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Tatsunoko vs. Capcom vs. Robot Chicken
If this pitch for Tatsunoko vs. Capcom Ultimate All-Stars looks Robot Chicken-inspired, well, it was. The spot will air on at least three networks. “Our ad agency had the idea to create this stop-motion short (a la Robot Chicken) to celebrate the zanyness of the game. Since it wasn’t something that I recall any other…
By Owen Good -
The Winning Faction of the Great MAG Beta War
Zipper Interactive compiled its final batch of statistics for the MAG beta, finding which among the three factions in the MMO shooter was the most popular among more than a million people downloading the beta. The winner: Valor, which took 38.7 percent of the population. Raven was a close second at 37.2 percent, with SVER…
By Owen Good -
Week in Games: Leaving on a Jet Pack
Capcom takes us to, or through, the Bermuda Triangle on Tuesday with Dark Void, releasing on PC, PS3 and the 360, with Dark Void Zero on the DS. Also, Silent Hill returns to the PS2 and PSP with Shattered Memories This week’s count: five for DS, two for Wii and PC, one for PS2, PS3,…
By Owen Good -
Kotaku’s Top 5 List of Top 10 Lists
Each week throws off several new video game lists ranging from the humorous to the trivial. What’s better? A list of those. Here’s a roundup of the rundowns out there. •The Nine Most Exciting Games of 2010 That Aren’t Sequels [The Game Reviews] Didn’t we just take this up? Given the industry’s propensity for sequels…
By Owen Good -
BioWare: Mass Effect 2 Will Have Launch DLC, Won’t Charge for It
Little has spilled out regarding BioWare’s DLC plans for Mass Effect 2 but yesterday, via Twitter, the studio indicated there will be launch-day DLC and it won’t cost anything. “Addressing rumors: BioWare will not be charging extra for any new Mass Effect 2 content on launch day. More DLC details next week,” says the tweet.…
By Owen Good -
Questions of Faith: What is Religion’s Role in Games?
Unsurprisingly, many game developers and publishers would rather stick a fork in a live power outlet than discuss religion in games, much less write it into a game with a role more complex than archetypal good-vs.-evil belief sets. But GameSpy’s Julian Murdoch went in search of truth on the subject, despite the stonewalling and no-commentary…
By Owen Good -
Kotaku ‘Shop Contest: Heavy Rain Edition
No doubt about it, Heavy Rain’s box art for North America is a train wreck, if two trains overcame their apathy long enough to crash into each other. Think you can do better? Here’s your chance. Opening Kotaku’s first regular Photoshop contest – which many have clamored for – is our call for submissions of…
By Owen Good -
Rumor: Leaked ‘Tech Demo” Footage of Final Fantasy: Fortress
This is a two-minute, 30-second video said to be of a tech demonstration of “Fortress,” the Final Fantasy project GRIN was said to have been working on when the Swedish studio closed. Click to view Few details accompany the video, whose visuals and action-oriented gameplay are very Western-oriented, to say the least. The video’s action…
By Owen Good -
Kotaku Off-Topic: Funny Money
This is my first crack at Kotaku Off-Topic, and I’m not really sure how to begin it. Non sequiturs, by definition, don’t have a segué or a lead-in. But here goes anyway. Later today I am driving down to California to see some old friends and visit (on Tuesday) 2K Marin to rap about MLB…
By Owen Good -
MLB 2K10 Appears to Cut Down Stadium Advertising
Last year, MLB 2K9 rubbed plenty the wrong way when park dimensions and outfield signage seemed blatantly reconfigured to accommodate larger in-game ads. New screens for two parks seem to indicate the game scaled back that kind of aggressive design. In MLB 2K9, Wrigley Field sported a large, translucent sign for in-game sponsor State Farm…
By Owen Good -
Project Runway Consultant: Mario is Dressed “Appropriately”
With Project Runway: The Video Game asking gamers to make virtual appraisals of real fashion, MTV Multiplayer flipped the premise, asking the show’s Tim Gunn to make a real appraisal of virtual clothing. In this case, Mario’s. Give Gunn this, he played ball. Asked to give a critique, he gave one, no silly puns or…
By Owen Good -
DICE Says It Won’t Profit Off Rented Servers for BFBC2
During the Modern Warfare 2 no-dedicated servers controversy, DICE was quick to say they would be supported in PC versions of Battlefield: Bad Company 2. Well, with one exception: Players would have to rent them, rather than build their own. It seems that the files necessary for the PC community to build dedicated servers for…
By Owen Good -
Megadeth Hints at Big Plans for Guitar Hero
Answering the fan mailbag on the band’s official site, Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine says he’s had recent “high level meetings” with Activision and Neversoft to discuss an idea that is more attractive to the band than a dedicated box set. Here’s Mustaine’s reply to a fan’s query about a potential Guitar Hero: Megadeth, a very…
By Owen Good -
Jeff Bridges: Battlezone Fiend
To get into character for 1982’s Tron, Jeff Bridges became quite the video game fiend. But it was fun with a purpose. The actor reminisces about playing Battlezone, a vector-graphics tank shooter loosely similar to the film’s fictitious “Space Paranoids.” The Orlando Sentinel film critic Roger Moore (incidentally, a guy I read every Saturday when…
By Owen Good -
If It’s In the Name, It’s In the Game
Two weeks ago, startled by hearing my tiny high school’s unique nickname announced in NCAA Football 10, I vowed to track down those who put us in the game. I found them, and found out why “The Buckin’ Elks” of Elkin, N.C. High (pictured) – population 4,000, graduating class of around 70 – joined hundreds…
By Owen Good -
A First Look at NBA Jam for the Wii
EA Sports gave an exclusive first look at NBA Jam to Nintendo Power, and judging by a scan that’s circled the earth about three times now, a zany visual style should accompany its boom-shakalaka gameplay. That image above was first circulated by Go Nintendo. As you can see, it looks like the players will have…
By Owen Good -
Gamers-for-Haiti Efforts Gather Momentum [Update]
Today only, 100 percent of the proceeds from purchases in PopCap’s store – they make Bejeweled and Peggle – will go toward Haiti quake relief. This post is our official open thread on ways to contribute to the recovery. To recap: • On Wednesday and Thursday, Bungie is encouraging Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST…
By Owen Good -
Weekend Coupons: Card Sharks
So yesterday, Walmart slashed prices on Xbox Live subscription cards, and Amazon followed suit. Then everyone started offering $50 gift cards for Elite console purchases. This is madness! This is Weekend Coupons! Hardware • Walmart is selling a 12-month Xbox Live subscription card for $30 – that’s $20 off. Offer is good for the Internet…
By Owen Good