Void Bastards is a strategy-shooter inspired by BioShock and System Shock 2. In it, you guide a group of prisoners through “derelict spaceships and myriad dangers.” You plot a course, study ship layouts, infiltrate ships, and fight/sabotage/distract your way through them. Also, your distraction tool is a kitty. Oh, and if the aforementioned stew of…

Valve Pays $20,000 To Hacker Who Found Steam Bug That Generates Free Games

Somewhere deep inside Valve’s labyrinthine compound of Steam-sustaining tubes, wires, and pipes, somebody is thanking their lucky stars for Artem Moskowsky. The self-described “bug hunter” came across a glitch that allowed him to generate thousands of free keys for any game on Steam. A lesser person might have kept that knowledge to themselves. He reported…

I wonder if the NFL really thought this whole Fortnite deal through… 

“Realistic Pokémon” Artist Got A Job On The Detective Pikachu Movie

Six years ago, artist RJ Palmer started drawing Pokémon as though they were realistic dinosaurs. Those sketches, done for fun, led to him getting the job of a lifetime: working on the Detective Pikachu movie, which we got our first real look at today I mean that in the most literal sense; Palmer says that…

EVE Online Spinoff Shooter Will Be More ‘Tactical,’ Less ‘Run-And-Gun’

The upcoming shooter from CCP Games, code name Project Nova, was finally shared with fans during an annual EVE Online convention last month. Nova, set in the same universe as EVE, is still in early alpha, and shows a bit of promise. Kotaku was given the chance to sit down and play Project Nova at…

Battlefield V’s Singleplayer Is A Nice Surprise

Given the game’s bizarre debut trailer, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I sat down with Battlefield V’s singleplayer game mode. Even without taking that clip’s haphazard tone into account, that’s a familiar feeling when it comes to DICE’s games, which can never seem to keep the same singleplayer formula running for more than…

The Internet Reacts To The Detective Pikachu Trailer

The Detective Pikachu movie finally has a trailer and it’s some pretty wild stuff. There’s tons of hairy Pokémon, and also Ryan Reynolds. I don’t have many strong feelings about Pokémon, but I felt a strange chill come over me as I watched a hyper-realistic looking Pikachu speak with Deadpool’s voice. Okay, I thought, we’re…

Haunted House Board Game Betrayal Legacy Takes 13 Thrilling Hours To Play

The haunted-mansion horror game Betrayal at House on the Hill is an easy, irresistible pitch for board gamers: You explore a mansion, creepy stuff happens, you unearth possessed items, then somebody turns evil and y’all have to kill them or something. Last week, publisher Avalon Hill released Betrayal Legacy, a “campaign” style variant of the…

Valve Condemns Dota 2 Pros Making Racist Remarks But Calls On Teams To Regulate Themselves

Following a series of offensive remarks made by professional Dota 2 players recently, the game’s creator Valve has published a blog post condemning the behavior. In keeping with the company’s traditional approach of remaining mostly hands-off, however, it leaves the responsibility for sanctioning players strictly with teams, and didn’t offer any clear guidelines about how…

Kirby Fans Are Once Again Being Treated Like Royalty

Earlier this year, I foolishly thought Nintendo and the people at HAL Laboratory might allow 2018 to be something less than another luxurious year to be a Kirby fan. How wrong I was. Maybe some non-Kirby fans can find some hope in what’s gone down with Kirby these last few months, if it’s any indication…

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, One Month Later

It’s been exactly one month since the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, which made the risky decision to jettison the single-player campaign in favor of an online-only approach. So far, it’s been a smoother-than-expected ride, with a few speed bumps along the way. While the launch content was plentiful, Black Ops 4…

The New Smash Trailer Is Better With Pop Music

Over the weekend, Nintendo released a new commercial for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate without any background music. The internet proceeded to work its magic and there are now hundreds of different versions of the video floating around set to songs ranging from Prince’s 1991 to the Dragon Ball Z intro music. They all somehow work…

Hitman’s Deadliest Weapon Is A Coin

Before leaving for missions in Hitman 2, you can choose to bring a handful of gadgets and gear. You have your trusty silenced pistol, remote controlled mines, and lockpicks. These dastardly tools of the trade pale in comparison to the game’s most deadly accessory: the humble and unassuming coin. Coins have been a part of…

The Detective Pikachu Movie Is Not At All What I Expected

I’m not sure how to feel about Ryan Reynolds turning Pikachu into a gritty, snarky detective, and in fact this first trailer fills me with all sorts of insane mixed emotions, but I do know that Detective Pikachu, which comes to theaters next summer, will be a must-see. Just watch it:

Hands-On With Sims 4‘s Long-Awaited Terrain Tools

Alongside the Get Famous expansions pack, The Sims 4 is finally getting terrain manipulation tools in a free update. I got an hour-long advanced look at the new update and expansion, including about 15 minutes to play with the terrain tools, and , they look like they’re going to be worth the wait. The Sims…