• Reviews

  Avatar: The Game Micro-Review: Palm-size Pandora

  As expected, James Cameron’s latest blockbuster brings with it a tie-in title for every platform but the George Foreman Grill. The latest lands the Pandorian-plundering humans on the iPhone, pitting them against your playable Na’vi avatar in a story set years before the film’s narrative. After coming away from the 360 version feeling as though…

  matt cabral Published December 29, 2009
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  Dragon Age Returns To Ostagar Next Week

  Return to the scene of a king’s downfall with the release Return to Ostagar, the latest downloadable content for Dragon Age: Origins, due out next week for the PC and Xbox 360. Ostagar is the very first area you visit in Dragon Age: Origins once you make it through your character’s original story, though shortly…

  By Mike Fahey Published December 29, 2009
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  It’s Not Too Late For An 8-Bit Christmas

  Christmas 2009 may have come and gone, but you’ve still got two days two days to order the perfect gift for the retro gamer in your life – RetroZone’s 8 Bit Xmas 2009. 8 Bit Xmas 2 is a new NES cartridge from RetroZone crafted specifically for the holiday season. Built using completely new parts,…

  By Mike Fahey Published December 29, 2009
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  iPhone Chart Toppers: Zombies Versus Marines in Spaaaaaace

  Despite NOVA’s popularity, and all around fun gameplay, World at War Zombies managed to topple the Halo knock-off from the top of the iPhone charts this week. I’ve been playing both quite a bit and can see the draw for either game. Here’s the full list. Which do you think should be the top game?…

  By Brian Crecente Published December 29, 2009
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  Steam Sold Out Of Prey, Please Try Again Later

  One of the advantages of digital distribution is that you’ll never run into a sold out sign – or so we thought. Steam seems to have completely run out of 2K’s Prey. Who knew? 2K’s futuristic alien shooter Prey was part of the ongoing Steam end-of-the-year sale, until they ran out. That’s right, Steam is…

  By Mike Fahey Published December 29, 2009
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  Halfbrick Sets The Blast Off Soundtrack Free

  As a way of saying thanks to all of the fans who made Halfbrick Studios Blast Off the most successful and critically acclaimed PSP mini title to date, the developer has released the suitably mini soundtrack for free. PSP minis are about quality over quantity, and Blast Off is the poster game for the concept,…

  By Mike Fahey Published December 29, 2009
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  It’s a Steal

  As seen at a game importer in Australia, where GTA IV was released with some content removed.

  By Brian Crecente Published December 29, 2009
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  SouthPeak Carries Blood Bowl Across Goal Line

  Cyanide Studios‘ Blood Bowl scores a retail release next year courtesy of SouthPeak Interactive, carrying the video game adaptation of Games Workshop’s fantasy football board game to the Xbox 360, PC, and PlayStation Portable. Blood Bowl is a game of real fantasy football, with races from the Warhammer universe taking on each other in brutal…

  By Mike Fahey Published December 29, 2009
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  Christmas Was Very Good To Forza 3

  Forza Motorsport 3 was on quite a few Christmas lists this year it seems, with developer Turn 10 reporting a massive influx of new players over the holiday weekend. As far as gifting video games goes, racing games are easy. You generally know if your loved one is a racing fan, and if they owned…

  By Mike Fahey Published December 29, 2009
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  A Frag Without the Fest: If Chess Was a Shooter

  First-person shooters are great and all. But they’re no where near the size of real-world military conflicts. In reality, they play more like isolated firefights than all-out war, according to CJ Heine, lead designer at Zipper Interactive. “The scale has always been missing,” he says. For example, when you see tracer fire and hear gunshots…

  Blake Snow Published December 29, 2009
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  GOOD BYE AMERICA

  To: Crecente From: Bashcraft We had a wonderful time with the Americans. Rather, Texans. Heh. T_T Bout to hop on a plane to Japan — have a feeling the kids won’t be sleeping on the flight as they slept all night. The flight should be…interesting. What you missed last night Capcom Still Burning Over Bionic…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009
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  Sengoku BASARA Warring Giant Heads

  Japan loves Capcom’s series Sengoku BASARA (Devil Kings in the West). It loves it! Sengoku BASARA has spawned manga, anime and even stage productions. And now, cute Kotobukiya big-head mini figures. Because Japan loves little people with giant heads. Priced at ¥630 each, they are slated for next February and March. ［コミケ77］コトブキヤブースの小さな『戦国BASARA』の武将達（写真ギャラリー） [Kotaku Japan]

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009
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  Comiket’s Sexy Pikachu Girl And Friends

  It’s late December, which means one thing. No, it actually means several things — one of which is that it is Comic Market time in Japan. Cosplayers came out in droves, and Kotaku Japan has galleries up: here and here. And reader tsukasa1288 sent along photos that document some of this year’s Comic Market cosplay.…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009
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  Let’s Watch Some Fist Of The North Star Musou Game Play Footage

  Why not? The game looks delightful. In March 2010, Tecmo Koei is bringing post-apocalyptic martial arts manga Fist of the North Star (Hokuto no Ken) to the PS3 and the Xbox 360 in Japan. The game has been titled Hokuto Musou, and is part of Koei’s popular “Musou” series of games. The manga Fist of…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009
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  Which Final Fantasy Game Do These FFXIII Launch Customers Love?

  On December 17, Japanese game site Gpara asked the first hundred customers waiting in line for Final Fantasy XIII at Shibuya retailer TSUTAYA to name their top three favorite FF games. And today, Gpara is publishing the results. 13.) Final Fantasy II: 2 votes 12.) Final Fantasy XI: 3 votes 11.) Final Fantasy: 3 votes…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009
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  Square Enix Patents New Battle System

  Square Enix designer Tetsuya Nomura recently announced that he is working on unannounced projects — one of which is a brand new title. Could this latest patent shed light onto that? It’s too early to tell; however, this patent application lists Tetsuya Nomura as the inventor of a character switching battle system for RPG/action RPG…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009
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  The Cosplayers of Kotaku

  Following on the footsteps of our cosplay feature, here is a look at some of the cosplayers who read this site, featuring: ZerinaX, WoggyWooWoo, Yummy, startoonhero, Tzion, muburkit, Clarke, SHIMATTA-BAKA-NI, micahmidnight, Zanduar in AfterlifeUSEC, Natalie, Cody_Mau, Minion21g, Steffa, Anne, Shelly, Chinako, Rhys Berresford and HezaChan.

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009
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  Japanese Arcade Themed Like China’s Back Streets

  According to reader Landon, a game center in Kawasaki, Japan is themed like “the backstreets of China”. Tokyo-based Landon says this is the first time he’s been this blown away by an arcade in Japan. “It’s 18 years old and up, extremely dark and dirty, and basically looks like what an arcade would if it…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009
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  NSFW: A Phantasy Star Portable 2 Character Forgot Something

  Panty shots of video game characters? Like the rising sun, inevitable, and we’ve seen them before. But what about this? Discerning individuals on the Japanese internet have noticed that while Phantasy Star Portable 2 offers glimpses of a wide array of under garments, there appears to be at least one character who has forgotten something.…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009
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  South Korea’s First Person Shooting In 3D World

  Located in Seoul’s Yongsan Station, FPS World gives Koreans a chance to wield airsoft versions of Berettas and Desert Eagles — 3D versions of the guns they fire in shooters like Counter Strike. FPS World is a modern spin on the pop-up shooting gallery with a gaming-themed spin. “I gave it a try and for…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2009