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OpinionImpressionsCarto’s Cozy Puzzles Are Just Tough Enough
Ask people which superpower they’d want, and you’ll likely hear the same answers. Flight. Super-strength. Invisibility. You’re less likely to hear about the unusual ones—say, the ability to literally reshape the planet to fit your needs. Such an ability is the crux of Carto, a cozy adventure game that grants you enormous power but not…
By Ari Notis Published December 31, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsSuper Meat Boy Forever Is Not The Sequel I Was Hoping For
After 10 long years Super Meat Boy is back, this time as an auto-runner in a sequel that channels much of the original except for what I loved most about it: snappy controls and tight platforming. In the year of Spelunky 2 and Hades, it’s a letdown to see Meat Boy return without the key…
By Ethan Gach Published December 30, 2020 -
OpinionHow The Past Year Got Me Thinking Of Post Apocalyptic Games In A New Light
Almost every day, I go for a walk with my kid. She’s just over two. There’s a strange serenity in the isolation of entire city blocks when there’s so few people out and about. In the first few months of the pandemic, it felt like we were walking through an abandoned city. I’ve lived in…
By Peter Tieryas Published December 27, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsI Didn’t Expect To Like Deadly Premonition So Much
I crashed eight times during my playthrough of Deadly Premonition on the Switch, often at critical moments. In a game with long load screens, this seemed like an unforgivable sin. “So good it’s bad,” was testing my patience, even if I knew coming in that Deadly Premonition was a flawed cult classic. This wasn’t the…
By Peter Tieryas Published December 27, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsThe Fascinating Visual Novel About Time Travel From One Of The Creators Of Suikoden
In Time Hollow, time travel is a painful, convoluted, and sloppy mess that makes history worse with every intervention. A spiritual successor to another game I enjoyed called Shadow of Memories, it actually took me a while to track down this obscure Nintendo DS visual novel that was published in 2008 from Konami. When I…
By Peter Tieryas Published December 27, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsYs VIII’s Compelling Story Makes You Care About Every NPC
I always approach classics with a certain sense of trepidation, especially if I’m playing them outside of their original release window. Games that might have truly been remarkable in their day and age might come across antiquated and difficult to endure in the present, especially with how much game design has changed over the years.…
By Peter Tieryas Published December 26, 2020 -
OpinionAn Ode To The Games It Took Us Forever To Finish (Or How It Took Me Over Twenty Years To Finally Finish The First Suikoden)
Hi Kotaku! The last time I was a weekend editor for Kotaku was way back in February and honestly, that seems like a lifetime ago. So much has happened since then that even looking back at my old articles feels like I’m peeking at a time capsule from a different age. I’m honored, as always,…
By Peter Tieryas Published December 26, 2020 -
OpinionAsk KotakuWhat’s The Best (Or Worst) Gaming Gift You’ve Ever Received?
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 the best (or worst) gaming gift you’ve ever received? Fahey This one’s easy. For years my family has been conditioned to the fact that if…
By Alexandra Hall Published December 21, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsGhostrunner Is Actually The Fall’s Sharpest Cyberpunk Game
Ghostrunner is a lean-forward game. You know the position: When the going gets tough, anything short of absolute focus won’t cut it, so you lean forward, elbows on thighs, in order to close the distance between your eyes and the TV as much as possible. With a lean-forward game, the going is always tough. Ori…
By Ari Notis Published December 19, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsHivebusters Is A Great Gears DLC And A Fantastic Xbox Series X Showcase
Hivebusters is a new single-player DLC campaign released for Gears 5. It’s also one of the best-looking games on Xbox Series X and feels like a full Gears game compressed into a bite-size experience that has me excited for the future of Gears of War. This new $20 DLC campaign, which was released on December…
By Zack Zwiezen Published December 18, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsCall of Duty Season One Brings Much-Needed Maps To Cold War, But Warzone‘s ‘New’ Map Doesn’t Quite Work
Call of Duty’s Season One arrived earlier this week, bringing an ambitious number of new maps and modes to Black Ops Cold War and Warzone, as well as integrating the new level progression system into last year’s Modern Warfare. New maps were sorely needed and are appreciated, but the large rollout came with some problems On…
By S.E. Doster Published December 18, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsCall Of The Sea Is A Welcome Reprieve From All My Recent Video Game Murdering
There have been a lot of harsh, dour video games this fall. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla centered on conquest and amputation. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War featured history’s most cynical dirtbag. Cyberpunk 2077 is Cyberpunk 2077. If it’s all been a lot to stomach, consider a change of pace: the delightful Call of the…
By Ari Notis Published December 17, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsAssassin’s Creed Valhalla’s Yuletide Festival Is Off To A Buggy Start
‘Tis the season for snowy weather, holiday parties, and drunk vikings. The latest update for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla adds a new holiday-themed event to the game and covers your settlement in snow. But while the new free update is a bit of festive fun, adding new armor and decorations, it’s also got some annoying bugs.…
By Zack Zwiezen Published December 17, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsGTA Online’s New Island Is Boring
After weeks of teasing and trailers, Grand Theft Auto Online’s latest update, its biggest ever, was released today. The Cayo Perico Heist update adds a new island and heist to the game, as well as 250+ songs, new weapons, and the proverbial “more.” But the star of the update is that new island, Cayo Perico,…
By Zack Zwiezen Published December 15, 2020 -
OpinionIt’s Okay To Love ‘Bad’ Art
The further I get from my childhood, the closer I come to articulating what I miss about it. Through the confusing fog of nostalgia, it’s easy to mix up what you thought you loved, with what you actually loved. I don’t miss being a kid—I’m both taller and funnier as an adult—but I do covet…
Mike Sholars Published December 15, 2020 -
OpinionAsk KotakuHow Do You Rank The ‘Soulsborne’ Games?
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: How do you rank the “Soulsborne” games? Ian Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice: While not as “traditional” a Souls game as From Software’s other offerings, Sekiro: Shadows…
By Alexandra Hall Published December 14, 2020 -
OpinionGames Made Under Crunch Conditions Don’t Deserve ‘Best Direction’ Awards
Last night, The Last of Us Part II walked away from The Game Awards with seven trophies, including those for Game of the Year, Best Narrative, Best Audio Design, Best Performance (by Laura Bailey as Abby), Innovation in Accessibility, and Best Action/Adventure. Arguments can be made as to whether it deserved those or not, but…
By Ian Walker Published December 11, 2020 -
OpinionThe Cyberpunk 2077 Review Drama
Cyberpunk 2077 is out in the wild. After eight long years the whole world can now judge it for themselves, through whichever perspective or tint of glasses they so choose. And best of all, for 99.9% of those players, they won’t ever have to justify their feelings to the rest of the audience. However, for…
By John Walker Published December 11, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsCyberpunk 2077 Is Surprisingly Fine On Stadia
Cyberpunk 2077 is the biggest game of the year, but currently the game doesn’t look great or run well on consoles, especially the older base machines. But how does this big blockbuster game fair on Stadia? Surprisingly, the experience isn’t terrible and might even be better than playing on a console. Though it’s not perfect…
By Zack Zwiezen Published December 10, 2020
