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Assassin’s Creed Producer Raymond To Lead Ubisoft Toronto
The recently announced Ubisoft Toronto studio has a new boss, Assassin’s Creed producer Jade Raymond, Ubisoft announced today. She’ll be overseeing the new studio, focusing on “AAA games and new intellectual properties.” Raymond will be working under the “governance” of Yannis Mallat, CEO of Ubisoft’s Montreal and Toronto development studios, at Ubisoft Toronto which is…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2009 -
Street Fighter Femme Fatale Fighting Sticks At PAX, Plus Us
Barred from discussing secret stuff related to my and Fahey’s PAX planning I can nevertheless report that we’ll be in the same location later this week as 1000 of the new Street Fighter IV sticks pictured here. Our PAX calendar runneth over. And even our pre-PAX calendar does as plans are taking shape for some…
By Stephen Totilo Published August 31, 2009 -
Uncharted 2’s Red Hot Cinema Mode Gets Green Screen, Bluetooth Support
Naughty Dog is finally offering details on Uncharted 2: Among Thieves‘ "Cinema Mode," a suite of machinima tools that lets PlayStation 3 owners replay, edit and tweak saved gameplay footage and share with friends. There’s nothing half-tucked about it. Justin Richmond, multiplayer designer on Uncharted 2, walks Machinima.com through the finer details of the game’s…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2009 -
Eve Online: Dominion Coming This Winter
Developer CCP sets its sights on redefining EVE Online‘s end game in EVE Online: Dominion, the 11th free expansion for the massively-multiplayer space sim, due out in winter 2009. While work continues on the eagerly anticipated Walking in Stations update for EVE Online that will introduce avatars to the mix (recently renamed Incarna), EVE’s 11th…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2009 -
A Better Katamari?
Have you ever really liked a game, tried to convince your friend how good it is and then discovered, as you talk about it, that the game might make less sense the more you talk about it? 1up’s David Ellis put in a heroic effort during last week’s Listen Up podcast trying to describe the…
By Stephen Totilo Published August 31, 2009 -
Champions Online: A Tale Of Four Heroes
Join us, brave adventurers, as we put four superhero characters through their paces in Cryptic’s Champions Online. Fear the trickery of Bullshot! Feel the blades of Becca Danger! Generally look out for Super Crecente! The early head-start for Cryptic’s new superhero MMO Champions Online kicked off this weekend, and despite having many other plans, I…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2009 -
XBLA Weekly Deploys Defense Grid, Yo-Ho Kablamo
Xbox 360 owners can go on the offense of defense with this week’s Xbox Live Arcade update, as both tower defense game Defense Grid: The Awakening and multiplayer sea battle game Yo-Ho Kablamo arrive this Wednesday. Defense Grid: The Awakening, already available for the PC, offers a futuristic, single-player and story-driven experience with lots and…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2009 -
Bang Bang, Is Creativity Dead?
When future generations of gamers look back on this period of growth and advancement in our medium, will they be able to tell one military shooter, space adventure or dungeon crawler from another? Probably not. Are video games creatively narrow, or rich? Epic Games’ Cliff Bleszinski calls this “the most loaded question I’ve been asked…
Leigh Alexander Published August 31, 2009 -
Tim Langdell Resigns from IGDA Board [Updated]
Tim Langdell, the CEO of EDGE Games, which has been at the heart of many controversies regarding trademark rights to the word “Edge” in video gaming, has stepped down from the board of directors of the International Game Developers Association. The IGDA announced Langdell’s resignation in a brief statement this morning. In an email to…
By Owen Good Published August 31, 2009 -
Former UK Prime Minister’s Wife Attacked For Heading “Violent” Game Company
The wife and son of former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair have become directors of a pro-gaming company, Daily Mail reports. Cherie and Nicky Blair were named directors in February. Nicky Blair, 23, is apparently roommates with Gabriel Moraes, 22, who launched Magnitude Gaming in 2007. Not one to pass up a chance to attack…
By Brian Crecente Published August 31, 2009 -
GTA: Episodes From Liberty City Box Looks Like This
Here’s the final box art for Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City, the stand-alone versions of Grand Theft Auto IV’s first and second doses of downloadable content. Rockstar sure has been busy this weekend, releasing a set of screenshots for The Ballad of Gay Tony, announcing Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars and Beaterator for…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2009 -
First DSi-only Games Hit Stores This Fall With Distinct Look
Nintendo’s Masato Kuwahara, project lead on the Nintendo DSi hardware, revealed that games playable only on the latest revision Nintendo DS were in the works at this year’s GDC. Those first DSi-only games will hit this fall, sources tell Kotaku. Software that will only work on a Nintendo DSi will join titles playable on a…
By Michael McWhertor Published August 31, 2009 -
Shadow Complex Sets Xbox Live Sales Record
Chair Entertainment’s Shadow Complex is officially the most downloaded single-player title in Xbox Live Arcade history, with 200,000 copies purchased during its first week of release alone. We loved Shadow Complex, and so did you folks apparently, with stellar review scores and one-week sales so spectacular that Microsoft had to issue a celebratory press release.…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2009 -
Lost: One Giant PSP [UPDATE]
There used to be a giant PSP around the corner from Kotaku’s NYC branch office, at the midway point between my chair and Rockstar Games HQ. Now there’s just this H&M billboard. [UPDATE: Sony comments.] This PSP that stood above Houston Street just off of Lafayette Street, was massive, larger even than an Atari Lynx.…
By Stephen Totilo Published August 31, 2009 -
Celebrate PAX 09 With A Cheaper Precipice 2
PAX 2009 is just a few days away, and to celebrate, Microsoft discounting Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode Two as its Xbox Live Deal of the Week. On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness is of course the Penny Arcade roleplaying game, developed by Canada’s Hothead Games. Hothead’s creative director is…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2009 -
Metal Gear Solid, Castlevania, Silent Hill: Konami Talks Games
The latest issue of On Screen, the internal magazine published by Konami, gives us a look at a year’s worth of games coming from the Japanese developer and publisher. Inside these pages you’ll find the full letter from Hideo Kojima saying that Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker on the PSP is so full of content…
By Brian Crecente Published August 31, 2009 -
Rapala: We Fish Makes Fishing “Wacky”
If you love fishing video games but felt that there just wasn’t enough wackiness involved, then Activision’s Rapala: We Fish might just catch your eye with its family-fun hook. Due out September 29th for the Nintendo Wii, Activision is touting Rapala: We Fish as the “first fishing title developed specifically for Wii”, injecting just the…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2009 -
The Nintendo Download: Phantasy Monkey Battle League
The solo player reigns supreme in this week’s Nintendo Download, with four games perfect for loners of all shapes, sizes, and dispositions. Telltale’s Tales of Monkey Island continues this week in WiiWare, with Guybrush Threepwood searching for a cure to the mysterious Pox of LeChuck, which he caught in the last episode due to his…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2009 -
God Of War Collection Smooths Gameplay, Adds Trophies
Reworked versions of God of War and God of War II, featuring smoother graphics running at a faster frame rate, hit stores this holiday on a single Blu-ray disc, Sony Computer Entertainment announced this morning. God of War Collection will feature both Playstation 2 games running at 1280 by 720 resolution and 60 frames a…
By Brian Crecente Published August 31, 2009 -
Chinatown Wars And Beaterator Coming To iPhone
Rockstar makes a move onto the iPhone in a big way, announcing both music-maker Beaterator and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for Apple’s handheld this fall. While we were expecting Beaterator thanks to model Jacquetta Wheeler, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for the iPhone comes as a complete surprise. Rockstar’s Sam Houser explains why these…
By Mike Fahey Published August 31, 2009