Culture

Vote on Your New Sunday Comics Lineup!

OK, first a mea culpa. It was dumb of me to open a call for nominations for new strips in our Sunday Comics feature and then go on vacation. I promise I did not forget about this. In fact, we’ve got a good list of nine new candidates, and right now you get to vote…

This Week in the Business: ‘The Most Overtly Sexist Environment Ever’

What’s happened in the business of video games this past week … QUOTE | “When I first started playing in 1999, it was the most overtly sexist environment ever.”—Linda Carlson, SOE director of global community relations, on EverQuest and how online communities are changing QUOTE | “You don’t force anything, you don’t drive anything, you…

The Lucky Man Who Got To Build Samus For A Metroid Game

In a career that spans almost twenty years, artist and character modeller Gene Kohler has worked on games like Metroid Prime (where he built Samus’ suits), Halo Wars, Age of Empires III and…Daikatana. Can’t win ’em all, Gene! Like yesterday’s showcase artist Bart Tiongson, Gene works at Robot Entertainment, the developers of Orcs Must Die…

Retro chic: If you’re into retro game art or vintage games, check out this fantastic (high-tech!) feature over at The Verge, all about classic Atari box art.

Introducing…Ramen Crust Pizza. Really!

First, there was the ramen burger—which we showed you how to make. Now we return with another ramen curiosity: the ramen pizza. And yes, there’s a recipe for you to follow. The ramen crust pizza is the creation of J. Kenji López-Alt over at Serious Eats—and he swears that it’s tasty. Don’t mind the kind…

Yes, Really, Every Last Orc Must Die

Bart Tiongson is a concept artist with almost 15 years experience in the games industry, having worked first at Ensemble and then, when the Age of Empires studio went bust, to Robot Entertainment. Below you’ll see examples of both personal and industry work. To see more, head to his site and CGHub page. To see…

Track: Deafening Peepshow | Artist: Love Sex Machine | Album: Love Sex Machine Download Love Sex Machine here Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

That’s Some Gorgeous Mononoke You’ve Got There, Son

James Zapata is an illustrator and concept artist who has worked on stuff like Magic: The gathering, Applibot’s mobile games and The Last Sleeper, a project we featured last year. That Mononoke image is just…ungh. So so good. You can see more of James’ art at his personal site and CGHub page To see the…

Track: I AM | Album: I AM | Artist: Nicholas Cheung Download I AM here Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

Future Cop Loses Skittles, Faces Certain Death

Marek Okon was one of the first artists I ever showcased here on Fine Art. So it’s about time to circle back and see what he’s been up to since. Having previously worked on stuff like Crysis 2, Star Wars: Old Republic, Uncharted 3 and Napoleon Total War, he’s since been involved with The Last…

Kim & Kanye Must Be Destroyed, At All Costs

Kanye West and Kim Kardashian’s union, and subsequent procreation, is the subject of this video game, in which the pair have taken to space, and you have to shoot their faces until the world is saved. This is not games as art. It is games as catharsis. Kimye Invaders [Play]

Now This Is Extreme Trash-Talking

Hearing someone say your mother [verb] [noun] is pretty common in gaming, but this clip, of some in-person DOTA gloating, is on a whole other level. Insults? Not needed when you’re throwing up amassed, skull-crushing wall of noise The dude in the yellow shirt giving the rare lean-in double bird is the best DOTA Trash…

This Week in the Business: Dealing With Change

What’s happened in the business of video games this past week … QUOTE | “If you’re not scared, then you didn’t push yourself enough.” – Jordan Weisman of Harebrained Schemes, talking about their new Kickstarter for tabletop/video game hybrid Golem Arcana QUOTE | “We wanted everything that we did to be just crazy. We wanted…

Everything You Need To Survive The Apocalypse

Henrik Sahlström works as a concept artist at Battlefield developers DICE. But hey, that’s not all he does. Guy also did stuff for the gorgeous Brothers: A Tale Of Two Sons. Previous to his job at DICE, Sahlström worked at Starbreeze, they of Riddick and Syndicate reboot fame. You can see some examples of his…

Pokemon, Ranked

Screw ‘gotta catch em all’—some Pokemon are clearly better than others, and I ain’t boutta carry around no lame-ass pocket monster around with me. You know? The things that make a Pokemon superior aren’t always cut and dry, though. Sometimes, it’s the design. Sometimes it’s the Pokemon’s combat usefulness. And sometimes, the Pokemon is just…

Steam Is 10 Today. Remember When It Sucked?

It wasn’t until 2005, when Valve began signing on external publishers, that the service really blew up

I Know Blood Is Rich In Iron, But This Is Ridiculous

Devon Cady-Lee, who has previously been at places like Tencent, Fantasy Flight and Wizards of the Coast, now works at MMO developers Turbine. You can see more of his work at his blog and CGHub page To see the larger pics in all their glory (or, if they’re big enough, so you can save them…

Medieval Superheroes Fight For Truth, Justice And The English Way

John Staub works at mobile gaming powerhouse Gree. What you’re seeing here, though, aren’t work images. They’re from something way cooler. Staub’s drawn some of DC’s biggest heroes (and villains) as medieval superheroes. OK, so maybe Cheetah’s not so big. That Batman is damn perfect, though. You can see more of John’s work at his…

Go to Hell and Back in Under Seven Minutes with This Spelunky Speedrun

Speedruns on most games don’t particularly enthrall me though I do acknowledge the skill and knowledge it takes to pull off one in record time. This sub-7 minute dash through Spelunky is a different story—probably because of the element of luck involved in procedurally generated levels. And the fact Spelunky‘s damn hard. Spelunky is a…

Beyond: Two Souls Looks Very, Very Sad

Which shouldn’t surprise you. It’s not like Indigo Prophecy and Heavy Rain were a laugh-a-minute. But there’s something all this concept art from the game that just bums me out. Well, the parts with the children’s rooms and sad little girls, that part does. The rest reminds me that this game is really weird, because…