What Made Pikmin Special

The Pikmin series was one of those bold moves by Nintendo that seemed to be going in a different direction than anything else in the gaming industry. It didn’t pay off quite as successfully as the herd-defiant Brain Age, Wii or Nintendo Switch, to name three of the company’s more radical creations, but it did…

Games Played A Big Role In Polar Exploration

Earlier this month, I went to Norway to live out my bizarre lifelong dream of turning a birthday in the Arctic Circle. I did a ton of cool stuff—drove a dogsled, met some awesome people, jumped in a very cold sea, and ate a reindeer hotdog (it was delicious). I also went to a polar…

Video Game Menu Music Gets Its Own Tribute Album

The music we listen to as we play our favorite games is nice, but what about the music we hear when we aren’t playing? The Materia Collectivecommunity celebrates the music of the start screen with Menu: An Homage To Game Title Themes, a 52 track remix album featuring music from Final Fantasy, The Witcher, Mario…

The Master Chief Collection Is What Happens When A Studio Doesn’t Give Up On A Game

It’s now taken as gospel that the future of a game isn’t written in stone when it first comes out. Ubisoft’s Rainbow Six Siege rebounded from a lackluster launch, hampered in large part by its grinding, fragmented progression system, into one of the most successful shooters on PC right now. No Man’s Sky released bereft…

I Hate Deciding Where To Land In Fortnite

Lately, I’ve been playing squads in Fortnite, instead of my usual short-lived solo runs. I mostly play with strangers and keep voice chat off. Playing squads has definitely helped me get better at the game, but there’s one thing I still can’t master: choosing where to land. Because I’m not playing with voice chat, there’s…

Anime Movies Are Finally Getting The U.S. Theatrical Releases They Deserve

Just a couple decades ago, anime fans would pore over Japanese dictionaries to hand-translate subtitles for their favorite anime films, which they’d disseminate over IRCs and password-protected forums. Over the last couple of years, those same fans to see marquee displays for “SPIRITED AWAY” and “YOUR NAME” hanging above their local brick-and-mortar movie theater. More…

The Week In Games: Return To Raccoon City

Zombies! This week the long awaited Resident Evil 2 remake is finally released on consoles and PC. Plus a bunch of games are getting ported to Switch and other platforms after appearing elsewhere. Which is nice! Who doesn’t want more games for their favorite platforms?! Actually, I already have a huge back catalog and feel…

How To Make Ace Combat VR Even More Immersive

This is Taka. He’s really into fighter planes and has figured out how to up the immersion factor in Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Taka turned his PS Vita headset into a Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing System and mounted it on a helmet Brilliant! According to Taka, he spent around 200,000 yen ($1,825) ordering the gear…

Detective Pikachu Trailer Just Dealt A Fart Joke 

Since 1996, when Pokémon debuted, I have not once wondered whether or not a Pikachu can fart. Then I watched the latest Detective Pikachu trailer. The film is the first live-action Hollywood adaptation of the world of Pokémon, fart jokes and all. Is this movie canon? I’m not anti-fart joke! Not at all This trailer…

A Small Town With An Old Canal. Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz, Bavaria, Germany. By Christian Amthor. JPGs is a photo peek into wherever gamers might find interesting. If you’re a photographer and have images you want to share, drop us a line! 

Brawl Stars Mixes Battle Royale & Dota 2 Into A Fun Mobile Game

I was being chased. I couldn’t get away. I ran into a nearby bush and yet I wasn’t safe. I was almost dead. I yelled out to a friend nearby to help, but I didn’t need to say anything. They had seen the chase and ran in to to save me, pushing my pursuer away…

Watch Darth Maul Play Beat Saber 

Ray Park was the actor who portrayed Darth Maul in Star Wars Episode I. While not the best Star Wars film, many fans love Park’s Darth Maul and have been wanting the former Sith Master to try out the VR game Beat Saber. Sadly, PSVR doesn’t support a staff saber. But regardless, Ray Park seems to…

The Big Daddies Are The Best Part Of BioShock

There’s a lot to love about BioShock. Released in 2007, the game was praised by critics and seen by many as a spiritual successor to System Shock 2. The city of Rapture, the underwater dystopia where BioShock is set, is filled with fantastic world building and some gorgeous water. One of the big reasons BioShock…

Watch This Relaxing And Informative Let’s Play Of Jurassic Park Trespasser 

Jurassic Park Trespasser isn’t a very good game, but it is a perfect game for a let’s play. Shadefyre’s excellent 10 part series is one of the best let’s play of Trespasser and one of my favorite let’s play on all of YouTube. Shadefyre has a very relaxing and calming voice. All of his Trespasser…

There Are A Lot Of Beds In Final Fantasy VII

Final Fantasy VII is big JRPG with classic enemies, a shocking death and powerful gods. But the game also has a surprising amount of beds spread around the world. Dedicated fan Signal over on the ResetEra forums spent some time putting together a large collection of every bed that appears in Final Fantasy VII. I…

Sunday Comics: Giant Ball Of Junk

Hello! It’s time for Kotaku’s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics. The images enlarge if you click on the magnifying glass icon. Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich. Published January 14. Read more of Awkward Zombie Corpse Run by Alex Di Stasi. Published January 19. Read more of Corpse Run Double XP by…