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Tips & GuidesHow To Make Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Feel More Like Classic Assassin’s Creed
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is not a subtle game. Ubisoft’s latest well-rendered history lesson, out now for basically every platform but the Switch, puts you in the shoes of a muscular Norse raider. You often wield weapons so large they’d make Cloud Strife blush. Stealth is almost always optional. Yes, Valhalla is as much a far…
By Ari Notis Published November 17, 2020 -
CultureTwitchStreamers Baffled By New Twitch Option To Buy Affiliate Status
The latter portion of Twitch’s 2020 has been characterized by two seismic shifts: a big push to make money off ads and deals, and creator-unfriendly capitulation to the music industry. The company’s latest announcement, a deal with music label Monstercat that allows streamers to purchase affiliate status instead of earning it, combines both. Monstercat outlined…
By Nathan Grayson Published November 17, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryIt’s Really Fun To Crush Foes With Your Fists In Demon’s Souls Now
One of the best things about the Demon’s Souls remake is that every weapon now has unique animations. And not only does attacking look different on PlayStation 5, but so does backstabbing and riposting after a parry. This small change has encouraged me to try out new equipment, but, as in real life, nothing so…
By Ian Walker Published November 17, 2020 -
CultureDestiny 2 Will Be Stadia’s First Actually Free-To-Play Game
Destiny 2‘s base game will be free to anyone with an internet connection and access to a Chrome browser through Stadia starting November 19, Google announced today. Called Destiny 2: New Light, free-to-play Destiny lets players explore all of the game’s locations and participate in a number of multiplayer activities like Crucible matches and strike…
By Ethan Gach Published November 17, 2020 -
CulturePlayStation Boss Won’t Say If Next God Of War Will Be On PS4 Too
God of War: Ragnarok is set to come to come to PS5 some time next year. Could it come to PS4 as well? The head of PlayStation isn’t saying. In an interview with the Telegraph published today, Sony Interactive Entertainment president and CEO, Jim Ryan, was asked point blank whether God of War Ragnarok will…
By Ethan Gach Published November 17, 2020 -
ReviewsPlayStationDemon’s Souls: The Kotaku Review
Demon’s Souls, released last Thursday for the PlayStation 5, is a monumental achievement for developer Bluepoint Games. While the From Software original on PlayStation 3 was already considered one of the best games of all time, Bluepoint’s acted like a tumbler, sanding away the 2009 cult classic’s rough edges and leaving behind a beautiful, next-generation…
By Ian Walker Published November 17, 2020 -
CultureAnimal Crossing‘s Winter Update Brings New Hair, More Storage, And Save Data Transfers
Along with the expected Turkey Day and Toy Day seasonal celebrations, the free winter update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons, launching November 19, adds 800 more slots of home storage, a bunch of new emotes and hairstyles, and the long-awaited ability to transfer save data between systems. Why celebrate Thanksgiving by traveling and risking getting…
By Mike Fahey Published November 17, 2020 -
ReviewsToysLego Super Mario Kicks Off 2021 With A Bunch Of New Sets
The already expansive Lego Super Mario line expands even more come January 1, with the launch of a new series of character packs, Tanuki and Penguin Mario power-up packs, three new expansions, and a new creative toolbox called the Master Your Adventure Maker Set. Now that kids of all ages have figured out how to…
By Mike Fahey Published November 17, 2020 -
CultureMorning MusicSega CD Silpheed Was Largely Just Spectacle, But That’s Okay
Welcome to Morning Music, Kotaku’s daily hangout for folks who love video games and the cool-ass sounds they make. I was hoping to write a quickie today, but Silpheed is so interesting that wouldn’t have done it justice. Ready to blast off? (Spaceship metaphor.) When I was a kid my shit-filters weren’t yet calibrated, so…
By Alexandra Hall Published November 17, 2020 -
Kotaku EastJapanTurning A PlayStation 5 Into A Yu-Gi-Oh! Character
When the PlayStation 5 was first shown, fans had a good time ribbing it for the console’s looks. In particular were those who made comparisons with Seto Kaiba from Yu-Gi-Oh! Note the high, white collar and the black shirt. The character does look like a PlayStation 5—or maybe, a PlayStation 5 looks like Seto Kaiba.…
By Brian Ashcraft Published November 17, 2020 -
Kotaku EastJapanAn Excellent EarthBound Jacket With Nintendo History
Next February, an EarthBound (aka Mother 2) embroidered jacket will go on sale in Japan. This type of jacket is called a sukajan (スカジャン), which are very much Japanese—yet their American roots and influence are undeniable. The tops appeared in Japan during the Post War Occupation. American troops began getting Japanese designs sewn into their…
By Brian Ashcraft Published November 17, 2020 -
CultureTrack: The Private Psychedelic Reel | Artist: The Chemical Brothers | Album: Dig Your Own Hole
By Brian Ashcraft Published November 17, 2020 -
CultureSuper Mario Sunshine Gets GameCube Controller Support In Super Mario 3D All-Stars
Super Mario 3D All-Stars was already pretty great, but a new update adds a feature that players have been clamoring for since its release last September: GameCube controller support in Super Mario Sunshine In addition to inverted controls across all three games, today’s Super Mario 3D All-Stars patch makes it so that you can play…
By Ian Walker Published November 16, 2020 -
CultureTwitchTwitch’s Digital Convention Was A Day-Long Commercial That Left Streamers Feeling Frustrated
Its location, size, and Pokimane pizza lines have varied, but since 2015, Twitch has hosted some form of convention every year. 2020 is not like other years, to put it mildly. Of all activities people could choose to perform in our pandemic-stricken nation right now, conventions might actually be the most out of the question.…
By Nathan Grayson Published November 16, 2020 -
CultureOdds and EndsDear Sony, Here’s Our PlayStation 5 Wishlist
The PlayStation 5 is officially out. It’s a tremendous boon for progress, a near-universal step above its predecessor, the PlayStation 4 (well, if you can look past the performance issues of Assassin’s Creed Syndicate). Still, the new user interface could use some improvements. Seeing as it’s the season for making wishlists, we at Kotaku thought…
By Ari Notis Published November 16, 2020 -
CultureOdds and EndsHuh, Puma Has Some New Nintendo Sneakers, And They’re Alright
I’m not normally a Puma guy, and had some not very nice things to say about their recent Super Mario collab, but the two companies are pressing on with more sneakers, and some of them are OK! There are a ton of new pairs coming, and while not all of them are what I’d call…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 16, 2020 -
CultureGoodbye To The Xbox One, The Most Pointless Console I Have Ever Owned
I moved house last year, and while packing everything away my wife and I made a simple rule: if anything was still in its box 12 months later, we would get rid of it, because that meant we never used it and didn’t need it. Last month, I sold my Xbox One. I remember lining…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 16, 2020