Skylanders: Swap Force Buyers’ Guide: What You Need, What You Don’t

You would think that on the third installment of Activision’s highly-successful toys-meets-games series they’d give folks the option to just buy the game by itself. Ha ha! We’re not getting off that easy. Every Skylander figure released thus far will work on Skylanders: Swap Force. You could play through the entire game using only first…

The Arkham Origins Mobile Game, From The Makers Of Mortal Kombat

Having NetherRealm Studio make a free mobile tie-in for DC fighter Injustice: Gods Among Us worked out so well, Warner Bros. is having them do the same thing for Batman: Arkham Origins. Bring on the beefy Batmen! Announced today at New York Comic-Con in Des Moines, Iowa, Batman: Arkham Origins (titled exactly the same as…

Kotaku ‘Shop Contest: Meat Puppets: The Winners

Hey! You got your Mega Man in my ground beef! You got your ground beef in my Mega Man! Two great tastes that taste great together gave us 10 finalists in the latest Kotaku ‘Shop Contest, led by overall No. 1 repeat offender arniejolt! See them all inside. arniejolt arniejolt2 Damzor GiantBoyDetective HarvesterZERO J.C. Squirrelbot3001…

The Next Hollywood Blockbuster isn’t Mario Kart, but It Should Be

So, Aaron Paul’s big post-Breaking Bad victory lap is a nice payday and a starring role in a popcorn flick. But what if, instead of a gritty, growly movie adaptation for Need for Speed, Mario Kart got the treatment instead? Games Radar put together this shot-for-shot parody of the real movie’s official trailer, subbing Mario…

Pokémon is the Latest Casualty of the Government Shutdown

In America, we’re 12 days into our government shutdown, and apparently everyone is cool doing without frilly things like benefits to military survivors or food inspections, because assigning blame for this stupid temper tantrum is terribly uncivil. But we draw the line when it affects our right to bear Pokémon, right?! This sign hit Tumblr…

Pokemon X Versus Pokemon Y: Which To Buy

Coke or sprite? Scrambled or sunny side up? Paragon or renegade? The world is full of difficult existential questions, and while you’re on your own/SOL with most of them, we here at Kotaku would like to offer a helping hand in choosing between Pokemon X & Pokemon Y. Some context, before we talk specifics: traditionally,…

NYCC Cosplay: Zombie Mario, Wonder Tot, and … Adventure Time Bane?

Get ready for an action-packed crossover edition of New York Comic-Con cosplay, featuring a whole family of Mushroom Kingdom Deadpools, holding what appears to be the corpse of Knuckles the Echidna. OK … Anyway, here they are, presented for your enjoyment! And if you’re in the mood to see more cosplay, be sure to check…

One of the Funniest Superhero Comics Ever Is Finally Coming Back

The capes. The gadgets. The weird interpersonal relationships. The goats. Superheroes are straight-up absurd when you think about it. In 1997, a series called Quantum & Woody put that absurdity in the spotlight and won the hearts of, well, hundreds. Probably thousands. Definitely not millions, or else it wouldn’t have gotten cancelled. Equal parts hilarious…

Pokémon X & Y: The Kotaku Review

It’s impossible to escape the influence of Charles Darwin: even if you’ve never paid attention in class, his theory of evolution has influenced everything from science to pop culture—including, yes, the highly popular Pokemon games. You could say evolution is the backbone of the series: from its inception back in 1998, the idea behind the…

The Actors Behind GTA’s C.J. and Franklin Are Teaming Up—but for What?

Interesting response—or non-response, as it is—by the voice of Franklin in Grand Theft Auto V at a New York Comic Con 2013 panel. When he and his co-stars were asked which Grand Theft Auto character they wish they could have portrayed, Fonteno replied Carl Johnson—the protagonist of 2004’s Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. According to…

There’s At Least One Guy Who Never Figured Out How to Beat King Hippo

Mike Tyson never beating Glass Joe is one thing. He’s the first opponent in the boxer’s titular Punch-Out!!, so this means Iron Mike played the game once or twice, gave up, and went back to tending pigeons in his spare time. But not being able to defeat King Hippo is a different brand of shame.…

The Calvin & Hobbes Documentary Stars Everyone Except the Artist

Bill Watterson, the Salinger-esque creator of what still may be the most popular comic strip in the United States even 18 years after it ended, does not appear in this trailer. For all we know, Calvin & Hobbes‘ artist will only communicate with the audience as he has for the past 30 or so years:…

Poké-Proposal Makes Pikachu Giddy With Excitement

Look at Pikachu! I mean the little (well, big) fella looks legitimately fired up by this marriage proposal last night Nintendo World’s gala event for the launch of Pokémon X and Pokémon Y. Fiancée, I choose you! This couple, Debbie G. and Jeff W. are the co-founders of Long Island’s StreetPass club. And yes, she…

This Week in the Business: The Good, the Bad and the Medium

What’s happened in the business of video games this past week … QUOTE | “I do think we have to address the good and the bad our medium might do to consumers.”—Renowned designer Warren Spector, on how the game industry should take a balanced view towards what it does QUOTE | “I think about ……

The Best Of Kotaku, The Week Of October 7

New York Comic Con is in session this weekend, Beyond: Two Souls released and we’re still trying to find our footing in GTA Online. Plus other stuff you can read about over on Kotaku Selects And above? Is Nick Furry. The pic from MigraineSky is a little old, but in the spirit of Halloween and…

What Pokémon Is

I write a whole lot about Pokemon here at Kotaku—and every time, at least one person asks what the deal with the franchise is. Why is it so big? Why do people care about it? What’s it about, even? Maybe you wonder these things, too—it’s an especially relevant set of questions now that Pokemon X…

Track: The Mother We Share | Album: The Bones of What You Believe | Artist: CHVRCHES Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

The Funniest GTA V And GTA Online Glitch GIFs

Time to hit the road cause someone found the best vehicle in the latest GTA. Luckily so many people are playing GTA V that we don’t even need mods or anything like that to see awesome glitches, like this one, or these others… Guessing that all hell will break loose when a PC port comes…

So, Uh, The Cities In SimCity‘s Futuristic Expansion Look Really Cool

Word is that SimCity plays better these days. But it’s safer to just wait for a sequel and not step back into early 2013’s messy metropolis-builder, right? (Well, “smallish-city-builder,” if we’re being accurate, but you get the idea.) I could/should wait it out and write off the current game quite easily if this forthcoming Cities…

There is only one way to celebrate this week’s release of the Borderlands 2: Game of the Year Edition. Everybody must Wang Chung. Yes, even you. Stop what you are doing and Wang the living hell out of that Chung. This is not a request.