Reviews & Features
Razer Megalodon 7.1 Surround sound gaming headset
| 22 August 2011 |
A lavish and indulgent treat for your gaming ears. A review by okkervil.
Apple iMac Desktop Mid 2011 Review
| 10 August 2011 |
Why the new iMac could be your next upgrade: Beauty and Speed
Dirt 3
| 17 June 2011
I present you with "The Answer" to Rally Simulation
Read more » | 16 Comments | PC
Asus Eee Pad Transformer TF101 Review
| 13 June 2011 |
With a super slim profile of only 12.98mm thick in a frame that weighs only 680g, the ASUS Eee Pad Transformer is comfortable to hold from any position.
Source Wars: Update
| 23 May 2011
A wrap-up of the Source Wars TOG event - year 3.
Read more » | 21 Comments | PC
The Power of Achievements
| 18 May 2011
Achievements, love them or hate them, they aren't going anywhere soon.
Read more » | 15 Comments | PC
Newsfeed Selector
» GameSpot Headlines
Batman: Arkham Origins gets Deathstroke, Kevin Conroy
20 May 2013 |Kevin Conroy confirmed to be lending his voice-over talents to Batman: Arkham Origins; Deathstroke playable via DLC.
Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- announced
20 May 2013 |The game will use Unreal Engine and 3D models; series creator Daisuke Ishiwatari will resume the director role.
AU Shippin’ Out May 20-24: Resident Evil: Revelations
20 May 2013 |Gamers who can't get enough of zombies can check out the formerly 3DS-exclusive Resident Evil: Revelations this week.
Call of Duty: Ghosts teaser video revealed
20 May 2013 |Official Twitter channel for upcoming first-person shooter hyping May 21 reveal with new teaser video.
EA engineer says ‘the Wii U is crap’
18 May 2013 |Before deleting tweets, senior engineer at Electronic Arts blasts struggling platform, saying "Nintendo are still operating like it's 1990."
Layoffs at Defiance dev - Report
17 May 2013 |Trion Worlds confirms job cuts as part of company reorganization, says 80 percent layoff figure "definitely exaggerated"; development on Rift, future titles unaffected.
Microsoft to show off ‘smaller and denser’ Xbox console at next-gen event
17 May 2013 |Sources say Microsoft to reveal trimmed down Xbox system with "flattened" controllers at media briefing next week.
GungHo: Japanese devs must go ‘back to basics’
17 May 2013 |No More Heroes, Killer Is Dead studio owner says Japanese developers need to remember why they make games in the first place.
Team Fortress 2 adds first community-made update
17 May 2013 |Robotic Boogaloo update for Valve's free-to-play shooter introduces 57 new items and is 100 percent fan-made.
Metal Gear Solid: The Legacy Collection delayed
17 May 2013 |Sony pushes PlayStation3-exclusive bundle from June to July, reveals $50 price tag for comprehensive compilation pack.
» IGN Headlines
» 1UP Headlines
Listen to the Final 1UP Podcast Ever
7 April 2013 | <!--Begin feature--> <!-- for syndication --> As you know, 1UP.com has breathed its last. Such are the vicissitudes of business. Happily, Jose Otero ...
Review: Bending Genres in Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon
22 March 2013 | <!-- Begin Template_OpenHtml --> Feature <!-- Begin socialTools --> Share it: Tweet [removed][removed] [removed] window.fbAsyncInit = ...
Review: Shambling Mirror of Fate Signals Time to Jam a Stake in Castlevania’s Heart
8 March 2013 | <!--Begin feature--> <!-- for syndication --> Castlevania: Lords of Shadow: Mirror of Fate brings the series back to Nintendo's portable systems, ...
An Unflattering Boll Cut
7 March 2013 | <!-- Begin Template_OpenHtml --> Feature <!-- Begin socialTools --> Share it: Tweet [removed][removed] [removed] window.fbAsyncInit = ...
The Trials and Tribulations of Gears of War: Judgment
6 March 2013 | <!--Begin feature--> <!-- for syndication --> <body> As the next generation of home consoles slowly emerge into the limelight and enter the ...
The Cinematic Nature of Parasite Eve
1 March 2013 | <!-- Begin Template_OpenHtml --> Feature <!-- Begin socialTools --> Share it: Tweet [removed][removed] [removed] window.fbAsyncInit = ...
A Plea for the Gaming Industry to Respect Gamers
1 March 2013 | <!--Begin feature--> <!-- for syndication --> Although the economy might not be in the thick of a recession as it once was, that doesn't mean things ...
Moving Forward and Looking to Indies, Not Better Graphics
28 February 2013 | <!--Begin feature--> <!-- for syndication --> Excited as I was to finally see a next-generation console, much of the PlayStation 4 software we saw ...
Urban Trial Freestyle Review: Where Flash Trumps Substance
27 February 2013 | <!--Begin feature--> <!-- for syndication --> There is no getting around the similarities between Urban Trial Freestyle and the Trials series. The ...
The Orwellian Superheroes of Watch Dogs and inFamous: Second Son
23 February 2013 | <!--Begin feature--> <!-- for syndication --> <body> Always the eyes watching you and the voice enveloping you. Asleep or awake, working or ...
» GameDaily Headlines
Mass Effect 2: The Engineer
26 April 2013 |Unleash combat drones and hack your enemies with Mass Effect 2's nerdy Engineer class.
MW2 MP Broken?
26 April 2013 |Xbox 360 version plagued by cheaters and 18 person deathmatches. What's Infinity Ward doing about this? Based on our experiences this week...nothing.
NES Stress Test
26 April 2013 |Can Super Mario Bros. withstand subzero temperatures? GoNintendo hopes to find out.
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier Trailer
26 April 2013 |Ubisoft releases a teaser to its much-anticipated Tom Clancy game.
Blur Beta Key Giveaway
26 April 2013 |Enter to win a chance to play Bizarre Creations' latest speedster three months early.
GDC 2010 Coverage
26 April 2013 |Check out the latest videos from this week's feature packed show in San Francisco.
Red Dead Redemption Trailer
26 April 2013 |New video details life in the Wild West.
Gears of War 3
26 April 2013 |Epic Games confirms the inevitable. Better ready the chainsaw.
Left 4 Dead 2: Realism Versus Here to Stay
26 April 2013 |Thousands of frag happy gamers vote to make experimental Mutation an official part of the L4D2 multiplayer scene.
NBA Jam Facebook Contest
26 April 2013 |Immortalize your latest one-liner in arcade basketball history.
» Gamasutra Headlines
Blog: Emergent chivalry - When players make the rules
21 May 2013 |We're used to stories of players being unpleasant, but indie developer Bram Stolk writes about a time when one surprised him by being honorable. ...
Making NeverWinter Nights: A classic BioWare postmortem
21 May 2013 |In a 2002 Game Developer magazine postmortem, BioWare founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk are joined by designers on NeverWinter Nights to discuss highs and lows of the game's creation. ...
Can free-to-play be effective without being exploitative?
21 May 2013 |"There are lots of ways to implement free-to-play, and most of them are detrimental to the core game design." - Rami Ismail of Vlambeer discusses why he still isn't a fan of the free-to-play space. ...
Pursuing minimalist game narratives for maximum effect
21 May 2013 |The Zelda series evolved from minimalist quest to maximalist narrative by 2012. Have games gone astray? This post looks at those games and everything from Amnesia to Bogost's A Slow Year. ...
This augmented reality tech was originally a Valve project
20 May 2013 |Although Valve said that it had not canceled any projects during February's layoffs, two of the affected employees have revealed an AR project they were working on when they were let go. ...
This AR tech was originally a Valve project
20 May 2013 |Although Valve said that it had not canceled any projects during February's layoffs, two of the affected employees have revealed an AR project they were working on when they were let go. ...
A quick guide to particles on mobile
20 May 2013 |If you are looking for a high-performance way to create particles on low-performance portable devices, this tutorial is a quick and useful guide. ...
Market’s ready for new consoles, but old-gen surprisingly viable
20 May 2013 |Sales of aging game console hardware in the U.S. are healthier than you might think, while at the same time, we're seeing signals that the market is ready for new consoles. ...
7 design lessons from Letterpress
20 May 2013 |Brandon Sheffield draws design lessons from the simple beauty of Atebit's turn-based word game Letterpress in a reprint from the May issue of Game Developer magazine. ...
Check out this supercut from Ludum Dare 26
18 May 2013 |Make yourself comfortable. This supercut compiles nearly all of Ludum Dare 26's over 2000 submissions into an intense 20 minute video. ...
» GamesIndustry.Biz Headlines
Sony teases first images of PlayStation 4
21 May 2013 |Console manufacturer drops video of new console hours before Microsoft's Xbox reveal
Google Play in-app purchases up 700%
21 May 2013 |Market trending free-to-play as last year has seen players spend eight times as much from within programs
Watch Microsoft’s Xbox: A New Generation Revealed live
21 May 2013 |Microsoft's Don Mattrick to unveil new console live on Tuesday May 21 at 10am PST / 6pm BST
Full Control: Happy Accidents And Harsh Realities
20 May 2013 |Thomas Lund details Space Hulk's charmed inception and Jagged Alliance's troublesome Kickstarter
Former GTA Producer: Why I’ll Never Work On Violent Games Again
20 May 2013 |Jeremy Pope details his personal story and how he couldn't feel good telling people he worked on "that game"
Denis Dyack addresses "ugly" X-Men Destiny controversy
20 May 2013 |"I've got to do something about this, because it's affecting me and it's affecting my colleagues at Precursor Games"
Metro: Last Light replaces Dead Island Riptide as UK No.1
20 May 2013 |Another hit for publisher Deep Silver/Koch as rest of top ten slides
The Past, Present And Future Of Games
20 May 2013 |The director of Video Games: The Movie opens up about where medium's standing today, and the bright future that awaits
Ubisoft reaffirms its faith in Nintendo
18 May 2013 |Publisher confident that "Nintendo will take steps to ensure that the Wii U is successful in the market”
Battlefield project manager moves to Call of Duty team
18 May 2013 |Kevin Flynn leaves the Battlefield to join the Ghosts
» GamePolitics Headlines
Silicon Knights and Precursor Games’ Denis Dyack Responds to Allegations
21 May 2013 |On Sunday a video was posted to YouTube featuring Silicon Knights and Precursor Games chief creative officer Denis Dyack addressing a Kotaku story from last year which he feels has hurt the funding drive for Shadow of the Eternals ...
EA Sports Canada Developer Calls Wii U ‘Crap’
20 May 2013 | Last week EA confirmed that it didn't have any Wii U titles in development. As if that wasn't enough of a slight against owners of Nintendo's console a ...
Programming Note: SuperPAC Episode 52 Delayed
20 May 2013 | Programming note: Episode 52 of the Super Podcast Action Committee has been delayed due to some technical issues in E. Zachary Knight's neck of the woods (thanks, a ...
Apple Celebrates Over 50 Billion App Downloads
18 May 2013 | On May 3 Apple said that it was very close to hitting 50 billion app download mark on its App store. Today the company announced that its App Store has surpassed the ...
Hackers Talk CISPA, Anonymous and More
18 May 2013 | Motherboard (part of VICE - which you may know better from their new weekly news show on HBO) has an interesting interview with two hackers - Dragon and PhäntömZ ...
Report: GameStop Has Delisted Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Patriots
18 May 2013 | Is Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Patriots dead? We're not sure, but GameStop made a dramatic move today that might indicate that something bad has happened to ...
First Lady Sees Culture as an Obstacle to Higher Education for African American Youth
18 May 2013 | First Lady Michelle Obama recently gave a commencement address at Bowie State University encouraging more young African Americans to continue their education. She does ...
Six Games Greenlighted by Steam Community
18 May 2013 | Valve announced six new titles to be greenlighted by the Steam community. The new games that will eventually make their way to Steam thanks to the community's support ...
Nintendo to Offer Unreleased Playable Demos at Select Best Buy Stores During E3
18 May 2013 | Nintendo has a novel way of getting gamers (who do not already own a Wii U) excited about the games it will be showcasing at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles ...
Four UK-Based LulzSec Members Sentenced for 2011 Security Breaches
18 May 2013 | The BBC reports that four members of the hacktivist group LulzSec based in the United Kingdom have been sentenced this week. They are Ryan Cleary, Jake Davis, Mustafa ...
» Joystiq Headlines
Microsoft trademarks ‘Forzavista’
21 May 2013 | Microsoft has filed a new trademark for the word "Forzavista." Using our detective-like intuition, we've determined it probably has something to do with the Forza Motorsport series, possibly something that will be revealed during ...
Yakuza 1 and 2 HD to paint the Wii U red in Japan
21 May 2013 |<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="298" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BP0gO0Jtnig?wmode=opaque" width="530"></iframe> The first Yakuza entry for a non-Sony console is Yakuza 1 and 2 ...
PS4 E3 teaser video boxes it all up
21 May 2013 |<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="298" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/QjXU1anoC5Y?wmode=opaque" width="530"></iframe> Sony's official E3 teaser video shows a blurry, black box. Is ...
More unfinished business: Cavanagh’s vectorized tongues and the RPG that doesn’t exist
21 May 2013 |This is the second half of a two-part series chronicling the unfinished works of seasoned indie developer Terry Cavanagh. For the first half, click all up on this. <iframe class="vine-embed" frameborder="0" height="265" ...
Year Wane: The challenges facing Batman in Arkham Origins
21 May 2013 |<iframe frameborder="0" height="318" id="viddler-adfe6868" mozallowfullscreen="true" src="http://www.viddler.com/embed/adfe6868/?f=1&autoplay=0&player=simple&secret=88557859&loop=0&nologo=0&hd=0" ...
Batman: Arkham Origins stars Roger Craig Smith as Batman, Troy Baker as Joker
21 May 2013 | Warner Bros. revealed Batman: Arkham Origins is fronted by two of gaming's most prominent voice actors. Roger Craig Smith is confirmed as the caped crusader, and Troy Baker is his nemesis, the Joker. If you don't recognize the ...
Metro: Last Light shines in this week’s UK charts
20 May 2013 | It's another familiar week of UK cha-... oh wait, it isn't. After Dead Island: Riptide sliced through its competition for three weeks, this time it's dethroned by another follow-up in the form of Metro: Last Light. By debuting in ...
Smash Bros, 3D Mario, Mario Kart in pre-E3 Nintendo Direct
20 May 2013 | In lieu of an E3 press conference, Nintendo is going to present a Nintendo Direct before E3, showcasing the "new Smash Bros., 3D Mario game, Mario Kart and other Wii U titles." The company previously announced that all three ...
The Last of Us dev diary covers survivalcraft
20 May 2013 | <iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="337" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TbO7D9YkP-c?rel=0&wmode=opaque" width="599"></iframe> The Last of Us puts the fun in fungicidal funerals ...
Stiq Figures, May 6 - 12: Sega Saturn edition
20 May 2013 |Welcome to Stiq Figures, where the sales data is after the break and the posts don't matter. <iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="398" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/v0ozAQjOyZ4?wmode=opaque" ...
» Kotaku Headlines
While You Were Sleeping
23 August 2011 |Sleeping can be fun — necessary even. But what if stuff happens when you’re sleeping — game stuff? What are you supposed to to do then? Thankfully we have a solution — While You Were Sleeping, a quick round ...
Talk Amongst Yourselves
23 August 2011 |This is where Kotaku readers go to talk about the stuff we’re not already posting about. Think of it as the official unofficial Kotaku community forum. (more…)
Finally! Video Game Clothing That’s Stylish And Perfect For Daily Wear
23 August 2011 |Deus Ex: Human Revolution is already getting great reviews, though it doesn’t release until tomorrow. And now a Deus Ex clothing line has been announced for what promises to be a blockbuster game. (more…)
Deus Ex: Human Revolution’s Review Scores Are Perfectly Natural
23 August 2011 |In the year 2000, Ion Storm unleashed the perfect marriage of futuristic shooter and skill-based role-playing in Deus Ex, a game so unique that even its own sequel couldn’t replicate its success. Can any follow-up possibly do ...
The Gaming Tragedies That Didn’t Kill Us (But Nearly Broke Us)
23 August 2011 | My proudest moments as a tap dancer are displayed in my parents’ house in the form of sparkly, obnoxious trophies. (more…)
On The 8th Day Atlus Gave Us A Good Reason To Buy Devil Survivor Again
23 August 2011 | With only one more day before the 3DS remaster of Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor comes out, Atlus gives fans one more day to consider replaying one of the best role-playing games of 2009. (more…)
The Rare Angry Birds Theme Guitar Remix Spotted In The Wild
23 August 2011 | When musicians decide to take video game music and make it better, the results are almost always fantastic. (more…)
Death Of PC Gaming Scheduled To Be Disproven On August 26
23 August 2011 | We’ve heard it said time and time again, PC gaming is not dead, but sometime just saying something isn’t enough. This Friday, PC peripheral maker Razer plans to prove it. (more…)
Aliens: Colonial Marines Shows Why It’s Smart To Wait 25 Years To Make A Movie Game
23 August 2011 |While we’ve known for a while now that Gearbox’s upcoming Aliens: Colonial Marines makes extensive use of original concept art from the movie it’s based on, 1986′s Aliens, it’s still a surprise to see ...
The Trailer For Dark Souls Comes With Fair Warning
23 August 2011 | The new trailer for Dark Souls comes with a simple warning: Prepare to die. (more…)
» Next Generation Headlines
The limits of videogame interaction
17 September 2012 | Nuanced and subtle game design is meaningless if the player can't respond in kind, says Clint Hocking. A few ...
World Of Warplanes: free-to-play dogfights from the creator of World Of Tanks
17 September 2012 | Developer Wargaming on taking its free-to-play fight to the skies. World Of Tanks was a freak success. Not even ...
Introducing Free-To-Play Week
17 September 2012 | A thorough investigation of the industry's fastest-growing business model kicks off today. Throughout this ...
Joe Danger 2: The Movie review
17 September 2012 | Hello Games' sequel layers on the polish without losing the original's scrappy small-team charm. At ...
Sleeping Dogs tops UK chart again
17 September 2012 |read more
Time Extend: Super Metroid
16 September 2012 | "The last metroid is in captivity. The galaxy is at peace." Thankfully, that's just about the only thing Super Metroid ...
The Making Of: Spacewar!
15 September 2012 | The first ever videogame ran on a $120,000 piece of hardware - we go back to the summer of 1962. It's a ...
Hide&Seek;Weekender offers drop-in gaming to London public
15 September 2012 |read more
Tokyo Jungle review
15 September 2012 | Bold and strange, Crispy's underdog adventure daringly attempts to upset the natural order of things. Novelty ...
Gamestation stores to be rebranded under Game name
14 September 2012 | 122 Gamestation outlets to be unified with parent company, rebranded stores to combine "best of both brands". ...
» Digg Headlines
» Slashdot Headlines
Nintendo Hijacks Ad Revenue From Fan-Created YouTube Playthroughs
18 May 2013 |mcleland writes "The BBC reports that Nintendo is now using the content ID match feature in YouTube to identify screencap videos of people playing their games. They then take over the advertising that appears with the video, and ...
Used Game To Survive? EA Plans To Drop Online Pass
17 May 2013 |Krazy Kanuck writes "Introduced in 2010, Online Pass was marketed as a way to 'preserve' online content or DLC as titles were sold in the used game market. Many saw this as a way to cut out the second hand game market. EA has now ...
NeuroGaming Conference Profiles the Rise of Brain-Computer Interfaces
15 May 2013 |kkleiner writes "The first NeuroGaming Conference and Expo took place at the beginning of May to showcase the convergent technologies that are paving the way toward gaming with your mind. Tech news has been dominated with stories ...
Google Play Games Leaks Ahead of I/O
12 May 2013 |Android Police reports on an information leak out of Google in the lead-up to their I/O conference, which starts on May 15th. A new version of Google Play Services contains information about "Google Play Games," the company's ...
Vulnerability Found In Skyrim, Fallout, Other Bethesda Games
12 May 2013 |An anonymous reader writes "The author of this article goes over a format string vulnerability he found in The Elder Scrolls series starting with Morrowind and going all the way up to Skyrim. It's not something that will likely be ...
World of Warcraft Loses 1.3 Million Players in First Quarter of 2013
10 May 2013 |hypnosec writes "World of Warcarft, the gaming industry's most popular franchise and one of Blizzard's cash cows, is bleeding subscribers with 1.3 million defecting from the game in the first quarter of 2013 alone. Blizzard ...
Ouya Game Console Retail Launch Delayed Until June 25
9 May 2013 |PC Mag is one of several outlets reporting that the Kickstarter-funded Ouya Android game console has been delayed by a few weeks; the new target date for launch is June 25. Says the article "The delay does not affect early backers, ...
Integer Overflow Bug Leads To Diablo III Gold Duping
9 May 2013 |Nerval's Lobster writes "Online economies come with their own issues. Case in point is the Auction House for Diablo III, a massively multiplayer game in which players can pay for items in either in-game gold or real-world dollars. ...
Oculus Rift Guillotine Simulation
7 May 2013 |An anonymous reader tipped us to news of an interesting hack for the Oculus Rift: a simulation of being beheaded by a Guillotine. Thrown together in a couple of days at the Exile Code Jam, the simulation lets you... "look around to ...
EA Is the Game Company Disney Was Looking For
7 May 2013 |An anonymous reader writes "Electronic Arts announced today it has landed an exclusive multi-year agreement to develop and publish games based on Lucasfilms' Star Wars universe. EA said the it will create and publish Star Wars ...
Latest Blogs
Blogs Have Moved!
| 3 November 2010
Blogs can now be found in the vBulletin blogging tool, located here.
Latest Division News
Seolferwulf: A LOTRO Immersion Project - by Keli
| 30 March 2011
The adventures of a very cautious Hobbit - life, laughs and danger in Middle Earth
GW: Embark Beach Update
| 7 March 2011
The newest addition to Guild Wars brings along a variety of new features and improvements.