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The Difference Between Scary and Horror
I have a fear of horror films, and by extension horror games. I’m just too attenuated to suspense and having the hell scared out of me. But what I’m really experiencing, argues one writer, is just that: scary, not horror. Craig Lager, at Gaming Daily, points out the real differences in the two themes in…
By Owen Good Published March 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
Exultant Farmville Developer Is Only Joking About A Farmville Movie, Right?
Zynga’s Bill Mooney obtained the 2010 Game Developer’s Choice Award for Farmville in the Best Social/Online Game category. To celebrate, he allowed Kotaku to brainstorm with him about world domination, Farmville: The Movie and … I got Pokemon tips. This is one of a series of Kotaku video interviews with many of the award-winners and…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
Three Sony Devs Switch Over to Valve — Three Years Ago [Corrected]
A story out there that three former top employees at Naughty Dog have joined Valve is true. It’s also three years old. The site PlayStation Lifestyle put up the item yesterday. Kotaku linked over to it earlier this morning. A quick check of their LinkedIn CVs notes these guys all joined Valve between 2006 and…
By Owen Good Published March 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
Microsoft Seeks to Patent the DLC Upsell
A recent patent application describes a process in which an Xbox Live gamer, invited to a multiplayer session, but missing a critical piece to play (a map, a track, whatever), is offered and may buy it without dropping the invitation. There probably is something patentable in the technology that manages such an online state, which…
By Owen Good Published March 14, 2010 - Culture
Sunday Comics
Penny Arcade published March 10 PvPonline published March 9 ActionTrip published March 8 GU Comics published March 12 Ctrl+Alt+Del published March 11 Dueling Analogs published March 11 Nerf NOW published March 10 Rooster Teeth published March 9 Monday Night Crew published March 8 Virtual Shackles published March 8 Little Gamers published March 11 Dotgif published…
By Owen Good Published March 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
Kotaku Off-Topic: Butt Drugs and Dudu Chili
Yeah, a headline like that, you wanna know what’s inside, not what pointless thing happened to me at a stoplight yesterday. Although I did see a green-and-gold Oakland A’s Lincoln Town Car yesterday and it was so awesome I wept. As our friends at Deadspin pointed out earlier this week, the 2010 Name of the…
By Owen Good Published March 14, 2010 - Uncategorized
Victorious Torchlight Creators Like The Idea Of Torchlight 2
Two of the creators of PC darling Torchlight won the Best Debut Game trophy at the 2010 Game Developer’s Choice Awards. Backstage after winning, they explained how to succeed on PC, considered Torchlight 2, and … I got Pokemon tips. This is one of a series of Kotaku video interviews with many of the award-winners…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Two Surprise PlayStation Move Maneuvers
We’ve been trying to notice every little thing about the PlayStation Move this week. Each detail is telling. Here are two surprise Move maneuvers I witnessed during demos of Move this past week at Game Developers Conference. 1) The XMB Maneuver — I watched a developer use the swinging motions of the PlayStation Move controller…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Monaco Award-Winner Celebrates, Warns Of Potential Nut-Kicking
Andy Schatz won the top award at the Independent Games Festival for Monaco, a wonderful four-player heist game. Backstage after the win, Kotaku learned Monaco’s future, why Schatz might kick someone in the nuts, and … I got Pokemon tips. This is one of a series of Kotaku video interviews with many of the award-winners…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Kotaku ‘Shop Contest: Hard Times Edition Winners
This past week we took stock of the terrible economy and pondered all the horrible side gigs, endorsements and moonlighting jobs video game characters have been forced to accept just to put bread on the table. 2c-b had the best of the quick-and-dirty sign swaps, because putting methadone with Mario is on-its-face funny. Patient, lots…
By Owen Good Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
2K Sports Finishes Multiplayer Fix Patch
The patch that presumably will solve MLB 2K10’s connectivity problems in online multiplayer has been finished and submitted for certification on the Xbox 360, meaning the fix should be arriving shortly. There are no details on what the patch will entail but a multiplayer fix has got to be among them. I can suggest a…
By Owen Good Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Mass Effect 2 Carried Over 700 Plot “Hooks” From Original Game Saves
Players of the original Mass Effect had a big impact on the story of the second, if they imported their character save from the first game. BioWare imported some 700 player choices and associated plot points into Mass Effect 2. BioWare lead cinematic designer Armando Troisi said during today’s Mass Effect 2 Game Developers Conference…
By Michael McWhertor Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Guess Which Nintendo Game Spore’s Creator Plays Most In His Life
Speaking to a packed house at the conclusion of the Game Developers Conference this weekend, famed game developer Will Wright told the crowd he plays a Nintendo game everyone morning to kick off his day. Every morning, Wright said, he gets up and has a cup of coffee. “While I drink my coffee I pull…
By Brian Crecente Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Modern Warfare 2’s “Stimulus Package” Brings Back Two Classic Maps
An early listing of the Modern Warfare 2 “Stimulus Package” on the Xbox Live Marketplace web site reveals it is comprised of five maps, two of them old favorites from the first Modern Warfare The Stimulus Package isn’t due out until March 30 on the Xbox 360 (dates for the PC and PS3 versions are…
By Owen Good Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
What Comes After Dirt 2? Dirt 3, Of Course
After following up Dirt with Dirt 2 last year, the studio behind the rally racer confirms that it’s working on a Dirt 3 Gavin Cheshire, the vice president of Codemasters Studios, told Edge magazine that the U.K. publisher is indeed working on a sequel. Characterizing Dirt as a reboot (of the Colin McRae Rally series)…
By Owen Good Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
PlayStation Home Now 12 Million Users Strong
PlayStation Home director Jack Buser bragged about the social network’s latest population accomplishment, saying that Sony now has an impressive 12 million users signed up for the service worldwide. Why was Sony broadcasting that particular figure at GDC? Buser was courting developers looking for a new platform, part of Sony’s attempts to transform its 3D…
By Michael McWhertor Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Medal of Honor Trailer: A Breakfast of Rehashed Grit
Something tells me that most every Medal of Honor trailer between now and its release is going to feature the kicking-the-booby-trapped-torture-victim-out-the-window sequence. It’s compelling, sure, but not after seeing it the second time. That is just a small component of this two-minute video, which Totilo mentioned would go live this week in an earlier writeup…
By Owen Good Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Do You Want Gears of War 3 To Look Like This?
Epic Games makes Gears of War and, if Kotaku had to guess, maybe someday a sequel. At Game Developers Conference, Epic showed their latest Unreal game engine upgrades, including fancy foliage tech, pictured here. Want it in a Gears?
By Stephen Totilo Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Overcoming a New Fear of Old Failures … and Vice Versa
This is heresy to the cults of both sports and video gaming, but I’d really rather gnaw off my fingers at the first knuckle than play a human in either. This goes back a long ways, longer in real sports than in the computer, of course. On an organized level, my sole team sport has…
By Owen Good Published March 13, 2010 - Uncategorized
Wait a Minute, $200 — for a Faceplate?
Two years ago, Xbox Live gave away 72 limited edition Xbox 360 faceplates with a Need For Speed: ProStreet design. Some guy decided to get rid of his on eBay and has found it commands a price above $200. The seller, out of Queens, N.Y., billed it as an “extremely rare” collectible but listed it…
By Owen Good Published March 13, 2010