The First Five Character Building Minutes Of Pillars Of Eternity

If you like RPGs you must playPillars of Eternity. If you like RPGs but only have five minutes, you must play its character creation. Obsidian’s Kickstarted spiritual successor to Baldur’s Gate boasts a great deal of complexity and depth, with a strong emphasis on player choice. At least that’s what I’ve gleaned from the first…

Your Worst PC Gaming Stories

Yesterday, we asked you to share your worst PC gaming stories. You delivered. I’ve now read through hundreds of tales of busted hardware, online jerks, childhood heartbreak, ruinous DRM, and PCs that actually caught fire. (Thankfully, there were no submissions about dead cockroaches.) I’ve pulled out some of my favorites and collected them below. For…

A Horror Game That Disturbed Me In Less Than 10 Minutes

When I play horror games, I expect to get weirded out. It’s part of the fun! The Static Speaks My Name, however, was a total gut punch. I didn’t have any words when the experience was over. The Static Speaks My Name was released a few weeks back, a one-man creation by designer Jesse Barksdale.…

Superb Metroid Cosplay Makes Me Roll Into A Ball

Cosplayer d-slim cares not for your spandex and swords. He cares for fake armour, and mech suits, and they’re awesome I’ve headlined with his Samus armour, but only because I tossed a coin. His other stuff is just as good, from huge Gundam suits to—wait for it—Advance Wars cosplay. Advance Wars cosplay! Someone, buy this…

Why would someone cosplay as a zombie Stormtrooper? For the kids, of course. The folks behind Cosplay Boom talk to the person behind this gory get-up as part of a new documentary series about Star Wars fan culture. Contact the author at [email protected]

Pokémon Battles Can Be Pretty Messed Up

When you’re on a route or a patch of grass battling a wild Pokémon, encounters probably don’t seem like a big deal. At best, battles against easy enemies are experience fodder. At worst, they’re an annoyance. If you stop and think about what you’re really doing, however, things can get pretty dark! Pokémon player epifex…

GTA V‘s Graphics Suddenly Got Worse (But A Fix Is Coming)

Have you noticed the visuals in Grand Theft Auto V have recently gotten worse on Xbox One and PlayStation 4? So has Rockstar Games. Fortunately, the company says it’ll address this in an upcoming patch. Question: After updating to Title Update 1.08 on PS4 and Xbox One, there appears to be a deterioration of graphical…

Darth Vader Now Has an Evil C-3PO and R2D2. I Like Them Already.

The new Star Wars series starring the Dark Lord of the Sith is finding a lot of success in one small conceit: Darth Vader is a lot deeper than anyone thinks. In the movies, Darth Vader is primarily portrayed as a blunt instrument. A fearsome enforcer for Emperor Palpatine who’s seemingly content to simply push…

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(YouTube via NeoGAF)

Dragon Ball Xenoverse, As Told By Steam Reviews

Dragon Ball Z is finally on Steam—and fans of the anime are pretty excited about that. They’re also pumped about the opportunity to, um, beat up Krillin. You can find potshots galore on the Steam reviews page for Xenoverse—but, most of these jabs are clearly made by fans that know the franchise very well. Let’s…

My Time In Police Cars

The world outside looks different when you see it through the windows of a police car. And, when you’re in one, you can tell the world sure as hell looks differently at you. I’ve been in police cars three times in my life, once in 1998 and then twice, in rapid succession, in late 2011.…

Bloodborne‘s Hilarious Physics Lead To Some Unexpected Results

All of the Souls games, Bloodborne included, have included hilarious rag doll physics for the enemies, which adds a welcomed slice of humor to an otherwise dark and difficult game. The above bit, with a dog that just wants to hang out and kick it, is from YouTube user You. Dave Fred‘s alarm clock went…

If You Like RPGs, You Must Play Pillars of Eternity

Back in September of 2012, when I first heard that Obsidian was launching a Kickstarter for a spiritual successor to Baldur’s Gate, I got a little… uh… too excited. I was ecstatic. I called it my dream RPG. In retrospect that was a bit premature, especially as the years went by and we saw a…

Konami’s Official Word on Hideo Kojima

Yesterday, Konami gave a statement via the Japanese Metal Gear Twitter account to attempt to clear the air on what’s going on with Hideo Kojima and Kojima Productions. As Kotaku previously reported, the Kojima Productions brand has been dissolved and even removed from upcoming title Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. It seems “A…