Split/Second Review: A Blue Shell Game

Not many racing games feature exploding silos that violently alter track layouts and redirect traffic onto an airstrip, requiring you to play chicken with a cargo plane apparently transporting fireballs. But Split/Second does. Why all the explosive destruction? Split/Second is pitched as a “dynamic new TV show” in which contestants compete in high-speed races made…

Sunny Days, Beating Your Cares Away

Five of the many Sesame Street Fighters to spring from the twisted mind of Deviant artist Gavacho13, as seen on Capcom Unity

In Ghost Trick, First You Die – Then You Have Fun

You can have your Gran Turismos. The GT that I’ve been anticipating playing again since I first tried it last week is Ghost Trick. The new DS game comes from Shu Takumi, the creator of the Ace Attorney games, Capcom’s chatty and funny courtroom dramas. Our boss Brian Crecente already played it, in Hawaii last…

Blizzard Ends StarCraft II Beta In Two Weeks

StarCraft II players currently on the free multiplayer gravy train are in for a bit of good news/bad news. First the bad: StarCraft II’s multiplayer beta is nearing its end and will shut down May 31. The good news? After a hiatus planned to last “several weeks while [Blizzard] make[s] some hardware and software configuration…

Sony’s VP Of Trash-Talking Sony’s CEO

What happens when Sony’s hilarious mouthpiece Kevin Butler goes head to head against Sony Computer Entertainment America’s CEO and President Jack Tretton in ModNation Racers? “Tell me more, grown-up child actor.” Kevin Butler hams it up in this extended commercial for ModNation Racers, discussing his success, creativity, and ham sandwiches, at least until SCEA CEO…

Microsoft Calls Natal Pricing “Pure Speculation”

A Swedish retailer priced Microsoft’s codenamed Project Natal body-control sensor system at $200. But, today, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 director of product management, Aaron Greenberg shot down any pricing reports, via Twitter: “Retailers are not yet aware of pricing details for Project Natal & pre-order pricing is pure speculation.” The Xbox 360 maker is, of course,…

Couple Married By Robot, Can Death Ray Divorce Be Far Behind?

These science posts at Kotaku give me an opportunity to talk about something near and dear to my heart: The Robot menace. A Japanese couple being married by a robot? What if it misinterprets “til death do us part?” The Japanese love their robots. They’ve been making them for ages, from toys on up to…

Score!

Video games. High literature. They have nothing in common. True or False? False. Last August, I wrote about Gaming and Literature, citing the pervasive influence of JRR Tolkien’s Middle Earth on fantasy gaming online and off, just for starters. For those who think Tolkien is just genre trash, I hauled out EA’s then-in-development game Dante’s…

Alan Wake: Building The Drama

As far as we’re concerned, the main drama of Alan Wake is having to wait another day to play, but developer Remedy went to all the trouble of putting together this Building the Drama trailer, so here you go. Reviewer’s love Alan Wake. Normally an oft-delayed title like Wake ends up being a jumbled mess…

Wii Games Will Sport American Heart Association Seal of Approval

Like a box of Cheerios, boxes for Wii, Wii Fit Plus and Wii Sports Resort will soon feature a seal of approval from The American Heart Association. That means, really, truly, these video games could be good for you. Nintendo and the American Heart Association leaders told reporters today in New York City that their…

Twenty Years Of Video Games: The Rap

It’s twenty years of video gaming, brought to you by a British man and a beat. You may have heard some of this before, but nerd rapper Dan Bull has released an extended version of his amazing track, complete with new footage and new lyrics. It’s similar to Sole’s “Video Game Song” that I played…

Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep Dated, Detailed, And PSP Bundled

Square Enix’s vague summer release date for Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep has become a definite September release date, with a limited edition PSP bundle commemorating the next star-studded entry in the beloved Kingdom Hearts series. Does September 7 still count as summer? Probably not, but it’s only missing it by a few days, so…

It’s A Dead Bird! It’s A Red Plane! It’s Super Scribblenauts!

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment confirms that the adjective-laden follow-up to 5TH Cell’s million-selling Scribblenauts is indeed Super Scribblenauts, due out this fall for the Nintendo DS. A listing for Super Scribblenauts briefly appeared on Amazon.com over the weekend, only to be quickly taken down. Between that and the domain registration for Superscribblenauts.com, we were pretty…

The Nintendo Download Will Totally Blow Your Mind

Remember the pseudo 3D game, Looksley’s Line Up, that everyone thought was a demo for the Nintendo 3DS? It’s on DSiWare today, and Nintendo thinks it will blow your mind. I am eagerly awaiting Looksley’s availability, 500 DSi points in hand, ready to have my mind completely blown. Between that game and the latest in…

El Shaddai Screens

Is It Too Late To Preorder The StarCraft II Collector’s Edition?

Isn’t the Collector’s Edition of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty gorgeous? It’s already sold out at several major retailers, but we’ve found a few places where the $99 package can still be secured. IncGamers is reporting that the StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty Collector’s Edition is no longer available for preorder at several major retailers…

Game Club: Alan Wake

Attention to those of you planning to play Alan Wake. Read this first, so that you can play — and discuss — the game with the rest of Kotaku. I am delighted to announce that after the tremendous success of the Game Club’s look at and discussion of Modern Warfare 2, we’re bringing it back…

“Please Get In My Cardboard Box”

Being a junior high student isn’t easy — especially if you’re in a cardboard box. The kid in the box says, “Please get in my cardboard box.” The girl replies, “Cardboard box?” And the kid gestures and says he was actually asking the dude, who gets in the box with him.

The Reject Pile Of Spring 2010

It was time for spring cleaning in my household, so I am getting rid of these games. I try to possess as few video games as possible, because it is my dream to only own masterpieces. I haven’t achieved this dream yet — hey, I can’t bring myself to get rid of Geist, okay? But…

Talk Amongst Yourselves

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