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CultureTop Female Streamer Becomes Part-Owner Of Massive Esports Organization 100 Thieves
The past year has not been kind to, uh, basically anybody, but Rachel “Valkyrae” Hofstetter is one of the (generally wealthy) exceptions that proves the rule. She started 2020 with so-so numbers on her YouTube stream, only to ride the Among Us phenomenon to absurd 100,000-viewer heights from which she has yet to come down. As…
By Nathan Grayson Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryI Seem To Be Having Commitment Issues In Outriders
Over the past week or so I’ve sunk about 25 hours into Outriders—on top of the dozen-ish I spent repeatedly running the demo. And yet, I still haven’t committed to a main class. That’s not indicative of indecision on my part (okay, fine, maybe a tiny bit). That’s a testament to how awesome all the…
By Ari Notis Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureTwitchTwitch Will Now Take Action Against Threats, Violence, And Sexual Assault On Other Platforms
Many Twitch streamers have YouTube channels, and vice versa. They also have Twitter pages, Instagrams, TikToks, SnapChats, and basically every other kind of account under the sun. For years, Twitch has taken activity on other platforms into account when deciding to suspend or ban streamers, albeit inconsistently—and typically only when an infraction had also happened…
By Nathan Grayson Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureHarold Halibut, You Have My Attention
We last saw Harold Halibut at GDC 2018, but the folks at German indie studio Slow Bros. are back with another fascinating preview of this unique game. “Harold Halibut started life as a conversation over dinner about our love of stop-motion and story games,” the devs explain. “It wasn’t long after that we started building…
By Ian Walker Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureThat Final Fantasy XIV Hairstyle You Like Is Going To Come Back In Style
A popular Final Fantasy XIV hairstyle that hasn’t been available in-game for years is going to make a permanent comeback, Square Enix announced this morning Final Fantasy XIV players will be able to acquire the very anime Rainmaker hairstyle (pictured above) for the first time since 2017 when the extensive Patch 5.5 expansion drops on…
By Ian Walker Published April 7, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsClap Hanz’ First Non-PlayStation Golf Game Is My New Happy Place
Japanese developer Clap Hanz has been making colorful cartoon golf games for PlayStation consoles since 1999’s Hot Shots Golf 2. The studio’s first non-PlayStation game, Apple Arcade’s Clap Hanz Golf, is more of the same, only now all it takes for me to tee up is a few taps of my iPad screen. Hot Shots…
By Mike Fahey Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureCrysis Remastered Now Even More Remastered
Just when you thought classic shooter Crysis was as remastered as it was going to get, Crytek announces a new free update that fixes a whole slew of bugs while adding new graphics modes for Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 consoles. Who is ready for raytraced 1080p at 30 frames per second on the…
By Mike Fahey Published April 7, 2021 -
ReviewsBacklogWelcome To Backlog Month
April’s pretty thin as far as new game releases go. So we at Kotaku are taking the moment to focus on something shared among every gamer: a backlog. You could call it a month…about backlogs…surely there’s some sort of cutesy phrase we could use? Aha! Backlog Month! Look, it’s not like April is literally devoid…
By Ari Notis Published April 7, 2021 -
CulturePac-Man 99 Is A Free Switch Online Exclusive Battle Royale
Announced last night and going live today at 9pm Eastern exclusively for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers, Pac-Man 99 is a 99-player battle of pellet-munching attrition in which players eat the spirits of the dead in order to sic them against their opponents until all are devoured. Yay, Pac-Man! It’s like Tetris 99, only with Pac-Man.…
By Mike Fahey Published April 7, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsFree From Stadia, Lost Words‘ Story Hits Hard
Lost Words: Beyond the Page is poised to snag a second lease on life. First released last spring as a Stadia exclusive, the idyllic puzzle-platformer from Sketchbook Games, officially released yesterday for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the Switch (where I’ve been playing). Lost Words sports the sheen of star power: Rhianna Pratchett, of…
By Ari Notis Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureMorning MusicLooks Like Capcom Got The Band Back Together
Welcome to Morning Music, Kotaku’s ongoing hangout for folks who love video games and the cool-ass sounds they make. Today, Capcom forms a band. Yesterday’s Street Fighter V Spring Update was full of surprises, not least of which was that Capcom’s slapped a pair of undies on returning fighter Oro, the only canonically freeballing character…
By Alexandra Hall Published April 7, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanGenshin Impact Replaces Famed Idol Group’s Iconic Signs In Akihabara
If you’ve been to Tokyo’s Akihabara in the past decade, you’ve seen the large signs for pop group AKB48 on the side of the Don Quijote building. They have now been replaced. At one time, AKB48 was the biggest-selling pop troupe in the country. You couldn’t turn on the television without being bombarded by group…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 7, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanToday, Atlus Celebrates Its Birthday
Famed role-playing game maker Atlus is celebrating a milestone. Today in 1986, the company was founded. Happy birthday Atlus! In its early years, Atlus sold karaoke equipment, before releasing its first game Puzzle Boy for the Game Boy in 1989. The company’s first arcade game, BlaZeon, followed three years later. During the 1990s, Atlus caused…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureCosplayGalleryFor April 1, Cosplayers Around The World Had A Convention… In Their Pyjamas
There haven’t been any cosplay conventions in over a year, which sucks! But when life gives you lemons, you can make lemonade by having a convention from the comfort of your own home. In your PJs, no less. That was the reasoning behind Pajama Con, aka PJCON2021, an April Fools stunt—complete with website—that pretended to…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureHardcore Military Sim ArmA 3 Getting Huge Vietnam Campaign
There aren’t many games that are seriously based on the Vietnam War, mostly because, thanks to the terrain and the politics, it’s an incredibly difficult conflict to simulate. The upcoming S.O.G. Prairie Fire, however, is looking to change that. Built within ArmA 3, using its creation suite by external developers Savage Game Design, S.O.G. Prairie…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 6, 2021 -
Culture#BoycottGenshin Is Tearing The Genshin Impact Community Apart
Last night, Genshin Impact began trending on Twitter for all the wrong reasons. Which ones, exactly? Well, that’s the thing: Nobody can really agree on what lies at the core of the erupting volcano that has sprouted next to developer miHoYo’s cash cow. Currently, the #BoycottGenshin hashtag is composed of legitimate complaints about stereotypes, some…
By Nathan Grayson Published April 6, 2021 -
CultureOdds and EndsI Demand To See Oro’s Dick And Balls In Street Fighter V
During today’s spring update, Capcom provided an early look at how returning fighter Oro will play in Street Fighter V. There’s only one problem: Not once did they show his dick and balls. Oro, who was first introduced to the world in 1997’s Street Fighter III: New Generation, is one of my favorite Street Fighter…
By Ian Walker Published April 6, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsMansions Of Madness Deserves A Better Video Game
Fantasy Flight’s Mansions of Madness, the standout game from the publisher’s Arkham Horror line-up, is one of my favourite board game experiences of all time, a near-perfect blend of occult investigation and unforgiving combat. Both things that its new video game adaptation is terrible at. Which shouldn’t be too surprising, given this game’s rocky history.…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 6, 2021 -
OpinionThere Are Too Many Warhammer Video Games
Back in 2016, Mike wrote a blog called “There Are Far Too Many Warhammer Games”. In 2021, things have only got worse. Here is a list of every Warhammer game—both 40K and fantasy—I could find that has been released or announced since 2014, the same year Mike started counting from: Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon (2014) Warhammer…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 6, 2021
