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Ramping Up For Ramen
Good evening, Kotaku readership. Been on any interesting trips lately? Have something you need to get off your chest? Looking for stimulating non-video game related chatter? This post is for you. Who out there in Kotaku-land is going to Tokyo Game Show this year? I am! So is Mr. Ashcraft, naturally. But since I’ve got…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2010 -
Madden’s Numbers Nudge Higher This August
Early discounts by retailers such as Amazon and Walmart stoked speculation that Madden’s sales were coming slow. EA Sports is projecting a modest increase over what the title pulled last August. A statement today by the publisher called Madden the top selling game in North America for August, and said its sales are up about…
By Owen Good Published August 31, 2010 -
This Is What $10,000 Worth of Top Tier Pinball Play Looks Like
Forty minutes of expert level pinball, that is, from the deciding game at this month’s Professional/Amateur Pinball Association World Pinball Championships. If you’ve got a thirst for pinball and the better part of an hour to spare, watch. Keep in mind that there’s $10,000 on the line during this extended pinball session. But repeat PAPA…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2010 -
Welp, Someone Done Tried To Sell Their Kinect Beta Already
Microsoft had to figure this was going to happen: Someone put their Kinect beta hardware and their console for sale on eBay, hoping to get $1,200 for it. It was rather quickly de-listed, however. I haven’t seen the entire EULA for this hardware beta but something tells me Microsoft probably forbids selling the unit and…
By Owen Good Published August 31, 2010 -
The PSP Lives On In Japan With More Monster Hunter, White Knight Chronicles
The PSP, healthier as a platform in Japan than anywhere else, is still the portable of choice for many in its native land. The new issue of Famitsu magazine unveils new details on two of the PSP’s big forthcoming games. The Japanese games mag puts a date on Capcom’s next, pre-destined beast slaying hit, Monster…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2010 -
Lightweights and Welterweights Round Out EA Sports MMA Roster
Seventeen more fighters at the welterweight and lightweight divisions complete the EA Sports MMA roster, bringing to 60 the total number of combatants in the game. Joachim Hansen, Shinya Aoki, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Jay Hieron, Marius Zaromskis, Hayato Sakurai, and Tyron Woodley are the new welterweight fighters, joining Robbie Lawler, Nick Diaz, Kazuo Misaki, Lyman Good,…
By Owen Good Published August 31, 2010 -
PlayStation Store Update: Vanquish vs. Castle Crashers
Which game will win the download challenge for PlayStation 3 owners today? Will it be the recently added PlayStation Network version of Castle Crashers or the “Velocity Attack” demo of intense action shooter Vanquish? Or will it be something else entirely? There’s a new BioShock 2 add-on, Minerva’s Den, on offer. For the PSP owner,…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2010 -
Report: Sony To Unveil New Music & Video Service For PlayStation Network Soon
Sony is reported to be taking a shot at Apple’s stronghold on the digital music and video market with a brand new multimedia subscription service, coming to the PlayStation Network (and beyond) next year. The Financial Times reports that Sony will unveil that music and video subscription service at the IFA technology show in Berlin…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2010 -
Monday Night Combat Was Almost “Combat, Inc.”
Monday Night Combat. Evokes a sense of battle-as-primetime sport, right? Sure, thanks to a certain football broadcast. Uber Entertainment filed and owns the Monday Night Combat trademark, but it had backup plans in case the lawyer-mans raised a fuss. “We got it trademarked and no one complained, but it was definitely a concern,” Chandana Ekanayake,…
By Owen Good Published August 31, 2010 -
Sniping
To: Ash From: Crecente Re: What Guns Have You Fired? Yeah, I’m not really into guns either, but my dad and step-dad are. Both collect them, both served in the military. I’ve fired a myriad of different handguns, several shot guns, an MP5 on full auto, sniper rifles, machine guns. I even own an old…
By Brian Crecente Published August 31, 2010 -
Studio Ghibli’s Gorgeous Ni no Kuni Gets Hands-on At Tokyo Game Show
We’re just a few weeks away from the 2010 Tokyo Game Show and publishers are started to tout their wares. Professor Layton and Dragon Quest developer Level-5 is one of the first to announce its plans… and they’re exciting! Most exciting is that its collaboration with animation experts Studio Ghibli, Ni no Kuni: The Another…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2010 -
Madden NFL Superstars Launches on Facebook
Madden NFL Superstars, a Facebook card-and-management game anticipated for several months, went live to the public earlier today. The free-to-play game resembles June’s FIFA Superstars in structure while borrowing elements from the popular Madden Ultimate Team of the console game. In the game (accessible here), players assemble a team through acquiring packs of cards, which…
By Owen Good Published August 31, 2010 -
Consoles From Cashews?
It may sound nuts, but a new bioplastic being developed by Japan’s NEC Corp. using cashews could change the way electronics are manufactured in the future. Of course normal plastic changed the way electronics and just about everything else is manufactured, but the convenience comes with a price. Synthetic plastics often contain toxic materials. The…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2010 -
Sonic Adventure Sprints To XBLA In September
Sega’s “Return of the Dreamcast” starts in September with the re-release of Sonic Adventure on Xbox Live Arcade. Microsoft has put a Sept. 15 release date on the Dreamcast to PC to XBLA port. A PlayStation Network version is also planned.
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2010 -
Bangai-O Brings The Missile Fury To Xbox Live Arcade
Treasure’s classic puzzle-shooter for the Nintendo 64 and Dreamcast gets the big-screen sequel it deserves this fall with Bangai-O HD: Missile Fury for Xbox Live Arcade. Giant robots and fruit for everyone! Bangai-O Spirits for the DS was okay, but nothing less than a full HD sequel could truly satisfy fans of the original game,…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2010 -
In Search Of The First Video Game Gun
What was the first video game gun? There are three ways to try to answer that question. Originally, when we set out to identify gaming’s first gun for our Gun Week here at Kotaku, we looked for the first video game to show a gun. The video game historians we talked to mentioned 1975’s Gun…
By Stephen Totilo Published August 31, 2010 -
Frankenreview: Metroid Other M
After all these years of spelling Metroid a certain way, Nintendo and Team Ninja go and pull an Other M on us. How will the assembled video game critics handle this new consonant? Of course there’s more to the new Metroid than another M. The team behind Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden are on…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2010 -
James Bond’s Blood Stone Adventure In Istanbul
Bizarre Creations’ take on seminal super spy James Bond is looking better, bigger and just more Bond-like. Or so my recent hands-off time with the cinematic action game, James Bond 007: Blood Stone, at Gamescom made me think. Publisher Activision’s newest trailer of James Bond 007: Blood Stone gives us a more explosive, more boiled-down…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2010 -
MythBusters Looking To Tackle The Science of Video Games
MythBusters, the science-fact television show that started life on the Discovery Channel, has put hundreds of rumors, myths and adages to the test. In the future, they will be tackling the fact and fiction of video games. So said MythBusters co-star Adam Savage at Comic-Con 2010. Addressing an interested MythBusters fan’s request to see, say,…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2010