If Everyone In Metallica Got Killed Fighting Aliens In XCOM

Everyone thinks that Metallica fell from grace, sold out, became corporate shills. But what if they’d gone out a different way? What if they suited up for battle, XCOM style, and went down in a blaze of glory while fighting off chryssalids? Gus Mastrapa, metal-head games writer extraordinare, has imagined this exact scenario, renaming his…

Leigh Alexander went to Toys ‘R Us in NYC and came away with some interesting conclusions about video game retail.

This Year’s Biggest Shooters Remind Me Why Multiplayer Unlocks Suck

The other day, a colleague mentioned that she felt like there was something off about Halo 4’s multiplayer. She was getting destroyed by other players, eventually feeling like she didn’t have much of a chance when up against people with advanced abilities or gear gained from Spartan point unlocks. This seemed like a marked difference…

Full Bloom is One Puzzling Gardening Simulator

I wasn’t actively seeking a social game that combines cultivating a garden with puzzle adventure progression, but I’m not unhappy I stumbled upon it in Playdom’s Full Bloom Last night, after an incredibly long work day, I went poking about the Facebook App Center (you knew they had one of those, right?), where Full Bloom…

Behold The Terror of Far Cry 3‘s Goat Island

The uprising has begun, and you’re trapped on an island with the rebel goats. YouTuber Robbaz used Far Cry 3‘s editor to create a fictional universe where goats are your primary enemy. It’s a silly video, but it’s fun to watch the goats fly into the air because of explosions. I would play the hell…

This Is What It Looks Like To Ride A Dragon In Skyrim

Shot this afternoon, here’s what it looks like to ride a dragon in the world of Skyrim. You get this ability toward the end of Dragonborn, the new DLC that came out today for Bethesda’s open-world RPG. It’s kind of… disappointing. It doesn’t seem like you can actually control the dragon very much, so don’t…

This Game Mixes Wind Waker’s Cel-Shading With The Gameplay of Banjo Kazooie

While it’s just in alpha, Danish developer Jonas Kærlev’s game A Hat In Time still manages to look positively delightful. All one has to do is look at the many videos Kærlev has uploaded to get a sense of how charming this game is. Here’s a couple, though the game’s YouTube page features a good…

Epic Games President Mike Capps Retires

Epic Games president Mike Capps is stepping down from from his role as company president to take on a more advisory role, he announced today in a blog post on the Epic site. Capps cited his coming baby boy as a primary reason for the move. This is the latest change in what looks to…

Dragonborn Adds Skyrim‘s Toughest Enemy Yet. He’ll Wreck You.

If you’ve hit Skyrim‘s level-cap and are kind of feeling like the game has no challenges left to offer you, the new Dragonborn DLC has something for you: The Ebony Warrior. According to a thread at the Bethesda forums, the Ebony Warrior is an extreme B.A. who tracks you down if you’ve hit level 81.…

Ask The Creators of Assassin’s Creed III Questions. They’re Here To Answer Them. Right Now. [Interview Closed]

Did you play Assassin’s Creed III? Did you have any questions about it? Questions other than why the tree climbing is so awesome or how in the world you trigger naval trading? You’re in luck. We’ve got two of the top creators of Assassin’s Creed III right here, ready to answer your questions. Ask your…

Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and More Marvel #1s Show Up for Panel Discussion This Week

These might be the most important words in comics: “Hey, have you read that?” The medium’s lifeblood has always been the word-of-mouth that passes from one reader to another. The only query that might surpass the above is “So, what’d you think?” Hence, this recurring feature in Kotaku‘s slice of comics programming, where comics critics,…

Dial H #7 Puts Two Unlikely Heroes on the Hunt for a Secret Telephone-Worshipping Cult

Dial H is the good kind of weird. The DC comics series springs from the imagination of renowned fantasy author China Mieville and plays host to all sorts of weird, shouldn’t-exist-even-in-comics heroes and villains So far, thanks to aging hippie engineer Roxie, lead character Nelson’s learned some of the origin of the old-school telephone dial…

Injustice Action Figures Let You Plan Superhero Fights in Your Bedroom

DC Collectibles makes very plastic things based on various interpretations of their characters as they appear in print, movies or games. And with the Netherrealm-developed Injustice: Gods Amongst Us due out next year, there will be a new set of figures based on the designs for the superheroes appearing in that fighting game. The first…

You Can Use The Wii U’s GamePad To Make Movies, Like This Short Horror Film

Remember the Blair Witch Project? I thought that crap was real thanks to how the movie was shot with “found footage.” This short horror film is shot similarly to that, only in one continuous take using the Wii U’s video call feature. The creator, Frank Howley, says it’s one of the first of its kind.…

Before You Start: Tips For Playing Far Cry 3 The Best Way

Ubisoft’s tropical action game Far Cry 3 comes out today. It’s massive, it’s open-world, and it’s a hell of a lot of fun. And while it ain’t exactly as deep as Skyrim (despite Ubisoft’s hilarious marketing slogan: “Like Skyrim with guns!”), it is big enough to warrant some tips. The game does a good job…

Here Are A Couple of Assassin’s Creed Easter Eggs In Far Cry 3

Sure, it’s a small easter egg—just a logo, nothing major. But still, neat, right? And this is but one of many rumored easter-eggs in Far Cry 3 Update: One of our readers, Tails89, pointed us to this other Assassin’s Creed easter egg—this one mentions pieces of Eden as well as genetic memories.

Now There’s Even More Rayman Jungle Run to Love

I can’t get enough Rayman these days, so today’s free update to Ubisoft’s Rayman Jungle Run on iOS and Android is greeted with open disembodied hands. Both the Android and iOS versions of the mobile counterpart to the excellent Rayman Origins score nine new levels and one new Land of the Livid Dead today, bringing…

His Sick Mother Wanted To Play Mass Effect, But Couldn’t. So He Played For Her.

For Daniel Starkey, Mass Effect isn’t just the story of fighting the reapers and saving the galaxy. It’s also a story about his mother, the person his FemShep is modeled after. Writing for Gameranx, Starkey walks us through the life and struggles of his mother, an altruistic woman who is deeply in love with sci-fi.…

The Wii U’s Infamous Day-One Update Will Be Around For a While

As with most new console debuts, the Wii U launch has been rocky. The part that has gotten most consumers complaining is an hours-long, 1 GB patch required to access many of the system’s features. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has even apologized for it. Nevertheless, that annoying experience won’t be going away anytime soon. In…

FarmVille Mistletoe Lane Chapter 5 Goals: Everything You Need to Know

The Mistletoe Lane storyline has progressed in FarmVille this evening as a series of six new goals has been released in the farm’s Chapter 5 goal series. These goals will be available for the next week, and you’ll need to work and plan ahead as much as you can along the way to stand the…