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Who Will Conquer China?
China is now officially the second largest economy on the planet. And video game consoles are technically illegal. One day, that might change. “Consoles have been banned in China since the year 2000,” Lisa Hanson from market researcher Niko Partners previously told Kotaku. The government thought that was the best way to protect Chinese youth…
By Brian Ashcraft Published February 16, 2011 - Uncategorized
Some Handy, If Obvious Tips On Being A Better PC Gamer
You’ll want to skip to around five minutes into this video, but once you do, you’ll get some tips on how to play games that sound incredibly patronising and basic…until you realise you never actually use them. This is Sean “Day[9]” Plott, a star in the world of StarCraft II who last week devoted one…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 16, 2011 - Uncategorized
The Beautiful Hair And Big Swords Of Some New Final Fantasy Figures
Glimpsed by Stephen T at the Toy Fair in New York over the weekend, Square Enix’s Play Arts line is about to include three more Final Fantasy figures, all of them crowd favourites. Selling for around USD$50, and going on sale in Japan in June, the three figures are all in their Dissidia forms, being…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 16, 2011 - Uncategorized
Pirates Are Not Thieves, They Are Fans
There’s a long-standing — and incorrect, I think — view amongst publishers that a game pirated is a game stolen It’s not (who says they’d ever have bought a copy anyway?), and in a great piece over on GameSetWatch, Irish designer Tadhg Kelly (formerly of Lionhead) argues an even better reason why this isn’t the…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 16, 2011 - Uncategorized
Osaka’s Geek District Turning Into Den Of Iniquity
Den-Den Town, Osaka’s “denkigai” or “electric town”, is known for its used game retailers like Super Potato and figure shops like Osaka Gundams. There are also the maid cafes, where folks can get a coffee and talk to a maid. Some, however, are serving way more than coffee. “Struggling arcades and video game shops are…
By Brian Ashcraft Published February 16, 2011 - Uncategorized
Why Sony’s New Handheld Has A New Way Of Interacting With You
As we saw when the product was first unveiled, Sony’s upcoming NGP won’t be using the company’s trademark “XMB” user interface. It’ll be using something new. Why is that, Sony? According to Sony Computer Entertainment worldwide studios boss Shuhei Yoshida, it’s partly because of “social networking”. “[A] fundamental point was our desire to make this…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 16, 2011 -
UncategorizedThis Is The Fighting Game Of Your Dreams
Wolverine. Ryu. Scorpion. Terry Bogard. Never before have these giants of the fighting game genre met in the one title before, but in Pixel Force: Head 2 Head, come together they shall. To kick ass Head 2 Head is the latest project from Eric Ruth, the guy behind the 8-bit renditions of Halo and Left…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 16, 2011 -
CultureTotal RecallNintendo’s War On Blood, Nazis, Religion And Puppy Dogs
While these days it’s not that hard finding violent, mature titles on Nintendo consoles, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, that wasn’t the case. And when you did find them, well, some “changes” had been made. As anyone around in and gaming during the time can probably remember, it was a strange era for…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 16, 2011 - Uncategorized
What Are You Reading?
Welcome to tonight’s themed open thread, Kotaku readers. While your free to make conversation on any topic, video game related or otherwise, readers of novels, comic books and other forms of printed material are invited to share. Me? In addition to reading the Internet, I’m finally getting around to reading Darwyn Cooke’s adaptation of Richard…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 15, 2011 - Uncategorized
Dreamcast Collection Coming To 12 Inches Of Vinyl
Sega is once again putting music to vinyl, following up on the bright blue Sega Genesis Collection soundtrack on LP with one for the Dreamcast fans out there. And by “there,” I regretfully mean “Australia.” Yes, like the last Sega vinyl record, this bonus item is strictly for our friends down under and only available…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 15, 2011 - Uncategorized
PlayStation Store Update: Tactics Ogre, Back to the Future & More
This week’s North American PlayStation Store update has arrived, bringing with it new games, old games and games based on old things from the future. Highlights include the PSP remake of Tactics Ogre: Lets Us Cling Together, the debut of Telltale’s Back to the Future on PlayStation Network and Acceleration of SUGURI X-Edition. And for…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 15, 2011 - Uncategorized
This Is What Diablo III Looked Like A Long Time Ago
There’s still a chance we’ll get to play the highly anticipated third Diablo game in 2011. Whenever we do get Blizzard’s next big action role-playing game, it will look like a very different beast from the canned 2005 version. The Diablo III we’ll eventually play on our PCs will be much more colorful—too vibrant for…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 15, 2011 - Uncategorized
One Last Chance To Own Super Mario All-Stars For Wii
Nintendo is cutting off your supply of the Wii version of Super Mario All-Stars, the limited edition collection of four NES era Super Mario Bros. games with a 16-bit makeover. But it’s also giving you one last chance to buy it. Nintendo of America said today it’s producing its “final run” of the Super Mario…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 15, 2011 -
UncategorizedMore Chocolate Death
So I got more candy yesterday after I shot the first batch. Crazy! I Know!! Get Ready To Play Dress-Up With Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 Now that Marvel Vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds is on store shelves, Capcom can start doling out the downloadable costume packs. Check out upcoming costume changes for Captain…
By Brian Crecente Published February 15, 2011 -
UncategorizedYou’ve Never Experienced Neo Geo Hardware Drama Like This
Are you ready to have a Neo Geo make sweet love to your eyeballs? Thanks to photographer Aaron Nanto and his perfectly preserved, beautifully shot SNK hardware, your retinas are about to be thoroughly and lovingly sexed. This is “Neo Geo: Bigger Badder Better,” a “cinematic tribute to SNK’s 24-bit arcade powerhouse” and the most…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 15, 2011 - Uncategorized
The Killzone 3 PS3 Bundle You’ve Been Waiting For
If Killzone 3 will be the game that finally convinces you to become a PlayStation 3 owner, this is the package for you. Included is a 160GB PS3 system and one copy of Killzone 3—or “the ultimate PlayStation Move and 3D game,” according to this cardboard box. If you’re already a PlayStation 3 owner, you…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 15, 2011 - Uncategorized
16-Year-Old Confesses To Killing Mom Over PlayStation
Philadelphia teenager Kendall Anderson confessed in court to murdering his sleeping mother after she confiscated his PlayStation. And if you don’t like crime-related video games stories with terrible, sickening endings, don’t go any further. This one is perhaps the worst. Anderson’s confession, read in court by Philadelphia police homicide detective Thorsten Lucke, admits to attacking…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 15, 2011 - Uncategorized
Games Might Not Desensitize Us To Violence After All
The “video games desensitize children to violence” argument is a popular weapon in the arsenal of the anti-violent video game crowd. A new study finds violent games to have no effect on long-term emotional memory at all. Researchers at Ryerson University in Toronto led by Holly Bowen, a PhD candidate in psychology, gathered a group…
By Mike Fahey Published February 15, 2011 -
UncategorizedThe Hilarious Agony Of An Old Smurfs Video Game
Old games were difficult in stupid ways. This video — full of NSFW language — confirms this fact. The poor guy who tries to get through this 1982 Atari and Colecovision game previously struggled through the disturbingly similar QWOP. Let there never be another video game like this. Smurf Rescue Gameplay and Commentary [YouTube]
By Stephen Totilo Published February 15, 2011