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IRS Official Recommends Policy on Virtual World Transactions
The IRS’ taxpayer advocate has suggested the agency take a proactive posture toward real money transactions (RMT) in virtual worlds. “Proactive posture,” in IRS speak, means “tax it.” In her annual report, Nina Olson, whose job is to recommend to the IRS “how to improve the average consumer’s tax-paying process,” noted that more than $1…
By Owen Good Published January 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
Second-Life Hooker Bares All
“We have street prostitution here in Italy, and I have always wanted to be one of them,” says “Palela Anderson,” who is a high priced escort in Second Life. “As a teenager I would watch these sexy women walking the streets, waiting for the cars to stop, teasing the guys, and then hopping in and…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
CES 09: Hands On With Mad Catz’s SFIV FightStick & FightPad
If a $150 arcade stick is too rich for your blood, accessory maker Mad Catz has a few other options for the fighting game fan not content with the standard Xbox 360 or PS3 controller. Frankly, neither option is as quite as magical as the Street Fighter IV-branded Tournament Edition Arcade FightStick controller, but for…
By Michael McWhertor Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Baltimore Pol Indicted Over PS2 Controller
In part. One of 12 counts against Charm City’s Mayor accuses her of soliciting donations of gift cards for the needy over the holidays, then using them to buy a PSP and a PS2 controller. Sheila Dixon’s facing a 12-count indictment handed down by a Baltimore grand jury, alleging perjury, official misconduct, fraud and theft,…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Rumor: EA Planning More Layoffs, Mobile Division Already Hit
Electronic Arts may have additional layoffs planned for the new year, as a source at the company tells us that the publisher is planning to lay off 400 more employees by the end of March. Whether that’s on top of the 1,000 employees EA already announced it would let go as part of a restructuring…
By Michael McWhertor Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
A Case for Indie Development on Mac and Linux
MacOS and Linux’s install base is dwarfed by Windows, so in terms of which platform to develop for, that ends the argument right there. Right? Wrong, says Wolfire Games‘ Jeff Rosen. His case is largely for the indie community, and anyone seeking growth — so it’s not a challenge to the top publishers to take…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Here’s a Baseball Bat. Oh, by the Way, You Won
We’ve gotten more than one note that Grand Theft Auto IV bats are arriving as prizes for a contest no one was ever told they’d won. At least, that’s what we think this is. Maybe it’s a message? Way back in the 1980s I saw this episode of Philip Marlowe: Private Eye on HBO and…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Amazon’s Dealing Games All Day Monday
Frugal gamers, keep an eye on Amazon Monday. The mega-retailer is offering a day full of Gold Box video game deals – probably to clear holiday stock, but there might be something you want. Cheap. You know the Gold Box drill – it begins at 6 a.m. PST (9 a.m. Eastern) with one deal that’ll…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 -
UncategorizedStop Motion Street Fighter
What do you get with one borked SNES and two bored geeks? Stop-motion Street Fighter action figure battles. Fight! Jacob Karsemeyer of Pushing Play sent this along. He and classmate Sam Klass filmed it in a college multimedia course. “Turns out stop motion is one of the most painstakingly laborious mediums to work with,” he…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Donkey Kong Wins Quilting Bee
I’d like to think of a sewing circle of eight platinum-haired, bifocaled grannies, each working on a corner of this awesome quilt and gossiping about getting to the Donkey Kong kill screen without the hammer. In fact, it’s a commercially-available quilt done by Carolina Patchworks, yours for a mere $450. It’s roughly 5 feet square,…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Fable II Bug Fix Patch Finally Live
Lionhead’s announced that a patch finally fixing a slew of bugs – including the infamous unresponsive abbott in Monk’s Quest – has gone live today. And good news! No one will assassinate your child anymore! Here’s the full list of what’s fixed: • The Ritual/Monk’s Quest – Fixed the issue with the Abbott becoming unresponsive…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
[Updated] Bob’s Protest — and Bob’s Game — is Over
Bob Pelloni’s 100-day protest over Nintendo’s refusal to give sell him its SDK is ending short of its goal. Update: Bob’s site now says: “SORRY, EVERYONE! IM ALIVE!!! ITS JUST A JOKE!!! SORRY EVERYONE!!” While the “joke” might mean he has no intention of harming himself, Bob’s still extraordinarily discouraged at how this all turned…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Ben Heck’s New Mod: The “Atari 3600” Stick
Everyone’s first big complaint with this — a 360 controller stuffed into a 2600’s casing — is the lack of a second analog joystick. So it’s not your new Halo stick. But Braid? Sure. Heck also admits he cheated a little on this, gutting a Guitar Hero III guitar for the stick’s circuitry. Other fun…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
MLG Gets More Moolah
Major League Gaming got another $7.5 million from one of its venture capital firms, which called the pro video gaming league “a cultural phenomenon.” I don’t know MLG’s financials but, usually, you don’t get another round of funding because you’re insanely profitable. At least it’s from one of MLG’s original partners, Oak Investment Partners, which…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Kotaku Originals: Frankly Mint
Every time I see the Goatie coin I imagine Montel Williams on my TV at 2 a.m. hawking a set of collector’s edition 50 State quarters with Fahey and Crecente painted on them. Kotaku’s annual awards were one highlight in a week that also featured McWhertor operating el lobo solo at CES. Nintendo came up…
By Owen Good Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Here, The Ten Best-Selling Games In The UK For 2008
We’ve seen Japan’s. America’s will be in, oh, next week. So for now, let’s all take a look at the ten best-selling games in the UK for all of 2008, shall we? Regular followers of our weekly British sales charts will find no surprises here. The top four games are published by Nintendo, the fifth…
By Luke Plunkett Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
What Kind of Hypothetical Trophies Or Achievements Would You Like?
Hello there, Friday. It’s time for TELL US DAMMIT. We’ve got a question, you’ve got answers. Here’s who it works: We ask a question, you answer it. Simple and no strings attached! This isn’t some marketing survey or whatever. It’s an emotional investment in you. Yes, we’re interested in knowing you, Kotaku reader person. You…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
CES 09: Hands On With Mad Catz’s Street Fighter IV Tournament Sticks
Get ready to change your opinion about Mad Catz. The third-party controller maker may have made one of the best arcade sticks to ever grace these shores, thanks to its Tournament Edition Arcade FightStick. Not only does this stick have authentic Sanwa arcade parts, sturdy construction and an arcade-perfect button layout, it comes loaded with…
By Michael McWhertor Published January 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
A Week In (Very Long) Comments
U.S. Army Testing Out Recruitment “Arcades” Comment by: Soldier_CLE Nominated by: Witzbold I’m late to this show, but I’m going to chime in, regardless. The truth is that because The United States have an “all-volunteer” Armed Forces with only a “selected service” registration that hasn’t been acted upon since the 70s, the recruiting branches need…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 10, 2009