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Want Your PS3 Games to Run Faster? Buy an SSD
The Xbox 360 and Wii are, if you want to stay under warranty, locked entities. You can’t upgrade them at all. The PS3, though, lets you swap out a hard drive, and with the coming of the age of solid state drives (SSD), this can result in big performance gains. Running a series of tests…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2012 -
First PlayStation Vita Ad Gives Bad Advice
Here’s Sony’s first video advertisement for the powerful PlayStation Vita, an ad that the publisher says will be plastered on Fox, Comedy Central, and ESPN (among other networks) in the near future. The tagline? “Never Stop Playing.” You probably should stop playing at some point, though. To eat. And sleep. And read Kotaku
By Jason Schreier Published February 14, 2012 -
PlayStation Vita Winners Continue to Rage over Fishy Taco Bell Contest
We continue to hear from people who have taken issue with the strange Taco Bell contest that claims to be giving a PlayStation Vita to customers every 15 minutes. More than 15 contestants have told Kotaku that after seeing on the Taco Bell website that they had won Vitas, they were later informed that their…
By Jason Schreier Published February 13, 2012 -
Take the Official Tour of the PlayStation Vita
After posting its official unboxing teaser video on Thursday, Sony yesterday published this 12-minute guided tour of the system, explaining all of the features and benefits of the PlayStation Vita, with Guy Longworth, PlayStation’s chief marketer, and John Koller, who is the boss of PlayStation’s handheld division. The PlayStation Vita launches in North America on…
By Owen Good Published February 11, 2012 -
This Taco Bell PlayStation Vita Contest Seems A Little Weird [UPDATE]
Taco Bell is giving PlayStation Vitas to customers every 15 minutes — except when it isn’t. Over the past few weeks, the fast food chain has been running a promotional contest for Sony’s upcoming handheld system. Customers can take codes found on the “Taco Bell $5 Buck Box” and enter them in a submission form…
By Jason Schreier Published February 10, 2012 -
The Good Guys Have Already Lost on the Cover of Aliens: Colonial Marines
Hey there, alien, why so blue? Is it because you’ve already ingested that squad of marines and have nothing else to play with? You know what’ll cheer you up? A little Eiffel 65 Here’s the official box art for Aliens: Colonial Marines, a rather fetching image that’s sure to draw the eye, and once the…
By Mike Fahey Published February 9, 2012 -
See How Well the Vita Plays With / Against the PlayStation 3
The PlayStation 3 and PS Vita share the sort of relationship that the Previous Sony Portable could only dream of. Maybe the PS3 thought the PSP was the one, but now it’s found something much more intimate and personal. Vita players can play games against PS3 players. They can play games with PS3 players. They…
By Mike Fahey Published February 9, 2012 -
The Darkness II Weathers the Hellish Attentions of Game Reviewers
There are plenty of things you can do with a tentacle besides porn, and The Darkness II has them all covered. Jackie Estacado has gone through hell; now he faces an even greater challenge: Critics. There’s something living inside mobster Jackie Estacado, born of the blackest corners of the psyche, eons of human suffering and…
By Mike Fahey Published February 7, 2012 -
Sony: You Won’t Be Able To Bring PSP Discs To Vita
Sony has told Kotaku that there will not be a North American version of the UMD Passport program, which would allow PlayStation Vita users to transfer their PSP discs to the upcoming handheld. Sony debuted the UMD Passport program in Japan last December alongside the release of the Vita. Japanese gamers can insert their game…
By Jason Schreier Published February 7, 2012 -
ReviewsKingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning: The Kotaku Review
The lead designer of The Elder Scrolls III and IV, a New York Times bestselling fantasy author, and one of comics’ most notable creators walk into a development studio to create an action role-playing game based on an entirely original fantasy world. Stop me if you’ve heard this one. Former major league baseball pitcher Curt…
By Mike Fahey Published February 7, 2012 -
Atelier Meruru: The Apprentice of Arland Isn’t Like Those Other Atelier Games
Aw look, I’ve upset pretty pink-haired princess Meruru by being slightly deceptive in the headline. Don’t worry, Meruru, I’m sure you have your distinctive elements, probably! The thirteenth game in Gust’s alchemy-driven role-playing series is a great deal like the previous two, bringing the Arland trilogy to a close in North America later this year.…
By Mike Fahey Published February 7, 2012 -
GameStop’s Latest Deal Makes No Damn Sense
Look once at this poster and it’ll seem obvious. Buy something expensive, get two of something cheaper for free. By the second look you see the mistake. By the third look you notice the bad math, which makes it impossible to actually make good on the offer. Check Out This Amazing Deal! (Brought to You…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 7, 2012 -
PSN Update Stops Users From Accessing Paid Content
A routine bit of maintenance on the PlayStation Network last week has gone a little pear-shaped, it seems, with users in Europe complaining that post-update they’ve been unable to access content they’ve already paid for. While North American users appear unaffected, the problem has struck hundreds of users in PAL territories like Britain, continental Europe…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 5, 2012 -
Modern Warfare 3 PlayStation 3 Elite Content Season Kicks Off February 28
PlayStation 3 Call of Duty Elite members get their first taste of the nine-month Modern Warfare 3 content season come February 28, when Activision launches the Liberation and Piazza maps for Sony’s console.
By Mike Fahey Published February 2, 2012 -
SoulCalibur V Takes a Beating From Game Reviewers
With the past couple of years dominated by Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat-style 2D fighters, it’s nice to see the return of one of the big 3D fighting franchises. That is, unless you’re a game reviewer. Then it’s time to step into the critical ring. Picking up the story of SoulCalibur and the Soul Blade…
By Mike Fahey Published February 1, 2012 -
PlayStation Man Kaz Hirai Will Officially be Sony’s Next Boss
As has been expected for a while now, Sir Howard Stringer’s replacement as President and CEO of Sony Corporation when he steps down in June will be Kaz Hirai, a long-time champion of the company’s PlayStation brand. Sony officially announced the move tonight, with Hirai’s promotion to come in April (Stringer will remain as executive…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 1, 2012 -
Game Critics Tear NeverDead Limb-From-Limb
Great games often spring from a single brilliant idea, like a protagonist that can pull himself back together after being blown apart. Unfortunately this is also the case for many really crappy games. Where does NeverDead‘s mangled pile of people parts fall? If you’re any good at reading charts, you probably have already sussed the…
By Mike Fahey Published January 31, 2012 -
Want to Play Resident Evil 6 Early? Buy Dragon’s Dogma
While Capcom’s open-world action game Dragon’s Dogma has attracted a fair amount of interest, it hasn’t generated even a fraction of the buzz of say, a new Resident Evil game. Capcom helps it along by slipping a token for access to the Resident Evil 6 demo inside every copy of Dragon’s Dogma To further demonstrate…
By Mike Fahey Published January 31, 2012 -
Let’s Get All Prettied Up for the SoulCalibur V Launch
SoulCalibur V is in stores today across the U.S., where players are a lot less likely to dress up as a whip-wielding Ivy or Ezio Auditore de Firenze than the special gamers inhabiting the world of the SoulCalibur V launch trailer. Man, if I had to get dressed up as my favorite character every time…
By Mike Fahey Published January 31, 2012 -
Game Critics Turn Back the Score Clock on Final Fantasy XIII-2
Tomorrow marks the second time in Final Fantasy history that Square Enix releases a direct console sequel to one of the numbered entries in the fabled series. Considering the first time around we got a trio of pop divas playing dress-up, this one has to be better, right game reviewers? We’ve seen how I feel…
By Mike Fahey Published January 30, 2012