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  PS3 and PSP Versions of Japanese Adult Game Canned

  First released on the PC in 2008, Fortune Arterial is an 18-years-old-and-up visual novel. There’s been anime and manga versions, and there was supposed to be a PS3 and PSP port. Supposed to be. The game’s PS3 and PSP versions, which would not have been adults only, have been cancelled. Visual novel studio August is…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2011
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  Just How Many Game Studios Does Sony Own, Anyway?

  The company doesn’t often get much credit for this, but one of the biggest reasons for Sony’s success in the video game industry is not its hardware, but in the breadth and scope of its first-party studios. Neither Microsoft nor Nintendo, or most third party publishers for that matter, have managed to establish successful studios…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 3, 2011
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  Neon Genesis Fried Chicken

  Colonel Sanders gives Neon Genesis Evangelion a makeover to the bewilderment and delight of Japanese netizens. Neon Genesis Evangelion is a Japanese staple that encompasses an array of mediums, perhaps most notably anime Kentucky Fried Chicken is also a Japanese staple that has been synonymous with Christmas since the early 1970s (more here). Turkey is…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2011
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  Euclideon Creator Swears Infinite Detail is “Not a Hoax”

  Yesterday we posted a video from Euclideon – a Australian company that claims it can revolutionise video game graphics, increasing visual fidelity by 100,000. This morning we spoke to Euclideon’s CEO Bruce Dell – the man Markus Persson calls a “Snake Oil Salesman” – to ask a few questions regarding Euclideon’s ‘Infinite Detail’ technology. “I…

  Mark Serrels Published August 3, 2011
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  Inside Cosplay Photography Events (And a Fancy Shinjuku Apartment)

  For years, armchair photographers have made do with crappy convention center backdrops while taking cosplay photos. That’s changing. In Japan, you can rent studio space and hire cosplayers at speciality studios like PhotoPlus and Cutie Factory, by the day or hour. The studios are often converted apartments with cute bedrooms and moody parlors that provide…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2011
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  Sony Looking to Win Big at the 2011 Hacking Awards

  The BlackHat USA security conference kicks off later today in Las Vegas, and will be attracting some of the world’s top hackers and online security experts. As part of the festivities, every year an awards night is held called the “Pwnies”. They exist to celebrate and publicly ridicule “the achievements and failures of security researchers…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 3, 2011
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  The Voice of GlaDOS Is Back for More Portal Work

  The very talented Ellen McLain, a singer by trade but best-known to you lot for her voice-acting work in Valve games, is apparently returning this week to her most famous role: that of bitchy artificial intelligence GlaDOS from the Portal series. A tweet from McLain’s husband, John Lowrie, reads “Ellen is going in Tuesday for…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 3, 2011
• CultureTotal Recall

  This Is the Coolest Stuff Nintendo Has Ever Made

  You can say a lot of nice things about Nintendo games. Nintendo hardware, too. Wildly successful, iconic and timeless are just three of them. But how often can you say something Nintendo made was genuinely cool? Not very often. Unless you go back to the 1960’s, to a time before Nintendo was making video games.…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 3, 2011
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  Where Have You Been?

  Greetings, Kotaku readers. Would you like to engage in some talk that’s not about video games? What if it’s only very loosely related to video games? Good. You’re in the right place then. While you’re free to discuss anything and everything you like, I’d like to cash in on a Themed Tuesday Open Thread, the…

  By Michael McWhertor Published August 2, 2011
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  Look, Single-Player People Are Just Better

  I’m not denying this is territory I’ve covered before. There’s no disguising that I’m a fan of single-playing gaming over multiplayer. Finally it’s time to just say it. We need to stop avoiding the matter, stop not saying what everyone’s thinking. I’m the man brave enough to do this. I am a valiant man, and…

  By Sam Winstrom Published August 2, 2011
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  The Many Faces of Commander Shepard, Kickass Space-Lady

  Yesterday, I wrote a piece about the process by which BioWare is choosing an official female Commander Shepard for Mass Effect. In this piece, I went on a flight of fancy about an imagined commercial that would feature a constantly shifting montage of various Shepards, highlighting the customizability that makes Mass Effect so cool. As…

  By Kirk Hamilton Published August 2, 2011
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  Minecraft Creator Calls Bullshit on ‘Unlimited Detail’ Graphics Hype

  Euclideon, a Brisbane, Australia-based tech company, claims it can stuff 100,000 times the amount of visual data into a 3D world with its Unlimited Detail rendering software. It’s visually stunning stuff. But one prominent game developer calls it “a scam.” Minecraft creator Marcus “Notch” Persson accuses the Euclideon team of being “snake oil salesmen,” writing…

  By Michael McWhertor Published August 2, 2011
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  Why Would Anyone Watch YouTube Videos of Leaked Gears 3 Footage?

  It’s something I’ve wondered about. When a game like Gears of War 3 is leaked ahead of its release date, I can understand wanting to play it, but why on earth would someone go out of his or her way to spoil themselves by watching videos of it on YouTube? In a lengthy interview with…

  By Kirk Hamilton Published August 2, 2011
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  Shoot Ninjas, Pirates, Viruses, and Gorillas in Our Newest Xbox Live Indie Favorites

  Every couple of weeks, we recommend some of the best games on the Xbox Live Indie channel. These are the games on the fringe of the Xbox 360 platform, made by average Joes and indie dreamers. They’re peer-reviewed, not Microsoft-approved and thankfully they’re not all about posing your Xbox Avatar or a vibrating controller. Our…

  By Max Abrams Published August 2, 2011
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  Angry Birds, Infinity Blade, Fruit Ninja, and Pan’s Labyrinth Converge in The Dark Meadow

  Combining the slingshot controls of Angry Birds, the swordplay of Fruit Ninja, the gorgeous Unreal Engine-powered graphics of Infinity Blade, and the dark fairytale them of the film Pan’s Labyrinth, The Dark Meadow is the sort of iOS game nightmares are made of. Last seen working on ambitious super hero games, the ex-Midway staffers at…

  By Mike Fahey Published August 2, 2011
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  The Summer of Gaming

  Not A Summer of Gaming for Totilo – Totilo wasn’t a big fan of this summer’s gaming offers. Here’s what was sitting at the top of his desk pile. (Photo by Brian Crecente) The Traveler’s Guide To Quakecon QuakeCon isn’t just a celebration of all things id Software (and a touch of Bethesda) it’s also…

  By Brian Crecente Published August 2, 2011
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  Metroid‘s Samus and the Exploded Suit

  Artist Justin Currie, admittedly an inexperienced Metroid player, gorgeously illustrates the disintegrating armor of Nintendo icon and bounty hunter Samus Aran, a moment before it fully forms around her (or disintegrates, depending on your point of view). “I’ve never really played any of the Metroid games, but the Samus character has always intrigued me,” writes…

  By Michael McWhertor Published August 2, 2011
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  Nintendo’s President Addresses 3DS Owners Who May Feel ‘Betrayed’ by Sudden Price Drop

  After dismal sales of the Nintendo 3DS (and declining sales of the Wii and Nintendo DS), Nintendo issued a massive, uncharacterisitc price cut for its newest handheld. It plans on compensating early adopters, but what of the 3DS owner personally wounded by Nintendo’s cutting? Nintendo president Satoru Iwata colored the announcement of the 3DS price…

  By Michael McWhertor Published August 2, 2011
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  PlayStation Store Update: Galaga’s Legions and Warhammer’s Kill Team

  Hey, you like shooting things? Good. Because this week’s North American PlayStation Store refresh has, like, at least three different variations on the shooting things genre, including Galaga Legions DX, Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team and Section 8: Prejudice If shootin’ stuff doesn’t agree with you, there’s something else you may like: the downloadable release of…

  By Michael McWhertor Published August 2, 2011
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  This PlayStation Move Knock-Off Completely Misses the Point

  Hong Kong electronics distributor FirstSing claims to have the world’s first third-party PlayStation Move controller for sale, and it might; I just don’t see anyone actually purchasing it to find out. A cursory glance of the FirstSing FS18156 First Third-party Move Motion Navigation Controller suggests that it is exactly what people look for in a…

  By Mike Fahey Published August 2, 2011