Reacquaint Yourself with Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas—The Introduction

Eight years and one month ago, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas released on the PlayStation 2. It begins rather abruptly—C.J. in an airport, saying that after five years on the east coast, it was time to return to San Andreas. The game’s official soundtrack included a DVD of “The Introduction,” a 20-minute in-game cinematic explaining…

Tell Us the 10 Comics for Kotaku‘s Sunday Comics Makeover [UPDATE]

Last week we opened up nominations for new additions to our Sunday Comics feature. Seven candidates satisfied the standards we put down for inclusion, so I am delighted to present them to you for your consideration in our 10-comic weekly feature. UPDATE [Dec. 16]: Voting on our new Sunday Comics page has concluded. We’ll announce…

Please Quit Photoshopping Horns Onto Bobby Kotick. It’s Bad for His Dating Life.

Today’s New York Times profiles Bobby Kotick, the boss of Activision Blizzard and longtime bête noir of many a longtime gamer, many of whom have created unflattering portrayals of him quickly found by Google Image search. Well, he wants you to know this doesn’t help his game. See, he’s divorced and on the prowl. “Think…

Sunday Comics: If a Tree Falls …

Welcome to your Sunday read of the week’s best in web comics. Make sure to click on the expand button in the bottom right to enlarge each comic. Legacy Control by Javis Ray published Dec. 11.—Read more of Legacy Control Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich published Dec. 10.—Read more of Awkward Zombie Nerf NOW!! by…

Connecticut shooter Adam Lanza liked Dynasty Warriors, says Reuters. Still don’t know what he played at LAN parties.

Kotaku ‘Shop Contest: VGA Presto Magix: The Winners

A grab bag full of silly exploitables from the 2012 Video Game Awards, from Snoop Lion to Cliff Bleszinski to our own Stephen Totilo and, of course, Samuel L. Jackson, supplied the grist for this week’s edition of the Kotaku ‘Shop Contest. We’ve got the exclusive world premiere of a dozen finalists inside, including overall…

The Wonderful World of Cat Cosplay

Cat cosplay, it seems, is a thing. Sometimes, it’s very clever, like this Cat Bus… cat. Sometimes, it’s cute, such as when people dress their cats up as frogs or chickens. And sometimes, it can get a little odd. Cat schoolgirl? Really? Here’s a smattering of cat cosplay. Dressing up your cat in a cute…

These Lupin the Third Figures Want to Steal Your Shelf

Iconic Lupin the Third characters Lupin and his partner in crime Jigen are getting two new figurines for your posing enjoyment. Part of the Revoltech line, the figures will be out next February in Japan, with the Lupin priced at ¥2,980 (US$37) and the Jigen priced at ¥2,400 ($29). The Lupin figure is wearing his…

Batman, Mario Kart and Transformers Peel Out as Japanese Toy Cars

Children (and adults) rejoice! Tomy’s Tomica toy cars are getting a handful of iconic wheels, such as the Batmobile, Optimus Prime, and Mario’s kart. The toy cars race out later this month in Japan, with each costing ¥630 ($7.50). Have a look, courtesy of Kotaku Japan 『バットマン』や『ポケモン』がミニカーに！ トミカ新シリーズ「Dream TOMICA」がリリース [Kotaku Japan]

The next batch of Borderlands 2 DLC will be called “Sir Hammerlock’s Big Game Hunt.” No word on when it arrives.

Who was the Biggest Beneficiary of THQ’s $5 Million Humble Bundle?

I guess there’s no way of knowing, but I really would like to find out how much of the $5,098,093.79 raised by the Humble THQ Bundle went to charity, and how much went to the embattled publisher, which may qualify as a charitable cause depending on how you feel about its situation and the games…

Before it was taken down, a PlayStation blog post said Medal of Honor‘s “Zero Dark Thirty” map pack arrives Dec. 18.

Konami revealed the cover art for Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance on its Facebook page today. Click to enlargify.

This Week in the Business: ‘Retail’s Worst Nightmare is Coming True’

What’s happened in the business of video games this past week … QUOTE | “Retail’s worst nightmare is coming true.”—Former GamesIndustry.biz editor Rob Fahey, talking about the horrible year game retailing had in 2012 and what the future holds as digital takes over QUOTE | “We’ll be able to compete with any AAA game out…

The Moneysaver: The Savings at the End of the Universe

There may be 10 shopping days left until Christmas, but there are only SEVEN left for the rest of all eternity! So get out there and save, save, save with a variety of combos, and discount specials before the Mayan apocalypse wipes us out. Actually, that raises a good question: If there was no tomorrow,…

Drudge Report: Connecticut Killer “Obviously Not Well,” “Suffered From Personality Disorder,” “Played Video Games …“

Now that we’ve got the right name of the killer in the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre yesterday, the media profiles are starting to emerge. To the Drudge Report, playing video games is a remarkable enough thing that it bears mentioning in a headline. An italicized headline. Oh, it’s factual enough, but that typeface and…

The Best Of Kotaku, This Week

Welcome to the Best of Kotaku, where I round up all of this week’s best content. The gorgeous image above is part of my favorite design for a proposed BioShock Infinite reversible box art. It’s one of six choices, but so far my second choice seems to be winning out (as of this writing). Moving…

China Turns Its Japanese Porn Dream into Horrible Nightmares

This is Sora Aoi. She is a former Japanese adult video actress who has been wildly popular in China. If one person can improve the tense relationship between the two countries, maybe it’s her! She’s so popular there that there are the inevitable cash-ins for those fans who want to get very close to the…

Japanese Tooth Brushing Sure Can Be Terrifying

Good dental hygiene is important. So is not scaring the crap out of kids! Earlier this year, a photo appeared online of a Doraemon plush toy that had been filled with teeth in order to teach children how to brush properly. The result was an unintentionally frightening teaching tool. However, that mishmash is no anomaly.…

Controlling Your Toilet? Checking Your Poop? There’s an App for That.

Japanese toilet tech is world class. For decades now, the country’s loos have had more than heated seats and control panels. There’s all kinds of fancy toilet tech for high end models. That’s probably why when Japanese people visit, say, the U.S., the cold toilet seats and lack of throne features truly baffle them. Leading…