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  Valve Wants to Release DotA 2‘s Beta “as Fast as we can”

  How very unlike Valve. In a post on the game’s official blog, DotA 2 developers say that while they had planned to keep testing the game for another year or so in a very private beta, they now want to “get it out there as fast as we can”. “Our original plan was to spend…

  By Luke Plunkett Published September 22, 2011
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  Dark Souls: My First 24 Hours in Hell

  I’m now 24 hours into Dark Souls, the successor to 2009’s brilliant and challenging role-playing game Demon’s Souls. I have, of course, died many times in my struggle to become un-undead. I have killed a half-dozen of its major demons, explored deeply its open world, but have just barely begun to scratch its hard surface.…

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 22, 2011
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  In Between System Shock and BioShock, We Almost Had Irrational’s Dungeon Duel

  Over at the Irrational Games’ Blog, the BioShock Infinite developer has posted concept art and documents from an old, abandoned game called Dungeon Duel. The game had made it all the way to development back in 2002, based off of a pitch that described it as a “fast-paced RTS strategy with the addictiveness of card…

  By Kirk Hamilton Published September 22, 2011
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  Enslaved Won’t Be Getting a Sequel. Maybe That’s A Good Thing?

  Enslaved: Odyssey to the West was one of the unexpected surprises of 2010—a wonderfully colorful, well-told story full of enjoyable Uncharted-esque gameplay and some some remarkably well-done digital performances. Its story wasn’t perfect, but those opening chapters (and that finale!) stick with me even today, as do its two mismatched protagonists. So I was bummed…

  By Kirk Hamilton Published September 22, 2011
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  Proposed City Law Would Require Mugshot When You Sell Used Games

  In Oregon, when I trade my games in, I’m required to certify there is no lien against them, like the IRS wants my copy of NCAA Football 11. It’s one of the many fun-filled ways in which local ordinances regulate the sale of used games. Madison, Wisc., is scheming up another. A proposed ordinance would…

  By Owen Good Published September 22, 2011
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  The Raveonettes Premiere A Dark Bit of Sonic Strangeness for the Batman: Arkham City Soundtrack

  We already know that the soundtrack for Batman: Arkham City looks promising. It’ll feature original tracks from a ton of bands, including Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Boxer Rebellion, Serj Tankian, and The Raveonettes. All of the groups seem to have put a lot of work into providing quality cuts. The track from the Danish…

  By Kirk Hamilton Published September 22, 2011
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  Holding Madden for Later Release Date a Winning Move, Says EA Sports

  Traditionally releasing the first or second Tuesday of August, Madden NFL 12 this year moved to the end of the month, Aug. 30. EA Sports insisted the schedule change was not because of this year’s NFL lockout, but because it provided a more natural alignment of the game’s launch to the league’s opening week in…

  By Owen Good Published September 22, 2011
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  It’s Payday

  Payday –Simon and Ulf from developer Overkill at a recent New York showing of their shooter Payday. If a Train is Traveling 80 MPH, And the Internet is At 1Mbps, When Will Diablo III Crash? Diablo III is a joy on a desktop. It’s even fun to play on a Macbook Air. But how will…

  By Brian Crecente Published September 22, 2011
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  Katamari Amore Rolls Onto iOS Next Week

  The Katamari Damacy series just keeps on keepin’ on with one more entry, this one for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. Katamari Amore is hitting iOS next week and arriving with a guest appearance from fellow Namco mascot Pac-Man Amore is the second Katamari game for iOS, following 2008’s I Love Katamari. It boasts…

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 22, 2011
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  Enjoy The Serenity of Pixelated Nature with Laura Bifano’s 8-Bit Animals

  Canadian artist Laura Bifano blends the organic and the pixelated in her series “Menagerie,” an exploration of 8-bit beasts with all the geometric detail of Minecraft and Cubivore fauna. Bifano says of the series of polygonal animal paintings that it was “inspired by my love of nature and classic video games.” Prints of the “Menagerie”…

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 22, 2011
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  Metacritic Bans Review Bombers

  Metacritic doesn’t just aggregate the arbitrary scores that professional reviewers assign to subjective works such as video games. It aggregates the arbitrary scores anyone can apply to subjective works such as video games. This has all sorts of fun applications, such as abuse. So, recently Metacritic banned a bunch of spam accounts set up to…

  By Owen Good Published September 22, 2011
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  After Watching the Diabolical Pitch Trailer, I Want A Hit of Whatever Suda 51 is Smoking

  Diabolical Pitch, if you haven’t been keeping up, is the horror baseball game for Kinect conceived by the oddballs at Grasshopper Manufacture. Kotaku saw it at Tokyo Game Show last week, but here’s your first official trailer for the most curious Kinect game. As you can see, you and a friend can battle hordes of…

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 22, 2011
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  Demon’s Souls Servers Given Stay of Execution, Remains Online Through 2012

  Last we heard, From Software’s Demon’s Souls, the PlayStation 3 role-playing game with incredibly innovative online features, would keep its North American servers going until at least October 6, 2011, the game’s second birthday. Today, publisher Atlus says it plans to keep the Demon’s Souls online party goin’ into next year. “While it comes at…

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 22, 2011
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  Zynga Shed Three Million Gaming Addicts Last Spring, But Still Have Plenty

  Usually Zynga, makers of FarmVille, can brag. Not today. Zynga reports they dropped from 62 million daily users to 59 million last spring. Profits dropped 90%. Why? Few new games and lots of hiring and acquiring, says news site Scribbal

  By Stephen Totilo Published September 22, 2011
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  A Closer Look at the $50 Risk: Metal Gear Solid Limited Edition Board Game

  First unveiled at San Diego Comic-Con earlier this year, here’s our first look at the retail version of the game that blends the strategy of Risk with the game design of Metal Gear Solid… No, it doesn’t come with cut-scenes. The game goes on pre-sale on Oct. 3, for $49.95. The game takes place in…

  By Brian Crecente Published September 22, 2011
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  Blockade Runner is Not Just Minecraft in Space

  Blockade Runner is an independently developed spaceship sim, allowing you to build and fly your own ships, and battle them against others. The game is only in alpha at the moment, but is receiving semi-weekly updates and has an active community. Creators ZANMGT cite Minecraft and Infiniminer as inspirations for the project, and thanks their…

  By Matthew Buzzi Published September 22, 2011
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  The Kotaku Game Club is Debating Gears of War 3 Acts 1-2 Right Now

  Welcome to the first meeting of the Kotaku Game Club: Gears of War 3 edition. Today we’ll be discussing the the first two acts of the game’s campaign. For all you Game Club first-timers, this group convenes to analyze and discuss games as we play them. For all you Gears players who haven’t played the…

  By Mike Epstein Published September 22, 2011
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  Facebook Strategy Game War Commander is Perfectly Decent

  Facebook app War Commander, a strategy game reminiscent of Red Alert, is actually pretty fun. The game lets you train units, gradually build up a base that includes defensive weapons and resource-gathering buildings, and fight off enemy attacks. A quick tutorial shows you how to command your units to move and attack, as well as…

  By Matthew Buzzi Published September 22, 2011
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  Coming to a Sporting Event Near You: Angry Birds

  Hit iOS game Angry Birds has a wide variety of fans that range from talkshow host Glenn Beck to singer Noel Gallagher. Everyone likes Angry Bids! No wonder Angry Birds developer Rovio wants to take the game on the road so throngs of people can play it. This weekend, Angry Birds is coming to a…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published September 22, 2011
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  Amazon Unloading Wiis with Best Deal Yet

  • Nintendo Wii console bundle (black or white) with Mario Kart and Wheel, and $20 Amazon Credit is $134.96, free ship from Amazon. Previous best deals were $150 with a $30 bonus at the end of July, and $130, no bonus at the end of August. [Dealzon]

  By Owen Good Published September 22, 2011