- Kotaku East
Meanwhile in Japan, Microsoft’s A.I. Chatbot Has Become an Otaku
This was bound to happen. So were the questions about Hitler. In the West, Microsoft launched Tay, an A.I. chatbot designed to appeal to the youth. Its rollout was, well, not good. In Japan, however, Microsoft had previously launched a schoolgirl chatbot called Rinna. Schoolgirl. Chatbot. Japan. Of course. For the past couple months, Rinna…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 25, 2016 -
UncategorizedThose Rumored NX Controller Photos Are Both Fake
A reddit user claims they were behind the original “leaked” photo of an NX controller, and released a video showing his Photoshop work. But what about those other photos?! Well, those are fake, too. Sorry, #TeamReal. Update 10:23 am, 3/25/16: Disregard everything you think is real; both “leaks” are now confirmed fakes. Not long after…
By Patrick Klepek Published March 25, 2016 -
UncategorizedGTA V Player Completes Insane Parkour Map In Record Time
Nearly impossible, custom-made parkour maps are a popular part of GTA Online, with their very own community. They test the limits of the game’s engine, which sometimes results in some truly spectacular runs. This is Albert using an Enduro bike (which is great for wall rides) on a really evil map made by Retro maniA,…
By Gergo Vas Published March 25, 2016 - Uncategorized
LEGO StarCraft Terran Base Is Ready To Expand
Everything’s in its proper place in LEGO builder Cecile Fritzvol’s StarCraft II map. The factory and the barracks pump out new units while siege tanks and marines defend the ramp and the high ground, and SCVs near the command center collect all the precious minerals. Fritzvol’s miniature Terran base is actually a part of a…
By Gergo Vas Published March 25, 2016 -
UncategorizedPacific Rim Is The Best 1980s Anime You’ve Never Seen
If this was on television when I was an eight year-old kid, I’m certain it would be my favorite thing ever. Created by Los Angeles-based animator Jeremie Carreon, this does a terrific job of capturing the sights and sounds of a bygone animation style.
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 25, 2016 - Kotaku East
Japan’s Stuffed Animal Hospital Performs Surgery on Plush Toys
When your pets need operations, they get medical attention. But what about your plush toys? If they live in Japan, they can go to the stuffed animal hospital. As pointed out by Twitter user Anzu (via Buzz Net), you can get your beloved snuggle buddies back to tiptop shape thanks to the Nuigurumi Byouin (stuffed…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 25, 2016 - Kotaku East
The Cutest Cafes in Tokyo
If you are visiting Tokyo soon and if you like cute, keep this list handy. Because here are some, certainly not all, of the most kawaii places to eat at. In Japanese, the word “kawaii” (可愛い) is typically translated as meaning “cute.” It’s important to note that the Japanese word “kawaii” literally means “capable of…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 25, 2016 - Uncategorized
Bowser at His Most Precious
This digital painting, created by veteran artist TsaoShin, will be used to demonstrate art techniques at today’s Anime Boston 2016 convention. It’s also amazingly cute. Once you’re done obsessing over Bowser’s widdle pink bandaid or his pet baby Chain Chomp, you may want to check out TsaoShin’s DeviantArt gallery for some more great fanart. Here’s…
By András Neltz Published March 25, 2016 -
UncategorizedBig Overwatch Update Makes The Game Better In A Lot Of Small Ways
Overwatch got a new update this week, and it’s a big one. It’s also a good one, for the most part. In addition to the usual balance tweaks, the ramifications of which will likely become more clear with time, the update added five main things: a new escort map called Route 66, a new Hearthstone-inspired…
By Nathan Grayson Published March 24, 2016 - Uncategorized
Bandai Namco has publicly acknowledged some Dark Souls 3 players have bought the international version of the game, but they don’t seem thrilled about it. The company says it’s “incomplete” because multiplayer is not turned on, and a day one patch will “deliver further optimization of the game.”
By Patrick Klepek Published March 24, 2016 - Culture
Valve Wants People To Mod The Steam Controller
Don’t like the look or feel of the ever-divisive Steam Controller? Valve just released all the information you’ll need to modify or rebuild it. You can grab the complete package, which comprises the Steam Controller’s mechanical CAD geometry, right here. Valve briefly outlined its contents: “The archive contains several eDrawings viewer files: from Creo Express…
By Nathan Grayson Published March 24, 2016 -
CultureOf Course Somebody Recreated The Holodeck In Steam VR
Ever since HTC and Valve’s Vive VR headset was announced, people have been comparing it to Star Trek’s Holodeck. Now that Valve is letting people make their own Steam VR backgrounds—between-game hangouts, essentially—someone put two and two together. Reddit user illogical_cpt came up with the background, which Steam user Bradllez uploaded to Valve’s new VR…
By Nathan Grayson Published March 24, 2016 - Uncategorized
An Unexpected Pocket Of Warmth And Kindness In The Division
The Division is a bleak game for the most part. There’s a nice pocket of coziness and kindness in the game, however, though it can be easy to miss. If you’re go into your base of operations and turn left, you’ll eventually find a living area that city employees and refugees have begun to spruce…
By Kirk Hamilton Published March 24, 2016 -
CultureSlain Looks Like Heavy Metal Castlevania
Sometimes we play games because we want stories, or otherworldly out-of-body experiences, or to drive a Euro Truck. Other times, we just want to kill some shit. Slain happily obliges. Slain is a new sidescroller coming to Steam today, and it looks excruciatingly solid. It combines chunky pixels with gothic Castlevania-style environments, an elemental combo…
By Nathan Grayson Published March 24, 2016 -
Uncategorized10 Famous Characters, Recreated In Fallout 4’s DLC
Players who try Automatron will be delighted to find the DLC’s has a staggering number of options for building robots. Naturally, people are taking advantage of this and recreating bots and characters that everybody knows and loves. Below, you’ll find some of the best recreations Fallout players are making right now. Bender from Futurama Claptrap…
By Patricia Hernandez Published March 24, 2016 - Uncategorized
Microsoft Releases AI Twitter Bot That Immediately Learns How To Be Racist
“Hellooooooo world!!!” wrote Microsoft’s new AI bot in its first tweet yesterday morning. By the end of the day, it had declared that Hitler did nothing wrong Tay, launched yesterday, is an artificially intelligent bot that’s designed to appeal to teens and younger 20-somethings. Its Twitter bio reads “Microsoft’s A.I. fam from the internet that’s…
By Jason Schreier Published March 24, 2016 -
UncategorizedPlayers Find the Closest Approximation to Wavedashing in Smash Bros. 4
Melee players have been complaining about Smash 4’s limited movement options for years, but now a whole new slew of techniques called “bidou” have been discovered to make Smash 4 a whole lot faster. Although I haven’t had the opportunity to test it for myself yet, players like cayiikaSmash, KidUncommon, and Tarou Tanaka have posted…
By Avery Ellis Published March 24, 2016