Uncharted 4 Could Look Better, Says Photographer

Most people probably looked at the first footage of Nathan Drake’s next adventure and were impressed by how Uncharted 4 looked. Not photographer Adam Myhill. He thinks the lighting in A Thief’s End could be improved. And went ahead and showed how it could happen. Myhill’s a guy who’s worked as a lighter, photographer and…

The Gross New Monsters In Shadow Of Mordor’s DLC

Shadow of Mordor got its first major DLC installment today, Lord of the Hunt. As the name suggests, the expansion is all about monsters—ones you can kill or bend to your will in various ways. Let’s take a closer look at some of these gnarly new beasts. Before I go into further detail about the…

Dev On Steam Warns: ‘Do NOT Buy This Game As A Christmas Gift’

Frontiers looks really neat. The just-released-on-Early-Access fantasy RPG contains shades of The Elder Scrolls, especially Morrowind and Skyrim, but with an emphasis on exploration over combat. The game’s creator, however, doesn’t want you to give it to friends as a Christmas gift. He was adamant about that. Many developers have been upfront about the fact…

You Should Read This Fan-Made Five Nights at Freddy’s Comic

Surviving night shifts at Freddy Fazbear’s isn’t easy. And hey, maybe you don’t have to. There are other ways to experience Five Nights at Freddy’s, and they don’t involve video games or Lets Play’s at all. For the last couple of months, BrianXKaren has been uploading a Five Nights at Freddy’s comic that takes a…

20 of the Best Falcon Punches In Smash Bros.

Nailing a good Falcon Punch is probably one of the most satisfying things to do in Smash Bros. And while you don’t see them all the time in competitive play, the Falcon Punches that serious players land can be very bombastic. Here’s a compilation of a bunch of great Falcon Punches by GRsmash. You might…

6.7GB Assassin’s Creed Unity Patch Issued To Fix Framerate, Other Stuff [UPDATE: Unexpectedly 40GB on Xbox One]

Delayed just one day for most players, Patch 4 for Ubisoft’s premiere fall 2014 release, Assassin’s Creed Unity, is out today for Xbox One and PS4 (PC later this week). It’s massive. Ubisoft explained the need for a super-sized patch on the official Assassin’s Creed website: Part of the team’s effort to enhance frame rate…

My Crowdsourced Bioware Thinkpiece Went Terribly Wrong

Never crowdsource an article. Look, don’t do it. Is it a good idea? No.

Transformers Universe Is Closing, Six Months After Open Beta Launch

Jagex’s multiplayer arena combat game Transformers Universe launched in open beta on July 4 of this year. On January 31 it’s shutting down for good. That was fast. “Today Jagex and Hasbro can confirm that Transformers Universe will close. This decision comes at an important time for both companies as they both realign their plans…

The Binding Of Isaac Gets A Freaky Fake Movie Trailer

The brutally tough Binding of Isaac is a game that manages to be extremely disturbing, despite having a cartoony art style. Now, it’s gotten a very creepy tribute in a fake cinematic teaser that will almost certainly give some folks nightmares. Done by YouTuber bloodrunsclear, this trailer for a Binding of Isaac film that doesn’t…

A Game Where You Can Punch a Priceless Piece of Art

If you’ve ever been in the presence of priceless art, you may have at one point or another considered punching it (don’t tell me it hasn’t crossed your mind.) Andrew Shannon felt that way when he put his fist through a Claude Monet painting a few years back, and now you can relive that moment…

Half Price Destiny, $40 of Play Credit with a Chromecast, More Deals

Destiny’s not a perfect game, but it’s pretty addictive, and Bungie has been updating it constantly . In fact, it’s one of Kotaku’s 12 bests for both the PS4 and Xbox One. If you still haven’t picked up your copy, Amazon has them for half price on both current gen consoles, today only. That’s better…

Mad Catz Is Making Tractor Controls For Farming Simulator

While it’s often the butt of jokes, Giants Software’s Farming Simulator series is serious business — so serious that peripheral maker Mad Catz is creating custom Saitek-branded farm equipment controls for the franchise’s most dedicated players. You can’t control a tractor with a racing wheel. You can, but the experience isn’t going to be anywhere…

The first major DLC expansion for Shadow of Mordor comes out today, Warner Bros. just announced. It’s called Lord of the Hunt, and brings some gnarly new monsters into the mix. The DLC costs $9.99, and comes free with the $24.99 season pass. Watch the new trailer above; I’ll have more detailed impressions by tomorrow.

Today’s selection of articles from Kotaku‘s reader-run community: Akame ga Kill!: The Ani-TAY Review • Ayakashibito: The TAY Review • Indie Delve: Tower of Guns with Joe Mirabello • A Look Back At [The Video Games of] 2014 • 2014 – A Year in Spending TAY Classic—TAY Open Forum—Beginner’s Guide To TAY Follow them here.

Good Job, Cosplayers. The Hobbit Effects Creators Are Impressed.

Most cosplayers do their costume-making several degrees of separation away from the professional designers who create the big-budget looks they emulate. So they don’t get the chance to hear what the concept artists and visual effects maestros think of fan-made work. But, some of the folks who’ve worked on the Hobbit movies recently got to…