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The Original Xbox Live…LIVES! (For Now, At Least)
The original Xbox Live service was supposed to have been shut down at midnight. But midnight has now passed, and the people playing Halo 2 online in anticipation of its demise are…still playing Halo 2. We don’t yet know whether this is a last-minute hiccup or whether Bungie and Microsoft have made a deal with…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 15, 2010 - Uncategorized
Rumor: BioShock, The MMO
According to a “a mysterious source”, game site Destructoid is reporting that 2K games is planning to release a massively-multiplayer online title based on the world of BioShock. It is of course not the first time we’ve heard this; indeed, the last time we heard about it was from 2K itself, when back in 2008…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 15, 2010 - Uncategorized
Teenage Boy Charged With Killing His Father With Sledgehammer
Near Russia’s Black Sea, a 14-year-old boy has been charged with killing his father after a row over computer games. After the killing, he then played said computer games for several hours. The boy is currently being held in a pre-trial detention center. He has no criminal record. According to regional investigators, on April 12…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 15, 2010 -
UncategorizedWhat’s The Big Deal About A New XCOM?
Yesterday, 2K jumped out from behind a bush, wearing a bloody clown suit, and surprised the crap out of us with a press release revealing a new X-Com game was in development. I was happy! Many of you, however, are not. It’s not the game’s seemingly retro aesthetic that has people upset. Nor is it…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 15, 2010 - Uncategorized
Nintendo “Piracy” Store: Now You See It, Now You Don’t
Well, that was quick. Real quick. On April 11, retail shop Otacon Village was slated to open for business. The store, located in Osaka’s geek area of Den-Den Town, featured two banners on the front of the shop that read, “R4, Majikon, TT DS”. As Kotaku posted previously, the R4 cartridge itself is not a…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 15, 2010 - Uncategorized
First Pokémon Black & White Screens
Nintendo’s latest Pocket Monster series, Black & White, will be out later this year in Japan. Here are the first official screenshots from the game. You’ve seen some of these are scans, yeah, but scans can be crappy sometimes, and this was one of those times.
By Luke Plunkett Published April 15, 2010 - Reviews
Final Fight: Double Impact Micro-Review: Take Two and Call It a Classic
Beat-em-ups of the ’80s were long on action and short on story. Like Capcom’s Final Fight, re-released this week for consoles. Just how ridiculous is the idea that a former pro rassler could be elected to high office in America? Final Fight: Double Impact, a downloadable title pairing the eponymous game (starring a mustachioed politician…
By Owen Good Published April 15, 2010 - Uncategorized
Darth Vader Contemplates One More Round Of Advance Wars
As seen on 20×200
By Luke Plunkett Published April 15, 2010 - Uncategorized
Microsoft Supplier Factory Treats Workers Like “Prisoners”
A damning report from the National Labor Committe, released earlier this week, has highlighted atrocious working conditions at Chinese company KYE Systems Corp, which among other things manufactures control pads for the Xbox 360. The NLC’s report claims that KYE, an electronics manufacturer that supplies hardware for companies like Microsoft (the firm’s biggest single customer),…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 15, 2010 -
UncategorizedDogs Show Their Inferiority When Faced With An iPad
Surely by now you’ve seen how well a cat can perform when faced with Noby Noby Boy and a virtual piano on an iPad. But what about a Welsh Corgi? Brace for massive head tilting and pure canine cowardice.
By Michael McWhertor Published April 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
Kotaku Off Topic: A Friend For Blech Beard
Hey, it’s Kotaku Off Topic, where we… aww, you’re probably playing Halo 2 on Xbox Live right now, aren’t you? Getting in those last few hours worth of original Xbox games. Fine, we’ll do tonight’s anything goes discussion without you! Hey, humans. Got any suggestions for artwork to liven up Kotaku Towers West? All I…
By Michael McWhertor Published April 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
A Who’s Who Of Who’s Having The Biggest Impact On Games
Steve Jobs? You’ve probably heard of him. Same with Nintendo president Satoru Iwata. But what about the other 48 people on Game Developer’s list of “most important contributors to the current state of the game industry”? Game Developer’s list of the 50 people attached to “important accomplishments of the last year (give or take) [..]…
By Michael McWhertor Published April 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
PlayStation Network Gets Another ‘Virtual Console’ Platform In Japan
Japanese PlayStation 3 owners are already enjoying some of the TurboGrafx-16 library, courtesy of Hudson’s “PC Engine Archives” that let modern gamers experience a handful of 16-bit classics. One more console is being added to Hudson’s list: the SuperGrafx. According to a report from Andriasang, sci-fi shooter SuperGrafx title Battle Ace will come to the…
By Michael McWhertor Published April 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
My Painful Break-Up With Games
In May of 1998 I grabbed my primitive digital camera, hopped on a MARTA train, and took my first stumbling steps as a video game journalist. A year later I wanted nothing to do with video games. I started writing for Kotaku in November of 2006, but my first role as a video game journalist…
By Mike Fahey Published April 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
Scenes From A Phantasy Star Universe Phuneral
Tonight, original Xbox games goes offline when Microsoft pulls the plug on Xbox Live support for its last-generation console. Some stalwart Phantasy Star Universe players recently experienced the pain of losing their online connection. Sega announced its plans to take the PC and PlayStation 2 versions of Phantasy Star Universe offline in January of this…
By Michael McWhertor Published April 14, 2010 -
UncategorizedGears of War 3 Trailer Is No Longer Too Gray
Enemies of desaturated color design wailed that the new Gears of War 3 trailer is too gray. To those people, I direct you to devilboy666x‘s remixed Gears 3 trailer. A new color has been added! How many more you need?
By Stephen Totilo Published April 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
Looks Like Demon’s Souls Is (Finally) Coming To Europe
European PlayStation 3 owners without the courage or wherewithal to import last year’s brilliant Demon’s Souls may be in luck. Namco Bandai appears to have picked up the brutal, dark role-playing game for your continent. A new listing at Germany’s Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle ratings board all but confirms the long nightmarish wait for Demon’s Souls for…
By Michael McWhertor Published April 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
Today’s Update On The Great Modern Warfare Developer Bailout
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 developer Infinity Ward continues its slow crumble today with the departure of two more key team members, sources close to the studio tell Kotaku. Longtime Infinity Ward employees Mark Grigsby and Paul Messerly have both left the studio, the team’s lead animator and lead character animator, respectively. Grigsby had…
By Michael McWhertor Published April 14, 2010