Culture

How’s It Going?: Burger Edition

Welcome back! We missed you. The daily open thread is ready and open. Burgers! I love a good burger. Over the years, I’ve gotten better and better at making my own tasty burgers. This is both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, being able to make tasty smash burgers or juicy grilled…

Today, EA officially revealed UFC 4, their next MMA game, announcing it will launch on Aug. 14 on PS4 and Xbox One. According to the box art for the Xbox One version, the game will be playable on Series X via Smart Delivery. Polygon has more details about the new game and its simplified control…

We Need More Mothman Statues

This week learn about the history of PopCap, take a bad photo of Superman, check out the new Sims reality show, and wish the world had more Mothman statues. Great Kotaku Content From The Past Week This is exactly how I would decorate a big house if I was like 17 and had more money…

Battle Chef Brigade Helps Me Navigate A Complicated Relationship With Food During Covid-19

(Note: This post contains discussions of disordered eating.) During the pandemic, there are days when I don’t eat. I’ll be hungry, and I’ll have food, but I’ll just simply decline to eat. Quarantine robs me of my desire to eat, and depression from said quarantine robs me of the energy to cook. But what I…

Tycho’s Ghost Of Tsushima Remix Is Ridiculously Chill

Four popular electronic musicians remixed a handful of songs from Sucker Punch’s upcoming open-world samurai game, Ghost of Tsushima. The result, an EP called Sound of the Storm – Ghost of Tsushima Soundtrack: Reimagined, is officially out today, and I cannot stop listening to it. It’s so good I’ve—and you’ll never believe this—decided to not…

From Bejeweled To Plants Vs Zombies: How PopCap Got Just About Everyone To Play Their Games

There is a very good chance you’ve played a PopCap game. More extraordinary, there’s a very good chance everyone you know, including your parents, have played a PopCap game. For about 10 years, there was one name in casual gaming, and that name was almost Sexy Action Cool. Whether it was Peggle, Bejeweled, Bookworm or…

U.S. Army’s Twitch Chat Is Banning People For Asking About War Crimes

Some folks have recently taken to trolling the U.S. Army’s official Twitch channel by asking in chat about the military’s well documented history of committing war crimes. The channel’s moderators have responded by banning them. The U.S Army has a Twitch channel where the members of its esports team occasionally stream games, and earlier this…

Valve Failed To Make A Lot of Half-Life Games Before Alyx

Back in March, after 13 years of waiting, Valve finally released a new Half-Life game. Half-Life: Alyx, a VR-only prequel to Half-Life 2, was a big success for Valve, garnering lots of positive reviews and pushing many folks to buy a VR headset. But before Alyx, Valve tried and failed to create more Half-Life, with…

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

The weekend is for having bought a bunch of frozen fish, which means I get to have some fish this weekend, which I haven’t had since the pandemic began so I’m really excited about it! It’s also for playing video games while I air the cooking fish stink out of my apartment. I still haven’t…

Far Cry 6 Seemingly Leaked In Hong Kong PlayStation Store Listing [Update]

An apparent listing for Far Cry 6 briefly appeared on the Hong Kong PlayStation Store earlier today, revealing some details about the game’s possible setting as well as a release date of early next year. According to an English translation of the listing, which was captured in screenshots by ResetEra forum goers and a number…

The Art Of Disintegration

I know the game came out a little while ago now on PS4, Xbox One and PC, but things on this planet have been busy, you know? And so tonight we’re circling back around to feature some art from Disintegration, mostly because I love a robot with a jacket on. Below you’ll find some art…

Board Game Designer Eric Lang Suspended From Twitter [Update]

Eric Lang, one of the most famous board game designers on the planet, has been suspended from Twitter after what he says was a targeted campaign by a “scumbag serial harasser”. Lang, designer of stuff like Blood Rage and the Star Wars and Game of Thrones card games, has worked with everyone from Fantasy Flight…

Activision Is Quietly Reversing Unfair Call Of Duty Bans

A recent wave of bans of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone accounts swept up a number of players who said they were perfectly innocent. Now, Activision seems to be quietly cleaning up the mess. Cheating has been rampant in Modern Warfare since the launch of the free-to-play Warzone battle royale, and its developer…

When Nintendo Struggles To Manage Expectations

Earlier this evening, while promoting an upcoming gameplay session for the new Paper Mario on Treehouse Live, Nintendo dropped a teaser for “a first reveal and gameplay for a title in a franchise new to developer WayForward”. And people lost their God damn minds. WayForward have a loooong history of making platformers across all kinds…

Over 50 Sexual Misconduct Allegations Have The Super Smash Bros. Community In Turmoil

The competitive community for Nintendo’s popular Super Smash Bros. series has recently been rocked by an overwhelming amount of sexual misconduct allegations. An endless stream of victims—many speaking out against highly-skilled, popular, or otherwise powerful individuals—has come forward to expose the dark underbelly of a scene built around playing an ostensible children’s game. This has…

The Last Of Us 2‘s Scariest Scene Has A Gameplay Problem

Between the screaming fungus zombies and the overtones of mindless militarism, The Last of Us Part 2 is basically one big, playable nightmare. But the scariest moment of the game comes at the midway point. At the end of Abby’s “Seattle Day 2” chapter, you end up at the Washington Liberation Front’s hospital base. Your…

Sony Invests $250m In Epic Games For ‘Further Collaboration’

Sony has purchased a $250 million minority stake in Epic Games, makers of Unreal Engine and Fortnite, according to a joint announcement by both companies today. $250 million isn’t a huge amount relative to Epic Games’ overall value, which a recent report by Bloomberg estimated at over $16 billion, but it’s a lot for one…

Just-Revealed Superhot Sequel Is Free For Owners Of The Original

What started out as free downloadable content for time-manipulation action game Superhot has blossomed into Superhot: Mind Control Delete, a new standalone game four times as large as the original. It’s launching on July 16 for PC, PlayStation 4, and PC, and owners of the first game get this new one for free. The Superhot…

Sony Shakes Things Up, Adds Big White Rectangle To PS5 Boxes

After months of rumors, pleading, and undercover operatives gone missing, Sony’s finally revealed the final look of PlayStation 5 retail game cases. Please contain your excitement. Also, I hope you like white rectangles. The new case design was shown off in a small post on the Official PlayStation Blog. The new case design is very…

I Love Cracking Safes In The Last Of Us Part 2

The Last of Us Part 2 has 14 locked safes scattered throughout its world. In contrast to the rest of the game, where resources are limited and ammo is scarce, these safes are loaded with supplies. In a game where visceral fun isin short supply, cracking these safes is a pleasurable experience that forces you…