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  The Man Who Makes Badass Robots

  Kogoro Kurata is an artist. But he’s not your typical artist. He’s an ironsmith, and he doesn’t build bed frames or chandeliers. Kogoro Kurata builds enormous robots. In a shed. The son of an ironsmith, Kurata grew up making things, whether that was folding paper or putting together Gundam models. Kurata followed in his father’s…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published September 8, 2011
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  A 360 and PS3, Together In One Machine?

  It’s either heaven. Or blasphemy. But I’m leaning towards the former, especially since there’s also a PC involved. Timofiend has built a machine that combines the guts of an Xbox 360 and a PS3 in the one shell (a PC case). It’s not a simple project, but one that just on principle alone is more…

  By Luke Plunkett Published September 8, 2011
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  The Man Behind Zelda Has Never Finished the First Zelda

  If you’ve ever wondered why recent Zelda games have been a little easier than they used to be, consider the man in charge of the series, Eiji Aonuma. Who has never finished the first Zelda “I’ve never actually finished it,” Aonuma told Game Informer. “I almost feel like there’s still no game more difficult than…

  By Luke Plunkett Published September 8, 2011
• CultureTotal Recall

  When Nintendo Wanted to Bring Gambling Into American Homes

  In 1988, Nintendo released a modem for its Famicom system in Japan. A crude device, it didn’t allow for online play; just some downloadable stuff and access to basic news and information services. The device was never released in the United States, but it wasn’t for want of trying. Indeed, Nintendo figured at the time…

  By Luke Plunkett Published September 8, 2011
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  Locked-Out NBA Player Joins Pro Gaming League

  Many NBA players have signed contracts with overseas teams as the 69-day NBA lockout drags on, certain to wipe out at least some of the regular season. One player is joining a different kind of professional league. Gordon Hayward (above left), in his second year with the Utah Jazz, wil compete in IPL 3: Origins,…

  By Owen Good Published September 7, 2011
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  Support This Indie Kickstarter, Get Tons Of Groovy Stuff

  Former Offworld editor, current IGF Chair, and all around cool dude Brandon Boyer wrote in today to let us know about a new project of his called “Venus Patrol.” The idea, as he describes it, is to make an online space dedicated to the culture of games that is holistic and far-ranging; it’ll avoid the…

  By Kirk Hamilton Published September 7, 2011
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  Modders Celebrate the New NFL Season by Updating Tecmo Super Bowl to 2011

  Ah, and now the football video game that really is just a roster and uniform update, and that’s all everyone wants it to be. Just in time for the NFL’s kickoff tomorrow, modders today released Tecmo Super Bowl 2012. It’s the same NES classic you’ve loved for 20 years, updated with the stars of the…

  By Owen Good Published September 7, 2011
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  Nintendo Officially Confirms, Comments on 3DS Circle Pad Add-on

  So… about that newly revealed, clunky-looking Nintendo 3DS attachment… thing, Nintendo tells Kotaku “We can confirm that Nintendo plans to release the Circle Pad attachment, but Nintendo’s regional subsidiaries will make further announcements about its availability at a later date.”

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 7, 2011
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  A Look Inside the First EA Sports Retail Store

  Back in June, EA Sports announced plans to open up three brick-and-mortar stores, appealing to sports fans’ wallets with games and apparel. This is the first location, the month-old EA Sports store located just at the Concourse C entrance at Charlotte (N.C.) Douglas International Airport. I got a look at it this morning when I…

  By Owen Good Published September 7, 2011
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  Oh, Fox News. Will You Ever Not Suck At Talking About Video Games?

  Yesterday, several of my friends emailed me links to the video clip above, a “Fox and Friends” segment that aired a few days ago. In their accompanying emails, each person voiced similar sentiments of pissed-off frustration. “Sigh,” I thought. “Let’s see how Fox News is portraying video games this week.” I transcribed the discussion, as…

  By Kirk Hamilton Published September 7, 2011
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  Did Backbreaker Just Get an NFL License?

  Torsten Reil, the co-founder and CEO of NaturalMotion, on Sunday tweeted this picture which he says is from an iPhone version of Backbreaker: Vengeance, a spinoff of last year’s football game Backbreaker which challenged Madden NFL without any NFL branding. Reil’s picture shows someone for the Seattle Seahawks leaping over an Arizona Cardinals defender, in…

  By Owen Good Published September 7, 2011
• Esports

  Valve’s Not Getting Into Competitive Fighting Games Yet, As Far as Gabe Newell Knows

  Now, more than ever, Valve Software seems to be getting serious about competitive gaming. The Team Fortress and Portal developer snapped up DotA: All-Stars developer “IceFrog” to create a sequel to that intensely competitive MOBA game. It’s also investing heavily on the competitive side of the next Counter-Strike and adding new Steam features tailored to…

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 7, 2011
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  Midweek Moneysaver: Dead Island for $40, Resistance 3 for $50

  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. Hardware • The Amazon bonus with $299.99 Xbox 360 4GB w/ Kinect Bundle went down from $60 to $50, matching this week’s offer from BestBuy.com. [Dealzon]…

  dealzon Published September 7, 2011
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  A Monster Field Guide

  FIELD GUIDE – A shot of the Dragon Quest Monsters – Joker “Field Guide.” More games should do these guides. Liberal Video Game Offers Chance to Slay Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich in Tea Party Zombies In the aptly named Tea Party Zombies Must Die players get a chance to mow down a shambling horde of…

  By Brian Crecente Published September 7, 2011
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  In Japan, Grand Knights History Rules and Black Ops Cools

  Last week’s software champ, Monster Hunter Portable 3rd HD Ver., had to settle for a second place showing in Japan this week, thanks to the warm reception of the latest Vanillaware and Marvelous Entertainment game Grand Knights History The PSP game racked up more than 60,000 sales in its first week on sale, according to…

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 7, 2011
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  Dutch Broadcaster Admits “Slavery: The Game” Trailer was Viral Ad

  The trailer for “Slavery: The Game,” suspected to be a fake, is in fact so. Dutch broadcaster NTR made it as part of a viral campaign for a documentary series about the nation’s history in the slave trade. “It was by no means our intention to hurt people with the trailer. We chose this approach…

  By Owen Good Published September 7, 2011
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  This Is How Sonic Generations Does A Collector’s Edition

  Sonic the Hedgehog is now 20-years-old. To celebrate, Sega is bringing two Sonics together in Sonic Generations for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. To sweeten the deal, Sonic gets a rare “collector’s edition” bundle, full of collectible tchotchkes. Sadly for North American and Japanese Sonic enthusiasts, this special edition version of the November-due game…

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 7, 2011
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  It’s Never Too Early to Roleplay

  When I was twelve years old my friends and I attempted to decipher the mysteries of Dungeons & Dragons. As I recall, the game we ended up playing involved us hitting each other with sticks. If only we had James Stowe’s child-friendly D&D character sheets. James Stowe is an artist and illustrator that wanted to…

  By Mike Fahey Published September 7, 2011
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  What If Super Smash Bros. Had Fatalities? Poor Link Finds Out…

  In some bizarre alternate universe, Ed Boon, not Masahiro Sakurai, lead development on Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Wii, devising the grisliest of hedgehog-on-dinosaur fatalities. Fortunately, that’s not the case. Because I never wanted to see Link die like this. Dorkly explores the “What If…?” scenario of Mortal Kombat style executions in the family…

  By Michael McWhertor Published September 7, 2011
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  Is This a Collector’s Edition Worthy of a Space Marine?

  Large and bulky like the mutated heroes of the game itself, the Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine collector’s edition could easily take down your average Ork. Let’s take a peek inside. I blanked on the price during the recording of the video, which is just as well, as I never would have guessed this was a…

  By Mike Fahey Published September 7, 2011