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Should You Buy Trine 2? Yes.
Co-op platformer Trine was one of my favourite games of 2009. Judging by the cult following it’s developed since then, I’m not alone in my fondness. Two years later, the game is back for a sequel, one that, on the surface at least, promises to add very little to the formula already laid down by…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 15, 2011 -
Ron Effing Swanson Sold Me This Taco
Greetings Kotaku-eers, and welcome to a mid-week open thread. I hope you have had a good week, and are not too stressed about upcoming holiday travel. Just remember: they’re only in-laws. They can’t legally kill you. Here are some conversation-starters and other random bits and bobs from the internet: An excellent ’80’s Dating Montage –…
By Kirk Hamilton Published December 14, 2011 -
The Best Game Music of 2011: inFamous 2
Sucker Punch made a very interesting, very good choice in choosing to set their follow up to inFamous in a fictional recreation of post-disaster New Orleans. The first game had a lot going for it—I’ve always thought it was underrated—but, its setting was not one of them. Our own Evan Narcisse has described inFamous as…
By Kirk Hamilton Published December 14, 2011 -
How Skyrim Could Damage the U.S. Economy (Sorta)
First we have Wired magazine’s Geek Dad mock-fretting that the wonderful time-sink of Skyrim may be hurting the productivity of the American worker and therefore may drag the nation’s economy down. Today, we have Matthew Yglesias, smart writer at Slate providing slightly more serious analysis about what Skyrim‘s impact on the economy might be. Good…
By Stephen Totilo Published December 14, 2011 -
High School Sucked. Can We Please Have More Games About It?
For most people, high school sucked. The endless questioning and self-doubt, the lack of control over your own schedule, dealing with the impossible mysteries of the opposite sex while navigating the often treacherous shoals of what amounted to a four year, walled-in social experiment. Yeah, high school sucked. It’s that very suckage that makes high…
By Kirk Hamilton Published December 14, 2011 -
The Magical Pancake-Extruding Robot
Gawker’s House of Pancakes | I took Monday and Tuesday off. When I returned to the office today I discovered a large-ish metal box crouching on a counter in the Gawker communal kitchen. Push a button and the square hunk of tech plops out pancakes on demand. Great idea, but wouldn’t it be better if…
By Brian Crecente Published December 14, 2011 -
Alice: Madness Returns, Red Faction: Armageddon, Megadeth New This Week on the PlayStation Store
This week on the PlayStation store, the pickings are slimmer for new games than they’ve been, but there is still some fun stuff to be found. Alice: Madness Returns arrives as a downloadable game, with a full-game trial for PlayStation Plus users. Rocksmith owners will have a chance to download some killer Megadeth tracks, which…
By Kirk Hamilton Published December 14, 2011 -
Should You Buy Assassin’s Creed: Revelations’ Ancestors Character Pack? No.
There’s finally some downloadable content out for Assassin’s Creed Revelations, but you should keep your $4. Why? Stephen Totilo, who wrote a glowing review for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations: I’m including a video in this Gut Check in order to show you the coolest thing about the Ancestors Character Pack. If you look at it closely…
By Stephen Totilo Published December 14, 2011 -
The Amazing, Exploded Mass Effect 3 N7 Pistol
This replica N7 pistol from upcoming Bioware game Mass Effect 3 was created for the Child’s Play Charity auction by reader Bill Doran. Doran, who makes custom weapon props and customs, says he based the replica on a single reference image he found and then worked with the M5 Phalanx as a jumping off point.…
By Brian Crecente Published December 14, 2011 -
OK, Max Payne 3‘s Multiplayer Sounds Awesome
People who I’ve spoken to at Rockstar Games have hinted to me that the multiplayer mode in Max Payne 3 is going to be something special. According to IGN impressions of the March 2012 game’s competitive multiplayer, these people hinted the truth. The point of reference IGN uses for Max Payne 3‘s multiplayer is Call…
By Stephen Totilo Published December 14, 2011 -
Space Marines Make Extremely Important Deliveries in This Poignant Child’s Play Video
You’ll never look at video games’ interstellar soldiers the same way again after watching this production by the MAKE design studio. The creators there made the clip pro bono—generating work which looks like it took weeks, if not months, to finish—to drum up support for the Child’s Play charity started eight years ago by Mike…
By Evan Narcisse Published December 14, 2011 -
Rumor: Microsoft Replaces Head Xbox Designer
Don Coyner, who has been leading the design experience group for Xbox since the console’s launch, has been replaced at Microsoft, Cnet reports. Coyner, who has been working with the Xbox since the console’s inception, was replaced by Emma Williams, according to Cnet sources. Williams was in charge of the redesign of the Live interface…
By Brian Crecente Published December 14, 2011 -
How To Hire an In-Game Bodyguard, and Why You Should
Games like Battlefield and Call of Duty are worst when they are played by casual fans, people who may enjoy the occasional match but who don’t take the time to daily hone their skills. I fit neatly into that category. Despite being a big fan of military shooters, I’m not very good at them. But…
By Brian Crecente Published December 14, 2011 -
3DMark 11 Tests Your Gaming PC’s Mettle (and Silicon, Too)
You think you’ve built yourself a burly PC that can withstand the intensive demands of today’s most impressive games. But how sure are you? 3DMark can help you find out. Long the gold standard of PC benchmarking tools, 3D Mark’s latest version charts performance along multiple vectors and can be customized for specific uses. It’s…
By Evan Narcisse Published December 14, 2011 -
This Week’s Most Interesting New Comic Books Include Dead Rising and… James Bond Star Wars??
Comic books still exist. And there are new ones today. You can buy them in shops. You can download them digitally (legally!). Just don’t buy bad ones. Please allow me and Evan Narcisse to make a few suggestions… Comics You Should Consider Buying (from comics shops) Avengers X-Sanction #1 I’ve enjoyed the writing of Jeph…
By Stephen Totilo Published December 14, 2011 -
This Modern Warfare Missile Was Very Well-Fired
A missile “threads the needle” in Modern Warfare 3 in this amazing clip by YouTube user KingGreqo If you’re ever wondering why you’re getting killed so much playing MW3, it’s because you’re playing against people who can do this. Threading the Needle [YouTube]
By Stephen Totilo Published December 14, 2011 -
The Xbox 360 Version of Joe Danger Looks Quite Nice
Joe Danger Special Edition was released on Xbox Live this week. It’s the PS3 game, but with an extra career mode added on to apparently double the content in the stunt-bike game. Joe Danger SE is mostly an enhanced version of its predecessor, but don’t let dissuade you from giving this over the top motocross…
By Chris Carolan Published December 14, 2011