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And The Nominees For Best Video Game Writing Are…

According to the Writers Guild of America, five games from 2009 are worthy of nominations for the organization’s Videogame Writing Award honors. Some have already walked away with multiple game of the year nods, others have certainly not. It’s a mixed crowd that includes games like Uncharted 2 and Wet, as well as Modern Warfare…

You Can Now Buy Ratchet And Resistance Action Figures

As if we needed another excuse to visit our local comic book stores, DC Unlimited is finally shipping its Ratchet & Clank and Resistance action figures to wherever fine monthly graphical literature is sold. It’s been a long time coming. We first heard about the Resistance 2 action figures nearly a year ago, with the…

First-Person Tetris Might Make You Queasy

I just tried playing Tetris in first-person which probably doesn’t play out the way you expect it to. If you don’t get too sick playing first-person games, give it a try. It’s free to play in a browser and, aside from potentially making players dizzy also has a night-time mode. Both interesting touches. Be safe,…

Kingdom Hearts Puts Mario To Sleep In Japanese Game Chart

Only the combined power of Disney and Square Enix can put Mario’s video game sales dominance in Japan on pause. For now, Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep is the country’s bestselling game. The latest Kingdom Hearts game—this one for the PSP—sold 446,000 more UMDs to Japanese gamers, the week’s only new release to make Media…

You Will Believe A Hamster Can Fly

Developer The Game Atelier delivers the first screenshots for The Flying Hamster, the first horizontal hamster shooter for the Sony PSP. I am filled with joy beyond words. Okay, perhaps not as beyond words as I initially thought. I’m just a big fan of hamsters in general, and haven’t been able to keep one as…

At Last, Blinds For Gamers

Unexpected gaming angle in catalog advertising fancy blinds. [As seen by a certain Kotaku editor who can’t currently play games during the 2-3pm hour on weekends because it’s too bright and he has no blinds in his new home yet.]

Wii Fit Plus Targets Target Parking Lots

Nintendo is rolling out the Wii Fit Plus Experience at select Target store parking lots in California, Georgia, and Texas over the next three weeks, with a $15 gift card for those willing to get their exercise on in public. Nine Target stores across the three states will be hosting Wii Fit Plus demos in…

Kane & Lynch 2

Sex, Drugs, But No Violence: A Porn Game With A Message?

Video game developer Andrew Hall makes no bones about his lifestyle or the game he helped make that revels in it. “I have consensual sex and I do drugs,” he told Kotaku in a recent interview. “I’ve never killed anybody before. But in video games you just go kill people all day, it’s like nothing.…

Man Defeats His Achievement Points Addiction, Almost

I used to work with Jason Cipriano, back when he was obsessed with Achievement Points. I heard from him yesterday and he’s cleaned himself up. Kicked the habit. Jason admits over at MTV Multiplayer that, yeah, he kind of took things far back in the old days of his Achievement mania and that the hankering…

Survey: 82% Of “Gamer” Parents Are Hip To The ESRB

A survey conducted by The Harrison Group and Activision Publishing has found that a large percentage of parents with gaming children are familiar with the ESRB ratings system. As the popularity of video games continues to grow, so does parental awareness of the ratings system that governs the industry. The survey, which gathered the results…

Gaming’s Trojan Horse

Who cares that only Hercules bow and arrow made it into the Trojan War, this is still a great bit of promotion papercraft I received today. Keeping true to the story of the Trojan Horse, opening up its belly revealed a fun little surprise.

Metro 2033 Screens Depict A Really Dark Future

It doesn’t get much darker than a post-apocalyptic survival romp through Moscow’s ruined subway system, as proven by these very dark screens for THQ’s upcoming shooter Metro 2033. I’ve the type of person that gets really into my story-driven first-person shooters, to the point where I get extremely jumpy and, at times, have to turn…

Naughty Bear Ignores Your Cries For Mercy

If this clip of Naughty Bear relentlessly pursuing his whimpering prey with a shotgun featured humans instead of stuffed animals there would almost certainly be some sort of public outcry. This is the second trailer for Naughty Bear, following up on the introduction video we posted on Tuesday. In it we see a far less…

Who Says Snowboarding and Evening Gowns Don’t Mix?

As seen at the United States Postal Service’s truly bizarre Consumer Electronics Show booth.

Jack Bauer Has His Eye On You

That’s him on the other end of that teeny-tiny Brunton Echo Pocket Scope Monocular. He spying (duh) on you to see if you are making preparations for the premiere of 24 on January 17. Oh, and he’s packing a 9mm, so get that DVR set. Jack’s weapon of choice is said to be the HK…

Isn’t It A Little Late For MGS4-Themed Accessories?

Running between $199 and $250, Astro Gaming‘s newly-released A40 Audio System: Metal Gear Solid 4 Edition is the perfect way to say $199-$250 on PlayStation 3 headphone solution with interchangeable MGS4 speaker tags. McWhertor reviewed the generic version of the A40 Audio System last year, and found it a highly capable if slightly pricey product.…

Dragon Age Return To Ostagar DLC Now Unavailable

Briefly going up for sale on Xbox Live yesterday, BioWare has pulled the Return to Ostagar downloadable content for Dragon Age: Origins until it can fix a title update that was breaking specialization classes. A title update released yesterday meant to prepare the Xbox 360 version of Dragon Age: Origins for the Return to Ostagar…

Martin Sheen Dares You To Talk Back To Him (In Mass Effect 2)

Much ado has been made about Mass Effect 2’s new combat system, but let’s not forget that it’s still a story-heavy, actor-packed role-playing game. Among the impressive list of actors lending their voice and talent to the “emotionally engaging” narrative is famed Apocalypse Now and West Wing actor Martin Sheen. I was curious how the…

Despite Rise In Game Quality, EA Boss Faces Fierce Doubts

If gamers most care about whether games are any good — not whether stock prices are rising — then what to make of charges the EA’s current boss might be the wrong man for the job? FIFA was better last year. Left 4 Dead was good. Dragon Age was an acclaimed role playing game standout.…