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  Vintage Catalogues Revive The Ghost Of Nintendo Past

  Reader Brett must have known our adolescent selves were in need of entertainment, otherwise he wouldn’t have pointed us towards this motherload of vintage Nintendo merchandise catalogues. From the Japanese publisher’s 1992 edition (Packed with gift ideas!) to a magnificent “Zelda Box” released in Japan in commemoration of the release of Wind Waker, there’s a…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 30, 2010
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  LeChuck Piece Makes All Other Tattoos Walk The Plank

  Not sure how we missed this tattoo of Monkey Island antagonist LecChuck last year. Maybe it was so fantastic it burned clean through our collective consciousness. As seen on Geekologie.

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 30, 2010
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  Gundam As Girls

  Yes, Gundam are mobile suits. They’re mecha! And sometimes, they are cute doe-eyed girls. Since 1982, MS Shojo (MS Girl) has been published in monthly publication Gundam Ace. Familiar with most anyone who follows Gundam, MS Shojo was created by veteran Gundam mecha designer Mika Akitaka and pretty much spawned the entire young-girls-as-mecha subgenre. Akitaka’s…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 30, 2010
• Reviews

  Wii Upscaler Review: Can The Wii Really Do High Definition?

  When we first heard about VDIGI’s new VD-W3 Wii upscaler, a product that promised it could bring high definition graphics to the Wii, it sounded too good to be true. “Better review it, then” we thought. Just to be sure. The VD-W3 is hardly a new idea – standalone “upscalers” have been around for years,…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 30, 2010
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  Alan Wake Motion Capture Expert Calls Heavy Rain “Visually Uneven”

  PS3 exclusive Heavy Rain looks fantastic. Mark Carson, head of mo-cap specialist CaptiveMotion, told website VG247 that while the psychological thriller is “beautiful”, it is also “visually uneven”. Here’s the quote: “It’s beautiful and brilliant but visually uneven at points, which unfortunately is the nature of the industry because of the scope, budgets and time-frames…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 30, 2010
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  This Is Why You Don’t Buy A PS3 In A Parking Lot

  A man from Evanston, Illinois found a PS3 for sale on Craigslist for $250. So he arranged to buy it. The meeting was scheduled to take place in a parking lot. Oh dear. When he got there, he was greeted by two men emerging from a car. They met him, took his money, then…drove off.…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 30, 2010
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  The Greatest School Bus In Japan

  Kindergarten is a tough time for some kids. It’s the first time that they are away from their mother or father for an extended period of time. To help ease the experience, Japanese kindergartens and pre-schools have cute, colorful buses. The buses are supposed to hopefully make children want to ride them — and thus,…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 30, 2010
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  Thank You, Dad

  David Wildgoose, Editor of Kotaku Australia, now finds that the Civilization franchise has a much greater, personal significance than it did a month ago. On Monday March 15 my father passed away. Just a few days earlier I had told him there’d always be a piece of him in everything I do. This is why……

  David Wildgoose Published March 30, 2010
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  How Can Ho Chi Minh City Stop Its Porn Game Problem?

  Adult video games are flooding Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City. Time to fight the good fight. Or the not-so-good fight. Whichever! Touch screen games asking players to discern the differences between sexy girls have been popping up in Vietnamese arcades — often in plan view of others. This has alarmed some. “How can kids play…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 30, 2010
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  This Isn’t How The Nintendo 3DS Will Work

  Nope. However it works, it’ll be more expensive, and advanced, than this. But is advanced always better? This 3D solution certainly has a charm of its own. The 3DS was only announced earlier this month, and will be shown off for the first time at this year’s E3 expo in June. Until then, details on…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 30, 2010
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  The Booth Companions of the Tokyo International Anime Fair

  Over the weekend, the Tokyo International Anime Fair was held at Tokyo Big Sight. Appearing at the event were anime production companies, TV and film companies, toy and video game companies were in attendance. Here’s a look at some of the booth companions that appeared at show! 「東京国際アニメフェア2010」のコンパニオンさん 【TAF2010レポ】 [moeyo.com]

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 30, 2010
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  Advance Wars: The Board Game!

  Nintendo’s turn-based wargame Advance Wars works well as a video game. But as a board game? Yeah, looks like it works pretty well as a board game, too. First designed last year, “Skirmish Wars” is the creation of Andrew Tullsen, Matthew Kloth and Brandon Pennington. It’s not trying anything fancy, which is a good thing:…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 30, 2010
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  Metal Gear Solid Voice Actor Directing Edgy, Twilightesque Werewolf Movie

  David Hayter is best known for being the English voice actor for the character of Snake in the Metal Gear Solid video games. He also has a movie career. Not only has he penned the screenplay for X-Men, but he also worked on the Watchmen script and co-wrote The Scorpion King. Hayter will soon be…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 30, 2010
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  What Can 400 Microsoft Points Get You?

  In a few hours, Modern Warfare 2’s first piece of downloadable content will become available. If you really, really must have it, chances are you’re going to have some spare change left over at the end of it. After all, the “Stimulus Pack” costs 1200 Microsoft Points, and many of you will be buying the…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 30, 2010
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  A Week In Comments

  Logan International Airport Thinks This Might Be A Bomb Comment by: GymMasterAlex Nominated by: Shak_0 Is a man not entitled to handsome figurines without them being strapped to a bomb? No, says the TSA, it still might be dangerous. No, says the terrorists, they belong to us. No, says CATS, someone set up us the…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 30, 2010
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  Where Posters, Packaging & Box Art Comes From

  A few weeks ago, I did a feature on a company that’s responsible for game logos and box art. Today, then, I thought we’d look at something similar: a company that does box art and marketing material. The artwork you’ll see in this post is the work of British firm Head First, an agency that…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 30, 2010
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  Rumor: Xbox 360’s USB Flash Drives Are, Yes, Expensive

  Microsoft has a reputation for grossly over-charging for Xbox 360 storage solutions. Now that the console supports USB memory sticks, did you really think anything would change? A pair of listings on retail site GameStop indicate that Microsoft’s first-party flash drive offerings are running a little on the costly side. An 8GB stick is listed…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 30, 2010
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  After Burner Climax Comes To Xbox Live, PlayStation Network In April

  It’s blue skies and barrel rolls for After Burner fans, as Sega puts a date and price on the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network release of arcade dogfighter After Burner Climax. On April 21, After Burner Climax touches down on XBLA for 800 Microsoft Points ($10 USD, give or take). One day later, it…

  By Michael McWhertor Published March 29, 2010
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  Kotaku Off Topic: Basket Case

  Wipe away that case of the Mondays, Kotaku readers, and do so with a little off topic conversation that can be cleansing and cathartic. The comment thread in this post is yours for the taking. Of course, if you want to talk about bunnies and Cadbury Creme Eggs and Easter basket grass, that’s your prerogative.…

  By Michael McWhertor Published March 29, 2010
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  Why on Earth Did Ubisoft Just Trademark ‘Horse Gaga’?

  Some trademark filings make sense, or we can at least see where they’re going. Neverdead? Sure. Someone’s working on a zombie game. But then Ubisoft goes and uncorks “Horse Gaga” and yes, the mark is for a video game. The possibilities here are too horrible to contemplate, and if they’re alluding to the singer and…

  By Owen Good Published March 29, 2010