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  A Very Unlikely Mother (Daughter?)

  It doesn’t matter if she holds concerts or appears in crappy commercials, Miku Hatsune is only virtual and certainly not some 12-year-old kid’s mother. Before Mother’s Day, Japanese supermarkets have pieces of paper so children can draw pictures of their mothers. The drawings are then hung in the grocery store for everyone to see. (Note:…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published May 10, 2011
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  Call of Duty’s Nazi Zombies Look Great in Real Life

  Logan Fulton and his pals have put together this short homage to Call of Duty’s zombie mode, playing out a round of the game as a live-action fan film that’s not afraid to go overboard with the yellow glowing eyes. It’s not made for laughs, this is simply a straight-up recreation of the game mode,…

  By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011
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  Adventures in Badly-Translated Japanese Video Games

  Demian Smith had the (mis)fortune to get a job working as a translator on the very first Yakuza game for the PS2. If you haven’t played it, know that for a game set in Japan and called Yakuza, it wasn’t that Japanese. Instead, Sega decided that, to try and sell the brawler to the Western…

  By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011
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  This Lady Has a Special Skill

  Voice actress Chiaki Omigawa, best known for her roles in Arakawa under the Bridge and Soul Eater, can do more than act. She can also sing. But that’s not her secret talent. On Fuji TV program Say You Love!, a word play on the Japanese word for voice actor (声優 or “seiyu”), Omigawa showed her…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published May 10, 2011
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  Get Your E3 2011 Floorplan Maps Right Here!

  Most of you won’t be going to E3, as unlike TGS and GamesCom it’s sadly closed to the public, but that doesn’t matter. Some of you still find it interesting to pore over the location and size of a company’s booths, so here they are! And hey, that’s cool. The weigh-in before a boxing match…

  By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011
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  Harvest Moon Studio and The Last Story Studio Are Marvelous Together

  Marvelous Entertainment, the studio behind the Harvest Moon farm simulators, is merging with AQ Interactive, which recently did The Last Story for Nintendo, and Liveware, a software contents company. [Marvelous Entertainment]

  By Brian Ashcraft Published May 10, 2011
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  Some of the PS3 Hackers May be Turning On Themselves

  It’s believed that members of Anonymous, a group of hackers and activists, are behind the attacks on the PlayStation Network. While the group’s “leaders” have dismissed these claims, the fact they’re seen as “leaders” at all may have become a bit of a problem. According to a report on website thinq_, a splinter group has…

  By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011
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  Regular Cough Drops. Virtual Girlfriend Packaging.

  Back in December 2010, Konami launched a product tie-in with Halls mentholated cough drops. The ads featured virtual girlfriend Nene Anegasaki, of the popular love simulator Love Plus. In Love Plus, characters fall in love with one of three schoolgirls and then “date” them. This June, pink grapefruit Halls will feature Anegasaki on the packaging…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published May 10, 2011
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  Metal Gear on 3DS Is Shooting for November

  Everything we’ve seen so far of Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D has made it look little more than a tech demo for Nintendo’s new console. But according to MCV, it may be less of a demo and more a nearly finished game. The British publication reckons the title, a graphical showcase for the new…

  By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011
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  Japan’s Most Famous Foreigner Can See the Funny Side of the PSN Attacks

  If you were to ask a Japanese person to name five Americans, they might say President Obama, Brad Pitt or Johnny Depp. But one person they’d definitely say is Dave Spector. Dave Spector is a regular on Japanese television, appearing in commercials, dramas and variety programs. He even writes columns in Japanese magazines and has…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published May 10, 2011
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  The PSN Downtime is costing Capcom “Hundreds of Thousands, if not Millions” in Lost Revenue

  What’s the PlayStation Network downtime cost you? Some time playing games? It’s cost Japanese publisher Capcom a lot more than time. Speaking out against the hackers who have crippled Sony’s online network for over two weeks now, Capcom senior vice president Christian Svensson has written on the company’s forums “as an executive responsible for running…

  By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011
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  Strap on a Jetpack, It’s Time to Look at the New Tribes Game

  First revealed back in March, it’s not until today that we’re getting our first proper look at Tribes: Ascend, the latest game in the long-running sci-fi shooter series. These two screens are it, sadly, but die-hard fans of the series will no doubt be able to drag some info out of the weapons and geography…

  By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011
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  Rumor: Microsoft is Buying Skype

  Reuters reports that Microsoft is in talks to buy internet voice communications company Skype for around $8.5 billion. What does that mean to you? Well, you’d presumably kiss Skype on the PSP goodbye. You could also, in a perfect world, expect Skype to hit the 360 via Kinect. [Reuters]

  By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011
• CultureTotal Recall

  Old Consoles: The Illustrated Edition

  We’ve looked at the design of old consoles a few times lately here on Total Recall, in particular my fetish for those with faux wood panelling, but today we’re looking at something a little different. These illustrations, by German artist Sebastian Koch, show a variety of old consoles from the 1970’s. Specifically, those built just…

  By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011
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  The Tags, Pandas and Yoshimitsus of Tekken Tag Tournament 2

  If new media of Tekken Tag Tournament 2 makes you feel like doing a jig with your panda pals, this is the gallery for you, Kotaku reader. Namco Bandai gives us a visual update on the next Tekken right here, right now. Feast your eyes on King and Marduk tag teaming Armor King; Yoshimitsu working…

  By Michael McWhertor Published May 9, 2011
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  A Couple Of Wavy Lines

  Let’s get this workweek rolling with some stimulating conversation between you, me and your fellow Kotaku readers. Yeah. You! It doesn’t even have to be about video games. Watch! How was your weekend? Mine was spent feeling unusually busy, but with little tangible to show for it, other than some much needed beauty rest. The…

  By Michael McWhertor Published May 9, 2011
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  Don’t Expect To See Bungie’s Next Project At E3 2011

  Halo and Marathon fans looking forward to Bungie’s all-new universe can set aside their hype and hope until sometime after E3 2011. Bungie and publisher Activision have both said the developer will not have an official presence at this year’s E3 show which is just weeks away. [Bungie.net]

  By Michael McWhertor Published May 9, 2011
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  ‘Brawl’ Art Contest Spawns Expertly Redesigned Cammy, Chun-li and Haggar Piledriving a Shark

  When the CG artists who inhabit the Polycount forums direct their creative juices at redesigning the famous fighters of video games like Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Killer Instinct, Tekken and more, we’re the real winners. That’s because we get to see the polygonal fruit of their labors, which range from radical takes on Mario from…

  By Michael McWhertor Published May 9, 2011
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  GameStop Knocks $100 Off The PlayStation 3, Just Not For Everybody

  Retailer GameStop has a surprisingly sweet deal on PlayStation 3 hardware right now, offering customers a $100 USD discount when they purchase a new console in either 160GB or 320GB flavors. The catch? Not everyone is getting that deal. GameStop has e-mailed select members of its subscription-based PowerUp Rewards program with details on how to…

  By Michael McWhertor Published May 9, 2011
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  World of Warcraft Suffers Post-Cataclysmic Drop in Subscriptions

  Six months after buzz for the Cataclysm expansion drove World of Warcraft numbers to an all-time high, Blizzard reports the lowest subscription figures for the massively multiplayer game since December of 2008. During the Activision Blizzard first quarter 2011 financial results conference call today, Blizzard president and co-founder Mike Morhaime told us that as of…

  By Mike Fahey Published May 9, 2011