The Castlevania Game That Changed Everything

Symphony of the Night took the best elements of the Castlevania series, injected in RPG elements, and created one of the most compelling games for the original Playstation. A platform-adventure action role-playing game, it was developed by Konami and released in 1997 for the original PlayStation. A couple weeks back, Ben asked what our favorite…

The South Korean Horror Game About Terrifying Schools And Strange Romances

A horror game from South Korean developers ROI Games and Gachyon Soft, White Day: A Labyrinth Named School is notable in being one of the few games released in the States I know of that has the Korean War as its backdrop. It also has the reputation for being one of the most terrifying games…

The Melancholy Music Of Nier: Automata’s Apocalypse

The end of the world is here, and I never thought it’d sound so beautiful. Nier: Automata was one of the most intriguing games of 2017. With machines fighting androids over stakes grander than either could imagine, I was riveted by the story and its characters. The music accompanying the journey was sublime, but also…

Ninja Kid Was My Very First Video Game

Good morning Kotaku! I’m Peter Tieryas and I’m your guest editor for MLK Day. Do you remember your very first video game? Back in the 80s, I had long seen the Nintendo at friend’s houses. When I finally got my own console, I was given the choice of picking out any additional game I wanted…

Why So Many Video Game Enemies Are Really Cute

On Christmas, like many people all around the world, I spent some quality time with my siblings hunched around a video game. During a standard run through one of Super Mario 3D World’s many colorful levels, my sister asked if it was weird for Mario to be running around and attacking a bunch of cute…

The Nintendo Switch Had An Incredible Year In Japan

It’s January. A good time to take stock and reflect on 2017. And for the Nintendo Switch in Japan, what a year it was. Throughout 2017, the Switch drew long (and sometimes hellish) lines. Even by the year’s end, when the Switch became more available, it still continued to post strong sales numbers. But, really,…

The Arcade Performance That’s Tearing Up Twitter

Twitter user Hiro spotted this masked-wearing, blind-folded Taiko no Tatsujin player at an arcade in Japan. The uploaded clip has racked up over three million views on Twitter. He’s not simply playing, but performing. Have a look for yourself. Amazing, no?  Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you the latest talking…

Memorial Service For Bulma’s Voice Actress Hiromi Tsuru 

Last fall, Dragon Ball voice actress Hiromi Tsuru suddenly passed away. Recently, a memorial service was held in Tokyo. While the funeral was private, this was an owakare-kai (お別れ会) or “farewell gathering” that was open to the public. It was a way for colleagues and fans to grieve and celebrate her life. Sports Hochi reports…

Twins. Mt. Fuji, Japan. By Charlez Chong. 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! 

Now Face My Champion, Sir Roderick of Muddlestone

Johannes Palmblad is currently doing art stuff at DICE in Sweden. You can see more of Palmblad’s work at his ArtStation page To see the images in their native resolution, click on the “expand” button in the top-left corner. Fine Art is a celebration of the work of video game artists, showcasing the best of…

Oh Boy Look At This New Flight Sim

It was only a few weeks ago that I compiled a list of the best flight sims of all time, and here we are looking set to maybe add to it in 2018 with the latest entry in the Digital Combat Simulator series. The announcement of DCS: F/A-18C has followers of the series losing their…

Fortnite Players Have Found A Way To Glitch Under The Map (And Keep Killing) [Update]

A few days ago, Fortnite players discovered a glitch in the Fatal Fields area of the map that allowed them to slip under the game world and blast everyone else with impunity. You can see it in action in the footage below captured by Spoderman Gg: players are able to disappear underneath the game map…

Russian Cosplayer Becomes Yennefer of Vengerberg

Galina Zhukovskaya, aka rgtcandy, is not cosplaying here as one of the best characters from The Witcher 3. She has clearly performed some kind of ritual and become the sorceress.  Ciri is Natalia, while photos are by MilliganVick. 

The Week In Games: Cyber Sleuthing The Winter Away 

Who needs a Breath of the Wild-style Pokemon game when we’ve got a new Digimon to look forward to? The annual slow start to game releases that is the month of January always manages to catch me off guard. While it’s still port season for the Switch and a quiet week overall, the release of…

Bandai Namco Offers To Extend Dragon Ball FighterZ Beta If Network Issues Continue [UPDATE]

Due out January 26, Dragon Ball FighterZ had its open beta this weekend. Unfortunately, network errors and disconnects have plagued much of the second half of it leading publisher Bandai Namco to discuss extending it beyond Sunday. Early access to the beta started for players who pre-ordered the game yesterday, with everyone else on PS4…