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Lights Down Low for NHL 2K10
Ten new screens from NHL 2K10 went out the door yesterday, spotlighting pre-game festivities at four arenas, and closeups of some league standouts whose names you’ll be hearing quite a bit. This gallery shows you the dimmed lights in Columbus, Ottawa, Montreal and Pittsburgh (helpfully reminding us of their 2009 Stanley Cup Triumph). Closeups include…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Chainsaw Finally Coming to Castle Crashers
The Behemoth confirmed yesterday that the long-awaited Chainsaw weapon will be part of an upcoming, yet undated, DLC. It’s “Necomantic,” boogie-woogie-woogie. The pack includes two new characters – the Necomancer (natch) and the Cult Minion. There will also be a new Animal Orb – the Dragonhead, and two weapons: the NG Skull Mace and the…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
BlizzCon Costume Contest: Jay Mohr Craves Blue Elf Sex
Comedian Jay Mohr was in rare form last night during the BlizzCon 09 costume contest, bringing new meaning to the phrase, “working blue.” The costume contest, much like the opening ceremonies earlier yesterday, was completely packed with Blizzard fans eager to see women painted blue, and the event did not disappoint. Drenai, Blood Elves, Night…
By Mike Fahey Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Local Gym About to Get a Letter from Nintendo
Looking to buff up or slim down in Tucson? Check out WE-FIT. If you have trouble finding it, it’s the gym at 6437 N. Oracle Road – since that name might change in the future. Reader Martin sent us the link, and says the gym has been wallpapering local TV with ads. Good for them.…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
BlizzCon 2009: The Show So Far
With BlizzCon 2009 day two in full swing, let’s take a look at what went on during day one, from start to Cataclysmic finish. Day one of BlizzCon actually started with day 0, when we got a peek inside this year’s swag bag, revealing its full Space Marine, hand sanitizer glory. Between that and our…
By Mike Fahey Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
In Moral Debate About Shadow Complex, Both Sides Have Their Say
Kim Wong refuses to buy the new Xbox 360 game Shadow Complex. Revolted by the political views of a novelist associated with the game, the 27-year old gamer’s conscience holds him back. But there’s another side to the story. For the past week or so, some gamers and game reporters online have begun discussing the…
By Stephen Totilo Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Mass Effect 2 Hands On: Shepard Strikes Back
The extent of my own experience with the original Mass Effect has totaled no more than an hour. After having played Mass Effect 2 at Gamescom, I now feel obligated to remedy that and revisit BioWare’s sci-fi RPG. The Mass Effect 2 demo at Gamescom began with a dialogue tree, a conversation between Commander Shepard…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Analysts Get to Speculating on 360 Slim
This is like U.S. presidential elections. No sooner do we have a conclusion to a two-year orgy of rumor and speculation than another immediately begins. But a sampling of analysts turn up some who believe that, sure, Microsoft will follow suit with an Xbox 360 slimline design. The pros for such a move: If the…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Aussie Prof Connects a Lot of Dots Between Games and Gamblin’
A study of young people who are also pathological gamers, sooprise, turns up a connection to video games, in a report on Australia’s ABC News. Notably, however, another researcher knocks down the suggestion of a causal link. Paul Delfabbro of the University of Adelaide led a team studying more than 2,500 Australian teens, more than…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Gran Turismo 5 Hands-On: Doin’ Damage Ain’t Easy
Sony had a playable version of Gran Turismo 5 at Gamescom, a brief and very limited demo that offered a look at one feature fans have been requesting for years—car damage. Well, we certainly damaged that Subaru Impreza. My technique for soliciting that damage was simply “drive as normal.” That meant running into walls and…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Weekend Reader: Questions Asked by a Virtual Jihadi
Typically, the controversy over “Virtual Jihadi” – a mod of a skin of 2003’s budget-bin jingoist shooter Quest for Saddam – deals more with free speech and abuse of authority rather than what the game asks its players to consider. Even without the actions of Troy, N.Y. officials against the mod’s creator, and those hosting…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Why Blizzard Can’t Just Sell More BlizzCon Tickets
With BlizzCon tickets selling out within minutes again this year, fans wonder why the company doesn’t just sell more tickets. After yesterday’s opening ceremonies, the reason become abundantly clear. The picture above was taken holding my camera high amidst the press of bodies trying to either get in or out of the main hall. Some…
By Mike Fahey Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
World at War Map Pack 3 Surpasses … One Million Downloads
And that’s in its first weekend of availability. Activision announced yesterday that Call of Duty: World at War Map Pack 3 registered more than a million paid downloads through Xbox Live and PSN from Aug. 6 to Aug. 9. The seven-figure weekend brings to 6.5 million the worldwide downloads of World at War map packs,…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Guys Wanna Have Fun Too
E3 may be the first big show of the year and Tokyo Game Show may have the attraction of Japan and Otaku, but Germany is the only wacky video game show on the planet. Want proof? Press play and enjoy a little Just Dance gameplay footage.
By Brian Crecente Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
In a League of Your Own, Where Your Word is Law
For widely divergent reasons, a lot of people think neither Brett Favre nor Michael Vick should be playing in the National Football League this year. There’s only one place where they can do anything about it though. Their game console. If you find Favre’s narcissism, serial retirements and scheming against his former team offensive, you…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Weekend Coupons: Rent to Own
There are about 48 hours left on a big GameFly sale. Also, Fallout’s PC catalog (pre FO3) arrived on Steam in a package deal. These lovely prizes and more can be yours, if the price is right. • GameFly subscribers, there’s a large sale going on for games no one wants console classics, through Monday.…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Kotaku Originals: Slim Goodbody
No doubt about it, this was Sony’s week, as the PS3 Slim’s arrival dominated the news out of Gamescom – one of three expositions on two continents where we have or had writers in the past week. Totilo went to QuakeCon, Fahey’s now at BlizzCon, and though Gamescom is wrapping up in Cologne, by no…
By Owen Good Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
James Cameron’s Avatar: The Game Impressions Of Mass Slaughter
James Cameron’s Avatar is getting a video game adaptation courtesy of Ubisoft, complete with movie appropriate stereoscopic 3D, should you have a TV that supports such a thing. For those without, expect stock third-person shooter action meets alien genocide. In Avatar, you’ll play as an RDA soldier, essentially tasked with killing every indigenous life form…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 22, 2009 - Uncategorized
Gallery: Gamescom’s Sony Hall
It’s not really Sony’s hall, it just feels that way. If you want to check out all of the things that Sony has set up at their mammoth Gamescom booth here in Cologne, hit up this gallery. Otherwise check-out everything else stuffed into the hall, from Ubisoft and Nerf to Def Jam Rapstar.
By Brian Crecente Published August 22, 2009