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OpinionImpressionsBorderlands Legendary Collection Is The Handheld Port I Always Wanted
I love Borderlands. I bought a PlayStation Vita in 2014 just because it came bundled with Borderlands 2. Unfortunately, that version was terrible. But now that the first three games are available on the Switch via the Borderlands Legendary Collection, I finally have a chance to loot and shoot on the go that won’t leave…
By Ian Walker Published June 1, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsXenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition‘s New Chapter Is Light-Hearted Fun
Included in this week’s definitive edition of Xenoblade Chronicles for the Switch is Future Connected, a short playable epilogue. It ties up a dangling plotline and has a lot of fun doing it. Future Connected is not simply more Xenoblade Chronicles, which is good. I just finished playing a couple dozen hours of Xenoblade Chronicles,…
By Mike Fahey Published May 28, 2020 -
Spirited Away Recreated In Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Twitter user Tsukimaro has an interesting project: bringing the classic Studio Ghibli anime Spirited Away to life in Animal Crossing: New Horizons As Sora News points out, the movie’s scenes have been recreated in amazing detail. There are limitations to what can be created in New Horizons, but Tsukimaro’s clever workarounds make the whole thing…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 28, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsXenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition Makes An Excellent Third Impression
It’s hard not to focus on Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition’s upgraded graphics. The Switch version’s crisp characters and updated textures are far removed from the washed-out, muddy visuals of the Wii original. But it’s the little quality-of-life adjustments to this enhanced version of Monolith Soft’s open world action RPG that are making my third playthrough…
By Mike Fahey Published May 27, 2020 -
CultureAndroid Now Has A Very Good 3DS Emulator
While there has been an unofficial port available for a while now, anyone wanting to see what a 3DS game really looks like on a modern phone can now download an official Android version of Citra, the best 3DS emulator around. Having got requests for a handheld version of their now-basically-complete desktop emulator for years,…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 26, 2020 -
CultureLet’s Settle Splatoon’s Mayo vs. Ketchup War, With Science
Splatoon 2′s first post-launch Splatfest kicks off tomorrow, and fans are passionately rallying for their favorite the upcoming Mayo Vs. Ketchup battle. Snacktaku removes passion and common sense from the equation to try and determine a winner using the magic of snack science. Originally posted 8/03/17. Re-upped in honor of this weekend’s encore of Splatoon…
By Mike Fahey Published May 22, 2020 -
Retro Nintendo Games Come To Life With A Violin
Of course, violins are used in making modern game music, but I didn’t know how good the instrument was at bringing to life retro game scores. YouTuber Teppei Okada has been playing game scores on the violin, such as F-Zero. Super Mario Bros. The Legend of Zelda. What makes his covers so cool is that…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 18, 2020 -
Welcome To Danny DeVito Island
Can I offer you a Danny DeVito Animal Crossing island in this trying time? Sure you could make a gorgeous village or fancy kitchen in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. OR you could make an island featuring the face of actor Danny DeVito. That’s what Reddit user B4SSOON decided to do with their island. Over on…
By Zack Zwiezen Published May 17, 2020 -
OpinionImpressionsEverything Is Okay Now, There’s A Hatsune Miku Rhythm Game On The Switch
Virtual songstress Hatsune Miku and her digital friends finally bring their brand of rhythm action to the Nintendo Switch today. While Hatsune Miku: Project Diva Mega Mix initially comes off as a watered down version of 2017’s Project Diva Future Tone for the PlayStation 4, Miku’s new anime look, the Switch-exclusive game mode, and portable…
By Mike Fahey Published May 15, 2020 -
Watching Musicians Play The Animal Crossing: New Horizons Theme Is Super Chill
I’ve heard Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ main theme every morning for the last million years that we’ve been social distancing, but seeing the musicians behind it gives its soothing beats the added bonus of putting some some human faces to the tune. Nintendo released a video today showing the musicians behind Animal Crossing: New Horizons…
By Riley MacLeod Published May 15, 2020 -
CultureFour More Games Added To Nintendo’s Switch Online Library
Nintendo just announced four new (well, old) games coming to its Switch Online service for May. Three are for the SNES, and one for the NES. From May 20, you’ll be able to play Wild Guns, Panel de Pon and Operation Logic Bomb from the SNES, and Rygar from the NES. Note that none of…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 14, 2020 -
CultureNintendo Reveals Paper Mario: The Origami King, Coming To Switch In July
Nintendo announced a new Paper Mario game coming to Switch July 17 called Paper Mario: The Origami King. It’ll be the sixth game in the series and the first on the new console. Here’s a trailer, complete with a Metroid easter egg at the end: The story looks like it’ll revolve around trying to liberate…
By Ethan Gach Published May 14, 2020 -
Kotaku EastJapanHere’s A Cooling Fan For The Nintendo Switch
Summers are brutal in Japan. So, here’s a small fan to help Switch owners make them more bearable. This is the Gamers Mobile Cooler. It’s a small USB-connected fan that purports to pump out cool air that can drop the temp by 13 degrees Celsius (55 degrees Fahrenheit). As Game Watch Impress notes, the fan…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 14, 2020 -
CultureKotaku Game DiaryI Despise Joy Con Drift, But I’m Learning To Live With It
Back when this era of social distancing began two months and also an incalculable number of years ago, I was playing Dragon Quest XI on my Switch. I noticed that, every once in a while, my character would take a few steps forward or turn slightly of his own accord. I’d read the horror stories,…
By Nathan Grayson Published May 13, 2020 -
Japan’s Animal Crossing: New Horizons Creations Continue To Amaze
People around the world are creating amazing things in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Japan, in particular, continues to make incredible things. Previously, Kotaku introduced incredible outfits, rooms and retro islands made by Animal Crossing players in Japan. Now, let’s check in to see what they’ve been up to! Under-the-sea themed. A flea market on a…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 13, 2020 -
Sorry, Cat, But You Are Tom Nook Now
While my cold, rational brain knows my cat will fight me over this, will claw and scream and resist at every turn, my stupid heart is like fuck it, let’s dress this cat up as Tom Nook with some bootleg Chinese animal cosplay because it will look amazing, no matter the pain involved. Behold: lil…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 12, 2020 -
CulturePlay Tetris 99 This Weekend, Get An Awesome Animal Crossing Theme
Tetris 99‘s 13th Maximus Cup runs May 15 through May 18. Those skillful enough to earn 100 points during the event will secure themselves an Animal Crossing: New Horizons theme for the game, full of faces, icons, and music from the popular island life simulator. It’s very cute. I don’t know how motivated I’d be…
By Mike Fahey Published May 12, 2020 -
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Is Visiting Random Animal Crossing Islands [Update]
Politicians aren’t exactly able to go door-to-door meeting folks at the moment, but Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is doing the next best thing—or maybe even the better thing—and heading out to meet folks in Animal Crossing instead [Update: and attend graduation ceremonies!]. AOC put out a notice earlier today that she was planning on visiting “random…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2020 -
Even The Guy Who Wrote That Sea Bass Joke In Animal Crossing Is Tired Of It
At this point, the sea bass joke in Animal Crossing: New Horizons has become a meme. Folks hate it. But the man who wrote that joke shared some interesting insight behind it and how much they and the other devs working on the game care about even the smallest details. The sea bass joke quickly…
By Zack Zwiezen Published May 10, 2020 -
CultureAs Expected, Nintendo Is Taking Down That Unofficial Super Mario 64 PC Port
With the world in turmoil, it’s important to hold onto the few constants we have left. The sun still rises in the east, the sky is still (mostly) blue, and Nintendo is still devoted to taking down unofficial ports of its games. Earlier this month, a PC port of Super Mario 64 appeared that could…
By Ian Walker Published May 8, 2020