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Heavy Rain Is Now Safer for the Children (Well, Teenagers)
Over a year since it was first released, a revised edition of Heavy Rain is being cobbled together in Europe that reduces some of the game’s content in order to get it a less adult rating. Heavy Rain came out in February 2010, and at the time its European rating was PEGI 18 (adults only),…
By Luke Plunkett Published August 9, 2011 - Uncategorized
Square Enix, Where the Hell Is Final Fantasy Versus XIII?
Final Fantasy Versus XIII was first unveiled at the E3 gaming expo in 2006. It’s now 2011, and the game is not out. To be fair, Square Enix said in 2006 that it had not yet begun work on the game. But by late 2009, Square Enix was showing gameplay footage of the title. Square…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 9, 2011 - Uncategorized
There’s a Time and a Place, Lady, and This Is Neither
Japan is noted for its fastidious attention to manners. Books, magazines and even DS games offer instruction on the ins and outs of manners’ minutia. Even with this almost Victorian attention to politeness, the country’s recently seen a rash of faux pas that can be best described in one word: rude. People put their foot…
By Brian Ashcraft Published August 9, 2011 - Uncategorized
Even 10-Year-Olds Are Hacking Video Games Now
At this year’s DefCon hacking conference in Las Vegas, for the first time kids were invited to take part. And take part they certainly did. A new addition to the program, the “DefCon Kids Village”, let little ones aged 8-16 show off their skills and be taught the ways of the good side of the…
By Luke Plunkett Published August 9, 2011 -
UncategorizedQuakecon, You Look Surprisingly Beautiful
Being one of the largest LAN parties and nerd gatherings in the world, you may think Quakecon is an ugly, grimy, sweaty place. It can be! But this video from Matt Garza shows it can also be beautiful. Shot over the weekend of August 5-6, it takes in not only the main floor but also…
By Luke Plunkett Published August 9, 2011 - CultureTotal Recall
When Sega Wanted to Take Over the World (and Failed Miserably)
The year was 1997. And Sega, the Dreamcast still a twinkle in Segata Sanshiro’s eye, was in a bullish mood. While its rivals were focusing their efforts on winning the video game war, Sega was looking beyond It didn’t have Nintendo or Sony in its sights. It had the Walt Disney Company. Sega wanted to…
By Luke Plunkett Published August 9, 2011 - Uncategorized
Family Matters
Greetings, Kotaku readers, and welcome to one more week of unbearable toil. I mean… uh, good evening and thanks for joining us in another open thread! Heh! Let’s get to it. We’re just about a week away from Gamescom, representing the end (for me, anyway) of a long summer of travel and video game trade…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
A Special Preview of the New SUPER iam8bit Art Show, Returning to LA This Week
This Thursday, the iam8bit video game art show returns to Los Angeles, California more super powered than before. More than 100 artists will debut video game-inspired artwork at SUPER iam8bit, a small taste of which Kotaku can show you a few days early. The artistic celebration of video game culture and history, reinterpreting Mario, Metroid,…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
London Riots Inspire Fresh Grand Theft Auto Finger Pointing
What has spurned hundreds to take to the streets of London to riot, burn and loot? According to the London Evening Standard newspaper, the city’s continuing—and spreading—riots have their roots in Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto That tenuous connection between a violent sandbox crime spree of a video game and the very real violence happening…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
Epic Games Has Something All-New In the Works After Gears 3
The people who make Gears of War (and Unreal Tournament, Infinity Blade) also have a “new unannounced IP in development” at its North Carolina HQ, according to a gameplay programmer job opening. Surprising? Not really. But intriguing? Oh yes!
By Michael McWhertor Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
You’ve Been Playing GTA IV Wrong
When Grand Theft Auto IV came out, I was swept away. The scope, depth, and scale of the game were almost too much to take in. It seemed like a game in which anything was possible, like a parallel reality, re-created. Three years, two expansions, and countless hours of vehicular manslaughter have provided some much-needed…
By Kirk Hamilton Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
Sony’s 3D HDTV Bundle Drops Resistance 3 for Motorstorm Apocalypse (Well, Sort Of)
At this year’s E3 expo, Sony unveiled the PlayStation 3’s “official 3D Display,” a stereoscopic 3D package that packed in one monitor, one copy of Insomniac Games’ Resistance 3, one HDMI cable and one pair of 3D glasses for $500. Things have changed. Sony’s 3D Display bundle now officially includes a copy of Evolution Studios’…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
Battle For My Time
PC – I spent a big chunk of the weekend playing Age of Empires Online. I’m surprised at how uncasual it feels, In a very good way. The Fantastic Flying Book of Inventive Storytelling Born of Hurricane Katrina and the passing of a dear friend, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore is more…
By Brian Crecente Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
Zelda Games Used to be a Rare Thing
Because they don’t count the CDi Zelda games, and because they count the repeatedly re-released Ocarina of Time twice, Nintendo promotes a worldview in which 17 [1] Zelda games have been released in the past 25 years. I’m fine with that. But I didn’t notice until I was looking at Nintendo’s new Zelda history chart…
By Stephen Totilo Published August 8, 2011 -
UncategorizedMeet Anarchy Reigns‘ Durga and the Meanest Right Leg in Video Games
Kotaku readers, meet Durga. He’s the latest addition to Platinum Games and Sega’s Anarchy Reigns, a man with Wolverine hair, a tiger tail and the camouflage jumpsuit to match—oh, and a mechanical leg with a huge-ass gun. Durga, a 31-year-old cyborg, is the newest ass-kicker confirmed for the 2012 title from Bayonetta and Madworld developer…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Maecenas porta laoreet massa eget cursus. Etiam a dapibus nunc. Vestibulum et felis sem. Suspendisse sed metus magna, vel condimentum ante. Nunc aliquam aliquet tortor sit amet ultrices. Nam dapibus sagittis arcu eu elementum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Cras eget lacus turpis, nec…
By Erin Pettigrew Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
How Do You Make a Race of Intelligent Plant People Sexy?
ArenaNet character designer Kristen Perry was presented was presented with a thorny task when asked to cultivate the plant-like sylvari race for Guild Wars 2: Finding the balance between green-skinned humans and tentacle monsters. When you imagine plant people, those are the two images that immediately come to mind. Either you’ve got green elves with…
By Mike Fahey Published August 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
Rumor: Four More Wii Games Have Been Selected for ‘Nintendo Selects’ Budget Line
Wii owners, you may soon have four new games to play at budget-friendlier prices. According to retail sources, Nintendo will update its “Nintendo Selects” budget line with Super Paper Mario, Mario Strikers Charged, Punch-Out!! and Super Mario Galaxy in August. Currently the Nintendo Selects line includes just four games in North America: The Legend of…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 8, 2011