This week, nothing in video games resulted in more takes being heated and tweets being fired off than the release of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, the first new entry in BioWare’s series in 10 years. We took a look at the different reactions some critics and players are having to the game. We also sang the praises of Alan…
]]>This week, people desperate for Nintendo to finally pull back the curtain on the successor to the Switch instead got an announcement that the acclaimed role-playing gameXenoblade Chronicles X, previously only available on Wii U, will make its way to the handheld hybrid next year. Also, Guy “Dr Disrespect” Beahm was…
]]>The year is almost over. Today is November 1, and that means we’re only a few short weeks away from the Game of the Year deliberations that will have us at each other’s throats in December. With only a precious few weekends left in the year, it looks like most of us here at Kotaku are trying to clean up our backlogs,…
]]>Horizon Zero Dawn blew the world away with outrageously attractive graphics when it first launched on the PlayStation 4 back in 2017. In the time since, consoles and PCs alike have progressed even further, giving developers more power than ever to work with. As such, Sony has opted to revisit this hit game to bring…
]]>It’s challenging to watch Disney’s new Skeleton Crew trailer and not compare it to The Goonies, which remains one of the best movies of all time. But, despite what many of us would like to believe, an entire generation or hasn’t seen The Goonies; they need their own version of a rag-tag group of kids embarking on an…
]]>It’s been five years since the last Gears games, and while Gears of War: E-Day was announced at Microsoft’s last big Xbox Showcase, there’s no word on if and when The Coalition will be continuing work on the story left behind in Gears 5. That game’s executive producer, Rod Ferguson, recently shared what his plan was…
]]>We love Chappell Roan here at Kotaku. The “Good Luck, Babe” singer puts out queer bangers, dresses up in chainmail at award shows, and has cultivated a fanbase of gay nerds who record her shows on Nintendo handhelds. So when she shows up on Saturday Night Live this weekend on November 2, I will be tuned in and seated.…
]]>Long-time fans of the Dragon Age franchise impatiently waited for ten years between the launch of Dragon Age: Inquisition and Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Despite the lengthy downtime between entries and the drastic changes in gameplay and art style in the latest release, it appears BioWare didn’t lose its magic touch…
]]>On launch, New World broke records and amassed a massive playerbase of over one million concurrent players. But like my high school bully, that towering monstrosity of an MMORPG somehow managed to peak quickly and drop off the face of the planet. Despite the lackluster reception after its first month, Amazon Game…
]]>Halloween may be over but that doesn’t mean that you have to stop enjoying everything scary. For those who love a good thrill, Humble Bundle has a great deal going, letting you snag seven horror games for only twenty bucks. Available until November 12, the collection’s headlining title has to be the entire Dark…
]]>As a grown adult, you likely don’t make a habit of ordering off the kid’s menu. I bet the only thing that could change that is a unique collab with a rare toy or collectible up for grabs. It’s that time again, as McDonald’s is partnering with Nintendo for the Mario Kart x Happy Meal collab. (Add that to the list of non…
]]>It has now been almost ten years since Over the Garden Wall first aired on Cartoon Network. The show will officially cross that threshold over the weekend, but that doesn’t mean we can’t preemptively celebrate one of the network’s crowning achievements and most enduring projects. But Over the Garden Wall is more than…
]]>The team behind the best Godzilla movie in years is going to make another one. Takashi Yamazaki, who wrote, directed, and oversaw the VFX for Godzilla Minus One, revealed today in a brief video teaser that his team has been greenlit to work on a second Godzilla.
]]>If you’ve already dived in, you’ll likely know how frantic multiplayer is in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. As with each iteration of the franchise, where the competitive scene favors speed and tenacity over careful planning and precision, the more lead you can sling at an opponent, the better. With that in mind, the best…
]]>Even with Halloween now in the past, it feels like almost every game under the sun is on some kind of sale for the holiday. Storefronts like Steam, GOG, and PlayStation all have big sales running right now that you can take advantage of. Not to be outdone, EA has joined the club, offering its own bounty of treats in a…
]]>It should come as no surprise that Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero is chock-full of easter eggs and fun references. A few of the more subtle examples can be found in the scant special throws available—these feature more cinematic animations and potentially different combo extensions, but just like the special finishers,…
]]>Dragon Age: The Veilguard has a ton of side quests throughout its multiple hub worlds, but one stands apart as probably the most important in the game, if not the entirety of BioWare’s fantasy RPG series. If you’re concerned about spoilers, don’t worry, we won’t get into them here. This is just a PSA to everyone…
]]>Once upon a time, there was talk of HBO’s hit Game of Thrones series concluding with a trilogy of movies instead of its ultimately ill-fated eighth season. It sounds like Warner Bros. is now revisiting the prospect of some kind of film adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s books, even if the project is still in the…
]]>Wicked, a big-screen adaptation of the famous theater production that regularly makes waves throughout New York City, is finally coming to theaters this November. From the few early critic previews of the film floating around, we know that anyone even remotely interested in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, or the theater…
]]>Pokémon TCG Pocket arrived this week on iPhone and Android, and it’s a surprisingly crisp and streamlined version of the card game after years of really bad alternatives. Pokémon is pretty much a license to print money, but TCG Pocket does a great job of spotlighting what people love about about the game—the cards…
]]>I’m really averse to trading card games. Despite loving me some Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh as a kid and tween, I’ve largely kept my distance from them in the time since. I’ve played a few hands of Hearthstone, I never touched Artifact, and I am straight-up dogshit at any card game baked into an RPG, except for Queen’s Blood…
]]>After the crowning achievement that is Alan Wake 2, you’d think developer Remedy Entertainment would take a break. Yet in the subsequent expansions to the 2023 survival horror game, the studio has poked and prodded further at the base game’s thesis, teasing out even more fascinating aspects of its world. The Lake House
]]>Overall, this year has been a somewhat mixed bag in the entertainment space. We’ve had massive hits and flops at the box office, as well as shows like Agatha All Along, which was mostly sublime throughout its run but ended with the same thud most Marvel shows do. We’re predicting an equally messy November, with…
]]>Call of Duty Black Ops 6 is the first entry in the annual blockbuster to be announced and released since Microsoft acquired it along with the rest of Activision Blizzard last October. And, by all accounts, it’s giving Xbox the boost it needed during a rough year. On an earnings call this week, Microsoft CEO Satya…
]]>Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is, understandably, a pretty big deal. The franchise has been in a bit of a lull lately, despite routinely setting new sales records, and this game especially needed to be a slam dunk given its unique position. As the first Call of Duty game to release on Game Pass following Microsoft’s…
]]>Just in time for Halloween, Disney’s witchy series Agatha All Along has concluded with a two-part finale. Prior to this week, the show (which stars Kathryn Hahn, Joe Locke, and Aubrey Plaza) has consistently delivered some of the best Marvel television we’ve seen, with exciting twists rooted in emotional stakes. It’s…
]]>Dragon Age: The Veilguard wraps up a lot of ongoing storylines for fans of BioWare’s fantasy RPG series. But it also has some new threads to pull on, one of which is the focus of the game’s secret post-credits stinger. Unlocking this final revelation is a hefty affair that will span several quest lines. If you want to…
]]>Where the hell is the Switch 2, folks? It’s the last day of October and Nintendo still hasn’t revealed the one thing every fan is waiting for. Instead, we’ve gotten almost everything else the company could think of, from random ports of cult Wii U games to literal alarm clocks. What else could the gaming giant throw…
]]>Many of Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s choices are personal and focus on your team’s relationships and life paths. However, one of the big, world-changing ones comes early on, shortly after you recruit Davrin, the Grey Warden companion. Right now, you might be staring at a choice between helping either the Tevinter city…
]]>Found footage seems tailor-made for horror because it’s typically built around the idea that the footage was lost or hidden for suspicious reasons. The genre’s signature use of wobbly camerawork and raw dialogue places audiences directly in the shoes of a film’s panicked characters as nightmarish situations unfold.…
]]>The PS5 Pro launch is still over a week away, but fans have already made an annoying discovery: the new console won’t work with players’ existing custom cover plates. Sony will eventually sell new ones, but those won’t be available until sometime in the future.
]]>We’re still getting new information from the massive Pokémon data breach that happened earlier this month, and while there have been some details about upcoming projects in the mix, it’s mostly consisted of design docs and other information about old games we’ve already played. We’ve seen starter Pokémon that never…
]]>Halloween is literally tomorrow, and if you don’t already have your plans sorted, I’m going to help you out right now. If you aren’t going out, chances are you’re staying in and watching a movie or playing a game. With a bunch of sales going right now on every imaginable storefront, it’s a great time to pick up a…
]]>Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero is a fun time, but the flashy combos and quick-time events can bump up the intensity. Although you can’t make the latter easier, the game does have an incredible selection of features called Battle Assists to make the general gameplay more approachable. There is one major problem though: the…
]]>Deadpool & Wolverine proved that even if the MCU fatigue is real, comic book blockbusters can still be wildly successful if they involve the X-Men, two giant Hollywood stars, tons of jokes, a massive marketing budget, and little to no other meaningful competition in theaters at release. The biggest R-rated movie…
]]>At this point, with only a day left until Halloween, it feels like almost every game under the sun is on some kind of sale. Storefronts like Steam, GOG, and PlayStation all have big sales running right now that you can take advantage of. Not to be outdone, Capcom has joined the club, offering its own bounty of treats…
]]>As we all prepare to buy extra bags of our favorite candy this Halloween, knowing full well that trick-or-treaters will only see a fraction of the bowl because your partner ate most of the fun-size bars the night before, it’s dawning on many that the cost of chocolate is exorbitantly high this year. Of course, ever…
]]>Halloween is upon us, the nights are getting longer, so turn off all the lights and terrify yourself with a pile of horror games that’ll suit the mood once you’ve finished Silent Hill 2.
]]>Dragon Age: The Veilguard is out tomorrow, October 31. Whether you’re a seasoned veteran of developer BioWare’s fantasy RPGs or a newcomer looking to see what all the fuss is about, it’s worth noting that The Veilguard represents a pretty drastic shift from the tactical, open-zone RPG gameplay of its predecessor, Drago…
]]>There are certain parts of nature that inherently feel scarier than others. A dark forest, sheer cliffs, open bodies of water. Something about the enormity of the natural world engulfing you triggers a fight or flight response in the body, and the unknown possibilities hiding within that world feel much more tangible…
]]>I was recently made aware that Life Is Strange: Double Exposure has a character just like me. I don’t just mean that they say things similar to me or even dress the same. I mean that Moses from the newest Life Is Strange game looks just like me (at least when I’m freshly cut and trimmed) and he even has my ding dang…
]]>Ubisoft has finally released its first blockchain game, and it’s all about collecting and battling with NFT figurines. It’s called Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles, it’s a PvP tactical RPG, and its marketplace currently lists the most expensive collectible NFT at over $63,000.
]]>As it’s unlocked from the get-go, one of the first assault rifles you’ll likely play around with is the XM4, and it may—initially—feel like a lackluster weapon. It’s a hand-me-down from a bygone era, like the AK-74, but one that offers enough customization and versatility to make it viable on any battlefield. It also…
]]>Here’s something annoying. You buy a new game on Switch, or maybe need a big update to download. The process starts and then you walk away to do something else. Only you come back later, after the Switch is in sleep mode, and it’s somehow still not finished. The good news is that the Nintendo device getting finicky…
]]>2015’s Life Is Strange was about a high-schooler, the supernaturally gifted Max Caulfield, but its power resided in something deeper than its protagonist’s youth and the setting of Blackwell Academy. I think that, for many of the millions of players it resonated with, Life Is Strange spoke to those parts of us that…
]]>A live-action Tomb Raider TV show has been swirling around at Amazon for a couple of years now, and it sounds like the series might be honing in on its future Lara Croft. Deadline reports that Game of Thrones’ Sophie Turner as well as Murder on the Orient Express’ Lucy Boynton are currently in the running for the…
]]>Marvel has released a sizzle reel of forthcoming Disney Plus shows, which finally gives us our first glimpse at next year’s revival of Daredevil, along with a wealth of other programs.
]]>Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero has the biggest roster in the 3D arena-fighting franchise’s history, but some players still want more. Specifically, more costumes, accessories, and other ways to customize their iconic DBZ fighters’ looks, including with shirts and jackets that pull from deep cuts within the long-running…
]]>The horror game landscape has never been more impressive or varied, and in 2024, you can find some of the beset scary games on PlayStation 5 and PS4 via the growing PS Plus catalog. Ever since Sony expanded the program to emulate Game Pass’ Netflix-style library of downloadable and streaming games, fans of zombies,…
]]>A few years ago, my best friends convinced me to play Call of Duty: Warzone, the series’ battle royale installment that had shot up the charts. While I was aware of it for work reasons, I’d largely sworn off the franchise about a decade prior, returning for brief stints and forays into the Black Ops subseries that I’d…
]]>Ys X: Nordics marks the tenth mainline game in the beloved action-RPG franchise, extraordinarily now in its 37th year. Originally released in Japan in September 2023, Ys X now at last has a worldwide English-language release. And yet, despite all this, you’ve never played a Ys game! Let us convince you this is the…
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