For a While There, Wreck-It Ralph Barely Looked Human

I’m a sucker for watching a character visually evolve over time. It’s almost like looking at alternate lives that a fictional character could’ve embodied with slightly different personalities. For example, you can see how Spryo the Dragon seemed to have an entirely different attitude in these early designs And though the movie’s not quite out…

President Obama Returns to Madden—Through In-Game Advertising

President Obama may not be in Madden NFL 13‘s Super Bowl celebration ceremony but that doesn’t mean the POTUS can’t buy his way back into the game. Ads for his re-election campaign are popping up in the game’s multiplayer menu, but only in targeted states. Ohio, Nevada, Colorado, Iowa, New Hampshire and Virginia are the…

Fantasy Drafts Are Again a Reality in Madden

A server-side update has returned the fantasy-draft option to Madden NFL under its new Connected Careers mode, but only for online leagues. Still, anyone present in a league before it begins is able to participate in a draft of all of the NFL’s active talent, remaking and rebalancing each of the NFL’s 32 franchises. Fantasy…

You Can Play Black Mesa Right Now

The mega-ambitious, long-in-development Half-Life remake/tribute Black Mesa is finished, and you can download it from Gamefront right now and give it a whirl. You’ll have to follow the instructions on the Gamefront page, as Black Mesa requires that you install the 2007 Source software development kit. In the video above, you can see a comparison…

Waiting for September 25 for LittleBigPlanet Vita? GameStop is selling it right now.

The Wii U Start-Up Screen Is Like Nothing Ever Seen On Consoles Before

Nintendo talked a lot about the Wii U yesterday, but there was one big topic they didn’t cover: the Miiverse, the console’s version of a social network. Turns out you’ll see it as soon as you boot up the Wii U. In fact, according to Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime, who sat down with…

Zynga Hits Back Hard At EA Over Sims Copyright Suit [Update]

Remember when EA sued Zynga? Well, the FarmVille makers aren’t just going to lie down and take it. They’re back in the ring and swinging like never before. EA’s aggressive, incendiary lawsuit claimed that Zynga’s The Ville ripped off EA’s own The Sims Social. Zynga has filed three documents in response: A motion to strike,…

Build Your iPhone 5 Game Wishlist with The Week in Gaming Apps

There’s a brand new iPhone selling out all over the world today. If I ordered one right now, I wouldn’t receive it until January2016. I guess I’ll keep myself occupied with this week’s gaming apps. Only four this week, and I blame myself for that, because it’s my fault. Having been filling in for the…

Resident Evil: Retribution: The Kotaku Movie Review

Here’s a not-so-big secret: most Hollywood adaptations of video games are not very good. Why? The reasons are numerous, but the most obvious one is that they’re totally different mediums, and so much is lost in translation. The end result is usually something that leaves neither fans of the games nor those who simply enjoy…

The Triumphant Resurrection Of A Vanishing Video Game Move

You’re crouched in the dark. You can hear two guards talking; they’re just around the corner. If they spot you, you’re as good as dead. Best to remain in the shadows, unseen. You creep up to the corner, slowly. You’ll need to get a glimpse of your enemies to best plan a way around them.…

Developer Gets Why Gamers Scoff at iPhone 5, but Says It’s an “Awesome Gaming Device”

The iPhone 5 could potentially be a big step up for mobile gaming. But lots of video game enthusiasts still think of the mobile landscape as a backwater to be snickered at. You might think that Firemonkeys executive producer Rob Murray—who makes the Real Racing series for Apple’s iDevices—would be offended to hear that. But…

Here’s How The Wii U Could Make RPGs Better

I am not a game designer. I have made games before, but they were not very good. My talents lie elsewhere. So when I write about games, I consciously try to avoid offering my own suggestions for what their designers should have implemented or cut. My job is to critique what’s there, not talk about…

$11.9 Million Gets You “The House That the Commodore 64 Built”

Jack Tramiel passed away earlier this year. If the name doesn’t ring a bell, then you might know him as the man who helped revolutionize the computer industry, ushering in the Commodore 64 into millions of homes. In the wake of his passing, Tramiel’s own house is now on the market for a whopping 11.9…

Do Modern Shooters Take Themselves Too Seriously?

Despite my aversion to shooters—god, there’s too many of them—Overstrike, with its playful, comical tone and its cartoon aesthetic caught my eye. The approach felt like something fresh. But we don’t have Overstrike anymore, no, instead we have Fuse. Compare the two trailers for the games and you see see a world of a difference…

The Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Edition has been delayed, and will be arriving on November 30 instead of next week.

Metro 2033, Already a Book And a Video Game, Will Soon Be a Movie Too

Metro 2033 is getting adapted into a movie, it looks like. The game features a bleak, post-apocalyptic Moscow. The game itself, though, isn’t technically getting the adaptation. The book it was based on—also called Metro 2033—is. The Hollywood Reporter reports that the movie will be produced by Mark Johnson, who worked on Galaxy Quest and…

The People Behind Fallout And Planescape Are Making My Dream RPG

Video game publishers have not treated Obsidian Entertainment very well over the years. The studio behind games like Fallout: New Vegas and Alpha Protocol has missed out on bonuses because of Metacritic scores, lost out on sequels because of Metacritic scores, and been forced to lay off staff because of sudden project cancellations (that would…

“Slender Games” Is Like The Hunger Games On Faceless Evil Crack

To spice things up, the Gamemakers in this version of The Hunger Games introduce the tall, creepy Slenderman to a fight for survival amongst young kids. It sort of completely screws with the intention of The Hunger Games. As quoted from the video, “I just wanted to hunt other children!” Yes. Yes, don’t we all.…

Guild Wars 2 Developers Want Their “Endgame” To Be Part of the Whole Game

Massively multiplayer online games have this way of becoming a rush to the top. If a game has 50 levels, 49 of them will end up being considered inconsequential as players float up to the level cap and then stay there. As more and more players reach the limit, more and more of the game…

The Gorgeous Wild Blood is Trying Too Hard to Be a Console Game

Infinity Blade. Horn. The Dark Meadow. Developers are releasing amazing Unreal Engine 3-powered mobile games with such regularity these days that I was growing a little tired of talking about them. Then came Gameloft’s first Unreal Engine 3 game, Wild Blood Wild Blood looks as good as any of the UE3 games that have come…