- Culture
This Week in the Business: ‘Relic of the 20th Century’
What’s happened in the business of video games this past week… QUOTE | “Superior.” – Xbox CFO Dennis Durkin contends that Microsoft’s first-party games this console cycle have been better in quality and sales than the first-party efforts of Nintendo and Sony. STAT | 40% – The percentage of the games industry that consoles now…
James Brightman | IndustryGamers.com Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Missed an Episode of Retro Game Master? Don’t Worry We Have You Covered
Retro Game Master has a new home in North America, streamed live on Kotaku every week at 8 p.m. eastern. But what if you miss it? Don’t worry, we’ve got your back. Unlike television, we don’t tuck away our shows after we’re done “airing” them. Feel free to hop on over to the page dedicated…
By Brian Crecente Published July 22, 2011 -
UncategorizedThe Walking Dead Season 2 Ditches Atlanta and Perhaps Hope
In case you forgot why you were so anxious to continue watching The Walking Dead when it ended last season, here’s a stark, brutal reminder. Don’t worry, you only have to hold your breath until October.
By Brian Crecente Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Mass Effect‘s Depth Will Save It From the Fate of Most Video Game Movies
Mass Effect won’t suffer the same fate as other video game movies, said the screenwriter assigned to the project, because it draws on far more than the “seductive” visuals and active sequences that all video games are known for, whether or not they are accompanied by a story with any depth. “In the early days…
By Owen Good Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
The New Marvel uDraw Game is a Preview of our Wii U Future
Ever since I played the Wii U last month at E3, I’ve been running through my memories of the surprisingly abundant Wii U-ish experiences I’ve had with other gaming hardware, some of which I’ve written about It’s happened again. Last week, I got an early look at—get this—the new Marvel Super Hero Squad game on…
By Stephen Totilo Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Meet Middle-aged Ivy and Soulcalibur V‘s Two All-New Fighters
To answer the question “What will a middle-aged Ivy look like in Soulcalibur V?” Namco Bandai has responded with a still youthful looking Ivy, now dressed more modestly. Slightly. The fighting game maker has also fully revealed two fresh souls. Meet Natsu—the ninja girl who appears to be a replacement for Soulcalibur veteran Taki—and Zwei—a…
By Michael McWhertor Published July 22, 2011 -
UncategorizedObama Kicks Drug-Dealer Ass In This Video Game
From what I’ve played of Call of Juarez: The Cartel it appears to be just as bad as everyone worried it would. The game is packed with tiny glitches, odd AI behavior and questionable graphics. But it also has a couple of levels starring President Barack Obama. OK, not really. What it really has is…
By Brian Crecente Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Bulletstorm Didn’t Make Money, But it Was Worth It
Mike Capps, president of Gears of War development studio, doesn’t regret Bulletstorm. That game got a lot of hype—and some extraordinarily odd press coverage—when it was released earlier this year. It was an odd first-person shooter that was vulgar in tone and creative in execution, rewarding players for, well, being creative in how they executed…
By Stephen Totilo Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Halo: Anniversary will Include New Content, Old Visuals and Updated Girlfriend References
Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, the high-definition remake of the landmark Halo: Combat Evolved, will feature new narrative content and on-the-fly switching between its new presentation and the graphic mode of the original. The news, first revealed to the gaming press last month, was delivered publicly to a couple thousand Halo fans packing a panel on…
By Owen Good Published July 22, 2011 -
UncategorizedThe Spectacular, Cross-Country, Double-Decker Developer Summer Holiday
The Develop Industry Excellence Awards kicked off earlier this week with the above video. I’m no expert, but I suspect that there may have been some post-production shenanigans going on here. I met Mark Rein once and he doesn’t have a British accent. Here’s a run down of some of the folks you’ll spot in…
By Brian Crecente Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Nintendo Video is Live and Chock Full of Dinosaurs
The 3DS’ Nintendo Video service, which sort of launched yesterday, really launched today, with two short animated clips (one with dinosaurs, rawr!), a Captain America trailer, and a new OK Go music video due July 27. Okay then, go.
By Mike Fahey Published July 22, 2011 -
UncategorizedWhat the Hell is Going On in This Leaked Assassin’s Creed Video? [Update]
Between the old-school Animus interface and the Ubisoft Digital Arts watermark, I’m positive this video is leaked footage of something Assassin’s Creed related, but what? I have no clue. It could be a cut scene from Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, or perhaps a clip from the Assassin’s Creed: Embers animated short that will come packed with…
By Mike Fahey Published July 22, 2011 -
UncategorizedThe Captain America Video Game is Better Than It Should Be
Not only is the Captain America movie better than it should have been (or so I read), but the Captain America: Super Soldier video game, released in conjunction with the movie this week, is better than we usually get from super-hero movie games. I wish I could say it’s as good as the last Batman…
By Stephen Totilo Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Who Needs Tekken? Capcom Announces Street Fighter VS. Hello Kitty
We thought we had seen the ultimate street brawling crossover when Street Fighter X Tekken hit the scene. We were wrong. In fall 2012, Street Fighter and Hello Kitty will finally be one, at least from a merchandising perspective. Hello Kitty parent company Sanrio and Capcom are teaming up to mash-up Street Fighter and Japan’s…
By Mike Fahey Published July 22, 2011 -
UncategorizedRustlers, Blood Feuds, and a Combat Drop All Part of Starhawk‘s Opening Cinematic
The sequel to the Playstation 3 third-person shooter Warhawk looks quite nifty, even provoking our own Brian Crecente to use the word “awesomer”. And now we can all watch the game’s stylish opening cinematic, and imagine what it would be like to play the game. Which, since the game has only been announced for a…
By Joshua Rivera Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Wesley Snipes’ iPhone Game Getting Released Much Earlier Than Wesley Snipes
Veteran action hero Wesley Snipes isn’t getting out of prison until July 2013. I guess he’s just not as slick as his alter-ego, economic hitman Julius Styles, who’s getting released into the custody of the iTunes App Store next month. While Wesley’s been serving his three-year prison sentence for tax evasion, Finnish game developer Lapland…
By Mike Fahey Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Dust Off Those Rock Band Instruments for a Five-Pack of Yes
I’ve not been giving much consideration to Rock Band’s new music releases, what with the franchise skipping a year and interest in the rhythm genre waning in general. It turns out all Harmonix had to do to get my attention was say Yes. Yes as in the British progressive rock group, not the affirmative response.…
By Mike Fahey Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Poor Americans are Gamers, Too
In case you didn’t know, there are poor gamers. Conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation has published a report on what it means to be poor in America today. According to the report, households living in poverty have many modern amenities including air conditioning, cable TV and video game consoles. The report is meant to…
By Sam Winstrom Published July 22, 2011 - Uncategorized
Why Root for the Chimera in Resistance 3?
In today’s Speak Up on Kotaku, commenter Armstrongjx4 expresses his desire to see humanity fall to the Chimera in Resistance 3. Why? Because we expect to win. Am I the only one who wants the humans to…you know, lose the war in Resistance 3? I blame Killzone for this. Killzone has been a backwards game…
By Mike Fahey Published July 22, 2011