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Call of Duty: Black Ops III‘s Most Brutal Scene Haunts Me
Lately I’ve been having nightmares about robots. Spoilers for the end of the first mission of Call of Duty: Black Ops III follow. It’s strange. I thought it would have been the zombies. My mind’s been fertile soil for the seeds of bad dreams since I was a small child, and over the years I’ve…
By Mike Fahey Published November 9, 2015 -
Black Ops 3 Launched A Bit Broken On PC
Call of Duty campaigns are a guilty pleasure of mine, so I was excited last week to fire up Black Ops 3 on PC. Ten minutes later, I’d shut it down, and a sad sense of déjà vu was washing over me. It was a year ago that I was writing about how Advanced Warfare’s…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 8, 2015 -
My Favorite Black Ops III Feature So Far Is Theater Mode
Because official screenshots wouldn’t dare get us this close to Jeff Goldblum’s majestic virtuosity, there is Theater mode. Giving players free access to gameplay footage and virtual camera controls is nothing new—games that pride themselves on their visual flair have been letting players show off their stuff for years. Perhaps one day it will be…
By Mike Fahey Published November 7, 2015 -
Activision Blizzard Launches Film And TV Studio
You might think that, after this week’s surprise $5.9 billion acquisition, Activision might be out of big announcements to make. But it turns out they’ve got at least one more. The mega-publisher announced today that they’re launching a studio for film and TV projects in their huge stable of francises, which includes Call of Duty,…
By Jason Schreier Published November 6, 2015 -
The First Five Minutes Of Black Ops III‘s Hidden Arcade Game
Continuing the proud tradition established in the original Black Ops, Black Ops III has a hidden arcade mini-game, only it’s not really all that mini. If you’d rather find it yourself, close your eyes and ears. And maybe don’t read on. With news of the hidden game splashing about the internet briefly yesterday, Call of…
By Mike Fahey Published November 5, 2015 -
Black Ops III‘s Solo Experience Is Surprisingly Deep
There are certain things I’ve come to expect from a single player Call of Duty experience—bombastic set pieces, an in-your-face message, some sort of betrayal and a slow motion enemy take down. Black Ops III delivers three out of four, plus a whole lot more. The latest installment of Activision’s biggest franchise that doesn’t involve…
By Mike Fahey Published November 5, 2015 -
All The Ways Activision Is Avoiding Saying What Destiny Actually Sold
Destiny, a video game in which players travel through the galaxy and battle against random loot tables, is by most accounts a commercial success. But over a year after release, publisher Activision still won’t say how many copies they’ve actually sold. [This post originally ran in November of 2014. We’ve been regularly updating it with…
By Jason Schreier Published November 3, 2015 -
No Wonder Call of Duty Isn’t Ditching Last-Gen Consoles
Black Ops 3 won’t have a campaign mode on Xbox 360 and PS3, and the game’s frame rate will fluctuate between 30 and 60 frames-per-second. But here’s why they’re making a version for aging hardware: Activision’s revealed there are still 12 million monthly active users for the three-year-old Black Ops II. Damn Call of Duty…
By Patrick Klepek Published November 3, 2015 -
Activision Buys Candy Crush Maker King For $5.9 Billion
Just two days after Halloween, Activision’s spending a whole lot of money on candy—the publisher announced tonight that they’ve bought Candy Crush developer King for $5.9 billion. Yes, that’s BILLION. The mega-acquisition has to go through approval in Ireland, where King is based, but Activision says they anticipate that everything will be official by spring…
By Jason Schreier Published November 2, 2015 -
Esports
Activision Hires Former ESPN Boss To Run New eSports Division
The company behind Call of Duty and World of Warcraft is starting a new eSports division. Activision Blizzard announced the move today, vowing in a press release to come up with “all-new ways to deliver the best-in-class fan experience across games, platforms and geographies.” The division will be headed by two industry veterans: Major League…
By András Neltz Published October 22, 2015 -
The Messy, True Story Behind The Making Of Destiny
In the summer of 2013, months before they were supposed to ship their next video game, the game developers at Bungie went into panic mode. The storied studio, best known for creating the multi-million-selling Halo series, had spent the previous three years working on something they hoped would be revolutionary. Destiny, as they called it,…
By Jason Schreier Published October 20, 2015 -
ReviewsGuitar Hero Live: The Kotaku Review
Guitar Hero Live is two separate games united by a single plastic guitar. One is the first game in the series to truly live up to its name. The other is decidedly different. The core idea behind the Guitar Hero series is right there in the name—make the player feel like a rock (or pop…
By Mike Fahey Published October 20, 2015 -
ReviewsTransformers: Devastation: The Kotaku Review
To quote a tiny yellow robot during one of Transformers: Devastation’s many brilliant moments, “I did not see that coming.” Despite the killer cel-shaded look and a cast packed with voice actors from the ‘80s cartoon reprising their roles as the original robots in disguise, all signs pointed towards Transformers: Devastation being a massive disappointment.…
By Mike Fahey Published October 12, 2015 -
The First Five Minutes Of Transformers: Devastation: So Far, So Good
I was a little worried about not being able to get my hands on Transformers: Devastation until launch day. After playing for five minutes, everything is just prime. For starters, the game has Transformers in it. Thanks for watching! What, that’s not enough? Weird. Okay, it’s got good the good Transformers in it, voiced by…
By Mike Fahey Published October 6, 2015 -
Lenny Kravitz’ Pants Remain Intact Through An Entire Guitar Hero Live Spot
Not sure about James Franco’s. In honor of tomorrow’s launch of Rock Band 4, Activision has released a Guitar Hero Live promo spot featuring Lenny Kravitz and James Franco. It’s kind of adorable, and totally safe for work as well! Franco does manage to slip in a reference to Kravitz’ infamous dick slip (is that…
By Mike Fahey Published October 5, 2015 -
Behold, The Terrible Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5
When the first video we see of a game on launch day is a two minute montage of glitches captured within the first hour of gameplay, something’s not right. Perhaps “somethings” is the better term to use there. The problems with the first new entry in the once-premiere skateboarding franchise in years began back in…
By Mike Fahey Published September 29, 2015 -
A Skylanders Superchargers Buyers Guide For Confused Parents
The fifth installment of the series that started the toys-and-games craze goes on sale tomorrow, which means stores packed with baffled parents trying to make sense of it all. We’re here to help. Now that your children have finished collecting all the toys from Skylanders: Spryo’s Adventure, Skylanders Giants, Skylanders Swap Force and Skylanders Trap…
By Mike Fahey Published September 19, 2015 -
Catch Up With Over A Century Of Call Of Duty: Black Ops History
Cancel your plans to replay the first two Call of Duty: Black Ops games to catch up on the storyline—Treyarch’s handy timeline video has you covered. Dramatic music plays as the series’ timeline is drawn, from the 1930 birth of Victor Reznov to the 2025 death of Raul Menendez. How many people were shot in…
By Mike Fahey Published September 19, 2015 -
Let’s Try To Decipher Activision’s Destiny Puffery
Here is a coded message from Activision, sent via press release this morning: SANTA MONICA, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)— Bungie and Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI), announced today that Destiny: The Taken King broke the record for the most downloaded day-one game in PlayStation history and set a new…
By Jason Schreier Published September 17, 2015 -
Destiny: The Taken King Kicks Ass So Far
When Destiny first launched, it was a half-baked, punishing game with the barest hint of a story, delivered through crummy dialogue and repetitive missions that tasked you with shooting endless waves of enemies. One year later, everything’s changed. I’ve spent much of the past 24 hours powering through Destiny’s big Year Two expansion, The Taken…
By Jason Schreier Published September 16, 2015