Nathan Grayson’s Top 10 Games Of 2020 (That Aren’t From 2020)

Wow, what’s a year it’s been. I memorized the pattern of tiny paint bubbles on the wall behind my computer monitor. I also re-watched the same three TV shows one thousand times. I’ve become convinced that the outside world is a hologram, and I’m about to embark on a lucrative YouTube career persuading flat earthers…

The Gamers Of The Year, 2020

As many year-end articles will remind you—not that you needed reminding—2020’s been rough. That made it harder than usual to pick specific people for our annual list of influential game-players. Anyone who brought a smile to a friend, a loved one, or even a stranger this year by playing a game with them did a…

With Xbox Game Pass I Am Too Powerful

Through a bit of luck, I managed to acquire an Xbox Series S for the holidays. I’ve only had it for about a week now, but the slim, be-speakered machine—and, more specifically, the Game Pass subscription I purchased for it—has utterly changed my gaming life in ways I’m still trying to process. For those of…

Super Meat Boy Forever Is Not The Sequel I Was Hoping For

After 10 long years Super Meat Boy is back, this time as an auto-runner in a sequel that channels much of the original except for what I loved most about it: snappy controls and tight platforming. In the year of Spelunky 2 and Hades, it’s a letdown to see Meat Boy return without the key…

Koei Tecmo Shuts Down Forums Following Data Hack

The Japanese publisher Koei Tecmo announced over the Christmas holiday that some personal data from 65,000 users of its English language website was hacked, leading the company to take its US and UK websites offline for the time being. “Within the website operated by KTE, the ‘Forum’ page and the registered user information (approximately 65,000…

Fahey’s Top 10 Games Of 2020

In the 2020 gaming judgment system, year-end lists are determined by two separate but equally important groups: the players who play the games, and the games they enjoy playing. These are their stories. Bah-Dum. Everyone knows what happened in 2020, at least the broad strokes. What they may not know is that 2020 was a…

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s Glitch Kept Making Eivor Drunk, And Then It Got Weirder

Every time my viking hero Eivor dies in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, she returns to life drunk. This is a known bug that the developers appear primed to patch, but in trying to just bear with it last night, I somehow made it worse. Though, in this case, “worse” also means “better.” And now I’m conflicted…

Poison Suspected In Death Of Yoozoo Games’ Founder Lin Qi

Lin Qi, the billionaire founder of China-based League of Angels developer Yoozoo Games, died on Christmas, several days after being admitted to the hospital. Shanghai police are now investigating the 39-year-old’s death as a possible poisoning, according to the Associated Press. Known worldwide for microtransaction-based mobile and browser games like League of Angels and Game…

Dragon Quest Speedrunners Are Roasting Their Classic Consoles To Trigger Glitches

Japanese speedrunners say don't worry, the consoles are fine

Call Of Duty‘s 1980s Shopping Mall Map Gets The Little Details Right

Maybe it’s the 2020 pandemic blues, but I can’t get enough of Black Ops Cold War’s retro shopping mall map. “The Pines” is a standard 6v6 multiplayer map that was added earlier this month with the launch of Cold War’s Season One. It’s a New Jersey-based mall filled with retail flashbacks. I’ve gotten so distracted…

Let’s Talk About How Much Mass Effect 2 Rules

Mass Effect 2. It’s widely regarded as one of the best games of all time, a sweeping space opera that set the standard for modern role-playing games. One of us (Ari Notis) is just now playing it for the first time, ahead of next year’s remastered trilogy. The other (Ash Parrish) basically has a PhD…

Super Mario Sunshine Mod Turns Every NPC Into A Chuckster

Indie game developer Bread released a very special Super Mario Sunshine mod over the holidays that makes every NPC in the game able to heave Mario over their heads with no regard for his safety. What a great gift! This ability is lifted from the Chucksters, a group of throw-happy Piantas who form the crux…

After 2020 Decimated Live Fighting Game Events Great Online Play Is No Longer Optional

2020 sucked. You know it, I know it. It was amid this chaotic year that the fighting game community found itself pushed out of the arcades, hotels, and convention centers to which competitors had grown accustomed and into the unpredictable world of online play. Early on, organizers were unsure if the community could survive, but…

The PS4’s Spectacular Dreams Game Is Hurting From A Lack Of Players

When LittleBigPlanet creators Media Molecule launched the game-as-an-engine PlayStation 4 exclusive Dreams into early access in April 2019, I remember feeling a cautious optimism. The technology behind the game was impressive, letting people make their own music, games, and artwork with its robust toolset, then share it for others Dreamers to play within the platform.…

Hi Kotaku, as always, it’s been a huge honor getting to be the guest writer for the weekend. I love reading the comments and so many of you share so many awesome things, I always feel I’m learning so much (and also getting some really cool game recommendations). Please have a safe holiday season and…

What Games On Your Backlog Do You Want To Finish This New Year?

I asked this same question last year and looking back on the list of games I hoped to finish, I actually am surprised I got to quite a few of them. That includes Deadly Premonition, Radiant Historia, Pikmin 3, Link Between Worlds, Trace Memory, and No More Heroes. The link between them all is that…

Lost Odyssey’s Ending Felt Like A Bittersweet Farewell To The JRPGs Of Old

I wish I were immortal just so I could play all the games on my backlog. Lost Odyssey for the Xbox 360 is about immortals who’ve lived over a thousand years and they’ve experienced a lot. Maybe too much. Life has taken its toll and the only thing that’s made it bearable is the involuntary…