Tune In, Call Up, Talk Back: It’s Time For Kotaku Talk Radio

In this week’s episode of Kotaku Talk Radio we’ll be talking about Blizzcon, used game sales, World of Warcraft‘s latest expansion, why some people need to stop complaining about Playstation 3 Slim and a taste of an upcoming chip tune concert in San Francisco. To listen, head over to our BlogTalkRadio page. Unfortunately, you can…

Amazon Does Video Game Deals This Friday

Tired of arriving late to the Amazon deals party? Well now you’ve got two days to prepare for Amazon’s next all video games Gold Box event. You should all know how this works by now, but just in case we’ll explain. At 12:01AM Pacific time on Friday, August 28th, Amazon will post a special discounted…

2K Play Brings Indie Games To Live Arcade

Forget Xbox Live Indie Games. 2K Games is bringing independent titles to Xbox Live Arcade directly, with The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom and Axel & Pixel due out this fall. The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom and Axel & Pixel are two games you wouldn’t expect to come from 2K, but they certainly seem to be…

Diablo III’s Witch Doctor Conjures Up Memories, Concerns

Played for a bit at last week’s Gamescom, I found my short time with Diablo III’s Witch Doctor initially exhilarating, but over time it left me questioning what exactly I liked about Blizzard’s famed franchise. The Witch Doctor, Blizzard tells us, dispatches opponents with “terrifying precision, assaulting his victim’s mind and body with elixirs and…

Megan Fox Wants To Play Transformers With You

You’ll be a sentient robot that can transform into a vehicle, and she’ll play one of Hollywood’s hottest young actresses despite that weird thumb. Megan Fox takes on all comers this weekend on Xbox Live. Perhaps the thumb will be to Miss Fox’s advantage in Saturday’s Game with Fame session, during which she’ll be challenging…

Funcom’s The Secret World Becomes Less Secret At PAX

We’ve been chomping at the bit for more on Funcom’s modern-day MMO The Secret World ever since the milkshake-ruining trailer appeared in April, and the developer plans to deliver at this year’s PAX. Instead of bringing the player to the fantasy, The Secret World brings the fantasy to the player, taking place in a modern…

Cosplay Shodown: Gamescom Vs. BlizzCon

August was packed to the gills with conventions. And conventions mean cosplay. But who had the best in August? BlizzCon’s “purple girl” seems to be leading the charge for all things Warcraft, while in Germany the all-female cast of Metal Gear Solid were rocking Gamescom. Here’s your chance to decide which of the gatherings brought…

Red Faction: Guerrilla’s New Bagman Mode Explained

So what’s this new Bagman multiplayer mode coming in next month’s Red Faction Guerrilla Multiplayer Pack? This trailer explains it all. I’m a little bit worried about playing a game over Xbox Live Arcade or the PlayStation network that requires players to keep hold of a bag. If the reasoning behind my trepidation isn’t abundantly…

@Brian Crecente: Well, this letter’s not supposed to be for people who necessarily agree. It’s like the persuasive writing jive we learned in school, ”as with a girl’s skirt, keep it long enough to cover the subject, and short enough to keep it interesting”.

Those Hot Xbox Live Arcade Peggle Nights

What could possibly be better than Peggle on Xbox Live Arcade? More Peggle on Xbox Live Arcade! PopCap Games has announced a Peggle Nights expansion, doubling the size of the original release. While Peggle Nights for the PC was a standalone title, the game being released this fall in the form of an expansion pack…

Guest Op/Ed: Toxics, Electronics and Why Consoles Matter

Here at Greenpeace we’re no strangers to controversy. Sparking it is part of the reason we exist: sometimes it’s the only way to raise an issue up in the public dialogue to a point where a discussion is had, a decision gets made, and action taken. And that’s what our work on games consoles is…

Talk Amongst Yourselves

We’re in the first Pinata-free gaming year since 2005. Bummer. Overcome your sorrow and comment here about video games. Confused about commenting on Kotaku? Read our FAQ.

This Meat Is So Raw, So Red And Oh So Meaty

To: Crecente From: Bashcraft RE: Death By Fire Alarm Best thing about living close to Kobe? Kobe beef. De-licious. What you missed last night Venezuelan Politicians Trying To Ban Violent Video Games Evony Devs Sound A Bit Iffy Tearing The PS3 Slim To Pieces, Just To See What Its Insides Look Like Sega: Yes, Bayonetta…

FASA’s Dev Culture Was “Destroyed” By Microsoft

The name “FASA Interactive” will be familiar to anyone who loved them some Mechwarrior back in the day. Sadly, they’re no more, having been shut down by Microsoft, who bought the company in 1999. Bought then, allegedly, ruined. FASA founder Jordan Weisman has said that once Microsoft bought the studio, things changed. When Microsoft bought…

Defense Grid Powers Up On Xbox Live Arcade

I loved Plants vs Zombies, but it’s not my favourite tower defence game. Nope. That honour goes to Defense Grid, which I’m happy to hear will soon be making an appearance on Xbox Live Arcade. It’s due on September 2, and will be sold for the entirely reasonable price of 800 MSP ($10), especially when…

Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 Ad: “Japanese Women Are Frightening”

Developer Tecmo has tongue planted firmly in cheek for this Ninja Gaiden Σ 2 spot that is a send off of a Japanese shampoo ad. Tecmo uses the tag line "The women of Japan are frightening" (日本の女性は、恐ろしい。) as it shows the lovely ladies of Σ: 2 slicing up bad dudes. The phrasing is a parody…

Inside Dubai’s Sega Fun Park

Sega’s massive new Middle Eastern fun park opened its doors earlier this month, and already, die-hard Sega fans have popped in, cameras in hand, to see what it’s like. And it’s…well, it’s less of a fun park, more an over-sized arcade, as aside from a few large rides the focus appears to be squarely on…

Square Enix Doesn’t See PS3 Price Cut Impact This Year

……but the company sees a big impact next year. When does Final Fantasy XIII come out again? Oh right, this winter. According to Square Enix honcho Yoichi Wada, the cheaper US$299 PS3 will spur game sales, but not enough for the company to revise this year’s financial forecast. “In terms of the impact (the PS3…

Stream Hulu, Netflix To Your Wii

MediaMall’s PlayOn service (already on 360 & PS3) is about to enter “open” beta for the Wii, which is good news for owners looking to expand their machine’s usefulness. Why? Because it streams both Netflix and Hulu, that’s why. It does this by acting as a bridge-building web interface, so you’re basically just using both…

Is Capcom Working On A New Okami?

In 2006, former Capcom subsidiary Clover Studios released the critically acclaimed PS2 title Okami, or 大神 in Japanese. The game’s title, Okami, is a Japanese pun: Written as 大神 in Japanese kanji, okami means “god”, but “okami” written as 狼 means “wolf”. The main character of the game is a manifestation of the god Amaterasu…