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  Pokémon’s Health Care, Better Than America’s?

  Ooohh, politics! Well, not really. More like humorous insight, with a Facebook group springing up based on the premise that the health care afforded to Pokémons trumps that offered to real, breathing Americans. “Universal Health Care: Good enough for Pokémon, Good enough for America” is the name of the group, and it has a point.…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 24, 2010
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  Harvest Moon Creator Steps Down

  Yasuhiro Wada, honcho of Japanese company Marvelous, will be leaving his post as Director of Digital Contents on March 31. Wada is best known for creating the farm simulator Harvest Moon. According to the company, Wada is leaving for “personal reasons”. Starting on April 1, Wada will serve as an advisor for Marvelous. Marvelous has…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 24, 2010
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  Team Fortress 2, Meet Persona 4

  Team Fortress and Persona? Not the most likely of bedfellows, we’ll admit, but that’s an assumption made before watching this amazing video. It’s the opening to JRPG Persona 4, only, with Team Fortress 2 characters. To compare the two, you can check out the original Persona sequence here Just goes to show, whether it’s in…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 24, 2010
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  Nice Clam, Lady

  If you know Godzilla films, no doubt you think this cosplay is amazing. If not, you probably think it’s…something. The costume is of Godzilla vs. Hedorah character Miki Fujimiya, played by actress Keiko Mari and was one of many outfits on display on the otaku gathering Wonder Festival. Website Moeyo.com has recently published a cosplay…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 24, 2010
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  Virtual On, Geometry Wars Xbox Live Arcade Deals Incoming

  Please do not purchase a copy of Virtual On Oratorio Tangram on Xbox Live this week. You’ll regret it. Sega’s hi-def remake of the mech on mech arcade fighter is going to be much cheaper next week. Microsoft laid out its plans for Xbox Live Arcade deals of the week, warning latecomers that Cyber Troopers…

  By Michael McWhertor Published March 24, 2010
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  2D Zelda Games vs. 3D Zelda Games

  The Legend of Zelda games have been rendered in 2D and 3D. Is one better than the other? The 2D Zelda games include the original Legend of Zelda as well as those Capcom-developed Zelda games on the Game Boy and the Game Boy Advance. With The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, the games were…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 24, 2010
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  Hollywood Still Wants To Make Nintendo Movies

  There was a Mario movie once. It was awful. There was also a Zelda cartoon. Same story. So you can understand why, when Hollywood comes-a-knockin’ these days, Nintendo are quick to reply with “nothankyou”. Asked by the LA Times whether there’s still interest in doing things with the rights to Nintendo franchises like Zelda, Mario…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 24, 2010
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  Microsoft: Natal Does Not Discriminate Against Living Rooms

  There has been concern in Japan that only gianormous American living rooms are suitable for Microsoft’s upcoming motion control peripheral Natal. No need for concern, says Microsoft. According to website Techflash, “To be precise, you’ll want to clear an area extending at least 4 meters (a little more than 13 feet) away from the television.”…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 24, 2010
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  Spy Hunter Movie: It’s Back On

  It’s been on, off, on, then off again, and now, for the third time, somebody is trying to make a movie based on classic 1983 arcade game Spy Hunter. When movie studio Warner Bros. purchased embattled publisher Midway last year, it got for its money the rights to a Spy Hunter movie. Believing there’s money…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 24, 2010
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  Nintendo 3DS Will Be Playable In June

  If you remember the last time Nintendo revealed a new piece of hardware (the Revolution/Wii) it was ages before people got their hands on the thing. The 3DS, on the other hand, will be playable in less than three months. Nintendo spokesman Ken Toyoda said yesterday that “We wanted to give the gaming industry a…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 24, 2010
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  Fable III Will Have “Episodes”

  Upcoming Xbox 360 RPG Fable III may be following in the footsteps of its predecessor and going “episodic”, according to comments from the game’s creator, Peter Molyneux. “We’ve always had a feel for Fable as a game that’s got a big story, that starts in King Arthurs time and goes through this big arc so…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 23, 2010
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  Kotaku Off Topic: Beat It

  Welcome to the nightly off-topic discussion on Kotaku, which we call Kotaku Off Topic. What’s on the menu tonight? Everything. While you’re chatting off-topically, I’ll be away at a dinner for a friend, a going away party for someone en route to greener pastures. I’ll also be doing my best attempt at avoiding Lost spoilers,…

  By Michael McWhertor Published March 23, 2010
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  Full Screen, Half Arm Street Fighter Tat

  As seen on Izit

  By Brian Crecente Published March 23, 2010
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  Arkham Asylum‘s Director Ponders Game Starring … Bane?

  Generally, the reason you adapt a comic book franchise for a video game is because its most recognizable characters help drive its sales. Bane, while familiar to the Batcore, probably doesn’t have much of a Q-score with the general public. That doesn’t stop Sefton Hill, the director of Rocksteady’s award-winning Batman: Arkham Asylum from daydreaming…

  By Owen Good Published March 23, 2010
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  NBA Jam Tosses Up Another Five Shots, Hits Them All

  The NBA Jam fan page on Facebook rolled out another five screens of the upcoming reboot of the beloved arcade/early console classic. We now know the names of eight more players who’ll be appearing in the game. They’re identified inside. Indiana’s Danny Granger (shooting) and Mike Dunleavy versus New Orleans’ David West and Chris Paul.…

  By Owen Good Published March 23, 2010
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  F.3.A.R.: They’re Really Calling It That?

  The third entry in Monolith Productions’ F.E.A.R. franchise may be getting its big reveal in the next month, as foretold by a teaser in an unnamed Spanish language gaming magazine. The supposed name of that game? F.3.A.R. Carrying on the proud tradition of replacing numbers for letters, as popularized by games like Driv3r, Wip3out and…

  By Michael McWhertor Published March 23, 2010
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  Apple Cuts a Larger Slice of Mobile Gaming Pie

  If iPhone and iPod Touch gaming is in the same category as the Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable, then the Apple device surged in 2009 at the expense of the two dominant mobile platforms, especially the PSP. That is the finding the analytics site Flurry, which found Apple’s control of the DS-PSP-iPhone portable gaming marking,…

  By Owen Good Published March 23, 2010
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  WarioWare: D.I.Y.’s Monster Manual: A Thick Primer On Micro-game Making

  If you plan on picking up WarioWare: D.I.Y. next week—with or without a shiny new Nintendo DSi XL to go along with it—get ready to do some heavy reading, thanks to the game’s bulky instruction booklet. A copy of WarioWare: D.I.Y. just showed up here at Kotaku Towers West (sans gigantic sandwich) and it may…

  By Michael McWhertor Published March 23, 2010
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  Who’s Responsible For The Game Industry’s Worst Decisions? Indie Man!

  Ever wondered who was responsible for Tony Hawk Ride’s skateboard controller? Rock Band: Green Day? Every other headscratching boardroom meeting concept? Meet Indie Man, hero to independent game developers and the enemy to the corporate video game establishment! (This was one of Mega 64’s many contributions to this year’s Game Developers Choice Awards and Independent…

  By Michael McWhertor Published March 23, 2010
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  Army Toughens Training for Generation ‘Softened’ by Games

  The Army is remaking its basic training for the first time in 30 years to cope with a generation that, as the general in charge says, has a courage and physique shaped by, you guessed it, video games. Speaking to National Public Radio this weekend, Army Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling didn’t single games out specifically,…

  By Owen Good Published March 23, 2010