Overwatch Wins Game Of The Year At The 2017 GDC Awards

The Game Developer’s Choice Awards were last night, and you’ll be shocked to learn Overwatch won “Game of the Year.” But there were other awards too, because there are other games. There are games besides Overwatch you guys. The GDC Awards are voted on by folks in the industry, so the nominees and winners always…

YouTuber Wishes Peers Would ‘Look At The Damn Lens’ 

If you hadn’t watched many YouTubers before last week’s news, then you might come away from their videos with one question: why do they all look slightly to the left? Jarrod Alonge has an answer. Jarrod Alonge has long been one of my favorite YouTubers since his video poking fun at pop punk bands from…

AMD’s Ryzen CPUs Are Here To Take On Intel

AMD today launches the first three models of its Ryzen desktop processor, a trio of eight-core CPUs that promise power to rival Intel’s finest at a more accessible price point. AMD has spent four years and thousands of hours working on the Zen core microarchitecture, and the three Ryzen processors launched today represent the culmination…

The Switch’s Day One Update Adds A Spartan eShop And Dreaded Friend Codes [Update: Good News!]

The day one update is now available for the Nintendo Switch. It’s a quick download that adds some basic functionality to the system. It sets the eshop live, complete with nine listed games. And, oh no… friend codes. The biggest effect of the update is that it lets the Switch go online. That enables it…

The New Pokémon Movie Shows How Ash And Pikachu Became Friends 

Last December, we first got a look at upcoming Pokémon The Movie: I Choose You! The teaser made it seem like the flick was a reboot. The latest trailer confirms it, showing how Ash and Pikachu teamed up. Their relationship doesn’t start out so great, but Pikachu eventually warms to Ash. (That is, even after…

Ferry to Miyajima. Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. By Thomas Ito | Facebook | Instagram 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!

Celeste, A Platformer Covered In Spikes

Celeste is a game about climbing a mountain. A mountain covered in spikes. As part of a recent Nintendo showcase during GDC, I got to try out a bunch of indie games that are coming to the Switch. Of those, Celeste was my favorite. It’s from the creators of very good multiplayer archery fighting game…

Persona 5’s Tokyo Is Pretty Faithful

If you like Persona games, or just excellent video game documentaries in general, you should definitely check out the latest installment of Toco Toco TV, which focuses on Persona series boss Katsura Hashino (and plenty of talk about Persona 5). As you’ll see—and as is series tradition—while some of Persona 5’s locations are fictional, they’re…

Podcast: People Who Write (And Program) Video Games

We’re back for another Kotaku Splitscreen special from the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. Today we’re joined by storied RPG writer Chris Avellone, Double Fine senior gameplay programmer Anna Kipnis, and 80 Days writer Meg Jayanth. Jason and I talk with each guest about the games they’ve worked on, with conversation focusing on Alpha…

And Now, Some Overwatch Haiku

Here is a collection of very good Overwatch haiku. This started when reader Evan, who only plays Overwatch as Lucio, sent these in: Audio medic! Guys we really need a tank. I see. Three Genjis. Lonely Lucio Capturing the point himself Junkrat blows him up Attackers scatter Like leaves in an autumn wind Feel that…

Horizon Zero Dawn Players Are Using Photo Mode To Take Some Killer Pictures

Horizon Zero Dawn comes packed with a robust photo mode that you can access any time you pause, and boy, are people taking advantage of it. For those who haven’t tried it, Horizon’s photo mode lets you tinker with pretty much everything: angles, depth of field, aperture, brightness, color, time of day (!), and more.…

Hearthstone Developer Records A Rap About Journey to Un’Goro Expansion

The trailer for Hearthstone’s latest expansion, Journey to Un’Goro, doesn’t feature anyone bursting into song. This came as a disappointment to many fans, given that the trailers for previous expansions like Mean Streets of Gadgetzan and The League of Explorers included corny but lovable songs. The Journey to Un’Goro trailer has some epic music in…

Chinese Mei Cosplay Has Plenty Of Chill

It’s a cruel fate for our eyeballs that Mei, who is the worst, often has some of the best Overwatch cosplay. In this case, it’s home-grown (for Mei), with Chinese cosplayer Husky Surely doing a damn fine job here. Is there too much photoshop going on in the background? You bet. Does it detract from…

Nintendo Switch Cartridges Taste So Bad [Update]

The Switch is almost upon us, and while there’s still a lot to discover about Nintendo’s latest console, one pressing question has been answered. “How do the cartridges taste?” So bad. Oh god, so bad. Update—Nintendo tells us what we’re tasting. The subject of the taste of Nintendo Switch cartridges was first raised by game…

Lucasfilm Asks Fate Of Atlantis Remake To Shut Down

Indiana Jones And The Fate of Atlantis is one of the great point and click adventure games. Now, a fan remake has stopped production after being contacted by Lucasfilms. As first reported by PC Gamer, the team behind Indiana Jones And The Fate Of Atlantis Special Edition are stopping their work after an informal conversation…

Here’s What Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Looked Like In The Early Stages 

During a talk at the Game Developers Conference, Nintendo gave everyone a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Breath of the Wild. What you’re looking at above is technically an early playable version of a game releasing in 2017. Watch it in motion: “As you can see, this is a 2D Zelda, but we used…