-
OpinionImpressionsDoom 3 Is Better In VR
Most folks don’t love Doom 3, often citing how much slower the game feels compared to old Doom titles. But that slower speed plus its focus on creating a dark, scary atmosphere means that nearly 17 years after its release, Doom 3 ends up being a great VR game. It might even be a better game…
By Zack Zwiezen Published April 3, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsFinal Fantasy Creator’s New RPG Is Out And Painfully Pretty
I’m having a problem playing Fantasian, the new turn-based RPG from Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi’s Mistwalker released today on Apple Arcade. I can’t stop pausing to look at how gorgeous the game’s real-life miniature diorama sets are. I didn’t say it was a bad problem. If you have access to Apple Arcade and you…
By Mike Fahey Published April 2, 2021 -
OpinionMicrosoft Is Supporting Old Games, While Sony And Nintendo Are Leaving Them Behind
Yesterday, Microsoft made it possible to instantly stream a bunch of older Xbox 360 and original Xbox games to any device compatible with Game Pass. It’s another piece of evidence that Microsoft is taking backward compatibility very seriously this time around, and that Sony and Nintendo have fallen behind in a big way. Sony in…
By Zack Zwiezen Published April 1, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsNier Replicant Gets Off To A Really Slow Start
After playing and being thoroughly wrecked by Nier: Automata, I was curious if Nier: Replicant ver.1.22474487139… the “version up” (since according to the developers it’s not a remake or a remaster) of the original Nier would inspire similar emotional devastation. I have dim memories of the first game. I remember the gruff dad and the…
By Ash Parrish Published March 29, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsChill City-Builder Forever
Life is hard. Sometimes games are hard, and that just reminds me that life is hard, and then everything feels too damn hard. Not early access city-builder Dorfromantik, though. That game is just the right amount of chill. Dorfromantik came to Steam early access last week. You’re given a stack of hexagonal tiles with landmarks…
By Riley MacLeod Published March 29, 2021 -
OpinionAsk KotakuWhat’s A Game You Like That Doesn’t Get Enough Love?
It’s Monday and time for Ask Kotaku, the weekly feature in which Kotaku-ites deliberate on a single burning question. Then, we ask your take. This week we Ask Kotaku: What’s a game you like that doesn’t get enough love? Alexandra It’s Bionic Commando (2009). The game famously bombed and sure enough, there’s plenty wrong with…
By Alexandra Hall Published March 29, 2021 -
OpinionCrash Bandicoot On The Run Won’t Let Me Jump On Bounce Crates And It’s Very Annoying
Some habits are hard to break. Like reaching for a light switch after it’s been removed or trying to jump on the bouncy crates in Crash Bandicoot games. Yet that’s exactly what the new mobile Crash game wants me to do. I hate it. I hate it sooooo much. Our own Mike Fahey covered the…
By Zack Zwiezen Published March 28, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsImmortals’ New DLC Taught Me A Lot About Chinese Mythology
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,…
By Zack Zwiezen Published March 26, 2021 -
OpinionShinra Electric Power Company Decides To Tweet Through It
The power utility, consumer electronics manufacturer, and private security force Shinra has taken to social media to respond directly to critics who have accused the tech oligopoly of exploiting workers, impoverishing local residents, and generally doing crimes against the planet. “Shinra is bringing the heat today,” wrote one reporter at cable news network SNBC, followed…
By Ethan Gach Published March 25, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsGet Past The F2P Bits And Crash Bandicoot: On The Run Is Good Crash
Crash Bandicoot: On The Run, out today for iOS and Android, is a game in which Crash Bandicoot runs through narrow corridors breaking boxes and collecting Wumpa Fruit, just like every other Crash Bandicoot game. As mobile spin-offs go, it’s pretty on the nose. Looking at the landscape screenshots developer King.com of Candy Crush fame…
By Mike Fahey Published March 25, 2021 -
OpinionYou Don’t Have To Run The Exclusive Reveal For The War Crime Game
Rebooted war crime simulator Six Days in Fallujah got its official gameplay reveal yesterday in a new trailer that seems to confirm some people’s criticisms of the game as one-sided propaganda for the U.S. war machine. The trailer was debuted exclusively by IGN, the same website that just days earlier ran an in-depth report on…
By Ethan Gach Published March 24, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsNew Pokémon Snap Is Like Old Pokémon Snap, Only Much Prettier
Pokémon Snap for the Nintendo 64 is a game about rolling through islands, leisurely taking pictures of pocket monsters. All the upcoming sequel needs to please fans of the original is more of that with nicer graphics. I am pleased to report New Pokémon Snap is exactly that. Nintendo recently held a preview event where…
By Mike Fahey Published March 24, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsMundaun Is Beautiful, Hand-Drawn Folk Horror
It was around the time the severed goat head in my backpack started bleating and then spoke that I truly began to understand the beauty of Mundaun, the new indie horror game from developer Michel Ziegler. Mundaun opens with a letter from your isolated hometown in the Swiss Alps. Your grandfather, a local parishioner writes,…
By Ian Walker Published March 23, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsPuzzle Quest 3 Does The Match-Three RPG A Little Differently
The game that kicked off the match-three/RPG genre in 2007 is back for a third go with Puzzle Quest 3. An early preview of the Android version of the threequel reveals a somewhat more dynamic take on the genre mash-up. Giving players two seconds to map out their moves makes a big difference. The basic…
By Mike Fahey Published March 23, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsThere’s A New Type Of Fall Guys Jackass
I would like to offer a sincere apology to my Fall Guys squad. I fell into the slime. I thought we were out. So I quit. I didn’t realize how much that screwed you (fall) guys! It won’t happen again, I promise. Yesterday, as part of the platformer royale’s season four update, Fall Guys received…
By Ari Notis Published March 23, 2021 -
OpinionSo-Called Pirates Are Doing The Work When Publishers Fail To Preserve Their Games
Yesterday, TheGamer reported that Sony has plans to shut down the online PS3, PS Vita, and PSP stores that service those older consoles. While this has yet to be confirmed, and Sony has not responded to Kotaku’s request for comment, the internet discourse around this potentially troubling news immediately began to swirl. If these stores…
By Zack Zwiezen Published March 23, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsI Can’t Wait To Play Monster Hunter Rise With Other People
The review embargo for Monster Hunter Rise has lifted, and while I’ve been having a heck of a good time battling beasts with my AI dog and cat friends, online play is still a couple of days away. And everybody knows Monster Hunter is more fun with other people. The majority of the several days…
By Mike Fahey Published March 23, 2021 -
OpinionMy New Xbox Elite Controller Has A Long Shortcoming
Having used an Elite controller on my PC almost every single day for years, it finally started showing signs of serious wear and tear, so last week I got an Elite Series 2 controller. I am mostly happy with it, but there’s one bizarre shortcoming with its interchangeable sticks that has me stumped. The original…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 22, 2021 -
OpinionAsk KotakuHave You Ever Successfully Returned To An Ancient Save File?
It’s Monday and time for Ask Kotaku, the weekly feature in which Kotaku-ites deliberate on a single burning question. Then, we ask your take. This week we Ask Kotaku: Have you ever successfully returned to an ancient save file? Ethan Short answer: No, it’s never worked. Long answer: Last summer I tried to go back…
By Alexandra Hall Published March 22, 2021
