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ReviewsEven The Most Promising Game Can Be Ruined By Free-To-Play Foolishness
Dammit, Tank Nation — why won’t you just let me love you? I wanted to spend hours flinging projectiles at challenging enemies against lush 2D backdrops, pausing only to use my amassed resources to fit new parts and upgrades onto my fantastical tank creations. I wanted to progress through the expansive story, discover new lands…
By Mike Fahey Published November 26, 2013 -
ReviewsThe Legend Of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds: The Kotaku Review
I haven’t enjoyed a game in The Legend of Zelda franchise this much in more than 20 years. Yes, I am one of those Legend of Zelda fans – the ones who steadfastly maintain that the pinnacle of the series, despite all the advances of the past two decades, is a 2D sprite-based game for…
By Mike Fahey Published November 22, 2013 -
Reviews
Super Mario 3D World: The Kotaku Review
Super Mario 3D World is a terrific video game. It’s just not a very good Wii U game. I can’t remember the last time Nintendo needed a game to be so good so badly. Super Mario 3D World is the first really big game for the company’s beleaguered Wii U, the kind of game that…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 22, 2013 -
ReviewsKiller Instinct: The Kotaku Review
The main reason I want to keep playing Killer Instinct is to hear the announcer go absolutely crazy when I do amazing things. The first time you hear him scream out “Combo Breakkkkerrrrr!!!!” you’ll understand. “Ready? Fight!” I’ve never wanted to please those omniscient voices commanding me in fighting games. Sure, hearing them bellow “K.O.!”…
By Evan Narcisse Published November 22, 2013 -
Reviews
Ryse: Son of Rome: The Kotaku Review
Ryse: Son of Rome is what I want from a next-gen game. It’s something different. And it’s something impressive. Ryse is also a game I expected to not like very much, so let’s give it one more label: a pleasant surprise on day one for Xbox One. Seven years in the making by a collection…
By Stephen Totilo Published November 21, 2013 -
Reviews
NBA Live 14: The Kotaku Review
It’s hard to remember, but NBA Live was once a challenger to the formidable NBA 2K. If you care about aggregated ratings, NBA Live 10 and NBA 2K10 finished in a dead heat. Live had stolen away one of 2K’s top designers. It was fargin’ war. Then EA Sports burned down everything. We haven’t seen…
By Owen Good Published November 20, 2013 -
ReviewsTearaway: The Kotaku Review
The first time my face popped up to animate the sun in Tearaway‘s papercraft world, I beamed, as a sun should. From ear to ear, I smiled, and I watched my smile grow in real time. And the little paper messenger girl named Atoi, who is fashioned out of an envelope, looked up at me…
By Tina Amini Published November 20, 2013 -
Reviews
The Xbox One: The Kotaku Review
The Xbox One is a testament to Microsoft’s towering ambition. It represents their desire not only to occupy a place in your home entertainment center, but to lumber straight into the center of it. It is a black plastic tank, a hard-edged chunk of corners meant to conquer everything in its path. But for all…
By Kirk Hamilton Published November 20, 2013 -
ReviewsLococycle: The Kotaku Review
Lococycle is a guilty pleasure. It’s a friend you hang out with, in private. You’re not comfortable introducing it to your parents and it sure as hell isn’t winning any “games as art” arguments and the like. In all aspects, Lococycle is an incredibly stupid game. In Lococycle you play as two-wheeler I.R.I.S., manufactured as…
By Tina Amini Published November 19, 2013 -
ReviewsThe First Official iOS Game Controller Is Here. It’s Okay.
The MOGA Ace Power is the first Apple certified, iOS 7 compliant video game controller on the market. No one can take that away from manufacturer Power A, even a mobile gaming hardware reviewer who thinks it feels like a child’s toy. When the MOGA line of Android video game controllers was first announced, companies…
By Mike Fahey Published November 19, 2013 -
ReviewsSideshow’s Diablo III Statue Is The Real Prime Evil
If you thought the final boss from Blizzard’s Diablo III was terrifying, wait until you’ve got the Prime Evil staring you down in your own living room. Sideshow Collectibles’ Diablo polystone statue is truly terrifying. The second (ignore what I say in the video) of a three-part collaboration with Blizzard Entertainment that began withArthas from…
By Mike Fahey Published November 18, 2013 -
ReviewsCrimson Dragon: The Kotaku Review
Dragons—oh, I’ve killed dragons. Lots of dragons. I’ve collected dragon scales, I’ve made weapons out of dragon bones. I’ve even been able to speak the language of dragons. You’d think I’ve done it all, but no: before playing Crimson Dragon, I had never ridden a dragon before. This also means I’ve never played Panzer Dragoon—and…
By Patricia Hernandez Published November 18, 2013 -
ReviewsDead Rising 3: The Kotaku Review
The real world can be a frustrating place. Stuck in traffic, trapped in line at the supermarket… it always feels like there’s someone in the way. Certain games—the Grand Theft Autos, the Dead Risings—show us a world where it’s okay to act on our worst, most violent impulses. Our forest of problems becomes a lawn…
By Kirk Hamilton Published November 18, 2013 -
ReviewsNeed for Speed Rivals: The Kotaku Review
Everyone in this year’s Need For Speed—racers and cops both—is an asshole. Neither side is likable. Thank God. It’s incredibly freeing to be a total, speed-obsessed jerk, especially when it’s accompanied by amazing visuals and intense velocity. Way to welcome us to next-gen, Need For Speed Rivals Viewed on PlayStation 4, Rivals will make your…
By Evan Narcisse Published November 15, 2013 -
ReviewsResogun: The Kotaku Review
A twin-stick shooter with a mess of action on screen is the perfect launch title for the PS4. For the uninitiated: twin-stick shooters are pretty easy to control. One joystick moves you around, the other joystick shoots in the direction you push it. The challenge is in using these controls in the best possible way.…
By Tina Amini Published November 13, 2013 -
Reviews
Contrast: The Kotaku Review
Contrast starts off like all games of its mysterious, charming nature should: by not telling you much. You meet a little girl when the game loads up. A scene plays out and from it you understand you live in some parallel world where you can turn into a silhouette on demand. Only the little girl…
By Tina Amini Published November 13, 2013 -
ReviewsThe PlayStation 4: The Kotaku Review
How good is the PlayStation 4? Ask me in five years. Ask me after Naughty Dog’s next couple of games, after I figure out whether God of War is headed in the right direction, after I learn whether it has become unfathomable to play a console game without livestreaming it. You know what? Ask me…
By Stephen Totilo Published November 13, 2013 -
ReviewsKnack: The Kotaku Review
Next gen visuals. Old-fashioned gameplay. The PlayStation 4 action-adventure Knack looks better than most video games you’ve played, but there’s a good chance you’ve played a game like Knack before. It’s not that I want to knock Knack. It’s a launch game. Launch games seldom offer more than what Knack offers. You get a game…
By Stephen Totilo Published November 13, 2013 -
ReviewsKillzone Shadow Fall: The Kotaku Review
One thought ran through my head while playing Killzone Shadow Fall: How beautiful can a cliché look? It’s no surprise that Shadow Fall is beautiful. The Killzone games that showed up on the PS2 and PS3 offered up some of the best graphics ever seen on those consoles. So, yes, the opening hours of this…
By Evan Narcisse Published November 13, 2013 -
Reviews
The New MOGA Android Controllers Have The Power
For the past year, Power A has been chipping away at the Android accessory market with its MOGA line of game controllers, combining convenient clips with console-quality controls. Now they’re releasing the MOGA Power line, adding device charging capability to a pair of slightly retooled controllers, at a price. What Are They? The MOGA Hero…
By Mike Fahey Published November 11, 2013