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NPCs Usually Suck. Here Is A Way To Make Your Skyrim NPCs Better On PC.
If you’re thinking ‘mod,’ you’d be right! Via Skyrim Nexus comes this mod that fleshes out NPCs (non-player characters) in Skyrim considerably, so you won’t have as many situations where a character is repeating the same damn line over and over again. We’re talking like, over 50 voice actors with almost 100 new characters that…
By Patricia Hernandez Published January 7, 2013 -
Here We Go: Valve-Backed PC Hardware Will Be Shown Off This Week [Update: it’s Code-Named Piston]
Let the Steam Box speculation begin. Valve is investing in computer hardware, and they’re showing it off this week. A company called Xi3Corporation is developing the hardware (whose chassis you can see above), which they say is designed to play Steam games on big-screen TVs. They say they’ve received an investment from Valve, and that…
By Jason Schreier Published January 7, 2013 -
A Hat In Time, That Wind Waker Meets Banjo Kazooie Game, Still Looks Amazing
A while ago we showed you an early build of upcoming indie game, A Hat In Time. The game looked delightful then, even though there wasn’t too-too much to see, gameplay wise. All we knew were the influences—Wind Waker visuals with Banjo Kazooie gameplay. Now, a month later, the developer, Jonas Kærlev, has more to…
By Patricia Hernandez Published January 7, 2013 -
You’re Not The Only One Comparing Nvidia’s New Handheld To The N-Gage
I don’t know about you, but my first thought upon seeing Nvidia’s new Shield handheld gaming console was as follows: Plenty of other folks took the joke one step further, drawing quick comparisons to the failed Nokia N-Gage, the little portable video game system that couldn’t. [View the story "Nvidia Shield = Nokia n-Gage" on…
By Kirk Hamilton Published January 7, 2013 -
Forget Power, Says The Guy Behind Ninja Gaiden 3—Wii U Is Next-Gen Because It’s Innovative
The debate over the Wii U’s “next-generation” status rages on. The latest combatant is Yosuke Hayashi, head of Team Ninja—the Tecmo studio responsible for the Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive series, among others. While the console is technically “next-generation”—it did come after the Wii—Hayashi was still compelled to share his thoughts about it in…
By Holden Miller Published January 7, 2013 -
Kill Stealing, Disconnecting And Other Rage Moments From Black Ops II, In Retro Form
Maybe the retro graphics on this will help with not having your blood pressure rise while watching typical frustrating moments from playing Call of Duty’s multiplayer. This amusing YouTube video comes from user rabbodirect65, who knows the pain of a Call of Duty player well, it seems. I hate it when I can’t seem to…
By Patricia Hernandez Published January 7, 2013 -
My Wargaming Wish List for 2013
It’s 2013, and despite the winter chill, hope blossoms that this year will bring in a fresh and innovative crop of wargames. Like the flowers of the spring, those hopes will probably fade before the stale wind of yet another faux-historical clickfest, Hearts of Iron clone or dumbed-down mobile game. But the pleasure of gaming…
By Michael Peck Published January 7, 2013 -
Project Shield’s First Killer App Could Be This Tegra 4 Version of Hawken
When Adhesive Games’ creative director and co-founder Khang Le took the stage during last night’s Nvidia press conference to play the free-to-play mech combat game Hawken on Nvidia’s Project Shield handheld, I was confused. This was not the PC game. What the hell was that? Turns out Nvidia ran out of time to mention that…
By Mike Fahey Published January 7, 2013 -
American McGee Defends His Kickstarter Game, Says It’s ‘100% Finished’
Last week, I wrote about Akaneiro, a game designed by American McGee (Alice) and announced back in 2011. McGee and his team went to Kickstarter to ask for $200,000 “to finish what [they’ve] started.” McGee took issue with my coverage, writing Kotaku a note to say that the game is actually finished. “The game is…
By Jason Schreier Published January 7, 2013 -
Because You Subconsciously Demanded It, the Spiritual Successor to Shaq Fu
In a post-apocalyptic future a mutation has created a race of sentient zombies that have enslaved mankind. The planet’s only hope lies in a warrior of legend known as the Justice Bringer—basketball legend and Kazaam star Shaquille O’Neal. Coming tomorrow to iOS and Android, ShaqDown is a 2D side-scrolling action game and the second video…
By Mike Fahey Published January 7, 2013 -
How Many Offensive Things Can You Count In This Doom Mod?
Child murder, priest murder, Barney the dinosaur murder, Mario murder, Buddha murder… really, just murder murder; nothing is sacred. This Doom mod’s genre seems to be, as Double Fine’s JP LeBreton puts it, “Be Offended.” No stone left unturned—this might have a little to do with how this mod mashes just about every Doom mod…
By Patricia Hernandez Published January 7, 2013 -
Game Changer or Needless Gadget? An In-Depth Analysis of Project Shield.
So Nvidia has a new gaming handheld on the way, powered by its latest mobile chip and capable of playing Android games and streaming PC games directly from your computer. Should we be excited? Worried? Should we even care? Let’s find out. What is Project Shield? Project Shield is a cool code name, chosen because…
By Mike Fahey Published January 7, 2013 -
Here’s How To Play Most of the Top Nominees From the Independent Games Festival Right Now
You know the Independent Games Festival, right? Happens every year during the Game Developers’ Conference and rounds up a slew of amazing games made by smaller entities? Usually winds up blowing your mind with how awesome the nominated games are? Yeah, that’s the one. The finalists for the 2013 IGF represent some of the most…
By Evan Narcisse Published January 7, 2013 -
This Dude’s Penis Is Stuck In His Xbox And Other Amazing Xbox Support Trolls
Last week I wrote about a silly Twitter exchange between Xbox support and a prankster that pretended to have an issue with an Xbox when in fact he had a PS2. Someone suggested that I look at Xbox support’s favstar, which is a service that tracks a Twitter user’s ‘favorites’ with that account. Turns out,…
By Patricia Hernandez Published January 7, 2013 -
Firefly MMO Studio Push Back At Suspicions That Their Game Is a Hoax
The studio claiming to have the blessings of Fox Entertainment to proceed with a Firefly themed MMO have disputed our reporting over the weekend which suggested their project was a hoax. The suspicion was drawn from the logo and the presence of an endorsement purportedly from The Yes Men, an activist group that has impersonated…
By Owen Good Published January 7, 2013 -
Here’s A Detailed Look At Nvidia’s New Gaming Console In Action
Here’s the full walkthrough of Nvidia’s ridiculous-looking Shield, revealed at CES last night. (And streamed via Twitch.) The Shield, which Nvidia says will be available in the second quarter of this year (so April through June), is an Android-helmed gaming device with a Tegra 4 graphics chip and a 5″ touchscreen. You can use it…
By Jason Schreier Published January 7, 2013 -
ChefVille Cheats & Tips: Earn Tuna from the Moon Pond
As you work to complete the Healthy Eating quests and dishes in ChefVille, you might notice an interesting ingredient: Tuna. This is required for the Seared Tuna Salad dish within the Healthy Eating Station. You’ll need one Tuna for a single preparation of Seared Tuna Salad, but what if you don’t have any in your…
by Brandy Shaul | Games.com Published January 7, 2013 -
Miiverse Moments: The Many Faces of Alex Trebek
The line between weird homage and illiterate troll is a fine one, particularly in the Miiverse. With that in mind, today’s Miiverse Moment comes from the world of the JEOPARDY! boards, where the focus is on one man and one man only: Alex Trebek. Do they love him? Do they loathe him? Or are they…
By Chris Person Published January 7, 2013 -
XCOM: Enemy Unknown is Kotaku‘s 2012 Game of the Year
The staff of Kotaku nominated nine games for 2012 Game of the Year. One game, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, blew the competition away. The PC and console turn-based strategy game from the masterminds behind Civilization was a dark horse in our staff voting. Last week, as we publicized our nominations, two other games—the dramatic five-part adventure…
By Stephen Totilo Published January 7, 2013 -
DayZ Stand-Alone Release Rescheduled, ‘Closed Testing’ To Begin Soon
The folks behind DayZ say they want to rebuild the game’s whole engine before releasing a stand-alone version. Writing in a blog post published this morning, DayZ creator Dean Hall says he’s delayed a stand-alone release of the Arma 2 mod—which was originally slated to be turned into a stand-alone game by the end of…
By Jason Schreier Published January 7, 2013