How Diablo III‘s Always-On Internet Requirement Makes It a Better Game

Last week’s rough launch of Diablo III neatly illustrated the biggest problem with the game’s ‘always-on’ internet requirement. It was a reminder that consumers have lost a portion of their ownership of the game, that we no longer have complete control even over whether or not our game will start. That’s as true this week…

Need to Go Nuts Building an Online Shooter? ShootMania Might Be For You.

The first official trailer for Ubisoft first-person shooter Shootmania has arrived. ShootMania: Storm comes from French team Nadeo, who were behind the TrackMania games. They share a premise of heavy player modification, letting players design levels and maps. The heavily customizable, multiplayer online shooter is a PC exclusive scheduled for a release later this year.…

Full Tony Hawk HD Soundtrack Announced, Listen To The Whole Thing Here

It was the first question I and many others asked when we first heard about Tony Hawk HD: Okay, but what about the soundtrack? Yes, we’re all happy to hear that the game feels both sharp and smooth, and that they’re putting a lot of work into making the game play well. But what about…

38 Studios’ CEO and Senior VP Leave The Company

In the midst of the financial troubles hitting Kingdoms of Amalur‘s 38 studios, NBC reports that 38’s CEO Jen MacLean and senior VP John Blakely have left the company. (Via Polygon)

Midweek Moneysaver: Onward, Future Soldier

This Wednesday edition of Kotaku’s The Moneysaver catches all the offers, promotions and bargains that can’t wait until the weekend. The Midweek Moneysaver is brought to you by Dealzon. Software • Yesterday’s release Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Future Soldier (PS3, 360) is $49.99, free ship from NewEgg. Next best is $59. [Dealzon] • Nov. 6…

Shadow of the Colossus Film Adaptation Gets a Director

Sony Pictures has signed writer/director Josh Trank (Chronicle) to direct the long-in-development-hell adaptation of 2005 fan-favorite game Shadow of the Colossus movie. No word yet on casting for Wander… or the horse. [Deadline]

The Origin EON-11s is an Impressive Gaming Machine Masquerading as a Netbook

The bigger the gaming laptop is, the more powerful it is. At least that’s been the experience I’ve had in my gaming laptop-reviewing career. A bigger chassis means more bells and whistles, better heat management, and a larger, more vivid display. I’ve equated smaller size with sacrifice, so when Origin PC first unveiled the EON-11s,…

Here’s Tebow Tebowing—and Victor Cruz Salsa Dancing—in Madden NFL 13

On Friday, Mike Young, the creative director for Madden NFL 13 revealed that the game would feature the notorious “Tebowing” posture, whose namesake drops to one knee in a solemn and evidently religious celebration. Operation Sports today published the first screenshot of what that would look like. In fact, they said it came on a…

A Terrible Decision Created MLB 2K—But It Also Brought Us BioShock

The mythology built up around Major League Baseball 2K is that the game could not do anything right. Eight-figure losses and terrible review scores every year are, yes, terminal deficiencies. But its pitching and hitting mechanisms forced the dominant MLB The Show to respond with weak revisions to its controls, and MLB Today—when it worked—was…

This Arrow Cannot Stop Sportaku It Can Only Hope to Contain It

From the Worldwide Leader in Sports … Video Games, your 6 p.m. Sportaku begins now.

Ask a Video Game Developer Anything … Call for Questions

We did it twice (this time and this time). We’re doing it again: Ask a video game developer anything…preferably about the world of game-making! Put your questions in the comments section, please. In a week or so, Jeremiah Slaczka (5TH Cell creative director! Scribblenauts! Hybrid! Kotaku columnist!) will answer the very best ones in the…

Let’s Try to Have a Civil Discussion About NVIDIA and AMD

Commenter Make.Sense is in the market for a new video card, but like many PC gamers out there doesn’t know if he should go with an AMD, a NVIDIA card, or something from one of those other gaming video card companies that don’t really exist. Trick is, he wants everyone to be nice and calm.…

Renting? Pfft. GameFly’s Going to Publish Games Now

GameFly’s made some interesting moves in the last few months. They jumped into the digital distribution space last year, offering games for streaming in addition to their physical mail rentals. While that moved GameFly’s overall offering closer to that of Steam, they still relied on publishers to supply their pipelines with games. That’s going to…

Activision-Bungie Contract Has Rules About Everything, Even Easter Eggs

The ongoing legal saga between Activision and former Infinity Ward heads Jason West and Vincent Zampella continues to bring all sorts of once-secret documents to light. We already learned that Bungie’s 2010 contract with Activision guarantees the delivery of four “sci-fantasy” shooter games, called Destiny. But what other details are hiding in that 27-page contract?…

My Entire Diablo III Play Through in Under Five Minutes

Last week I played through the entire story of Diablo III with my Demon Hunter. It took me some 15 hours. Now you can watch the entire thing a little over four and a half minutes. Taking a cue from what our own Kate Cox did while playing through Mass Effect 3 (see below), for…

This TARDIS Case is Not Actually Bigger on the Inside

Sadly, this TARDIS has to obey the laws of physics as we humans know them. It only travels one direction in time: forward, at a rate of one day per day. Its volume on the inside is exactly as indicated by its dimensions on the outside. And there’s no Time Lord pouncing about all of…

Journey Down to a Comic Adventure Romp in the Caribbean

I’m a sucker for a classic point-and-click adventure game. The LucasArts adventures of the early 1990s are how I fell in love with gaming, and to this day remain the biggest influence on my taste in digital worlds. So whenever I see a new entry in the genre appear, I have to jump on it.…

Fine. I’ll Admit I’m Infatuated With The World Of Super Monday Night Combat.

Super Monday Night Combat exists in a dystopia in which spectacle, corporate greed and marketing are the fundamental pillars that hold society together. The premise is this: there’s a deadly organized sport—that’d be Monday Night Combat—where two opposing teams of corporate-sponsored clones duke it out for money and prizes by shooting each other in the…

TARDIS PC Case Gallery

Map Editor Gives Strategy Fans total Control of Total War: Shogun 2

For the first time in Total War history, fans can creatively assemble custom maps for Shogun 2 using the official level creator, AKA The Editor. TEd for short, the official Shogun 2 editor is free today for owners of the base game or the Fall of the Samurai expansion. Simply download the tool from the…