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OpinionMods Make Gaming A Better Place For Everyone
Twitter is abuzz with today’s awkwardly wrong gaming take, this time focused on modding, after disparaging thoughts about a recent Witcher 3 mod led to debate over whether modders are harming the games industry. Which leads me to present the other case: modders are not harming the games industry. I should elaborate: For historical context,…
By John Walker Published April 20, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanA Pokémon-Themed Fossil Exhibit Opening In Japan
In what seems like an inevitability, a touring exhibition called Pokémon Kaseki Hakubutsukan (ポケモン化石博物館) or “Pokémon Fossil Museum” will open this summer in Japan. According to the official announcement, the exhibition will let visitors observe and compare fossils from dinosaurs and other creatures as well as extinct plants with Pocket Monsters, with the idea of…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 20, 2021 -
CultureOdds and EndsSuper Mario Bros. 2 Japan + Super Mario Bros. 2 USA = My Dream Game
Programmer and digital artist Sammu recently put out a nifty video showcasing her work combining the two different versions of Super Mario Bros. 2 into a mega-game featuring the mechanics of one and the levels of the other. As a fan of both, I desperately want to play it. The original 1986 Super Mario Bros.…
By Ian Walker Published April 19, 2021 -
CultureOdds and EndsSuper Mario 64 Plus Adds Very Cool Settings And Ideas To Nintendo’s Classic
Super Mario 64 Plus is a modified version of the PC port of Super Mario 64, which takes the original and adds loads of stuff like 60FPS, bug fixes, a ton of in-game options and, best of all, “The ability to continue the level after getting a star.” Don’t think of it as a completely…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 18, 2021 -
OpinionImpressionsA Horror Game Where Reloading Is The Scariest Part
Reloading in video games is rarely something you think a lot about. Often it’s a moment in time when you’re forced to stop shooting. But a new indie horror game makes reloading fun, nerve-wracking, and interesting. And it’s just one part of a great collection of horror games released earlier this week. Released on April…
By Zack Zwiezen Published April 17, 2021 -
CultureThe Nintendo Download: That SaGa Frontier Life
Last week we restarted our weekly Nintendo Download feature, highlighting 31 games released for the Switch over the course of seven days. This week only sees 30 new games joining the lineup, including SaGa Frontier Remastered, FEZ, Pocoyo Party, and a bunch of crap you’ve never heard of. For the sake of keeping a running…
By Mike Fahey Published April 15, 2021 -
CultureEverything Announced During Today’s Nintendo Indie World
Another Nintendo Indie World presentation, another batch of cool little games coming to the Switch between today and months from now. From Fez, The Longing and There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension out later today to next year’s GetsuFumaDen: Undying World, here’s the indies Nintendo showed off today. First off, let’s talk Fez, a game…
By Mike Fahey Published April 14, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanOn-Demand Printing For New Pokémon Snap Comes To Japanese Convenience Stores
Starting April 30, Lawson convenience stores across Japan will be offering a New Pokémon Snap printing service. That way players can print out their favorite photographs As the official site (via Yahoo! News and Nintendo Life) explains, the game data needs to be transferred to a smart device or PC. Then, users access the special…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 14, 2021 -
CultureNintendo Unveils New Blue Switch Lite, Which May Also Be Purple
After a year and a half of noncommittal colors like grey, turquoise, bad mayonnaise yellow, and coral, Nintendo gives us a Switch Lite that’s confident enough to call itself blue, even though it’s sort of purplish, depending on your eyes and/or display settings. The new blue Switch Lite, due out May 21, is blue in…
By Mike Fahey Published April 13, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanSatoru Iwata Seemed Like A Truly Good Dude
Former Nintendo president Satoru Iwata made a huge impact on gaming. The exec had the rare combination of technical knowledge and business savvy. He also seemed like a really good dude. Sadly, Iwata passed away on July 11, 2015, at the age of 55. In the newly released English translation of Ask Iwata, which is…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 13, 2021 -
CultureBig Bowser Penis Has Been Removed From Patreon
AkkoArcade is a 3D modeller who specialises in adult props for NSFW Source filmmaker clips. Earlier this week one of their creations—a large, veiny dick intended for use with Bowser movies—has had to be removed from Patreon after a takedown notice was issued against it. WARNING: NSFW IMAGERY BELOW As The Daily Dot report, the…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 12, 2021 -
CultureNeo: The World Ends With You Returns To Shibuya July 27
It took nearly 14 years, but the long-awaited sequel to 2007 action RPG The World Ends With You is right around the corner. Neo: The World Ends With You launches for PlayStation 4 and Switch on July 27, setting a new cast of characters, as well as some familiar faces, loose on the 3D streets…
By Mike Fahey Published April 9, 2021 -
CultureOdds and EndsOh Dang, You Can Actually Dismount Bloopers In Super Mario Sunshine’s Cursed Surfing Level
Love it or hate it, Super Mario Sunshine has a handful of truly awful levels. But it turns out players discovered a way to make one of the game’s worst stages much, much simpler. The sixth episode in Sunshine’s Ricco Harbor area, “Red Coins on the Water,” tasks you with, well, collecting red coins. While…
By Ian Walker Published April 8, 2021 -
CultureThe Nintendo Download: 31 New Games For The Switch This Week
Every week, Nintendo releases a list of new games coming to the Switch. It is, almost always, a very long list. This week’s list includes Spry Fox’s Cozy Grove, Switch Online exclusive Pac-Man 99, the Switch version of The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV, and 28 more games, many of which you…
By Mike Fahey Published April 8, 2021 -
ReviewsBacklogWelcome To Backlog Month
April’s pretty thin as far as new game releases go. So we at Kotaku are taking the moment to focus on something shared among every gamer: a backlog. You could call it a month…about backlogs…surely there’s some sort of cutesy phrase we could use? Aha! Backlog Month! Look, it’s not like April is literally devoid…
By Ari Notis Published April 7, 2021 -
CulturePac-Man 99 Is A Free Switch Online Exclusive Battle Royale
Announced last night and going live today at 9pm Eastern exclusively for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers, Pac-Man 99 is a 99-player battle of pellet-munching attrition in which players eat the spirits of the dead in order to sic them against their opponents until all are devoured. Yay, Pac-Man! It’s like Tetris 99, only with Pac-Man.…
By Mike Fahey Published April 7, 2021 -
CultureYou Might Be Able To Play Diablo II: Resurrected This Weekend
If you haven’t signed up for a chance to play Diablo II: Resurrected early, you should get on that: Blizzard just announced plans to hold a private alpha test on PC over the weekend. The lucky few who are chosen to take part in this initial testing phase will be able to play through Diablo…
By Ian Walker Published April 6, 2021 -
CultureAnimal Crossing Build-A-Bear Go On Sale This Morning, Could Be A Clusterfluff [Update]
Build-A-Bear’s eagerly-anticipated line of official Animal Crossing: New Horizons plushies go on sale this morning at 11 am Eastern. In order to handle what’s sure to be massive demand, Build-A-Bear has set up a virtual queue for customers to gather in to await their chance to purchase items that haven’t even been revealed yet. Nothing…
By Mike Fahey Published April 6, 2021 -
CultureIt’s Official: E3 Returns As An All-Digital, All-Free Event June 12
Following the cancelation of 2020’s event due to covid-19, and much rumor and speculation regarding this year’s iteration of what was once the most important video game trade show in the world, the Entertainment Software Association today announces E3 2021, a free all-digital event running June 12 through 15. Nintendo, Xbox, Capcom, Konami, Ubisoft, Take-Two…
By Mike Fahey Published April 6, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanRecord Covid-19 Cases In Osaka As Universal Studios Japan Limits Visitors
Today, Osaka posted its highest daily number of covid-19 cases: 719. This is the eighth straight day that covid-19 cases have been increasing in the prefecture. The numbers are also climbing in the surrounding areas. Online in Japan, some commenters online are worried about covid-19’s spread in Osaka, especially in regards to Universal Studios Japan…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 6, 2021