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  Uncategorized

  Some Stages In The New Mario Look A Lot Like Temple Run

  Mario on rails? Some stages in the newest Mario game will borrow the auto-run mechanic found in many mobile games like Temple Run and Jetpack Joyride When you enter one of these stages in New Super Mario Bros. 2, which is out for 3DS on August 19, Mario will start dashing like there’s no tomorrow.…

  By Jason Schreier Published July 25, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  Watch Darksiders II‘s Death Kick Gigantic Ass In This New Trailer

  The new Darksiders II map isn’t the only thing that’s going to be grand when THQ/Vigil Games’ next hack and slash title releases next month (the map is said to be double the size of its predecessor). It’s also a shared quality with the fiendish enemies you face off against. It’s a wonder that the…

  By Tina Amini Published July 25, 2012
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  How To Buy Video Games

  There are a lot of video games out there and a lot of ways to buy them. But you don’t have bottomless pockets of money and you might be unsure about which games to get, whether you really should download them or go to a store and… is it really necessary to pre-order? And don’t…

  by the Kotaku Staff Published July 25, 2012
• Uncategorized

  World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria Will Arrive On September 25

  The next World of Warcraft expansion will be out on September 25, developer Blizzard said today. In addition to new zones and dungeons, Mists of Pandaria adds the playable pandaren race and monk class to Blizzard’s massively multiplayer online RPG. It also raises the level cap to 90 and adds some new challenge modes, prestige…

  By Jason Schreier Published July 25, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  Arise, Hideous Prime, and Light Our Darkest Multiplayer Hour

  Transformers: Fall of Cybertron‘s online multiplayer mode allows players to create their own bastardized versions of classic characters, from a guy that looks vaguely like Warpath to a puke green and brass Optimus Prime. Customization, Starscream? This is bad comedy. Despite earning Evan’s approval during his recent hands-on at Comic-Con 2012, Fall of Cybertron‘s standard…

  By Mike Fahey Published July 25, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Japan’s “Prince of Confinement” Will Finally Be Confined to Prison

  The residence was packed with computer games and comic books. And back in 2003, Yasuyoshi Kobayashi was convicted of sexually assaulting four women and confining them at said residence. Today, ANN News reports that his final appeal was overturned and he will begin his 14-year sentence. Japanese police discovered over one thousand adult video games…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 25, 2012
• Kotaku East

  The Best Horrible Instruction Booklet the Sega Saturn Ever Saw

  From what I remember, the 1990s were a good time. We didn’t really have the internet then, but we had good music, good movies, and good video games. This isn’t about any of those—especially the good video games bit. It’s about a Sega Saturn booklet that is so awful, it’s awesome. The game is Hop…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 25, 2012
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  Everybody Loves Dressing as Bridget. Everybody.

  Fighting game fans know that girlish good looks and feminine moniker aside, Bridget is a dude. He’s not only one of Guilty Gear‘s most memorable characters—that nun outfit, that yo-yo, that huge handcuff—but also one of gaming’s. No wonder why people want to dress up as him. But who does it best? Born as a…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 25, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Why an Olympic Judo Athlete Was Inspired by…a Pokémon Fight

  Gotta catch ’em all! And then, flip them over your shoulder. Judo athlete Ashley McKenzie, who competes for Team Great Britain, went from young Poké punk to serious athlete after a fight broke out over his Charizard card. When McKenzie was 11, another kid tried to swipe his Pokémons. “This Charizard was the best card,”…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 25, 2012
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  Kotaku East

  Traffic Light? This Is Too Damn Cute for a Traffic Light

  The city of Xi’an in China has a new crosswalk signal. And neighboring Japan points out the obvious: this is way too cute for a traffic light. In China, the anime-style character on the sign, people in Japan speculate, is probably aimed at children. This traffic signal uses a young LED anime-style girl to preside…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 25, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Just Look at How Nintendo Is Embracing Digital Releases in Japan

  Nintendo is selling 3DS games, like New Super Mario Bros 2 and Demon Training, as digital downloads. Those who don’t like purchasing items online can swing buy their local retailer in Japan and be greeted with aisles of download cards. Aisles of this. 3DSのDL版(店頭販売)が高すぎｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗｗ [2ch]

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 25, 2012
• Kotaku East

  Please Don’t Masturbate in Japanese Arcades

  There’s a time and place for everything. When you are in a Tokyo arcade, you should play video games, not with yourself. Common courtesy, folks! According to Final Round organizer Scott Popular, one male gamer seems to have confused his joystick with an arcade one. Recently, Popular was at Shibuya Kaikan, one of Tokyo’s most…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 25, 2012
• Kotaku East

  For the Next Few Months, Nintendo’s Schedule Looks Kinda Like This

  Get out those calendars! Today, Nintendo provided a list of upcoming titles it will release the rest of this month—and beyond. This isn’t a full list by any means, and many of these games (and release windows) are already known. But here they are all together in one place. •Japan 3DS Nintendo 3DS XL –…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published July 25, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  Meet the Guys Who Kidnap, Then Mess With, Other Humans in DayZ

  So, that nutty DayZ video from the other day, when a guy gets on a bus thinking he’s going to be saved only to end up exceedingly unsafe? It was seen from the perspective of the poor guy on the receiving end. Here, remarkably, is the other side: a recording made by one of the…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 25, 2012
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  Uncategorized

  What a Celebrity Game of Team Fortress 2 Looks Like

  That’s a relative term, of course, as these are video game celebrities, but still. If you’ve ever wanted to see Minecraft creator Marcus Persson, Valve’s Robin Walker and internet superstar Freddie Wong go at it over Team Fortress 2, here’s your chance. To cut out the fluff, the actual game – which also includes other…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 25, 2012
• Reviews

  Captain America Has a Great Butt (Shame About His Face)

  Hong Kong collectible company Hot Toys has been on Kotaku a lot lately, mostly for its wonderful work on big, expensive figures based on the Chris Nolan’s third and final Batman movie, Dark Knight Rises. Today, though, we’re turning back to that other comic book blockbuster of the year, The Avengers. Actually, we’re turning back…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 25, 2012
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  CultureFeature

  The Awesome Japanese Models Behind 2012’s Coolest Shooter

  Kow Yokoyama's Maschinen Krieger casts a long shadow

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 25, 2012
• CultureTotal Recall

  Let’s All Read This Terrific 1992 Star Fox Comic

  If you think everything Nintendo did in the early 1990s outside actual video games sucked, well, no! Sure, there were some awful TV shows, but not everything was bad. This Star Fox comic, for example, was great. It ran in Nintendo Power magazine in 1992, and had – considering the scale of the project –…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 25, 2012
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  CultureTotal Recall

  Gamers “Really Loved Killing” Lara Croft, Because She Was a “Strong” Character

  There’s an interesting interview with Toby Gard, the creator of Tomb Raider, over on Critical Path’s site. And it reminds us that, for all the platitudes heaped on the series for portraying a strong female character, the fact is a lot of men enjoyed playing as just such a woman for the wrong reasons. Eerily,…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 25, 2012
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  Nintendo Ran a “Mario School” to Teach People How to Make a Mario Game

  During the development of New Super Mario Bros. 2, Nintendo did something it had never done before: it invited employees from other areas of the company, who don’t normally make Mario games for a living, to come and learn how to make Mario games for a living. It was informally dubbed the “Mario Cram School”,…

  By Luke Plunkett Published July 25, 2012