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OpinionImpressionsPuzzle Quest 3 Does The Match-Three RPG A Little Differently
The game that kicked off the match-three/RPG genre in 2007 is back for a third go with Puzzle Quest 3. An early preview of the Android version of the threequel reveals a somewhat more dynamic take on the genre mash-up. Giving players two seconds to map out their moves makes a big difference. The basic…
By Mike Fahey Published March 23, 2021 -
CulturePlayers Aren’t Happy About Assassin’s Creed Valhalla‘s Transmog Tax
A couple months after release, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla finally has transmog, but not as some players had originally envisioned it. The feature falls short of how it’s been implemented in past games, and comes with a 50 silver tax on each transaction to boot, leaving a lot of us, myself included, scratching out heads. Transmog,…
By Ethan Gach Published March 17, 2021 -
CultureUndertale Makes Its Xbox Debut Via Game Pass Tomorrow
Undertale, the quirky 2015 role-playing game from indie dev Toby Fox, finally heads to Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S tomorrow, and it will be free for everyone with an active Game Pass subscription on console. After debuting on PC several years ago, Undertale was ported to several additional platforms, including PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita,…
By Ian Walker Published March 15, 2021 -
Tips & GuidesSo, Which Bethesda Game Pass Game Should You Play First?
Starting today, you can play a bunch of Bethesda-published games on Game Pass, thanks to Microsoft and ZeniMax’s recent marriage. Some were previously available. Many are new. However you slice it, if you’re a member of Microsoft’s games-on-demand service, you now have 20 largely excellent games at your fingertips. You obviously cannot play all of…
By Ari Notis Published March 12, 2021 -
CultureLoop Hero Will Soon Let You Save The Dang Game
The deck-building, dungeon-making roguelite RPG Loop Hero is getting some much needed quality-of-life improvements in an upcoming update, the game’s developers announced yesterday. The most important of these fixes? Finally letting you save your game. Technically, Loop Hero does that already, saving all progress automatically as you complete expeditions. But there’s no way to save…
By Ethan Gach Published March 12, 2021 -
CultureMorning MusicI Found Some Rad Tracks At This Virtual Japanese Music Festival
Welcome to Morning Music, Kotaku’s ongoing hangout for folks who love video games and the cool-ass sounds they make. Instead of highlighting a single soundtrack today, I wanna tell you about my visit to a virtual music festival this weekend, where I found lots of intriguing new tunes So that was cool. It started when…
By Alexandra Hall Published March 8, 2021 -
CultureZynga Buys Torchlight Studio Echtra Games
Echtra Games, the San Francisco-based studio founded in 2016 by Diablo and Torchlight co-creator Max Schaefer, is now owned by Zynga, the company that gave us FarmVille. Fresh off the lukewarm release of Torchlight III, Echtra Games joins Zynga to work on an unannounced cross-platform action role-playing game in partnership with Zynga’s NaturalMotion Studio. According…
By Mike Fahey Published March 3, 2021 -
OpinionAsk KotakuWhat’s Your Favorite Video Game Boss Encounter?
It’s Monday and time for Ask Kotaku, the weekly feature in which Kotaku-ites deliberate on a single burning question. Then, we ask your take. This week we Ask Kotaku: What’s your favorite video game boss encounter? Ash Spoilers for Undertale follow. In my hierarchy of the best video game boss fights of all time, nothing…
By Alexandra Hall Published March 1, 2021 -
Tips & GuidesHow To Build An Unstoppable Party In Bravely Default 2
Bravely Default 2, out now for Nintendo Switch, is both a lot like and not at all like many other JRPGs you’ve played. For starters, combat is defined by the Brave/Default system, which allows you to shake up the turn order in battles for strategic gain. But the main big wrinkle is the job system.…
By Ari Notis Published February 26, 2021 -
CultureSpeedrunners Are Beating Hitman 3‘s Dubai Level In Under 10 Seconds
Hitman 3’s opening level, set in a large tower in Dubai, is made up of various floors, rooms, and security measures. It’s a tricky stage for many players. But if you are quick, have a steady hand, and some luck, you can beat the whole thing in about nine seconds. As spotted by PCGamesN, some…
By Zack Zwiezen Published January 24, 2021 -
Kotaku EastJapanFinal Fantasy XV Director Is Making A Virtual Travel Experience For Japanese Airline
Hajime Tabata, director of Final Fantasy XV, left Square Enix in 2018 after founding its Luminous Productions studio earlier that year. Now Tabata, who established his own studio called JP Games, is back and working on a virtual travel experience for a Japanese airline. Yoimuri News reports that last August, All Nippon Airways created a…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 22, 2021 -
Culture505 Games Announces Puzzle Quest 3, Coming Out This Year
Earlier this month, publisher 505 Games acquired Infinity Plus Two, the Australian studio that created the hybrid match-three/RPG series Puzzle Quest. This morning 505 Games announced Puzzle Quest 3, a free-to-play sequel that takes place 500 years after the original. A direct follow-up to 2007 surprise hit Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords, Puzzle Quest…
By Mike Fahey Published January 21, 2021 -
CultureSurprise! The Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning remaster is coming to Switch on March 16. That’s great news since Nintendo’s hybrid handheld feels like the ideal place to experience the pleasant 2012 action RPG, but bad timing since it’s just a week and change before Monster Hunter: Rise.
By Ethan Gach Published January 19, 2021 -
ReviewsPCCrusader Kings II: The Kotaku Re-Review
Looking back at one of the greatest PC strategy games of all time
By Luke Plunkett Published November 16, 2017