Culture

Xbox Series X, Series S Preorders Open September 22 At 11 A.M. ET

While online preorders for the PlayStation 5 appeared and disappeared sporadically after yesterday’s showcase, Microsoft has provided Kotaku with the specific time we’ll be able to drop hundreds of dollars on its upcoming consoles next Tuesday. Starting at 8 a.m. Pacific, 11 a.m. Eastern on September 22, folks will have a chance at preordering the…

Hades Is Out Of Early Access Now, And We Love It

Remember how Bastion, Transistor, and Pyre developer Supergiant promised that its Greek mythology-themed roguelike would leave early access sometime this fall? Well, it lied. The autumnal equinox isn’t until September 22, but Hades is officially out on PC and Switch today. Staff writer Ash Parrish, service and advice writer Ari Notis, and I (senior reporter Nathan…

Newest Nintendo Switch Direct Ended With An Xbox Game

Announced earlier today during the latest Nintendo Direct Mini, the cute Metroidvania platformer Ori and The Will of The Wisps is coming to the Nintendo Switch later today. Originally released earlier this year on Xbox One and PC, Ori and The Will of The Wisps is the sequel to 2015’s Ori and The Blind Forest.…

Everything Nintendo Announced In Today’s Partner Showcase

Today, Nintendo dropped a 16-minute Direct Mini, focused on third-party games. While not as earth-shattering as juicy new next-gen console details, we finally got confirmation of some long-anticipated titles. (What’s up, Monster Hunter?) Here’s everything that was announced: A new Monster Hunter is coming to Switch. It’s called Monster Hunter: Rise and, like previous games,…

Two New Monster Hunter Games Coming To Nintendo Switch

Nintendo kicked off its third-party showcase today with the reveal of a big new Monster Hunter game from Capcom coming to the Nintendo Switch. It’s called Monster Hunter Rise A trailer showed off classic Monster Hunter battling with giant swords, lots of thrashing of huge creatures and a hunt for a big beast called Magnamalo.…

Dune 2000 Is A Good Soundtrack For The Coming Spice Wars

Welcome to Morning Music, Kotaku’s new, daily hangout for folks who love video games and the cool-ass sounds they make. The year is 2000. Dune 2000 to be exact, and space gangs are fighting to the death while snare drums and ominous synth basslines blare in the distance. Won’t you join me? Good morning. Today’s…

Sony Will Have More PS5s At Launch Than It Did For The PS4

Yesterday, Sony announced pricing and the release date for the PlayStation 5. But how many consoles will be available when the PlayStation 5 goes on sale? More than when its predecessor launched. According to The Washington Post, PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan said that there will be more PlayStation 5s available at launch than there were…

Track: Tokyo wa Moeteru | Artist: Glim Spanky | Album: Walking on Fire 

The Ads In The Middle Of Twitch Streams Are So Bad

The news yesterday that Twitch was testing mid-stream ads was bad, but man, actually seeing them in action is even worse. While yesterday we only had mock-ups to get upset about, the ads are now rolling out to certain streamers and on certain streams, so we can see how terrible they are. Our example today…

Some PS5 Games Will Cost $70

As part of today’s roll-out of PlayStation 5 details, Sony has announced that some of the console’s launch games will retail for $69.99, a ten-dollar markup from the common $59.99 price point of recent generations. Demon’s Souls, Destruction AllStars, and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales Ultimate Edition (which also includes a code for the remastered version…

Quake Soundtrack Features Shenanigans Between Bethesda And Nine Inch Nails

Earlier today, the original Quake soundtrack—composed back in 1996 by Nine Inch Nails—went up for preorder on the band’s site. And accompanying the release was an all-caps note saying “A CERTAIN UNNAMED VIDEO GAME PUBLISHER” stopped the release of some behind-the-scenes essays by former id developers John Carmack and American McGee. The note, as it appeared…

God Damn The PS5 Is Enormous

Earlier this monthit dawned on us just how big the Xbox Series X is. It’s big! Know what else is big? And in most cases even bigger? The PlayStation 5. While we’ve known the PS5 was going to be large based on stuff like renders and estimates based on the size of the disc drive,…

Here’s The PlayStation 5’s Launch Lineup

Today, in a 40-minute showcase, Sony finally pulled back the curtain on the price and release date for the PlayStation 5. The base edition will cost $500, the all-digital $400, and both will be available stateside on November 12. While terrific to finally get some confirmed info after seventeen years of waiting—or three months in…

Sony Says Demon’s Souls Remake Isn’t Coming To PC And ‘Other Consoles’

Update—6:19 p.m. ET, 09/16/2020: Following the original publication of this story, Sony has told Kotaku that the trailer claiming Demon’s Souls would be coming to PC and “other consoles” was a mistake, attributing the incorrect information to “human error.” When we tried to further confirm that the game wasn’t coming to PC, the rep replied,…

Everything Sony Announced In Today’s PS5 Event

At long last we have the PlayStation 5’s release date, price, and teases for the next God of War and Final Fantasy XVI. Sony’s second PS5 showcase gave us most of the answers we didn’t get the first time around, including that the next-gen console will be out November 12 and cost $500. Today’s 40-minute…

Sony Teases God Of War Sequel For 2021

Today, during its PlayStation 5 showcase, Sony teased a new God of War for PlayStation 5. A vanishingly brief trailer displayed the God of War logo with runes in it. You could then hear (but not see) Kratos saying “You must prepare yourself.” After that, the words “Ragnarok is coming” appeared on the screen in…

PS5 Out In U.S. On Nov 12, Costs $500 For Main Model

Finally! Announced today during Sony’s PlayStation 5 event, we finally have a release date and price for the company’s next-gen console. November 12 is the date and the price is $400 for digital-only and $500 for the main model with its fancy disc drive. It’s less of a price spread than the Xbox Series S…

Miles Morales Spider-Man Game, Horizon, And Sackboy Also Coming To PS4

It’s been unclear, for a few months, whether or not Spider-Man: Miles Morales, the cool-looking expansion/not-expansion to 2018’s Spider-Man would be coming to PS4. Well, it’s clear now. It’ll be joined by two other PS5 “exclusives”—a word that lost all meaning years ago and is now just a sort of incomprehensible shriek video game executives…

Open-World Harry Potter Game Hogwarts Legacy Revealed

Remember back in October of 2018 when a leaked video seemed to show off an open-world Harry Potter game? During today’s PlayStation 5 event, WB Games announced Hogwarts Legacy, an open-world action RPG set in the 1800s Potterverse, coming to PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Series X, and PC in 2021. Explore magical locations, encounter magical…

Final Fantasy XVI Coming To PS5 And PC

Square Enix provided a first look at Final Fantasy XVI during today’s PlayStation showcase. It’s coming to PlayStation 5 and PC. Few confirmed details were provided, but there was a lot of serious-sounding dialogue about crystals and a plethora of giant monsters. The story appears to take place over several decades, following the main character…