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A Teeny Tiny Percentage of Lucky Gamers Have Been Invited to Play Skyrim‘s Dawnguard Expansion Early
According to Bethesda’s developer twitter feed, the beta invites for Skyrim‘s impressive-looking expansion Dawnguard, which is exclusive to the Xbox 360 for the time being, have gone out. If you applied to get into the beta but didn’t get in, don’t feel bad: Bethesda says that they accepted just one half of one percent of…
By Kirk Hamilton Published June 12, 2012 -
A Controller Solution That Strikes at the Very Core of Android Tablet Gaming
Last week I reported on Power A’s MOGA portable gaming system for Android devices, a system that allows developers to quickly integrate game pad support into their Android titles. Nyko’s PlayPad line of tablet controllers might not be quite as elegant, but they make up for that lack of style by being compatible with just…
By Mike Fahey Published June 12, 2012 -
Ten Years of Civ II Lock The World in Perpetual War
This is kind of amazing: one gamer, over on Reddit, has been playing the same save game of Civilization II off and on for the last decade. That, itself, is not the amazing part. The amazing part is how it’s played out. The first two thousand years of his reign went more or less like…
By Kate Cox Published June 12, 2012 -
Microsoft and Sony Dodge Questions About the Next Xbox and PlayStation in the Most Amusing Ways
As you read this, people are making video games for the next PlayStation and the next Xbox. They have been for many, many weeks. But last week, at E3, where the biggest video game companies were ostensibly talking about the biggest video games on the horizon, not a single soul would officially discuss the PlayStation…
By Stephen Totilo Published June 12, 2012 -
Max Payne Knows How To Chill Out
In the midst of all the shoot-outs, drinking, and pill-popping, Max Payne is just another guy, you know? He wants to lounge on a pool chair and kick his feet up on the table. Except he does it in slow, bullet-time motion. Max Payne 3: Dramatic Chilling Simulator [YouTube via Reddit]
By Tina Amini Published June 12, 2012 -
Gauge Your Endurance Under the Pressure of Dancey Music and Psychedelic Visuals
The music starts slow and rhythmic as you tap delicately on your iPad. Your eyes are glued to either end of the bar on screen, ensuring that your taps never linger long enough to push the bar’s limit. You occasionally glance at an appearing second gauge whose new color grows as you maintain a balance…
By Tina Amini Published June 12, 2012 -
Shigeru Miyamoto Thinks He’s Right About Pikmin 3, But, if Not… Uh-Oh
After years of being badgered about making a new Pikmin game, Nintendo is finally making a new Pikmin game. It took the company a while, Nintendo’s head of game development, Shigeru Miyamoto, told me in Los Angeles last week, because the company was experimenting with how to get Pikmin right. They’ve finally settled on an…
By Stephen Totilo Published June 12, 2012 -
Splinter Cell: Blacklist Ushers in a Faster, Bossier Sam Fisher
Sam Fisher’s always been like what Liam Neeson is now. He’s the exemplar of the old-dude badass in the video game pantheon. Even in the first few Splinter Cell games, you’d hear Michael Ironside’s distinct growl in Ubisoft’s stealth action series and think, “This guy’s been around the block a few times…” If Sam was…
By Evan Narcisse Published June 12, 2012 -
A Guided Tour of Mists of Pandaria‘s Faction-Divided Capital City
What better way to get to know the Alliance side of Mists of Pandaria‘s Asian-themed capital city than through the eyes of a delightful Serbian guide? The Blizzard Serbian Community walks us through the expansion pack’s unique answer to a sanctuary city. Previous World of Warcraft expansion packs have all included some sort of dual-faction…
By Mike Fahey Published June 12, 2012 -
Talk Amongst Yourselves
Welcome to Kotaku’s official forum, known affectionately as Talk Amongst Yourselves. This is the place where we gather on a daily basis to discuss all things video game and existential. Want to talk about new games, old games, games that aren’t even out yet? Knock yourselves out! Anybody can play fighting games, even Italian Renaissance…
By Evan Narcisse Published June 12, 2012 -
Ten More Things About Dishonored You Should Know
Maybe you’ve already seen Totilo’s breakdown of 18 things you should know about Dishonored, the upcoming stealth-action game by Arkane Studios. And maybe you’re still wondering why you should care. I don’t blame you: in an industry stuffed with marketing schemes and false promises, it’s hard to get really excited about a video game until…
By Jason Schreier Published June 12, 2012 -
I Can’t Believe Skylanders Giants Still Won’t Let Me Jump
I love Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure. I love the toys. I love the colorful world and quirky characters. I love having characters that store their progress and can be transferred from PC to 3DS to console. The only thing I hated was the inability for the characters to jump. Some of these characters have wings, mind…
By Mike Fahey Published June 12, 2012 -
The Clever-Cute Gravity Ghost Game Makes Exploring Tiny Planets a Gorgeous Experience
You could call game designer Erin Robinson a triple threat , except that doesn’t adequately encompass all the things she does well. Robinson draws with impressive skill, creates spirited animation, comes up with clever mechanics and breaks down game design theory and practice with inviting ease. Most of that gets displayed in the demo of…
By Evan Narcisse Published June 12, 2012 -
This Transforming Stick Wants to Change the Way You Play Fighting Games
While other hardware manufacturers focus on releasing high-quality arcade fight sticks that follow the same basic formula, Nyko allows players to change everything with the Free Fighter, a $179.999 programmable fighting game controller with a singular look and a unique modular design. Though it features the same Sanwa Denshi parts all the arcade stick kids…
By Mike Fahey Published June 12, 2012 -
Di-gi-mon, Digital Monsters ♪ Are Ready for Multiplayer Fighting on Your PSP
Bandai Namco Games has released new information on the upcoming PSP game, Digimon Re:Degitize. The game will be released to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Digimon series. Let’s have a look! -Multiplayer The game will have a multiplayer mode where you can have up to 4 people fighting a free-for-all, or a 2-on-2 battle.…
By Toshitaka Tachibana Published June 12, 2012 -
Curious? You Can Blow $10,000 on this In-Game Clicker
Game designer Peter Molyneux is launching a series of video game experiments. The first one is called “Curiosity”, and it has players chip away at a black cube to see the “truly amazing, absolutely unique” object inside. Molyneux is even offering a US$77,000 downloadable tool to help chip away at the cube. Even though “Curiosity”…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 12, 2012 -
The 3DS’ Circle Pad Pro Gets a Very Attractive Makeover
Nintendo’s official 3DS Circle Pad Pro extension is, well, it’s not very pretty. It’s also getting hard to find. Thank the maker for Nyko, then, who have not only produced the world’s first third-party alternative, but have come up with something that looks much nicer than Nintendo’s offering. For $30, the Nyko Power Grip Pro…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 12, 2012 -
This Guy’s Portal Gun Actually Works, Turns His House Into a Test Chamber
Jason Craft recently purchased a Portal Gun from Aperture Laboratories. Not a toy. A real one. You can see it in action in this video, where he tests it out with a few friends. Sure, it might look like fun and games in the game, but in the real world? These things are dangerous POrtal:…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 12, 2012 -
It’s-a Me, Sexy Mario
If you thought porn star Ron Jeremy was the only sexy Mario, you are wrong. There are other Marios, sexy Marios who like to preen and pose for the camera in overalls and with mushrooms and fireballs. Hot. Say hello to this sexy Mario, who goes under the clever nickname “Sexy Mario”. All the photos…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 12, 2012