What the world needs now is incredibly underdressed zombie slayers? D3Publisher’s unconventional hack-and-slash series returns on October 14 with Onee Chanbara Origin for PS4 and PC. Want to know if this game is for you? Hit play on the trailer above with the sound on, see how long you last. 

Gate of Thunder Had A Weird Duran Duran Connection

Welcome to Morning Music, Kotaku’s new, daily hangout for folks who love video games and the cool-ass sounds they make. Today we’re checking out one of the more acclaimed CD shmup soundtracks of the 16-bit(ish) era, which has a surprising connection to ‘80s superband Duran Duran. Red Company’s 1992 PC Engine Super CD shooter Gate…

The Internet Reacts To Xbox Series S

Today, Microsoft revealed its smallest Xbox ever, the Xbox Series S. The internet, inevitably, reacted. Upon first glance, the console does not look like a console, but a speaker, or maybe a washing machine, among other things… But let’s not just judge the way it looks. That’s so superficial! There are many more important things,…

Tetsuya Nomura Wants You To Look Forward To 2022, Kingdom Hearts‘ 20th Anniversary

This year sucks. 2021 will hopefully be better, but Tetsuya Nomura has his eye on 2022. It’s a big milestone in the history of Kingdom Hearts The first Kingdom Hearts game was released back in March 2002. In a recent Famitsu interview, Nomura was asked what’s next for Kingdom Hearts, to which he replied, “2022…

“Ass Warp” Is A Good Translation For Super Mario 64 Glitch

In Super Mario 64, the Backwards Long Jump trick has been used to refer to a glitch that’s known in Japan as Ketsu Waapu (ケツワープ). Surely, there has to be a better English translation. Turns out, there is. In the original game, the glitch is used in Princess Peach’s Castle to get to the top…

Track: Fake Plastic Trees (cover) | Artist: Phoebe Bridgers x Arlo Parks | Album: N/A

Microsoft’s Next-Gen Xbox Series S Is Only $299

After a series of leaks last night, Microsoft has finallyand officially announced their second next-gen console: the smaller, cheaper Xbox Series S. And it is cheap While the bigger next-gen machines from both Microsoft (Xbox Series X) and Sony (PlayStation 5) are expected to sell later this year for at least $499, this smaller console…

It’s Mario Picross’s 25th Anniversary-Ish! Come Celebrate!

As Nintendo extravagantly celebrates Super Mario Bros.’s 35th birthday, I keep coming back to one thought: But what about the greatest of all the Mario games, Mario Picross? 2020 isn’t only the 35th birthday of Mario’s Super era—and what kind of anniversary is 35 anyway?—but it’s also the 25th anniversary of one of the finest…

As Sonic Turns 30, Sega Plans Multiple New Games

As Mario turns a positive decrepit 35, the young, sprightly (spritely?) Sonic next year celebrates his 30th birthday. And news has slipped out that Sega is planning to celebrate the anniversary with multiple new Sonic games. It seems an advertisement was sent from Sega to investors (thanks Tails Channel) that as well as rather boldly…

What Is Your Favorite Gaming Handheld Of All Time?

It’s Monday and time for Ask Kotaku, the weekly feature in which Kotaku-ites assemble to deliberate on a single burning question. Sometimes a serious one, other times less so; mostly it’s just a nice opportunity to talk more about video games. You down? This week we Ask Kotaku: What is your favorite gaming handheld of…

Minecraft Is Coming To PSVR This Month

As Sony begins a week of announcements for forthcoming PSVR games (although they stress, lacking any PS5-specific news), the first big reveal is that Minecraft is coming to the console goggles. First and most importantly, it’s free to anyone who already owns Minecraft. The VR version will be arriving as a patch to the game…

Take A Hike: Call Of Duty: Warzone Temporarily Removes All Vehicles

If you’re playing Call Of Duty: Warzone you’re going to need to re-polish those soldiery boots. Infinity Ward have temporarily disabled all vehicles from the game. It seems they were breaking stuff. A recently discovered glitch, as noted by Eurogamer, saw players having discovered a point on the map boundary where the “return to combat…

Thank You, Kotaku UK

Our sister site Kotaku UK, which is managed by British publisher Future Publishing, is shutting down this week after a strong six-year run. Kotaku UK EiC Rich Stanton delivered the news to readers this morning. Our regional sister sites are the result of licensing deals with outside publishers. A company such as Future pays to…

How’s It Going? Labor Dabor Edition

Day off, or off-day? Welcome to our daily open thread, but with an accent. As a Brit, I honestly have barely any idea what Labor Day is, other than you can’t even spell it properly. My primary source is a thousand-year-old Homestar Runner puppet cartoon, and now hopefully you too shall be singing this over…

Anime Fans Show Their Love With Birthday Shrines

September 3 was the day that Zenitsu Agatsuma from Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba was born. It’s not uncommon for anime fans to celebrate their beloved characters’ birthdays online by posing merch or even baking birthday cakes. Twitter user Momotan’s online celebration was extra special. As pointed out on Hachima (via Soranews), Momotan posted a…

Japanese Politician Suspends Animal Crossing Campaign

Shigeru Ishiba, Japan’s former Defense Minister, is in the running to become the country’s next Prime Minister. This weekend, his campaign announced its plans to come to Animal Crossing: New Horizons According to Jiji, Ishiba’s campaign then decided to suspend activities in New Horizons that same day before they even got off the ground. Originally,…

The Japanese town that replaced humans with…scarecrows. YouTuber Tokyo Lens went to Nagoro Village in South-Western Japan. The town, with its decreasing population, is filled with around 300 handmade scarecrows, with each representing a real individual.