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  In Defense Of The Classic Controller

  By Leigh Alexander. At the E3 debut of Project Natal, Microsoft’s Don Mattrick called the controllers we’ve known and loved “a barrier separating video game players from everyone else.” Wait. Isn’t that the point? Should video game controllers really disappear? We’ve heard a million times about how the cultural presence of games is growing exponentially…

  By Stephen Totilo Published June 29, 2009
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  QuakeCon 2009 Is Going To The Gaylord

  id Software‘s annual gathering of Quake, Doom and Wolfenstein fans will happen August 13th to August 16th. And it will happen at a new location, the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine, Texas. QuakeCon festivities were previously announced to throw down at the Hilton Anatole Hotel, but it appears that id Software and company have had a…

  By Michael McWhertor Published June 29, 2009
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  Doom Resurrection: The iPhone Game That Nearly Wasn’t

  With the rail-shooter Doom Resurrection for the iPhone hitting the App Store at any moment, Kotaku spoke to John Carmack about design decisions, multiplayer, and why the game was nearly canceled months into development. id Software‘s John Carmack is one of the masterminds behind some of the greatest first-person shooters of all time, often referred…

  By Mike Fahey Published June 29, 2009
• Reviews

  The Conduit Review: A Bland, But Enjoyable Shooter

  In Sega’s The Conduit, you play as a pawn in a vast conspiracy involving aliens, shadowy government agencies, and the president of the United States. But the Wii-exclusive first-person shooter hopes to win gamers over not with its plot and known voice talent, but its nuanced controls and solid multiplayer gaming. With the ability to…

  By Brian Crecente Published June 29, 2009
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  Ogle Blizzard HQ’s Epically Mounted Orc

  World of Warcraft developer Blizzard moved into its new Irvine, California digs in late 2007, 240,000 square feet worth of space in which to develop more Starcraft, Diablo and WarCraft. This year, Blizzard headquarters added some lovely Orc art. The bronze Warcraft statue measures some twelve feet in height. It moved onto the Blizzard campus…

  By Michael McWhertor Published June 29, 2009
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  This Week On Live Arcade: Worms And The King Of Fighters

  Two completely different types of combat hit the Xbox Live Arcade service this week, with Worms 2: Armageddon and The King of Fighters ’98 Ultimate Match. Worms 2: Armageddon is the sequel to Worms Armageddon, released 10 years ago for the Dreamcast, PC, PlayStation, and Nintendo 64. The gameplay is tried and true: use various…

  By Mike Fahey Published June 29, 2009
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  Would Natal Enable User-Generated Mo-Cap?

  Let’s start the week with a million-dollar-idea, courtesy of Kotaku, offered for free. An idea’s been rattling in my head I’d like to share (reader warning: I’m home sick today). It’s an idea for the Xbox 360‘s controller-free control system, Project Natal, for which I’ve been able to get no official comment. Perhaps folks don’t…

  By Stephen Totilo Published June 29, 2009
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  Marvel VS Capcom 2: Claws Versus Fireballs

  So Marvel VS Capcom 2 isn’t coming until the end of July. That just means more time for Capcom to release promotional strategy videos! While I’m not sure what the above clip is supposed to be, I do know the ones below are demonstrating how to handle the game’s two most iconic characters in head-to-head…

  By Mike Fahey Published June 29, 2009
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  Monkey Island’s Ron Gilbert to Keynote PAX

  Maniac Mansion and Monkey Island creator Ron Gilbert plans to keynote the sixth annual Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle in September, the organizers said today. “This is an unbelievable moment for us,” Penny Arcade’s Robert Khoo said. “I wasted an entire family vacation one year trying to figure out how to win that stupid spitting…

  By Brian Crecente Published June 29, 2009
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  Blame WoW For Starcraft II’s Late, Late Release

  Blizzard’s Starcraft was released in 1998. It’s sequel, Starcraft II, won’t be out until at least 2009. Why the hold-up? Blame World of Warcraft. Rob Pardo has told Eurogamer that development on Starcraft II began in 2003, and there’s been a playable build since 2005. But then along came World of Warcraft. One of the…

  By Luke Plunkett Published June 29, 2009
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  Celebrate Independence Day With The Sacktue Of Liberty

  Give us your poor, your tired, your huddled masses longing to be free, and Media Molecule will give them a free costume that embodies their hopes and dreams in LittleBigPlanet. Media Molecule follows up last week’s free druid costume with another new outfit for your sackboy, or perhaps sackgirl, in this case. The Sacktue of…

  By Mike Fahey Published June 29, 2009
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  THQ: Who Needs a Diverse Portfolio

  Last week THQ announced that they were dividing up the company into three divisions, core, online, kids and famiily and casual games. The decision seems to put an end to what some viewed as THQ’s attempt at breaking into the mega-publishing business with the like of EA, Activision and Ubisoft. Games Industry talked to THQ’s…

  By Brian Crecente Published June 29, 2009
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  Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Launch Trailer

  Tomorrow you can play the game based on the upcoming movie based on the book you’ve probably already read, in EA’s Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Harry gets stronger, magical crimes run rampant, and a guy sharing a name with my cat Rufus takes over as Minister of Magic in the sixth book of…

  By Mike Fahey Published June 29, 2009
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  Pre-Buy The Next Final Fantasy XI Scenario Next Week

  While there’s no word on when you can play the second of three new Final Fantasy XI scenarios. A Moogle Kupo d’Etat – Evil in Small Doses, now we know when you can buy it. Starting on July 5th, Final Fantasy XI players will be able to purchase the follow-up to A Crystalline Prophecy –…

  By Mike Fahey Published June 29, 2009
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  Halo ODST Features An Open World, “Reach” Could Use Natal Tech

  Upcoming Bungie shooter Halo ODST won’t be a straight-forward linear shooter, rather blending elements of traditional shooters with the open world exploration of Grand Theft Auto, Bungie told he Seattle Times in a recent interview. “We’re doing a lot of pretty neat things in terms of mixing it up, introducing some non-linearity, some free exploration,”…

  By Brian Crecente Published June 29, 2009
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  Fragile Breaks Into Europe With Rising Star

  Celebrate the newly-announced European release for Tri Crescendo‘s Wii RPG Fragile: Farewell Ruins of the Moon, with a batch of new screens courtesy of publisher Rising Star Games. So Fragile is making it to the states courtesy of XSEED, and now Europe is getting the game sometime in the first quarter of 2010 via Rising…

  By Mike Fahey Published June 29, 2009
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  The Nintendo Download: Summertime In The Fantasy Zone

  It’s summertime, and on top of the usual crop of random puzzle games and a return to the Fantasy Zone, Nintendo has a couple of games available for download today that accurately simulate being outside. What’s outside, you ask? No earthly clue. As far as I am concerned my world ends at that heavy curtain…

  By Mike Fahey Published June 29, 2009
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  MTV Lands Former THQ Veep

  Scott Guthrie, former executive vice president of publishing THQ, was named MTV Games new executive vice president and general manager today. MTV Games also named former Sony Computer Entertainment America sales and merch director David Cox as their senior vice president of sales. “With our acquisition of Harmonix to our relationship with Jerry Bruckheimer Games,…

  By Brian Crecente Published June 29, 2009
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  Talk Amongst Yourselves

  A fraction of your Kotaku team is under the weather today and has spread his germs to our favorite yellow-hatted bunch. Drink plenty of fluids, and please comment about video games here. Confused about commenting on Kotaku? Read our FAQ.

  By Stephen Totilo Published June 29, 2009
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  Let’s Try Shiso Pepsi!

  To: Crecente From: Bashcraft …like shiso. I love me some shisho, but fizzy Pepsi shiso? It’s drinkable, but more of a novelty. Less mouthwashy than the cucumber Pepsi released a few years back, maybe even “good”… Think I’m going to have another glass! Noooooooooooooooooooooooo. What you missed last night StarCraft II Hands-On: Round Three StarCraft…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published June 29, 2009