- Kotaku East
China’s Underground Dwellers Find Their Homes Cemented Shut
China is a place of extremes. On the streets of Beijing, one can see cars that only ever appear in the New York Auto Show and extremely posh women holding the latest designer bags from Paris. But beneath that splendour is a hidden part of China: a class of residents living below the poverty line.…
By Eric Jou Published December 9, 2013 - Kotaku East
Korea’s Most Famous StarCraft Player Is Now a Poker Pro
BoxeR (aka Lim Yo Hwan), the brilliant StarCraft player, recently retired from eSports These days he’s appearing on a South Korean reality show as well as cutting this teeth on a new career: poker pro. According to Donga Ilbo (via tipster Sang), Lim announced his new career decision three days ago. The eSports icon will…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 9, 2013 -
Kotaku EastHong Kong in all its Hazy, Timelapse-y Glory
Hong Kong is a dense metropolis of over seven million people, but from up here, it doesn’t look that busy at all It looks almost peaceful, if a bit dark. LittleBigWorld is calling their latest timelapse film Hazy Hong Kong, and sure enough, there’s lots of haze, along with lots of little people hurrying along…
By András Neltz Published December 9, 2013 - Kotaku East
In South Korea, Japanese Anime Gets Excessively Censored
Sometimes anime needs to be censored. Maybe it’s cultural reasons. Maybe it society’s values. Maybe there just aren’t enough fig leaves. Below, you can see an image from the Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic anime as it aired in Japan when Sinbad first appears before Aladdin. Yes, Sinbad is sporting a strategically placed fig leaf.…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 9, 2013 - Kotaku East
Some of the Ugliest Cats on the Internet
When you think of “cats” and “internet,” you probably think of adorable fuzzy critters. Not all cats are cute. Some are downright ugly. In Japan, website Naver has done a round-up of “totally not cute cats.” These aren’t even cats that are adorably ugly. They’re just… homely! To be fair to these felines, some of…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 9, 2013 - Uncategorized
Compare The Size Of Every Colossus From Shadow Of The Colossus
With artist AndyDaRoo on the pens and NormalColossus on research duty, we now have this striking image showing the scale of every colossus from Team Ico’s classic Shadow of the Colossus. It’s impressive, but also surprising. You’d think the final one is the biggest, but this reveals that the giant flying one is easily the…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 9, 2013 -
UncategorizedDragons Are Not Skyrim’s Most Terrifying Foes
No, as you’ll see in this mod, there is a far darker force at play, one that our younger readers (or those tortured by their children’s TV habits) will know only too well. If you want to download it yourself, you can grab it here Really Useful World Eater[YouTube, via Super Punch]
By Luke Plunkett Published December 9, 2013 -
UncategorizedGran Turismo 6 vs A PC Racing Game
Normally when we show a comparison video like this, it’s comparing the same game across platforms. But this one’s different. It’s two games across two platforms, which may sound pointless, but remember, these are driving games we’re talking about. We can get away with it. Moto Games TV found that both GT6 and PC graphics…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 9, 2013 - Uncategorized
See How Spelunky Levels Are Made
Spelunky procedurally-generates its levels, meaning you’ll never ever play the same stage twice. But how does this magic actually work? How do you get to play through actual playable stages, and not nightmarish collages of terrain? Darius Kazemi’s “Spelunky Generator Lessons” explains that every level is made in two stages. First, there’s the “solution path”,…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 8, 2013 - Uncategorized
Cosplay Roundup: League Of Legends, Pirates, Dwarves & Leeloo
I feel like I’m about to sit down and watch a performance of Fifth Element: The Musical, this cosplay is that good. Which I’m not, because that doesn’t actually exist, and why the hell does that not exist, anyway? To see the larger pics in all their glory (or, if they’re big enough, so you…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 8, 2013 - Uncategorized
Family Loses Everything When Moving Van Catches Fire
Sean Palomino, a video game developer, was moving from Texas to North Carolina in September when he suffered the most bizarre of setbacks: the moving van carrying his stuff caught fire, destroying everything he and his family owned. Formerly of id Software, the developers of Doom, he was on his way to join up with…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 8, 2013 -
UncategorizedNew Thief “Story” Trailer Actually Has Gameplay Footage
Eeehhh, we’re a bit uneasy about the new Thief game. But hey, we won’t know until we get our hands on the finished product. Until then, here’s a story trailer, which given its airing during the VGX should have been just cinematic fluff. So it’s nice they also stuck some gameplay in there.
By Luke Plunkett Published December 8, 2013 - Uncategorized
Idea: Let Cats Decide A Winner In The Console Wars
Reader Gareth decided to settle the console wars the only way he knew how: by getting his cat to decide. Gareth, your Nobel Peace Prize is in the mail. “My cat, as you can see from the attached, prefers the larger, low humming warmth afforded by the Xbox One”, Gareth writes. “He consistently sleeps on…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 8, 2013 -
UncategorizedAll the Awkwardness of the VGX in One Video
It’s hard to put into words how cringe-inducing all the cross-talk, missed throws, tongue-tied teleprompter mishaps, and bombed jokes were at last night’s VGX. That’s where this six-minute supercut by PixelPerfect comes in handy. I’ve already said my piece about the VGX, so rewatching its lowlight reel is a little more painful than humorous to…
By Owen Good Published December 8, 2013 - Uncategorized
Skullgirls Makers Say Konami Asked PSN, Xbox Live to Remove the Game
Lab Zero, the makers of the fighting game Skullgirls, says Konami, which published the game to Xbox Live and PlayStation Network in 2012, has asked Microsoft and Sony to take the game off the services. The administrator of the official forums for Skullgirls updated the community on the news, saying that Lab Zero found out…
By Owen Good Published December 8, 2013 - Uncategorized
Gamers Care More About the VGX Than the Show Did. That’s the Problem.
The morning after the VGX, it’s striking to see gamers once again arguing, ruminating, caring so much about a spectacle that seems to care so little about them. Or, if last night was an indication, itself. Ripping the Video Game Awards—which got a format and name change to “the VGX” this year, no explanation what…
By Owen Good Published December 8, 2013 - Uncategorized
Today in Unexpected Headlines: Gamer Saves Old Man from Burning Home
Alright. Every time games get blamed, tangentially, for some idiot criminal’s behavior, everyone makes the rhetorical argument the local news never calls out the tangential gaming interests of a good samaritan. Well, rub your eyes and stand corrected: A gamer is being called a hero for saving an old man from a burning home. And…
By Owen Good Published December 8, 2013 - Culture
The Week in Games: Peggle For Your Thoughts
The year still has a few delights in store for us, beginning tomorrow with Peggle 2 on Xbox One. Doki-Doki Universe lands on Tuesday for all PlayStation platforms that access PlayStation Network. Angry Birds, inevitably, gets its kart racer on Wednesday. Here’s the week in games. Monday, Dec. 9 Peggle 2 (Xbox One) Tuesday, Dec.…
By Owen Good Published December 8, 2013 - Uncategorized
Here Are Your VGX Award Winners
Spike dumped the theater format for a more whatever-that-was in last night’s re-christened VGX, increasing the show’s length to three hours but still, as ever, seeming to minimize its purpose: Recognize the best games of the year. Twenty-three awards were given out; here are all of them. (Above: Irrational Games’ charming acceptance speech for Best…
By Owen Good Published December 8, 2013