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CultureThe Nintendo Download: 31 New Games For The Switch This Week
Every week, Nintendo releases a list of new games coming to the Switch. It is, almost always, a very long list. This week’s list includes Spry Fox’s Cozy Grove, Switch Online exclusive Pac-Man 99, the Switch version of The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV, and 28 more games, many of which you…
By Mike Fahey Published April 8, 2021 -
AnimeYour Spring 2021 Anime Guide
Spring is in the air! That only means one thing. Actually, it means several things, but one of them is that it’s time for a new season of anime. What are you interested in? What are you watching? What are you not watching? Have a look and let us know in the comments down below.…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 8, 2021 -
CultureThe Alex Kidd Remake Is Looking Sharp
Alex Kidd is one of my earliest console gaming memories, and I was so obsessed with it I used to bug my parents to rent a Sega Master System for the weekend just so I could play it. So I am keeping a very close eye on the upcoming Alex Kidd in Miracle World remake…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureIntel, A ‘White Nationalism’ Slider Ain’t It
Intel gave a presentation at GDC a few weeks back, but I’m guessing nobody actually watched it because it took until this week for anyone to notice this absolutely absurd pitch from the company, which wants to use AI to monitor and censor “hate speech” in your online voice chat, and let users toggle just…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureSmuggled Nvidia Cards Found After High-Speed Boat Chase
Only a week after a Chinese bust involving cheat makers and luxury cars, authorities have seized hundreds of smuggled Nvidia cards after a speedboat chase in the waters near Hong Kong International Airport. As Tom’s Hardware have translated, from Chinese outlet TVB News, over the weekend police saw a fishing boat anchored suspiciously close to…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureLil Nas X Released A Cheeky Video Game About Twerking
Lil Nax X—prolific Tweeter, former country music superstar, and current Lord of Hell—has released a new video game that celebrates his current chart-topping hit, “Montero (Call Me By Your Name).” Called Twerk Hero, the game stars Lil Nas X and directs players to use the mouse to move his jiggle physics’d booty to hit scrolling…
By Ash Parrish Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureOdds and EndsPokémon‘s Intro, Remade With Stock Footage
Pokémon’s status as a worldwide phenomenon means that you can break it down to its essential parts and folks will still recognize what you’re referencing. You show somebody an electric rat and, nine times out of ten, they’ll understand you’re talking about Pikachu. But can the franchise survive being filtered through the internet’s vast library…
By Ian Walker Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureTop Female Streamer Becomes Part-Owner Of Massive Esports Organization 100 Thieves
The past year has not been kind to, uh, basically anybody, but Rachel “Valkyrae” Hofstetter is one of the (generally wealthy) exceptions that proves the rule. She started 2020 with so-so numbers on her YouTube stream, only to ride the Among Us phenomenon to absurd 100,000-viewer heights from which she has yet to come down. As…
By Nathan Grayson Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryI Seem To Be Having Commitment Issues In Outriders
Over the past week or so I’ve sunk about 25 hours into Outriders—on top of the dozen-ish I spent repeatedly running the demo. And yet, I still haven’t committed to a main class. That’s not indicative of indecision on my part (okay, fine, maybe a tiny bit). That’s a testament to how awesome all the…
By Ari Notis Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureTwitchTwitch Will Now Take Action Against Threats, Violence, And Sexual Assault On Other Platforms
Many Twitch streamers have YouTube channels, and vice versa. They also have Twitter pages, Instagrams, TikToks, SnapChats, and basically every other kind of account under the sun. For years, Twitch has taken activity on other platforms into account when deciding to suspend or ban streamers, albeit inconsistently—and typically only when an infraction had also happened…
By Nathan Grayson Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureHarold Halibut, You Have My Attention
We last saw Harold Halibut at GDC 2018, but the folks at German indie studio Slow Bros. are back with another fascinating preview of this unique game. “Harold Halibut started life as a conversation over dinner about our love of stop-motion and story games,” the devs explain. “It wasn’t long after that we started building…
By Ian Walker Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureThat Final Fantasy XIV Hairstyle You Like Is Going To Come Back In Style
A popular Final Fantasy XIV hairstyle that hasn’t been available in-game for years is going to make a permanent comeback, Square Enix announced this morning Final Fantasy XIV players will be able to acquire the very anime Rainmaker hairstyle (pictured above) for the first time since 2017 when the extensive Patch 5.5 expansion drops on…
By Ian Walker Published April 7, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsClap Hanz’ First Non-PlayStation Golf Game Is My New Happy Place
Japanese developer Clap Hanz has been making colorful cartoon golf games for PlayStation consoles since 1999’s Hot Shots Golf 2. The studio’s first non-PlayStation game, Apple Arcade’s Clap Hanz Golf, is more of the same, only now all it takes for me to tee up is a few taps of my iPad screen. Hot Shots…
By Mike Fahey Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureCrysis Remastered Now Even More Remastered
Just when you thought classic shooter Crysis was as remastered as it was going to get, Crytek announces a new free update that fixes a whole slew of bugs while adding new graphics modes for Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 consoles. Who is ready for raytraced 1080p at 30 frames per second on the…
By Mike Fahey Published April 7, 2021 -
ReviewsBacklogWelcome To Backlog Month
April’s pretty thin as far as new game releases go. So we at Kotaku are taking the moment to focus on something shared among every gamer: a backlog. You could call it a month…about backlogs…surely there’s some sort of cutesy phrase we could use? Aha! Backlog Month! Look, it’s not like April is literally devoid…
By Ari Notis Published April 7, 2021 -
CulturePac-Man 99 Is A Free Switch Online Exclusive Battle Royale
Announced last night and going live today at 9pm Eastern exclusively for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers, Pac-Man 99 is a 99-player battle of pellet-munching attrition in which players eat the spirits of the dead in order to sic them against their opponents until all are devoured. Yay, Pac-Man! It’s like Tetris 99, only with Pac-Man.…
By Mike Fahey Published April 7, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsFree From Stadia, Lost Words‘ Story Hits Hard
Lost Words: Beyond the Page is poised to snag a second lease on life. First released last spring as a Stadia exclusive, the idyllic puzzle-platformer from Sketchbook Games, officially released yesterday for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the Switch (where I’ve been playing). Lost Words sports the sheen of star power: Rhianna Pratchett, of…
By Ari Notis Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureMorning MusicLooks Like Capcom Got The Band Back Together
Welcome to Morning Music, Kotaku’s ongoing hangout for folks who love video games and the cool-ass sounds they make. Today, Capcom forms a band. Yesterday’s Street Fighter V Spring Update was full of surprises, not least of which was that Capcom’s slapped a pair of undies on returning fighter Oro, the only canonically freeballing character…
By Alexandra Hall Published April 7, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanGenshin Impact Replaces Famed Idol Group’s Iconic Signs In Akihabara
If you’ve been to Tokyo’s Akihabara in the past decade, you’ve seen the large signs for pop group AKB48 on the side of the Don Quijote building. They have now been replaced. At one time, AKB48 was the biggest-selling pop troupe in the country. You couldn’t turn on the television without being bombarded by group…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 7, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanToday, Atlus Celebrates Its Birthday
Famed role-playing game maker Atlus is celebrating a milestone. Today in 1986, the company was founded. Happy birthday Atlus! In its early years, Atlus sold karaoke equipment, before releasing its first game Puzzle Boy for the Game Boy in 1989. The company’s first arcade game, BlaZeon, followed three years later. During the 1990s, Atlus caused…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 7, 2021