Microsoft

Here’s Dark Souls II with the chosen ones gathering around the bonfire, reimagined in glorious 16-bit by pixel-wizard Bandygrass. Pretty neat animation, and it reminds me of the superb character selection screen in Diablo II Dayshot is an image-based feature that runs every morning, showcasing some of the prettiest, funniest game-related screenshots and art that…

The New Metal Gear Solid Game Was Censored for Japan [Updated]

Japan’s getting a slightly different version of Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes than everyone else. Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, the separately sold prologue to the highly anticipated Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is out this week. The Western version will feature the vocal talents of actor Kiefer Sutherland as Big…

Microsoft Wants To Reward Good Behaviour On Xbox Live

Microsoft is currently “brainstorming” ideas on how to reward well-behaved Xbox Live players. In other words, after a decade of policing Xbox Live’s worst offenders, they’re going to see if the carrot works better than the stick. Microsoft’s Frank Savage said at a GDC panel earlier today that the company is going to try and…

The Xbox One arrives in Japan—and twenty-five other countries—in September this year. The full list of countries can be found over at Xbox Wire, with more details on the forthcoming September launch promised for April.

​The Xbox One Improves a Little Bit More Next Month

Microsoft’s newest console just got a significant update a few weeks ago, changing a whole bunch of stuff in the process. Next month’s update won’t be quite as wide-ranging but it still adds tweaks that people have been asking for. April’s Xbox One update gets detailed on the console’s news site, bringing news about improved…

Xbox Executive Marc Whitten Leaving Microsoft After 14 Years

Microsoft just announced that Marc Whitten, Chief Product Officer of Xbox, will be leaving the company to take up a role with wireless audio company Sonos. The full statement is below: Following the launch of Xbox One, the most successful launch in Xbox history, and the recent launch of “Titanfall,” the most anticipated game of…

A Fresh Reminder Why Fanboys Are Stupid

I put this to you, Xbox fanboys (though it’s of course equally applicable across all platforms): if you love console so damn much you indeed qualify as a fanboy, one who adores Microsoft and despises Sony and Nintendo, what does it say about you when one of the execs running Xbox itself owns and enjoys…

The Guy Looking To Expose Online Gaming’s Worst Jerks

The guy recording racist and sexist crap in online multiplayer matches know he’s going to stop doing it soon. “I really only play one game these days; [Call of Duty:]Ghosts on Xbox Live,” he says. “I am a pretty nasty FIFA player but I really don’t want to invest any more money or time into…

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…

Sony Takes Another Shot At Xbox Policies

It’s been a while since we’ve seen any mud-slinging in World Console War V, but Sony took another shot tonight, going after Microsoft’s controversial console parity policy. Although many independent developers have praised Microsoft for ramping up its indie support on Xbox One with the new ID@Xbox program, some have criticized the Xbox maker for…

Pro Wrestling Is So Much Better With Sonic and Gabe Newell

We’ve already seen great characters created using WWE 2k14‘s deep character creation toolkit, but why stick to superheroes when the possibilities are endless? So Jerma on YouTube went completely crazy and created an entire tournament with characters that are just out of this world. Sonic above is just the tip of the iceberg. Here’s Glue…

How Kinect Can Help Stroke Victims

Korean researchers have developed a stroke recovery program that uses Kinect. As you can see in the above video (via tipster Sang), the software even features a space shooter as part of the therapy. Kinect Assists Stroke Victims [Information Week Thanks, Sang!] To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him…

Microsoft Says Xbox Live Is Now Fixed

It took over five hours, but Microsoft now says that Xbox Live should be back up and running in North America. If you can’t connect, try the console reboot sequence described here first. And if that still won’t let you sign in, let us know in the comments below!

Sure, the first half of this Titanfall tips video from Microsoft is mostly just hype, but in the second half, they’ve included a few simple but worthwhile pointers. Some of the ideas are similar to the tips we’ve already shared, but three of them are small new ideas worth keeping in mind. To paraphrase the…

Xbox Live “Core Services” Are Down (Don’t Blame Titanfall)

Of all the times for Xbox Live to be experiencing “limited service”. Microsoft’s Xbox Live has been having some pretty serious issues for the past hour or so. I could sign into my account (both in a browser and on my Xbox One), but couldn’t sign into Titanfall or access stores. Your mileage may vary;…

​Meet The Assholes Ruining Online Gaming

You can hear terrible prejudices bubble up when you’re playing a Killzone, Call of Duty or Halo match online. This stuff is bad when you’re in the heat of a tense deathmatch showdown, trying to just have fun and win. It’s even worse away from the game. The Bigot Gamer collects all sorts of overheated…

Wacky Titanfall News Report Has Halo, Call of Duty Shooting Each Other

Look, we can’t say that Next Media Animation’s segment on today’s hot release actually, y’know, makes sense, as far what the moving images signify. But it’s fun to watch. And, hey, it’s Francis! Think he knows he’s in this? The best part of NMA’s take on Titanfall has to be its terrible approximation of the…

Tips For Playing Titanfall

It’s Titanfall day, people. Are you prepared for a parkour-filled, multiplayer-only, first-person shooter experience? We’ve been playing for days and have a few tips on how to best take advantage of all its neat features. We’re not ready for an official review just yet. Servers only just went live and we want to make sure…

Titanfall‘s Backstory, Summarized In One Minute

So that’s why theTitan classes are called Ogre, Stryder and Atlas! Lore‘s here to summarize Titanfall‘s background story with a huge amount of references. LORE Titanfall Lore in a Minute [YouTube] To contact the author of this post, write to: [email protected]

​Coming Soon (Maybe) to Your Xbox Dashboard: Political Ads

Video games can be great place to escape the drudgery of the real world. No need to think about tax rates, paying utility bills or contractor rates when you’re in a Halo multiplayer match. But the dirtiest competition in the real world—jockeying for elected office—might be landing up on an Xbox near you, if Microsoft…