- CultureKotaku Game Diary
My Red Dead Redemption 2 Playthrough Has Already Gone Way Off The Rails
I’m about to go away for a week, vacationing far from my PS4. I’ve been trying to use the last few days to get the most out of the early copy of Red Dead Redemption 2. I think I’m doing it “wrong,” but having a great time along the way. Lately I’ve stopped advancing the…
By Stephen Totilo Published October 26, 2018 - Esports
One Of Dota 2’s Newest Teams Has A Lot To Prove This Weekend
In its first major tournament since the annual International in August, competitive Dota 2 returns this weekend with a $300,000 event in Hamburg, Germany. Though China’s Team Aster came out on top of the group stage with only one loss, it’s now hanging on for dear life in the lower bracket. The days and weeks…
By Ethan Gach Published October 26, 2018 -
OpinionA Terrifying Five-Minute Horror Game
InSeptember 1999, something is wrong. A lone house holds a secret, recorded on tape. You play through the tape as it jumps through a slow descent into gore and death. The whole game lasts five minutes and 30 seconds. You play through the perspective of someone with a camera who is reviewing recorded footage. It’s…
By Heather Alexandra Published October 26, 2018 -
ReviewsMultiplatformStarlink: Battle For Atlas: The Kotaku Review
In Ubisoft’s toys-to-life adventure, Starlink: Battle for Atlas, players are given access to a virtual (or physical) armada of starships and set loose in a gorgeous alien solar system, where they’re free to do the same seven or eight things over again until the game ends or they get bored. The opening moments of Starlink…
By Mike Fahey Published October 26, 2018 - Uncategorized
Yesterday’s episode of one of my favorite podcasts, Reply All, was all about how a 13-year-old girl brought her deceased grandmother back to life in The Sims and what that means for her mourning process. It was brilliant and touching. Give it a listen here
By Cecilia D'Anastasio Published October 26, 2018 - Uncategorized
Tiny Torbjorn Action Figure Is Just The Right Size
Normally when the folks at Good Smile Company create one of their big-headed Nendoroid figures, a little downscaling is involved. Not so with Torbjorn. Overwatch’s resident dwarven engineer was bite-sized to begin with. He’s conveniently cute. That’s right, I called Torbjorn cute. I was afraid the tenth figure in GSC’s Overwatch Nendoroid line would turn…
By Mike Fahey Published October 26, 2018 -
Kotaku EastJapanHere is the trailer for the upcoming Yakuza 4 remaster for PlayStation 4, which includes the first footage of Toshiki Masuda as character Masayoshi Tanimura. The game will be out next January in Japan. No word yet on an international release.
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 26, 2018 -
UncategorizedGundam Turned Into Traditional Japanese Prints
When you think of woodblock prints, you probably don’t think of Mobile Suit Gundam. You should! Bandai is rolling out some limited edition Gundam-themed hand-made woodblock prints. The Last Shooting print is priced at 50,000 yen ($446), with paper crafted by a 9th generation paper maker who is considered a Living National Treasure. The three-piece…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 26, 2018 - Uncategorized
Red Dead Redemption 2‘s Download Time, Goodness
Did you get Red Dead Redemption 2? Did you go to a store and buy a physical copy or, uh, get the digital one? My download is taking a while. I bought the digital version because I enjoy waiting around. And like a dope, I didn’t start my download at the crack of dawn. So…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 26, 2018 -
Kotaku EastK-Pop Pick Of The Day: Cruel Fairy Tale
It isn’t often that listening to a K-Pop track makes you feel like you’ve accidentally stumbled into a tilted Victorian horror movie, but IU’s Cruel Fairy Tale does exactly that. IU’s Real+ album was a 2011 follow-up to her 2010 Real album and its breakout title track Good Day, which we’ve covered previously. It’s not…
By Seung Park Published October 26, 2018 -
CultureTotal RecallRed Dead Revolver, The 2004 Game Where It All Began
Back in the year 2000, Angel Studios in San Diego began development on a video game Western. They were making it for Capcom, the Japanese publisher of series like Street Fighter and Resident Evil, and I think it’s safe to assume not a single person involved could have predicted what would happen next. An action…
By Luke Plunkett Published October 25, 2018 -
CultureTwitch Streamer Locks Himself In A Cage For 30 Days [UPDATE]
It began with a joke. Twitch streamer Johnny_now resolved to make a mad dash toward his fitness goals ahead of his 30th birthday, but he kept stumbling. He got into a good exercise routine, but couldn’t quit overeating. Then he injured his back and fell headlong back into his vices. “I joked around,” he told…
By Nathan Grayson Published October 25, 2018 -
CultureTotal RecallThe “All Your Base” Game Had 32 Secret Japanese Endings
Zero Wing, an old shooter most famous for its “All your base are belong to us” intro, was presumed (at least among Westerners) to have 3-4 different endings. Turns out only the English language version has three; the Japanese one has 35, most of which are absolute nonsense. Legends of Localization dug into the game…
By Luke Plunkett Published October 25, 2018 - Esports
Counter-Strike Pro Banned For Cheating, Now Regrets Ever Playing The Game
Nikhil ‘forsaken’ Kumawat is a professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive player who was caught cheating at a tournament last weekend. In a video that went viral, he was seen trying to close an aim-assist program open on his computer mid-match Now banned for five years from any Esports Integrity Coalition-affiliated tournaments, Kumawat says he regrets ever…
By Ethan Gach Published October 25, 2018 - Uncategorized
GameStop Wants People To Switch Their Switch For Another Switch
Every once in a while I go on the prowl for deals. I’m a gamer after all, but also a human being with a car loan and overdue heating bills and a weakness for the artisanal pasta that costs three times as much as the generic store brand. Deals matter—without them I’d be forced to…
By Ethan Gach Published October 25, 2018