The Internet Has A ‘Cringe’ Problem, And It Hurts Kids The Most 

Being vulnerable and honest on the internet is difficult enough for most of us, but for kids, living a life online can be hellish. Grown-ass adults love to bully naive kids online, and it happens all the time. In the latest episode of Fave This, a new podcast/YouTube show hosted by Gita Jackson and me,…

An Assassin’s Creed logo has been hiding in a Final Fantasy XV trailer since last October, hinting at the collaboration that Ubisoft and Square Enix announced yesterday. Ubisoft says there are also Final Fantasy easter eggs in the AC Origins announcement trailer and in this week’s Gamescom CGI trailer. Well done, video game publishers.

Battlegrounds Tournament Rules Result In Confusing Upset

The Gamescom PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds Invitational hopes to prove that the popular battle royale game has what it takes to become an esport, poor camerawork aside. But as the tournament continues, quirky tactics and unorthodox wins have raised questions about the rules. Each match of the tournament is broken up into three rounds, with winners decided…

Ask Dr. NerdLove: How Can I Have More Casual Hookups?

Hello all you Twitternet meat hordes, and welcome to Ask Dr. NerdLove, the only dating advice column whose pre-orders are only available at 1 AM. This week, it’s all about sex: who wants it, who doesn’t, where to find it and whether deciding to wait on it is a losing proposition when it comes to…

Developers Put Popular Horror Game On Pirate Bay For Players Who Can’t Afford It

On torrent site The Pirate Bay, typically the domain of illegal rips of media, one username among dozens uploading the horror game Darkwood stands out: the game’s publisher. Today, the Poland-based Acid Wizard Studio uploaded their own game for free with “no catch, no added pirate hats for characters,” their torrent description reads. A lot…

Why We Love Secret of Mana

Today’s announcement of a Secret of Mana remake (out February 15, 2018 for PS4, Vita, and Steam) was welcome news to at least two of us here at Kotaku. To explain why Square’s classic action-role-playing game is so special, we had an impromptu VGCHAT. Jason Schreier: This morning Square Enix announced a brand new, pipin’…

Crypt Of The Necrodancer Developer Announces Sci-Fi City-Builder

Crypt of the Necrodancer developer Brace Yourself Games just announced its upcoming title, Industries of Titan. And it’s very different from what we’ve come to know the studio for. Industries of Titan will be an “industrial city building sim/strategy game, set on Saturn’s moon Titan,” according to the developer. Players can design industrial cities, which…

Philips 40-Inch 4K Curved Monitor Review: Giving Up The Ghost

A 40-inch ultra HD curved LCD monitor with the ability to display up to four full HD inputs simultaneously, Philips’ BDM4037UW seems like the perfect large monitor for a multi-platform gamer. And it would be, if not for a couple small missteps and one large stumble. The “MultiView” feature, as Philips calls it, is what…

Madden 18‘s New Story Mode Is Actually Pretty Touching

Madden NFL 18 has a story mode, a first for a Madden game. Called “Longshot,” it follows the career of fictional would-be quarterback Devin Wade. Unlike Madden 18’s Ultimate Team mode, which allows you to feel like an all-powerful football god who can make record-setting numbers of touchdowns per game, Longshot isn’t about winning. Instead,…

Sandbox Lego building game or marketing tool? Why not both? In honor of the September 22 release of The Lego Ninjago Movie, Lego Worlds is adding a bunch of Ninjago characters and building sets as free DLC next month.

Japan Has Ice Cream Shaped Like Katana 

The city of Seki in Gifu Prefecture has long been famous for sword-making and high-quality kitchen cutlery. Now, as Togech points out, it’s becoming famous for ice cream katana. The basic idea was from a high school student, and according to Asahi Digital, the city’s youth made that a reality. A local Japanese confectionary chef…

Japan’s YouTuber Academy Teaches Kids How To Be Better YouTubers 

Earlier this year, insurance company Sony Life conducted a poll, asking junior high schoolers what they wanted to be when they grew up. For boys, the third most popular choice was YouTuber. Number one was IT engineer/programmer, while number two was game creator. For girls, YouTuber was the 10th most popular choice. That might explain…

Shibuya at Night. Tokyo, Japan. By Jorge Mena. 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! 

Secret of Mana Remake Announced For PS4, Vita And Steam

Square Enix is remaking Secret of Mana. The beloved role-playing game will be released in North America on February 15, 2018. In August 1993, the game was originally released as Seiken Densetsu 2 in Japan on the Super Famicom (SNES), but sold outside Japan as Secret of Mana Earlier this summer, a Mana collection with…

Former Valve Writer Posts Possible Half-Life 2: Episode 3 Plot Summary

Former Valve writer Marc Laidlaw has posted a fictional letter on his site that sure reads like a possible plot summary for Half-Life 2: Episode 3 Laidlaw joined Valve in the 1990s, and announced his departure from the company in January 2016. In that time he worked on the story for Half-Life 1, Half-Life 2…

Now Yakuza 2 Is Getting A HD Remake

Yakuza Kiwami, a HD remake of the first game in the series, is out in the West next week. And when you’re done with it you can start getting ready for a HD remake of its sequel, Yakuza 2 A preorder listing for the game (originally released in 2006) has turned up on Taiwan’s PlayStation…

Seven Magnificent Cowboys

Erikas Perl is the boss of Goodname, a studio in Lithuania that does art for games, movies and animation. You can see more of Goodname’s work at their company site, and check out more of Perl’s stuffat his ArtStation page To see the images in their native resolution, click on the “expand” button in the…