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Goths Don’t Cry In This Villain-Centric Lollipop Chainsaw Trailer
In the high-school food chain, it always seemed like nerds or stoners would be the natural enemies to cheerleaders, not goths. Suda51 seems to think otherwise, judging by the trailer for the developer’s upcoming Warner Bros.-published action game. This guy Swan looks disturbingly like the Billy puppet from the SAW movies. Knowing the horror-centric film…
By Evan Narcisse Published January 12, 2012 -
It’s Pinball Day on the Nintendo Download
This week’s Nintendo Download celebrates the silver ball with not one but two games to satiate gamers’ cravings for hitting metal spheres with paddles. First up we have 101 Pinball World, a quick and dirty little game that features 101 bite-sized pinball tables across four different worlds. It sounds like it’s perfect for a quick…
By Mike Fahey Published January 12, 2012 -
Why Most Of Star Wars: The Old Republic‘s Hi-Res Graphics Disappeared at Launch
During the beta test for BioWare’s Star Wars: The Old Republic players with high-end PCs enjoyed stunning high resolution graphics. Now that the game has launched those sexy textures have mostly disappeared. What gives? Take a look at the image I’ve posted here. On the left is my Bounty Hunter as he appears in cut…
By Mike Fahey Published January 12, 2012 -
Introducing Kotaku Core, For Readers Who Only Want to Know About Video Games
Year after year, we at Kotaku have done our best to tell you what’s going on in the world of video games. And we’ve heard your replies: “You guys are the best!” “You’re my favorite video game site” “Your color scheme is weird.” “Hey, was that really video game news you just wrote there? It…
By Stephen Totilo Published January 12, 2012 -
Get Ready to Turn Invisible and Disembowel Fools in Ninja Gaiden 3’s Multiplayer
Ultra-violent. Fetishtically obsessed with gore. Single-player. These are the words that we’ve associated with Team Ninja’s modern Ninja Gaiden games. But, the upcoming three-quel will change all of that. This trailer gives a long, bloody look at the competitive multiplayer component for Ryu Hayabusa’s latest outing. Ninjas of all colors will be able to slash…
By Evan Narcisse Published January 12, 2012 -
What Compels a Person to Trade In a Perfectly Good Video Game Console?
Perhaps angered by the large amount of used Xbox 360s and PlayStation 3s sitting around his local video game store, commenter Uncle Jesse can’t help but wonder why someone would part with a perfectly good console in the middle of its prime. Let’s find out in today’s Speak Up on Kotaku. Why the heck would…
By Mike Fahey Published January 12, 2012 -
A Popular Oblivion Mod Comes to Skyrim
One PC gaming truism is that modders make magic, by altering the rules or looks of a vanilla game release into something shinier or more idiosyncratic. In the case of PC modder Xilver, the magic-making’s literal. A.K.A. Brian Rivers, Xilver made an insanely robust mod called Midas Magic: Spells of Aurum for Oblivion. It delivered…
By Evan Narcisse Published January 12, 2012 -
Talk Amongst Yourselves
Late. Twice in one week. We can’t explain what’s happening here, but Talk Amongst Yourselves, your official forum for chatting about games is late again. Please accept our apologies. We’re, uh, still in transition here at Kotaku! Thanks to Pinacollata for today’s TAYpic! Join in the fun and submit your own TAYpic. Please do your…
By Stephen Totilo Published January 12, 2012 -
A Video Game That Helps People Forge Stronger Relationships…With Pigs
We breed them, kill them, cook them. Millions of man-hours have been spent flinging Angry Birds at them, but has anyone ever tried playing video games with them? A team of livestock ethics researchers and game designers in the Netherlands is doing just that with Pig Chase The Playing with Pigs project, collaboration between the…
By Mike Fahey Published January 12, 2012 -
A Zombie Game That Pushes the iPhone to the Brink
The problem with some iPhone games is that maybe they shouldn’t be iPhone games. The machine they’re running on has limits. Its screen is smaller than a back pocket. It has no control sticks. It has no buttons. These facts are not problems for simple games, like the elegantly terrific Angry Birds, but for today’s…
By Stephen Totilo Published January 12, 2012 -
Little Mac Gets a Big Tribute in This Minecraft Stop-Motion Video
The same folks who made that amazing Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening animation in Mojang’s hit sandbox construction game have come back with yet another homage to an old-school classic. MinecraftA2Z managed to recreate Punch-Out‘s first bout—where series hero Mac trades blows with Glass Joe—by manipulating millions of blocks frame by frame, in the same…
By Evan Narcisse Published January 12, 2012 -
It’s Time to Figure Out If You Give a Damn About Neverdead
The unkillable Bryce Boltzmann comes to life on January 31 in Konami’s Neverdead. Should you care? Megadeth hopes so. Owen Good didn’t seem to think so. Perhaps a new batch of screens will help? As novel the concept of being able to reconstitute yourself after being blown apart is, I’ve never really gotten excited about…
By Mike Fahey Published January 12, 2012 -
Pointing at New Hardware
Point | LAS VEGAS: Sony’s Kaz Hirai shows off the new Xperia phone. (Photo: Jack Dempsey | AP) Pictures of the Xbox Factory Jumpers This week, a report surfaced that a group of 300 Xbox 360 factory workers threatened to commit suicide en masse over a labor dispute. The group took the rooftops, but was…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 12, 2012 -
Sega Customer Support Has a Bizarre Take on SOPA
Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, has gamers upset. DanGlozier66 over at HotBloodedGaming sent out a mass of emails to a whole host of companies. One of them, Sega, apparently replied. Read the email exchange between Dan and Sega Customer Support. If true, Sega’s stance on SOPA and reading customer correspondence might surprise you. Then…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 12, 2012 -
When Zelda Kisses Are Discreet and Shy
German cosplayer Eressea specializes in Link—she’s one of many female cosplayers who does. In this photo, she, along with fellow cosplayer Yesta, play out a tender moment between Zelda and Link. It’s magical. It’s not the pointy ears that sell the pic, or even the costume. In the top pic, it’s the look on Yesta’s…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 12, 2012 -
That Crazy Samurai Pokémon Game Slices Up a Release Date
Pokémon + Nobunaga’s Ambition has a release date: Mar. 17. The game is priced at ¥5,800 or US$75. The game features Pocket Monsters, medieval Japanese samurai, and a whole lotta I-don’t-know-what-to-say. It is a collaboration between Nintendo and Tecmo Koei. Watch the game’s trailer here and feel strange. 『ポケモン+ノブナガの野望』の発売日は3月17日を予定！ はえええええ [はちま機構]
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 12, 2012 -
Dragon Quest X Has Online A.I. Support for Lonely Players
Dragon Quest X is online—a possible problem for DQ players who either want to play alone or don’t have friends to play with. Fret not! The game supports A.I. group characters for online single play. Phew! [DengekiOnline]
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 12, 2012 -
Gameplay Footage Fit for Giant Swords and Silly Cleavage
Code of Princess isn’t exactly a memorable title. The game’s official illustration, with a half-naked princess gripping a huge sword, sure is. But you can’t play game art. Today, Code of Princess gameplay footage was released. In the video above, see how it matches up with the saucy illustration. Said saucy illustration is by kick-ass…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 12, 2012 -
World, Malaysia Has Some Amazing Cosplay for You
Wowsers. This is some good stuff. Good props. Good costumes. And good people. Taken at the Comic Fiesta, Malaysia’s largest anime event, the photos feature a solid range of character costumes. Just as impressive as the costumes and props are the fantastic photos taken by Shane at Unlimited Otaku Works. His whole website is a…
By Brian Ashcraft Published January 12, 2012