The State Of Fandom In 2018

In 2018, the meaning of fandom is in flux. The relationship between fans and creators is in some ways more tense than ever before, even while fandom itself has reached a point where a simple piece of fanart can become an international sensation overnight. Fans Gain New Powers, For Better And For Worse The relationship…

In case you missed me play Ashen on Twitch yesterday with the one and only Heather Alexandra, here’s the archived version. Follow us on Twitch for daily streams!

Kill la Kill‘s Character Designer Illustrated… A Japanese Dentist Sign

If you passed this billboard in Tokyo, you might think this is an advertisement for a new anime. You would be wrong. This is a real sign for a real Tokyo-based dentist called Momoi Dental Clinic. It went up this week, and people online have been noticing. The billboard has the name of the clinic…

Sega’s New PS4 Game Shows A Different Side Of A Japanese Superstar

Previously Kotaku mentioned how Judgment, the PS4 game with Japanese superstar Takuya Kimura, lets players beat up enemies with a sex toy. That was just the beginning. Takuya Kimura is one of the most famous celebrities in Japan. He was a member of the boy band SMAP, he appeared in some of the highest rated…

Lookin’ For Totoro

Atna Joy is an artist and illustrator from France. You can see more of Atna’s work at his ArtStation page

Jetpack Cat is finally in Overwatch… sort of. Players recently discovered that, as part of a Brigitte “toast” emote that came with the new winter event, she raises a mug with the face of a cat and the back of a jetpack cat. This is a reference to both a scrapped Overwatch hero and the fact…

Hitman 2 Is Best When You Break It

Hitman 2 is builtaround the idea that it’s an elaborate Rube Goldberg Murder Machine, and that the most optimal way to play is to carefully explore your surrounds, tinker with strange and hilarious ways to whack your targets then set everything off and revel in the results. That’s all fine and cool, and if that’s…

Top Riot Executive Suspended Without Pay Following Investigation Over Workplace Misconduct

Earlier this week, Riot’s CEO sent an e-mail to employees describing the punishment its COO, Scott Gelb, will face after multiple employees alleged that, as a comedy bit, he has repeatedly touched subordinates’ balls or butt or farted in their faces. Several employees tell Kotaku that his punishment—two months of unpaid leave and training—is far…

Thank Goodness You Can Turn Off Street Fighter V‘s New In-Game Ads Because Yikes

Street Fighter V has had its share of disappointments since it arrived in 2016, from a shoddy launch to installing dangerous backdoors for malware in players’ computers. Capcom’s latest brilliant idea is to plaster the entire game with advertisements, turning the most storied fighting game franchise of all time into a billboard. The decision to…

The State Of PC Gaming In 2018

PC has never been a singular platform like, say, PlayStation or Xbox. Instead, it’s a series of disparate landmasses sharing the same turbulent sea. While this has allowed for plenty of innovation and experimentation over the years, in 2018 Steam—with its clutter and toxicity issues—has become less of a conduit and more of an impediment…

Call of Duty Developer Evacuated After Bomb Threat

Infinity Ward, the Los Angeles-based developer behind various Call of Duty games including Infinite Warfare, evacuated employees today following a bomb threat, Kotaku has learned. Police showed up at the studio this morning telling employees to leave, according to one person who was there. Staff were able to evacuate without a problem. This comes as…

SNK 40th Anniversary Collection On Switch Is A Brilliant Historical Package

New anthologies of old games have gotten a lot better recently, especially on the Nintendo Switch. In addition to Sega releasing individual games from its back catalog with new features, the company also recently ported its smartly packaged Genesis Classics collection to the console. Recently, the Switch also received the SNK 40th Anniversary Collection, another…

Players Are Split On Battlefield V‘s Weaker Guns

At launch, Battlefield V moved at a faster pace than previous games in the series. Not only could you run around quicker than before, but you could kill enemies faster, needing only a handful of bullets. This week, the game rolled out some changes to that gameplay rhythm, alongside a new hardcore playlist, and it…