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Reviews
Titanfall: The Kotaku Review
I think I know what my favorite moment in Titanfall is. I’m in a Titan when my display tells me an enemy pilot has crawled up my back. My Titan’s near death anyway and I know there won’t be time to hop off and shoot the pilot down. Besides, my Titan is prepared for this…
By Tina Amini Published March 13, 2014 -
Reviews
Dark Souls II: The Kotaku Review
Dark Souls II begins by telling you that you’re flat-out screwed. The game opens with a smiling, blind, gap-toothed crone, telling you that you’re cursed. If you stay where you are, your memories will fade and you will become a hollow — an empty undead beast that feeds off the souls of the living. Like…
By Chris Person Published March 11, 2014 -
Reviews
The Live-Action Silver Spoon Lacks Heart and Soul
Last year, I chose Silver Spoon as one of the best five anime of 2013—so when I heard there was a live-action adaptation in the works, I was more than a little excited. Unfortunately, I am sad to report that the live-action film is devoid of much of what makes the Silver Spoon manga and…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published March 11, 2014 -
ReviewsProfessor Layton and the Azran Legacy: The Kotaku Review
One. Five. Two. Four. Six. That is not a string of numbers that need to be deciphered in a puzzle in a Professor Layton game. It is the order in which I’ve played the games in the Layton series that has concluded—for now—with the newest and possible best of the bunch. From Professor Layton and…
By Stephen Totilo Published March 10, 2014 -
Reviews
Razer Headphones That Aren’t Even Meant For Video Games
Well, this has been a strange week. I was down to review a couple of new sets of headphones from Razer. I was expecting to be testing them on my PC and consoles, but ended up spending most of the week using them on my phone and 3DS. Which, it turns out, is what I…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 6, 2014 -
ReviewsSouth Park: The Stick of Truth: The Kotaku Review
I wish I could spend this entire review talking about how South Park: The Stick of Truth is one of the funniest games I’ve ever played. I wish I could stick to telling you how the story feels like one 10-hour episode of South Park; how the world is a blast to explore; how the…
By Jason Schreier Published March 4, 2014 -
Reviews
The Live Action Kiki’s Delivery Service is Surprisingly Not Terrible
When I first heard about there being a live action version of Kiki’s Delivery Service in the works, I (as well as my fellow Kotaku authors) were more than a bit skeptical about it. However, after seeing it, I am happy to report that it is a perfectly watchable film that stands apart from its…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published March 4, 2014 -
ReviewsSour Watermelon Marshmallow Peeps: The Snacktaku Review
I considered Marshmallow Peeps the pinnacle of the pure sugar delivery snack pack, a pure and simple delight that could not be improved upon. Sour Watermelon Peeps have proven me wrong — there is another. Flavored marshmallows don’t normally do anything for me. That’s because marshmallow is lousy at flavor transport, capable at best of…
By Mike Fahey Published March 3, 2014 -
ReviewsPlants Vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare: The Kotaku Review
The most rabid player of PopCap’s Plants Vs. Zombies series I know sat down next to me as I loaded up Garden Warfare for the Xbox One. After watching me play for five minutes, she stood up, said “I’d be so lost playing this”, and wandered off. The rabid player in question is my wife-creature,…
By Mike Fahey Published February 27, 2014 -
Reviews
Taco Bell’s Waffle Taco Is Going Nationwide. Prepare Yourselves.
Last year I traveled the countryside far longer than I needed to in order to acquire an early taste of the Waffle Taco, the linchpin of Taco Bell’s new breakfast menu — a menu launching nationwide next month. As the LA Times reports, Taco Bell will be rolling out the Waffle Taco and it’s tastier…
By Mike Fahey Published February 25, 2014 -
ReviewsCastlevania: Lords of Shadow 2: The Kotaku Review
Over nearly three decades and dozens of games, the Castlevania series has let players battle through iconically fragmented gameworlds and crack the Belmont family’s whips against Dracula. Now, with Lords of Shadow 2, the biggest, baddest vampire of all is yours to control. The shift from implacable archfiend to playable hero changes everything about him,…
By Evan Narcisse Published February 25, 2014 -
Reviews
The Retro Game Master Movie Is a Great Episode but a Terrible Film
Game Center CX, (known as Retro Game Master in the West) follows Shinya Arino as he attempts to conquer classic games from the 8 and 16-bit eras. This past weekend marked the release of the series’ first feature film. Though, given all of its problems, we’ll be lucky if it’s also the last. Good –…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published February 25, 2014 -
ReviewsThief: The Kotaku Review
A city full of closed doors and dead ends, boxed in and lined with nothing but rough edges: That’s Thief. It’s hard to know quite where to begin with a shambling mediocrity such as this. It’s a game that could have been great and is instead a lumpy, frumpy disappointment, outclassed on all sides by…
By Kirk Hamilton Published February 24, 2014 -
ReviewsDonkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze: The Kotaku Review
Let me tell you about a moment in world five of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. It’s a little late in the game, but it’s oh so typical (and not a spoiler, unless you count the placement of platforms as a spoiler). How you feel about this moment will determine how you feel about this…
By Stephen Totilo Published February 21, 2014 -
Reviews
Maingear Pulse 17 Ultra-Thin Gaming Laptop: The Kotaku Review
Well, that’s it. Maingear’s ultra-thin Pulse 17 has sealed my fate — I am completely ruined for thicker gaming laptops. There was a time when the size of a gaming notebook didn’t matter so much. Three or four years ago a portable gaming rig that was nearly two inches thick and weighed close to ten…
By Mike Fahey Published February 20, 2014 -
Reviews
The Lego Movie Videogame: The Kotaku Review
Is the Lego Movie Videogame for you? It probably is if you can bring yourself to enjoy the following politically-controversial, looping video: How about this one? Really, what else needs to be said when assessing a video game other than the line: “You can play as Shakespeare and Batman.”? That says it all. Or at…
By Stephen Totilo Published February 20, 2014 -
ReviewsThe Last of Us: Left Behind: The Kotaku Review
I’ve never played anything quite like The Last of Us: Left Behind Oh, something like it might exist, out there in the hidden corners of videogame-land. I’ve just never seen it. Let’s cut to the chase. My recommendation: Go play it. We can talk spoilers next week. But okay, okay. If you really want a…
By Kirk Hamilton Published February 14, 2014 -
ReviewsDanganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc: The Kotaku Review
Sometimes the best way to recommend a game is to break it down to its component parts. Take Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, out today for the PlayStation Vita. I started playing late last week with no real plans to review it, and wound up sinking 20 hours into it, finishing up yesterday afternoon. That doesn’t…
By Kirk Hamilton Published February 11, 2014 -
ReviewsLightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII: The Kotaku Review
I’ve never been less emotionally invested in a character than I am in Final Fantasy XIII‘s pink-haired powerhouse, so when Square Enix tells me Lightning Returns, my response is “That’s great. What else you got?” She’s gorgeous. She’s powerful. She’s relentless. She’s fiercely dedicated to whichever path she finds herself on. Lightning embodies all the…
By Mike Fahey Published February 11, 2014 -
Reviews
Bravely Default: The Kotaku Review
There’s an old saying: if it looks like a Final Fantasy, feels like a Final Fantasy, and sounds like a Final Fantasy, it’s probably Bravely Default Yes, Square Enix’s latest sojourn in the well-trod world of medieval fantasy and magical crystals will feel familiar to anyone who has played old Final Fantasy games and other…
By Jason Schreier Published February 7, 2014