You Write It, Mr. Boomshakalaka Delivers It

NBA Jam on the 360 and PS3 hit shelves yesterday; today EA Sports is taking a page from the Old Spice YouTube campaign that drew raves. The announcer, Tim Kitzrow, is reading off Twitter-submitted catchphrases. Apparently mine (above) wasn’t objectionable. Kitzrow, as we mentioned before, is all about the fan service, so he’s perfect for…

Epic Mickey Sure Looks Lovely In 1080p

Disney’s new Mickey Mouse adventure already looks spectacular, but some discriminating video game fans would rather see Epic Mickey running on something more powerful than the Wii. Thankfully, the Dolphin emulator can give us a taste of Mickey in HD. It appears that some lucky gamers have gotten their hands on Disney Epic Mickey before…

Free Nuclear Annihilation Coming To R.U.S.E.

It’s no trick; Ubisoft is delivering three new maps and two new game types to its deceptive strategy game R.U.S.E. next month as part of the free Manhattan Project Pack. The Manhattan Project was of course the name given the secret program that led to the creation of the first atomic bombs duiring World War…

Is This The Year’s Most Liberal Video Game?

Sure, video games let us shoot at Fidel Castro and play as former Presidents, but where’s the game that attacks our favorite conservative Supreme Court Justices? If you don’t mind spoilers or hate the Citizens United decision, keep reading. One more warning… we’re talking about Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood, though we’re not talking about the main…

Tactics Ogre Takes Japan By Storm

The Ogre Battle series has still got it in Japan, with the latest entry in Square Enix’s tactical role-playing game series getting a great start on the PSP. Tactics Ogre: Unmei no Wa—or Tactics Ogre: Wheel of Fortune, if you prefer—moved a damn good 176,000 copies in its first week on sale in Japan, outselling…

Black Ops Tops Modern Warfare 2 On Xbox Live In Its First Week

The two most-played games on Xbox Live are Call of Duty games, with Halo Reach in the third spot, according to the first Xbox Live popularity ranking released after several data-free weeks from Microsoft. Call of Duty Black Ops tops the list of unique users playing games on Xbox Live for the week of November…

It Takes A Big Boi To Launch Hot Pursuit In Australia

OutKast’s Big Boi feels the need for speed during the Hot Pursuit launch event today in Sydney, Australia. Gameface is a photographic celebration of the people who make, play and love video games.

Borderlands Extends Its Boundaries To The Mac

Gaming on the Mac improves later this year when Gearbox Software’s shoot ‘n’ loot hit Borderlands comes to Apple computers courtesy of publisher Feral Interactive, shipping complete with everything a Vault hunter would need. This is the “Game of the Year Edition” of Borderlands, which includes add-ons The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned, Mad Moxxiʼs…

Get In Line For The Rift Closed Beta

Eight primordial forces struggle for domination of the world of Telara, and you can experience that struggle for yourself by signing up for the first closed beta event for Trion Worlds’ Rift, kicking off at the beginning of December. Rift’s unique soul combination character customization feature caught the eye of Stephen Totilo at PAX back…

Rage On iPhone Is In Our Hands And Looks Damn Good

Rage HD has been a contender for best-looking iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch game since we first saw it this summer. Today, you can download it for $2 and see for yourself. Or watch videos of us playing it. Rage HD is an on-rails shooter set in the same universe as next September’s PC and console game Rage.…

The Coolest Touchscreen You’ll Ever See

Lacking anything better to do in Finland, a team of Nokia researchers have created a touchscreen made entirely out of ice. First off, I kid Finland. There is plenty to do in Finland, of course. There’s even a song about it Finaland also has plenty of ice, and when that ice is cut into blocks,…

LittleBigPlanet Spin-Off Is A Five-Player Game

A LittleBigPlanet spin-off called Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves will be out this December for download to the PlayStation 3. It’s multiplayer-only, requires a Move controller and… it’s not clear if you’ll have to pay for it. Sony’s PlayStation blog shares the details of what essentially is a 10-level co-op mission pack set in prehistoric times and…

So This Is What Splatterhouse’s Hero Is Fighting For

If Splatterhouse hero Rick’s blood runs cold, it’s probably because his memory has just been sold. His angel Jennifer is the video game centerfold in the December issue of Playboy. Judging by Jennifer Willis’ Playboy Data Sheet, Rick doesn’t have anything to worry about. She’s totally into guys with a dark sense of humor, hidden…

Kotaku’s 2010 DS Gift Guide

The busiest shopping day in the U.S. hits next week. Time is running out! You better start thinking about what you want to give (and get) this holiday season. The Nintendo DS has a slew of solid titles that would make wonderful presents. Here’s our take on the ten best Nintendo DS games to give…

The Untold Story Of The Lord Of The Rings: War In The North

While the Fellowship of the Ring is slowly realizing that everything would have gone much smoother had Gandalf called the eagles in the first place, a great evil stirs in Middle Earth’s Northern Reaches. While I appreciate the attempt to inform players of the story behind Snowblind Studios’ The Lord of the Rings: War in…

Black Ops Multiplayer Works A Little Bit Better Today

Finding an online match in Call of Duty: Black Ops should be a little less of a chore today, as a full title update hits for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, addressing many of the game’s more pressing multiplayer problems. Treyarch has been steadily releasing small updates for Call of Duty: Black Ops since…

The Bold Gamble Of L.A. Noire

L.A. Noire is a detective story, a refreshingly unrushed noir video game adventure. It also may be the toughest road to greatness the acclaimed creators of Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption have yet traveled, the destination not guaranteed. Earlier this week, I visited the New York offices of Rockstar Games to get a…

Kevin Butler Commits Gran Theft Turismo

With each new major PlayStation 3 release comes a new video starring Kevin Butler, Sony’s VP of game commercials. In this Gran Turismo 5 spot he claims responsibility for the game’s greatness, and claims a sporty little number for himself. Should I purchase Gran Turismo 5? Every time a new game in the series comes…

L.A. Noire Gallery

The Next Pirates Of The Caribbean Game Will Be LEGO-ized

Following in the footsteps of Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Harry Potter, Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean is the next film franchise to get the LEGO treatment from TT Games. The Captain Jack Sparrow image you see here is not an official model from the upcoming game, but this custom creation from Devon Syvertsen shows…