-
Reviews
Resident Evil 7: The Kotaku Review
Horror games are a difficult thing to get right. They can feel like carnival attractions, full of overblown scares, or have so little horror that they elicit nothing but eye rolls. Resident Evil 7 gets it right. It’s a scary and violent blast of survival horror that sneaks up behind you before plunging a chainsaw…
By Heather Alexandra Published January 26, 2017 -
ReviewsTales Of Berseria: The Kotaku Review
Bandai Namco’s Tales action role-playing series is normally pretty formulaic—a plucky group of colorful heroes joins together to save the world from some dire threat. Tales of Berseria’s protagonist just really wants to murder a guy, and her companions are happy to help. The 16th main Tales game begins innocently enough. Velvet Crowe and her…
By Mike Fahey Published January 24, 2017 -
Reviews
Gravity Rush 2: The Kotaku Review
Despite its infuriating control issues, awful stealth missions, interminable boss fights and half-baked sidequests, I cannot discount Gravity Rush 2’s mammoth ambition and abundance of otherworldly charm. If a game must be a mess, at least let it be this exuberant a mess. Gravity Rush 2 is an open-world superhero game that tells the tale…
By Kirk Hamilton Published January 20, 2017 -
Reviews
Thrustmaster T.16000M FCS Flight Pack Review: PC Aviation Essentials
Nothing makes a flight or space sim really sing like a hands-on throttle and stick (HOTAS) setup. Thrustmaster’s $200 T.1600M FCS Flight Pack combines joystick, throttle and rudder pedals in one lovely entry-level package. Between the rise of virtual reality and an expanding audience of people with incredibly good taste in game genres, space sims…
By Mike Fahey Published January 18, 2017 -
ReviewsRead Only Memories: The Kotaku Review
Sun sets on Neo San Francisco. Weather control units conjure fresh snow. Robots assist their masters and genetic hybrids take to the streets to protest for their rights. Turing guides me to a local nightclub to meet our contact. If we don’t get a new lead soon, the scoop of a lifetime will be lost.…
By Heather Alexandra Published January 17, 2017 -
ReviewsHatsune Miku: Project Diva Future Tone: The Kotaku Review
Now that the Western world’s had a couple of years to get used to games starring Japan’s premiere virtual idol, Sega drops the Hatsune Miku bomb. With over 220 songs to master, Project Diva Future Tone for the PlayStation 4 is one heaping helping of rhythm game goodness. In 2009, Sega brought the breakout star…
By Mike Fahey Published January 9, 2017 -
Reviews
Astro A50 (2016) Review: A Good Gaming Headset Gets Better, Mostly
Astro recently released a new version of their flagship A50 wireless gaming headset. This model works with both PC and consoles, and even comes with a magnetic charging dock. It’s a solid headset overall, and offers some significant improvements on its already good predecessor. It’s also got a few niggling flaws. Astro is a pretty…
By Kirk Hamilton Published January 5, 2017 -
Reviews
Yuri On Ice: The Kotaku Review
This season’s breakout anime was Yuri on Ice, a welcoming show about an insecure Japanese figure skater named Yuri, and Victor, the Russian skating legend who mysteriously decides to become his coach. Yuri and Victor develop a relationship flush with love and young sensuality. Since October, fans feverishly watched the simulcast, playing “will-they-or-won’t-they?” while the…
By Cecilia D'Anastasio Published December 30, 2016 -
Reviews
Razer Blade Pro 2016 Review: The Top Of The Thin Line
Since the 2011 debut of its first super-skinny gaming laptop, Razer has supplemented the Blade line with models either smaller or less expensive than original. Starting at $3,699, the new Blade Pro bucks that trend, resulting in Razer’s the most impressive desktop replacement yet. PC gamers laughed when the original 17 inch Razer Blade debuted…
By Mike Fahey Published December 22, 2016 -
ReviewsSuper Mario Run: The Kotaku Review
If you were worried that Nintendo’s move into mobile gaming would change the quality of their games, Super Mario Run should be a relief. Auto-running and screen orientation aside, it’s a full-featured Mario game that just happens to run on your phone. Originally posted 12/21/06: Now that everyone on iOS is done playing, Android gets…
By Mike Fahey Published December 21, 2016 -
Reviews
Sennheiser PC 373D Headset Review: Great Audio, Steep Price
Most gaming headphones are made by companies better known for video game gear than for audio equipment. Enter Sennheiser, recording industry stalwarts trusted by people who actually use headphones to listen to music. A few weeks ago someone from Sennheiser emailed asking if I’d like to check out their new PC 373D surround-sound gaming headphones.…
By Kirk Hamilton Published December 6, 2016 -
Reviews
Oculus Touch Review: The Best VR You Can Get
When the Oculus Rift VR headset came out earlier this year, it was promising but incomplete. It had this nice, comfy set of virtual reality goggles… but that was all. This week, Oculus finally catches up. Competitors like the Valve-backed HTC Vive and to a lesser extent Sony’s PlayStation VR have already demonstrated why handheld…
By Kirk Hamilton Published December 5, 2016 -
ReviewsThe Last Guardian: The Kotaku Review
If waiting seven years for the third game from Ico and Shadow of the Colossus creator Fumito Ueda has taught us anything, it’s patience, which is exactly what’s needed to see our young hero and his massive catbird companion through to the end of The Last Guardian. Originallyannounced in 2009 for a planned release in…
By Mike Fahey Published December 5, 2016 -
Reviews
Final Fantasy XV: The Kotaku Review
You’re four years old, maybe five. Your parents got one of those Nintendos that everyone’s been raving about, along with a brand new game. A role-playing game. Other Nintendo games are good, sure, but this one’s on another level, transporting you to a world full of mages, ogres, and all sorts of incredible sights and…
By Jason Schreier Published November 28, 2016 -
Reviews
Our Reviews Of The Fall’s Biggest Games
It’s been a busy season for major game releases, with plenty more to come before the year is out. If you’re thinking of binging on the latest big game over Thanksgiving weekend or looking to pick up some new games for the holidays, here’s a roundup of what we thought of this fall’s games, from…
By Riley MacLeod Published November 24, 2016 -
Reviews
Planet Coaster: The Kotaku Review
Having a bad day? Week? Year? Planet Coaster is here to help. It won’t unelect anyone, or bring anyone back from the dead, or uncook the planet, but it will, for brief, shining moments of time, make you forget everything else except the fact you feel very, very good while playing it. Planet Coaster is…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 21, 2016 -
ReviewsPokémon Sun and Moon: The Kotaku Review
The massive popularity of 1996’s Pokémon Red and Blue has cast a long shadow over the Pokémon series. Much of the fanbase believes in the superiority of the original 151 monsters, and given 2016’s Pokémon Go phenomenon—which only had the initial cast—who can argue? With the newest Pokémon games, Sun and Moon, Game Freak plays…
By Patricia Hernandez Published November 18, 2016 -
Reviews
Watch Dogs 2: The Kotaku Review
Watch Dogs 2 is just a game, sitting on a screen, asking you to love it. Sometimes begging. Ubisoft’s new techno-action hackapalooza often succeeds at being likable, occasionally in spite of itself. It functions both as unspoken apologia for its scattered and frustrating predecessor and as yet another step along Ubisoft’s march to open-world game…
By Kirk Hamilton Published November 17, 2016 -
Reviews
Dishonored 2 : The Kotaku Review
Dishonored 2 is a depressing slog of bodies and misery. It is confusing and jumbled, full of half formed ideas, and ready to break at the slightest touch. But, in spite of itself, it works. Dishonored established a strong if unrefined take on first person stealth in 2012. Players were able to topple foes in…
By Heather Alexandra Published November 15, 2016 -
ReviewsShould You Buy A PS4 Pro?
Short version: The new PS4 Pro is a more powerful version of an already good console.We like the PS4 a lot, and the Pro doesn’t do anything to diminish that. However, it’s going to be a while before we know just what that added horsepower will be used for. Sony’s new console is out this…
By Kirk Hamilton Published November 11, 2016