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ReviewsThe Uncomfortable Line Between Free-To-Play And Premium
When one downloads a free game for their phone or tablet, there’s a fair chance they’ll be getting an experience that isn’t all it can be without additional purchases. That shouldn’t be the case with $7 premium title like 2K Drive, yet here we are. To be clear, not a single additional penny is required…
By Mike Fahey Published September 9, 2013 -
ReviewsAmnesia: A Machine For Pigs: The Kotaku Review
Some games are defined by a single place; others by a single character. Still other games are defined by action, by something you can do in the game itself. In its early goings, the horror game Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs is defined by a single word: Nope. Near to the start of the game,…
By Kirk Hamilton Published September 9, 2013 -
ReviewsMcDonald’s Mighty Wings: The Snacktaku Review
As you watch this video Snacktaku review for McDonald’s new Mighty Wings, try not to think about how horribly sick I feel the day after recording it. I sure am. I am not saying that McDonald’s take on America’s favorite way to consume birds is directly responsible for me running to the restroom every fifteen…
By Mike Fahey Published September 6, 2013 -
Reviews
This Is Probably Not The Star Wars Game You Were Looking For
Star Wars: Force Collection is pretty sad. It’s not because it’s a collectible card game — well, not completely because it’s a collectible card game. Over the past year I’ve come to terms with the genre. If players are willing to spend ridiculous amounts of money on cards that don’t technically exist with arbitrary attack…
By Mike Fahey Published September 6, 2013 -
Reviews
Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Looks Great Even 20 Years Later
Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure is a franchise that has spanned 25 years. Earlier this year, the first two story arcs were made into an anime; and two weeks back, the series’ newest game was released in Japan. So now is the perfect time to look back at the two Jojo OVAs. Surprisingly, they’ve aged quite well.…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published September 6, 2013 -
ReviewsRayman Legends: The Kotaku Review
The mark of a better video game, for me, is that it lingers in my mind. I think about it after I’m done playing with it. It adds something enriching to my life, to my mental catalogue of experiences. The bad games don’t stick with me. I mostly forget them. I don’t think about them.…
By Stephen Totilo Published September 3, 2013 -
ReviewsThere’s Only One Really Good Reason To Buy Nvidia’s Shield
Last month Nvidia unleashed the Shield portable gaming system, a $299 Tegra 4-powered combination dual-analog game pad and touchscreen Android tablet with the ability to stream gameplay directly from a gaming PC. One of those selling points is not like the others. When Nvidia announced its intention to make the leap from making video cards…
By Mike Fahey Published September 2, 2013 -
ReviewsBen’s Chili Bowl Half-Smokes and Chili Sauce: The Snacktaku Review
There’s a place called Ben’s Chili Bowl on U Street in Washington D.C. that’s been the talk of the town since 1958. Ben’s half-smokes and chili sauce — a riff on the traditional chili dog — has been raved over by the rich and famous and showcased on any number of popular cable food programs.…
By Mike Fahey Published August 28, 2013 -
ReviewsLost Planet 3: The Kotaku Review
Early on in Lost Planet 3, main character Jim Peyton says “I’m here to work.” The 32-year-old isn’t a prophesied savior or a man of action who’s sworn vengeance for fallen comrades. He’s a dad who taken on grueling work so that his family can survive in a future where Earth’s energy woes have led…
By Evan Narcisse Published August 27, 2013 -
ReviewsMadden NFL 25: The Kotaku Review
The history of Madden NFL in the age of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 is a history of inconsistent execution, of hit-and-miss features, some more easily marketed than implemented or understood. Of all the memories Madden NFL 25 could evoke in the series’ silver anniversary year, the strongest are of the gimmick Maddens, thanks…
By Owen Good Published August 27, 2013 -
Reviews
Gatchaman Is So Full of Action Movie Clichés It Hurts
Gatchaman (i.e., Battle of the Planets) was one of the most popular anime of the 1970s. Now, 40 years later, this franchise is getting a new anime and a live-action film—which debuted in Japan this past weekend. Sadly, this attempt to reinvent Gatchaman has created nothing but a painfully clichéd action movie. Good – A…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published August 27, 2013 -
ReviewsFinal Fantasy XIV (2010 Release): The Kotaku Review
On this, the eve of the official launch of Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, let’s take a look back at the original release of Square Enix’s second Final Fantasy MMO, and reflect on the wrongs the new version is trying to right. — Originally posted 10/21/2010 — Forget Cloud, Squall, Tidus, and Lightning; in…
By Mike Fahey Published August 26, 2013 -
ReviewsEuropa Universalis IV: The Kotaku Review
At the height of its powers in the early 18th century, the British Empire spanned all corners of the globe, from Brazil to Alaska, Austria to Manchuria, and…wait, what? OK, so in actual history, it did no such thing, but in my history, the history of a nation I led through 400 years of expansion,…
By Luke Plunkett Published August 26, 2013 -
Reviews
Disney Infinity: The Kotaku Review
Disney Infinity is a wonderful way for children of all ages to indulge their desire to create and explore, but are all of these colorful pieces ofexpensive plasticreally necessary? Setting aside the game’s creativity-exercising segment for the moment, let’s consider the origin of Disney Infinity. The game’s roots lie in 2010’s Toy Story 3: The…
By Mike Fahey Published August 23, 2013 -
ReviewsAll I Want In A Racing Game For 99 Cents
Takedowns, wild jumps, drifting, branching shortcuts, car damage, online multiplayer and music from The Crystal Method — that’s all I really wanted, and that’s what Asphalt 8: Airborne delivers for under a buck. Mobile racers are getting prettier every day, and while Asphalt 8: Airborne isn’t as gorgeous as EA’s Real Racing 3, it’s also…
By Mike Fahey Published August 22, 2013 -
ReviewsSplinter Cell: Blacklist: The Kotaku Review
Sam Fisher is on the phone with his daughter. He’s talking about his feelings. He’s telling her he worries about her. “See,” the game says, “This is not just another technobabble Tom Clancy military gunfest. This game has heart.” Sam hangs up the phone, ready to go to… to somewhere in the Middle East and…
By Kirk Hamilton Published August 21, 2013 -
ReviewsSaints Row IV: The Kotaku Review
Saints Row IV, much like its predecessor, is a game that doesn’t make any excuses for itself. It knows exactly what it is and just how much it caters to the lowest common denominator. And you know what? It straight up loves it. It relishes it. And I love Saints Row IV for it. If…
By Tina Amini Published August 20, 2013 -
ReviewsThe Bureau: XCOM Declassified: The Kotaku Review
In an early mission of The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, a deer clattered across the pavement of a wrecked college town’s main drag as I took my orders. It paused and looked at me, and I at it. Even before this invasion, that deer’s world was under constant threat from death-dealing technology beyond its comprehension. What…
By Owen Good Published August 20, 2013 -
Reviews
About That Disney Infinity Review…
In a perfect world, this image would have a little yellow circle in the top left corner, and this article would be titled: Disney Infinity: The Kotaku Review. Unfortunately, this is not the case. First off, shipping issues kept the proper version of Disney’s ambitious toys meets video games project from arriving until Friday morning.…
By Mike Fahey Published August 19, 2013 -
ReviewsTales of Xillia The Kotaku Review
Tales of Xillia is pretty awesome. You should totally play it. That’s exactly the sort of review I would have written back in 1995 had I played the very first game in Namco’s long-running role-playing series, Tales of Phantasia, on the Super Famicom. I would have tweaked the wording slightly for each subsequent game, maybe…
By Mike Fahey Published August 16, 2013