enlarge if you click on the magnifying glass icon in the lower right corner. Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich. Published July 15. Read more of Awkward Zombie Penny Arcade by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik. Published July…

By Owen Good Published July 21, 2013

Culture

This Week in the Business: Staring Into the Uncanny Valley

What’s happened in the business of video games this past week … QUOTE | “If improved graphics aren’t combined with better animation, all these games are going to dive into the uncanny valley.”—Julien Merceron, worldwide tech director for Square Enix, talking about escaping from the uncanny valley with next-gen games QUOTE | “It takes women…

By Steve Peterson Published July 20, 2013

Culture

Jar Jar Binks Finally Gets What’s Coming To Him

Gunship Revolution is not, as you may suspect, the name of an old SNK shooter on the Neo Geo. It’s the name of an art team with its HQ in the Philipines, but with members spread all over the world. They specialize in stuff like concept art and illustration, but can also branch out and…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 19, 2013

Culture

Times Square Is Less Of A Hassle After Aliens Blow It Up

Dan Ghiordanescu is a concept artist who works at Travian Games, but who has previously lent his talents to projects like Crysis 2. In the gallery below, then, you’ll see a few shots from Crytek’s game, but also a lot more other works that are a little less focused on the alien destruction of New…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 18, 2013

Culture

I Don’t Know What The Hell’s Going On Here, But I Like It

If I didn’t have kids, I would have my walls covered with prints by Philippines-based artist Reynan Sanchez. Every one of his original illustrations is like the cover to a comic I wish I could read, if only it actually existed. And his fan art, like the God of War piece below, makes you wish…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 17, 2013

Culture

Hey Guys, I Found Our New Review Format

Hot Pepper Game Reviews? Brilliant. Jared Rosen is a fearless pioneer of video game criticism. We should all learn by his example. Mostly I’m glad he’s done this first, so if someone suggest I do this I can point to Jared’s video and shake my head with faux sadness.

By Mike Fahey Published July 16, 2013

CultureTotal Recall

Nintendo’s First Proper Console Was So 80s It Had A Cassette Deck

So, the Famicom turned 30 today. In honour of that, let’s look at one of the coolest accessories ever made for the console, one that sadly never made it out of Japan. In 1984, Nintendo released the Famicom Data Recorder, a tape deck peripheral for the console. Yes, cassette tape. The Data Recorder was a…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 16, 2013

Culture

Zelda Fans, Drop What You’re Doing And Check Out This Art Collection

This. Is. Incredible Fan site History of Hyrule have done an amazing job tracking down all old art from The Legend of Zelda: A Link To The Past from all kinds of old magazines, manuals, products and publications, and have scanned and uploaded the images online. To say it’s a treasure trove of old Nintendo…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 15, 2013

CultureTotal Recall

When Losing A Game Actually Means Something

Death or defeat in a video game is normally something to be glossed over, brushed aside as you continue (or repeat) a stage on your way to inevitable victory. A quick “GAME OVER” screen, maybe a prompt or two, then you’re back into the action. Where’s the realism in that? The sense of consequence? Life…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 15, 2013