Even The People Behind Fire Emblem Hit Reset When Something Goes Wrong

When your characters die in Fire Emblem, that’s it. They’re dead, forever (unless you’re playing on the new casual mode). The idea is that permanent death forces players to be mindful of their actions, the idea is that permadeath adds gravity to the situation. Idea is the key word there. Instead, permadeath adds tedium: why…

Activision Lays Off High Moon Studios’ Deadpool Team

Most of the folks on the Deadpool team at Activision-owned High Moon Studios were let go today, having completed their developmental task. Activision tells Kotaku that around 40 employees have been impacted globally. “Activision Publishing consistently works to align its costs with its revenues – this is an ongoing process. With the completion of development…

This Stop-Motion Post-It Note Tribute to Ms. Pac-Man and Donkey Kong Took 96 Days to Make

Do you hate spending weekends in the office? Talk to Michael Birken. He spent nearly a year’s worth of weekends and holidays at his, filming this ridiculous post-it note stop-motion homage to arcade classics Ms. Pac-Man and Donkey Kong The project took a total of 96 days spread out over 11 months, Birken says, using…

Why I Cried at GDC

I did a lot of crying at GDC this year. Maybe it’s because I processed so many interactions—met so many good people, caught up with so many friends, cheered on so many heroes—that I am overwhelmed. From the distance of the internet I can usually manage it, Twitter and Facebook and however many internet comments…

If Old-School Zelda and Silent Hill Had a Baby, They’d Name It Catequesis

What’s more scary, near photo-realistic horror, or incredibly well-crafted 16-bit horror? I’ve a feeling that question will receive a definitive answer when Catequesis launches for Android, Mac and PC this fall. The absorbing story of Catequesis has been inspired by 8-bit and 16-bit mid-nineties video games, taking elements from Japanese terror, Catholic religion and so…

Intense Action and Stale Design Characterize Army of Two: The Devil’s Cartel, Six Critics Say

Army of Two was all about bromantic frolics through blood-spattered, limb-strewn locales. So was the sequel, The 40th Day. And so is the newest sequel, The Devil’s Cartel. For some people, that just doesn’t cut it anymore. The Devil’s Cartel’s biggest flaw, it seems, is its stubborn refusal to change—something that takes away quite a…

The extended “red band” cut of the trailer for The Last of Us that aired earlier this week is the rare video game trailer that can convince TV viewers using only in-game footage. I mean, this looks like an ad for a new post-apocalyptic TV show…

The Interactive Side of Defiance Welcomes Players to the New Age

While Defiance the show doesn’t air until April 15, Defiance the massively multiplayer online third-person shooter launched today, welcoming players to a decidedly different version of the San Francisco Bay area. If you ask me, it’s never looked better. Ain’t terraforming grand? It’s also nice to know humanity and its alien friends are still listening…

BioShock Infinite PC Performance, Benchmarked

Developed using a modified version of Unreal Engine 2.5 and enhanced with Havok Physics, we were blown away by the original BioShock when it launched back in September 2007. Our performance review at the time concluded that the title had “jaw-dropping visual effects” and that you’d need one of the finest graphics cards of the…

WWE ’13 Predicts Some Big Upsets—but not the Biggest One—for WrestleMania XXIX

Hey, wrestling fans! Too busy for three hours of bodyslamming, atomic-dropping, suplexing action in New Jersey this weekend? Too poor to pay the PPV freight on WrestleMania XXIX? You can watch it all for free right here, right now! Team Always Godlike, a group of 13 fighting game enthusiasts from across the U.S., simulated all…

Just what the world needed, a (fake) bodypillow dating site. I think I might have to send Magikarp Mike a message…

Show Us What You Love and Hate About Earthbound’s Character Design

There’s something to be said about simplicity in design. Some of the most compelling, memorable character designs are those without filigrees our flourishes; characters that are timeless in their simplicity. Using our image annotation system, show us what you love, hate or find hilarious about design of the cast of Earthbound (AKA Mazā Tsū: Gīgu…

The Next Xbox and Its Controller Are Currently Covered In Crazy Stripes

Controllers for the next Xbox as well as prototype versions of both Microsoft’s new, powerful console and the machine’s new, mandatory Kinect sensor have been in the hands of game creators since last month. But that’s not much of a surprise. What is a surprise is that all of that gear is covered in criss-crossing,…

Edge of Twilight: Athyr Above is Trying Really Hard to Be a Good Game

The resurrection of Fuzzyeyes Entertainment’s steampunk saga Edge of Twilight gains steam (sorry) in Athyr Above, the second playable foray into the split day-and-night world that once seemed lost. The first game,a bad free Temple Run knock-off, left me with the impression that maybe the franchise should have stayed down. This one proves, at the…

Oh Wow, Amazon Really Hates Nintendo Consoles

The conflict between Nintendo and Amazon just keeps getting stranger. For almost two years now, Amazon has not been selling Nintendo’s gaming hardware first hand. You can buy a 3DS or Wii U from the massive online retailer, but it will be sold through a third party. Amazon won’t sell Nintendo hardware themselves. And neither…

Our official forum, the reader-run Talk Amongst Yourselves, is where you can talk about the GTA V box art, and anything else on your mind.

Hack Exposes War Z Players’ Data, Takes the Game Offline Again

The kazoo still blows for The War Z, the Benny Hill theme of game that saw one of the most inept launches in PC gaming history back in December, a game so bad it was yanked from Steam for about two months. Now the entire game is offline after hackers breached the game’s databases and…

The Essence Of Hotline Miami, Summed Up In The Latest Mega64 Video

In case you forgot, the Mega 64 crew returned with a new video to remind you that Hotline Miami is not just fun, but bloody violent. And we can safely say that it is for everyone’s good that they stuck to the baseball bat and did not involve outsiders this time in their little gag.…

The Official Grand Theft Auto V Box Art, In All Its Mosaic Splendor

Rockstar’s dropped the official box art for Grand Theft Auto V. It’s just like that unfinished mural, only finished. It’s another collage, but it sure beats a gruff-looking character standing next to a car holding a gun. The Grand Theft Auto series’ signature style is immediately recognizable, with the added benefit of being hard to…

This Real City Looks Like A Tiny Town For Toys

Portland, Maine is a real place. Over 60,000 people live there. Real, full-size humans. You wouldn’t know it by this video, though, which uses tilt-shift photography to create the illusion that it’s actually a tiny town for tiny toys, serviced by a tiny model railway and whose streets are lined with tiny plastic trees. Mini…