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  Goodbye Pikachu Rip-Off! It’s Been Fun.

  Earlier this month, Japanese netizens noticed that a mascot created to promote the environment in Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture looked a helluva lot like Pikachu. The character’s name is Eco-chan and was unveiled late last year. When the character’s wearable suit was created, a city staffer said that it looked like Pikachu. However, the person who…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published August 11, 2011
• Culture

  The Destructive Video Game Art of Coro Kaufman

  We’ve got another Massive Black artist for you today, which is always a treat. Coro Kaufman is one of the studio’s co-founders, and also serves as its art director. Needless to say, his stuff is great In this gallery you’ll see examples from many of the games he’s worked on over the past few years,…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  This Is Why Games Are Going Free To Play

  Wondering why going “free to play” is so trendy right now? Consider MMO Age of Conan. In May, it launched a F2P version. It’s since doubled its revenues and increased subscriber numbers

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  The Ladies of Street Fighter Trade Face Punching for Wine and Coffee

  The delightful French artist Bastien Vives returns with another unconventional take on the Street Fighter universe. Be sure to check out his blog, linked below, for more of the same. Like Street Fighter characters dressed up like Battle Beasts. Yeah, that’s right. Battle Beasts vendredi… lorsque la rumeur dit que l’un d’entre eux ne s’est…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  The 3DS Launches at a Lower Price. Some Japanese People Buy It.

  Today in Japan, the 3DS went on sale with a new, lower price. Some people lined up at stores in Tokyo, but not that many. But that’s okay. When the 3DS first went on sale, hundreds of people lined up for pre-orders, and then hundreds more lined up to purchase the portable. Months later and…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published August 11, 2011
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  Know Your Zelda Animals, Monsters, Beasts, Bird People and Weird Chicken Things

  Artist Jude Buffum has come up with this impressive (and informative!) piece called Magna Arbor Vitae Deku. It’s essentially a biology chart of the Zelda universe. The name means “The Great Deku Tree of Life”, and starting at said Great Deku Tree it branches out to include 200 species of creature, good, bad and in…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  These TF2 LEGO Figures are so Small! They are Funny to me!

  It’s easy to take a LEGO minifig and paint it to look like something. What’s harder is taking a ton of actual LEGO bricks and turning them into the likeness of a range of cartoon video game characters. Matt De Lanoy has done just that, though, recreating the cast of Valve’s Team Fortress 2 in…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  Sony and LG Kiss and Make Up over PS3 Patent Spat

  LG asked the International Trade Commission to block the sale of the PS3 in the United States over a patent dispute. Sony and LG have now settled this dispute, which hopefully means the Netherlands won’t seize any more PS3s! [Reuters]

  By Brian Ashcraft Published August 11, 2011
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  The PSP Is Going Out with a Bam (and a Vroom)

  With the PSP’s days numbered in North America, there won’t be too many more offers like this before the handheld is taken out back and shot The new, and wonderfully-named “Madden NFL 12 & Need for Speed SHIFT PSP Entertainment Pack” is a bundle that includes a PSP-3000 system, a 2GB memory card and copies…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  Mega Man Fans, Capcom is Reading Your Mail. All of it.

  Ever since Mega Man Legends 3 was canned, fans of the franchise have been going bananas, wondering how Capcom could ever do such a thing. (It may have something to do with the fact Mega Man fans aren’t as numerous as they think!) While that’s resulted in the expected amount of angry words typed anonymously…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  Alpha Centauri Trademarked, PC Gamers, Remain Calm

  Electronic Arts has re-applied for trademarks for the name Alpha Centauri, the classic PC strategy game from Civilization developers Firaxis it published back in the late 90s.

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  The Greatest Cosplay in the World

  Last weekend, cosplayers from around the world flocked to the Wold Cosplay Summit. This is more than simply the Olympics of posing and priming in character costumes. Cosplayers perform on stage, giving the competition an air of theatrics. Held since 2003 and supported by the Japanese government, the World Cosplay Summit invites cosplayers from across…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published August 11, 2011
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  No Filming is Allowed Inside Valve’s Offices

  If you ever get the chance to visit Valve’s offices in Bellevue, be sure to enjoy the trip. Just remember: no filming. There are severe consequences. Note, though, regular humans could get Team Fortress 2 statues as well. At least, I think I’m a regular human. You guys can fry an eggs on your bare…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  Man has Jaw Broken, PSP Stolen During London Riots

  One of the sadder stories to come out of this week’s London riots is that of Malaysian student Ashraf Haziq, who bleeding profusely from a broken jaw is helped to his feet by passers-by…before summarily having his PSP stolen right out of his backpack. It’s indicative of the kind of materialistic lawlessness that’s gripped the…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  CultureTotal Recall

  The Secret of the Secret Nintendo Song

  When you talk about music in Nintendo games, the first person that pops into most people’s minds is the work of legendary composer Koji Kondo, the man behind the iconic scores for games like Zelda and Mario. We’re not talking about Koji Kondo today. Instead, we’re going to talk about Kazumi Totaka, who in addition…

  By Luke Plunkett Published August 11, 2011
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  FortressCraft Breaks the $1 Million Barrier on Xbox Live Indie Games

  Last year, Minecraft made about a zillion kroner in the time it takes to nuke a Hot Pocket. This year, FortressCraft, the Minecraft knockoff homage on the Xbox Live Indie Games channel, has now bagged a cool million inside of the first six months it was available on the service. That’s a gross sales figure,…

  By Owen Good Published August 10, 2011
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  Long Rumored Syndicate Reboot Now Rumored for Gamescom

  Starbreeze Studios, maker of The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay and The Darkness, have been working on the secretive “Project Redlime” for years, a game frequently rumored to revive Bullfrog Productions Syndicate. After years of speculation, we may finally see that game next week. Or so goes the latest Syndicate/Project Redlime rumor. According…

  By Michael McWhertor Published August 10, 2011
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  Let The Wookiee Win

  In tonight’s open thread, we can talk about getting stoned and porn, if you’d like. This is the place for off-topic discussion after all. And it’s relevant to tonight’s links! So, yes, Kotaku is posting porn today (update your blog) or at least a teaser for the Star Wars-themed porn coming from Vivid Entertainment. To…

  By Michael McWhertor Published August 10, 2011
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  A Fantasy RPG Sails into Pirate-Infested Waters with Risen 2

  Deep Silver has a game forthcoming that features islands, water, and people in pirate costumes, and it ain’t Dead Island. No, it is Risen 2: Dark Waters, the sequel to a game that was a fantasy RPG. What Deep Silver is doing is listening to its customers. One of the most popular side quests in…

  By Owen Good Published August 10, 2011
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  A Lockout Could Cost NBA 2K12 $40 Million, Says Analyst

  You thought we were done with this lockout nonsense when the NFL and its players came to terms about two weeks ago. Nope! The NBA and its players are in a similar dispute and, good news, it seems to be even more intractable. What does this mean for its premier licensed video game? Arvind Bhatia,…

  By Owen Good Published August 10, 2011