Famous Kickstarter Turns Into Complete Disaster

Were you one of the 9000 people who gave money to the Kickstarter for CLANG, a swordfighting game whose campaign was fronted by sci-fi novelist Neal Stephenson? Then I’m sorry. Despite hitting its funding goal of $500,000 last year, development on the game is grinding to a halt, with Stephenson writing on the game’s Kickstarter…

Here, Have Two New Final Fantasy Trailers

Ladies and gentlemen, for your viewing convenience, two brand new Final Fantasy trailers. Exhibit A: Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, a dress-up sim with RPG elements that’s out for PS3 and 360 in February. I’m psyched about this one—what I’ve played so far seems quite promising Exhibit B: Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy X-2,…

That’s a lot of classic PC games. We’ve added a fourth and probably final update to our crowdsourced directory of the Classic PC Games You Must Play. It’s an amazing, damn-near-definitive list—great globs of gooey nostalgia spread over hundreds of entries. Thanks to all who contributed.

Man, Adventure Time Is Beautiful

Can we just appreciate how good the backgrounds in Adventure Time look for a minute? ‘Cause they’re pretty freaking gorgeous. Of course, while you’re actually watching an episode of Pendleton Ward’s kooky but charming cartoon, it’s easy to overlook the gorgeous visuals. Things move fast, or we focus on the characters. Thankfully, Bahshaynay brings some…

Unbelievable GTA IV Shots Look Like Real Photos Of New York City

This week’s gaming conversation has been dominated by Grand Theft Auto V, but these screenshots from a modded PC version of GTA IV are the most mind-blowing thing you’ll see today. Via Reddit, and modder darkdeus, these screenshots could probably pass for real photos of New York City if not for the misshapen people and…

Do Not Underestimate The Offensive Capabilities Of The Trombone

Well, this has got to be the best video game weapon I’ve seen in a while. Everyone loves Saints Row IV‘sDubstep Gun, but a more reserved, tweedpunk game like Sir, You Are Being Hunted needs a musical weapon a bit more… refined. Something traditional, with a hint of goofiness… something like a trombone! In this…

Huge Update Brings GLaDOS Into Dota 2. Awesome.

Last month, we learned both that a GLaDOS announcer pack would come to Dota, and that we’ve all apparently been pronouncing ‘Dota’ wrong this entire time. And now we finally know when that update will launch: September 23rd. According to Valve, The ‘First Blood’ update introduces a variety of new things, like local play, expanded…

Here’s How To Make Infinite Money In GTA V

Money makes the world go round, and boy howdy, can you nab a ton of cash in Grand Theft Auto V…if you’re willing to play dirty, that is. Such is the nature of exploits. Here we have a video of SomeFilthyCasuals walking us through how to do a money exploit—it requires going to a specific…

What do you want to watch us play? We’ve been making more videos of new releases here on Kotaku and on our YouTube channel. Take a look at them and let us know what you think, and what you’d like to see more of!

Video Game Horror Has Rarely Looked This Good

The visual formula for delivering scares is pretty tried and true in most video games, movies and other entertainments: dim, obscured environments, weird, unexplained moisture and the use of light as a shock device. But these new screenshots from upcoming thriller The Vanishing of Ethan Carterlook idyllic. Like someplace you’d like to go. Until you…

What’s New In Skylanders: Swap Force? So Many Things.

Every Skylander character released so far has been remastered in HD. We’re visiting a region of the Skylands we’ve never seen before. We meet Kaos’ evil mom. So many new features are coming in Skylanders: Swap Force, some almost exciting as the ability to jump. I’m a little fixated on Swap Force‘s jumping mechanic. That’s…

Atlus: We’re Happy To Be Able To Continue With Our Business

It’s business as usual over at Atlus, at least until the Sonic/Persona fanfiction comes out. For now, Atlus sent over a statement from head honcho Naoto Hiraoka to comment on this week’s news—that the company behind games like Shin Megami Tensei has been purchased by Sega, effective November 1. Full statement: Dear fans and customers,…

While The World Plays GTA V, I’m Playing Deer Hunter 2014. Man.

The biggest game of the year is sitting in my PlayStation 3, and I’m sitting on my back porch, shooting wolverines on my iPad. I’m just as surprised as you are. It’s not just Grand Theft Auto V. I’ve got Rayman Legends, a game I’ve been whining about since it was delayed for the Wii…

SimCity Gets A Sci-Fi Expansion On November 12

SimCity is going to the future, where hopefully the servers are better. EA’s controversial city-building game is getting an expansion, called Cities of Tomorrow, on November 12. It’s set 50 years in the future, and it’ll be out for both PC and Mac. It’ll cost you $30. Press release: SimCity Cities of Tomorrow gives players…

We Need A New Word For Video Games

Is The Walking Dead a “game”? How about Dear Esther? Gone Home? They’re all certainly lovely, heartbreaking experiences, but are they “games”? I think so. And so does Kotaku reader and TAY contributor Pink_Zapper_Helmet, who goes into detail about why these games can be defined as such. Basically: our definition of what a game is…

Moneysaver: Next-Gen Pre-Orders, 3 Bioshocks $20, Diablo III, FFX/X-2

Full post today with a ton of great deals ranging from Metro: Last Light to Diablo III to next-gen titles. Don’t miss the Bioshock triple pack, and pre-order the Final Fantasy X/X-2 Remaster for a free upgrade to the limited edition. We’ve also got a pre-order deal on the Pacific Rim blu-ray and a great…

Tomb Raider‘s abandoned, darker ending: I knew the first of Lore‘s Tomb Raider “fast facts,” but did not know the other two. I’m intrigued by the idea of a Tomb Raider with a darker ending. I think I would’ve been okay with that.

Naw, Digimon Had Nothing To Do With Pokémon’s Mega Evolutions

After the ‘Mega Evolution’ announcement for Pokemon X & Y, some fans couldn’t help but wonder two things: wait a minute, aren’t those temporary power-ups you gain in-battle kiiiind of like Digimon’s ‘Mega Digivolution’? And how would the games maintain balance with said power-ups? Both Pokemon and Digimon involve a variety of creatures humans use…

You Can Use Video Capture Devices On The PS4, Too [UPDATE]

If the PlayStation 4’s (limited) built-in capture functionality isn’t enough for you, fear not. Sony announced at their TGS conference that you’ll be able to use third-party devices to capture gameplay through the HDMI output, too. Though be warned, it looks like it won’t be available at launch as per tweets from Shuhei Yoshida earlier…

Nintendo President: We Will Carry On The Spirit Of Hiroshi Yamauchi

Current Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has delivered a brief statement following the death of his predecessor, Hiroshi Yamauchi. The statement, sent over to Kotaku by a Nintendo representative: The entire Nintendo group will carry on the spirit of Mr. Yamauchi by honoring, in our approach to entertainment, the sense of value he has taught us…