Sometimes All A Game Needs Is Color, Shape and Music

One of the most popular puzzle games on Android and iOS right now does not contain birds, angry or otherwise. There are no rotating blocks. You don’t have to match three of anything. Physics isn’t a particular concern, and power-ups are completely unnecessary. Shapes, colors and sounds — that’s all Color Zen needs. Upon first…

Flash Game Says Nintendo’s Console Manufacturing Supports Slave Labor

Nintendo is again being chastised by activists for not ensuring that minerals mined by slave labor in African conflict areas are not used in the manufacture of their electronics. Nintendo is criticized annually for this, but this time the activists have made a Super Mario game to underscore their point. It’s the work of something…

The Moneysaver: PayDay 2, Far Cry 3 $20, Mark Of The Ninja, Humble

Abandon all debt, ye who enter here. Last day to get Torchlight for free. There’s a great selection in the PC section including the awesome Mark of the Ninja for under $4, and if you haven’t gotten around to acquiring Far Cry 3 yet, do it now. Get $10 bonus credit on your trade-ins to…

There’s a Small Chance I Could Care About Killzone: Shadow Fall

The first one was infamously dubbed a Halo-killer. The second gave the PlayStation faithful something impressive to hang on to when pickings were slim in the FPS genre. And Killzone 3 remains one of the only games that truly delivered on the promise of 3D gaming, layering its graphics so that it looked like you…

This Wii U Party Game Lets You Get… Physical

Remember all the insane games you used to play at slumber parties? Remember how much fun you had? Well the Danes do as well, and they made a video game about it. Enter Spin The Bottle: Bumpie’s Party, an indie game made by KnapNok Games in Copenhagen. It’s kinda like WarioWare, but even more hilariously…

Sony Apologizes For Faulty PS3 Firmware, ‘Investigating’ Problem

Sony is trying to figure out what went wrong with PlayStation 3 firmware update 4.45, which was offered to PS3 users last night but then pulled when it appeared to start breaking consoles. “We are aware of reports that the recent PlayStation 3 system software update (version 4.45) has caused the XMB to not display…

These Video Game And Pop Culture Mashup Posters Are Looking Delicious

Sir Arthur from Ghosts ‘n Goblins portrayed as a 60s hippie, or Kaneda from Akira as Pac-Man is not something that comes along every day, but these awesome, animated posters have the weirdest crossovers between video games, movies, celebrities and music. Brazilian artist Butcher Billy made crazy mashups before, like the one with Super Mario…

The Vaguest Hints About The Wii U’s First Original Zelda

After the fall 3DS sequel to the classic Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past, after the fall Wii U release of a Wind Waker remake, we will eventually get an original Zelda game on Wii U. It’s being made now. Nintendo’s barely talking about it. Eiji Aonuma, the man who oversees all Zelda projects…

The Creepy Side Of E3

You might not have heard about the security guard that groped a journalist at this year’s E3. Or the writer who gave a PR woman his business card by slipping it in her dress. Or the women presumed to be booth babes simply because of the way they looked. E3 is the busiest time to…

The Joe Danger games have offered up top-shelf vehicular hilarity on consoles and touchscreens for the last two years. Now, Hello Games’ physics-happy stunt racing franchise finally comes to PC on June 24via Steam. You’ll be able to race with Team Fortress avatars and speed your way through a Minecraft level in this version, too.

Download Multiplayer or Singleplayer First for Games Bought on PS4

This morning Sony put up this video showing off the PlayStation 4’s interface, and if you can tune out the fake gamers and their overreactions, it offers a few interesting tidbits of what life will be like with it. The big deal would seem to be the option to download a game’s multiplayer or its…

Microsoft’s Muddled Messaging, Displayed On National Television

The battle over our rights to play used games took center stage last night on national television during Jimmy Fallon’s Video Game Week, a post-E3 celebration of all things ludic. Fallon had brought up Mark Cerny, lead designer of the PlayStation 4, to talk about Sony’s next gaming console. And inevitably, the conversation turned to…

Here’s what’s going on Talk Among Yourselves, our reader-written blog: Zarnyx spins a chilling tale of a creepy Animal Crossing: New Leaf encounter. Odin updates Ani-Club with a rundown of three episodes of Ouran High School Host Club. And I_Kluge bitches about the last boss in Tekken Tag Tournament 2, who deserves much bitching about.…

It’s A Global Archeological Adventure. It’s Also an FPS.

Nordic Games brings us what appears to be an Indiana Jones-esque first-person globe-trotting experience called Deadfall Adventures. Also involved: shooting and explosions aplenty. In Deadfall, you play as Quatermain, an adventurer from 1938, whose job is to escort and guard Jennifer Goodwin, a US secret agent in search of an ancient artifact, The Heart of…

Nintendo: All These Sequels Don’t Mean We’re ‘Playing It Safe’

In a season of new Mario Karts and Donkey Kong Country games Nintendo hears the calls from supporters and critics to make something new. Their answer: we’re already doing it. I don’t believe in writing things I wouldn’t say to the faces of the people I’m writing about, so after writing on Kotaku last week…

This Might Be The Closest We’re Getting To A Final Fantasy VII Remake

Rendered with the Unreal Development Kit, digital artist Laggyzaki‘s remake of one of the most memorable locations in Final Fantasy VII—the Sector 5 church in Midgar—should make everyone nostalgic and wonder how the rest of the game would look in high definition. It’s a pretty accurate replica of the original. All that’s missing is Aeris…

To ease the pain that Just Cause 3 is still not on the radar, here’s a picture of a completely normal scene fromJust Cause 2. Another ordinary day for Rico Rodriguez on Panau Island.

Better Come to This XCOM Prequel With a Plan. Or Aliens Will Kill You.

The developers at 2K Marin working on The Bureau: XCOM Declassified say that they’re going to be throwing serious challenge at you. And from what I played a few months ago, this 1962-set prequel to last year’s hit release isn’t the kind of game that you just coast through. Good thing this newest trailer covers…

Hotline Miami 2 Turns the Violence Up a Notch in This Creepy Teaser

Devolver Digital has officially announced the sequel to last year’s bloody and surreal top-down action game, Hotline Miami The game, subtitled Wrong Number, will let you take control of several different characters with their own, distinct storylines as you slaughter your way through the new levels. And, of course, there will be new weapons. Check…

This Musical Tribute to WoW Is Equal Parts Funny and Heartwarming

A “We Are The World”-inspired music video about World of Warcraft featuring Jimmy Fallon, Felicia Day, Chris Hardwick, and Leeroy Jenkins. Need I say more? The crew of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon created the video as a tribute to “one of the greatest games of all time.” It, of course, automatically becomes a tribute…