This week on Morning Checkpoint we talk about how great SonicFox is, dunk on Shinra, find out what games are now delayed, fondly remember demo discs, and say goodbye to Xbox Live and hello to Xbox Network.

There are snacks, and then there are snacks for gamers. Through chalky chemical combinations of dubious repute, they will somehow make you aim better in Fortnite. How did we reach the point where snacks for a hobby that takes place primarily on the couch are basically workout supplements? On this week’s food-focused…

The Target-exclusive six-pack of Animal Crossing: New Horizons Sanrio Amiibo cards went on sale this morning at 9am and sold out almost immediately. Moments later the six-dollar packs started showing up on eBay for upwards of $100. Is anyone surprised?

You know the story by now: A massive container ship has been stuck in the Suez Canal since Tuesday, successfully blocking one of the busiest shipping routes on the planet. Ships have been forced to travel around the Cape of Good Hope like it’s the 1700s, global trade has been disrupted, there may be a toilet paper…

This week on Twitch, a stop sign became a saga. Stopsigncam, a 24/7 stream of a single intersection in Salem, Massachusetts where drivers regularly blow through a stop with no concern for their lives or others, blew up thanks to a viral TikTok. But at the peak of its popularity, it went offline.

You’ve no doubt heard by now about (literally) the largest story in the world. Three days ago, the Ever Given, a 1,300-foot freight liner, grounded on both shores of the Suez Canal, blocking any passage for any other boats. Despite the best efforts of engineers, tugboats, and one very determined bulldozer. It’s still…

GSC Game World’s Zakhar Bocharov stopped by today’s ID@Xbox presentation to show off more of STALKER 2, the upcoming sequel to the cult classic, post-apocalyptic shooter series that’s been in production in some form for over a decade. While we still don’t have any actual gameplay, Bocharov provided a brief look at a…

Yesterday the WePlay Esports Ultimate Fighting League kicked off a live Mortal Kombat 11 tournament featuring a handful of international players including Dominique “SonicFox” McLean. The opening ceremony was like any typical esports event, complete with a DJ and the kombatants (official term, Ed Boon says it’s…

Japanese developer French Bread recently revealed a new entry in the fighting game series that put it on the map: Melty Blood. I know, I know, but stick with me. This is pretty cool and a big deal for folks who live and breathe fighting games.

Drinkbox Studios, the makers of popular brawler Guacamelee!, have a new game on the way. It’s an action role-playing game called Nobody Saves the World.

It’s probably fair to say most DLC isn’t that great or memorable. That was the case with the first download for Immortals Fenyx Rising, which added a bunch of new puzzles and not much else. However, the game’s second DLC, Myths of the Eastern Realms, is a rare example of good downloadable content. In fact, this new…

Square Enix has released a day one patch for Balan Wonderworld, released today, to fix issues with a late-game scene that had bright, flashing lights that the company called a “photo-sensitive epilepsy risk.”

Yesterday Blizzard announced they would be removing the 30, 90, and 180-day game time purchase options from World of Warcraft, leaving only the 60-day option.

Let’s drop this pretense about what the weekend is for and get straight to the point. Of course I will be playing the free PlayStation 4 idol rhythm game from Square Enix this weekend. No one needs a post to tell them that. What’s that? It’s called Love Live! School Idol Festival ~after school ACTIVITY~ Wai-Wai! Home…

Welcome to Morning Music, Kotaku’s ongoing hangout for folks who love video games and the cool-ass sounds they make. Today we’re going old school and grooving to the creepy, heavy soundscapes of modern retro-shooter Dusk.

Back before YouTube and Twitch and always online DRM, developers needed more effective ways of marketing than just relying on word of mouth. This resulted in shareware, demos and demo discs, free slices of playable content that spawned one of the most interesting phases in the gaming.