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  Guess How Many Copies Of Final Fantasy XIII Are Out There

  Go on. Guess. Or, if you don’t feel like guessing, read on to see the shipment figures for Final Fantasy XIII Square Enix released overnight. With two million units shipped in Japan since the game’s release there in December and three million sent to stores in the West for its release here this week, that…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 10, 2010
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  Pretty Girls, Telling Time For Yakuza 4

  From Yakuza 4 branded noodles to Yakuza 4 branded booze, PlayStation 3 Japanese gangster game Yakuza 4, like the prequels before it, has gone a little crazy with the promotional push. And it’s not stopping there. Yakuza 4 is partnering with iPhone app Bijin-Tokei (“Beautiful Woman Clock”), which features a new beauty every minute holding…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 10, 2010
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  When Mario Meets Ikea

  Should you ever wish to graduate from baking cakes or wearing t-shirts of Nintendo’s mascot of mascots, you could always do what this guy and his girlfriend did: fill a room with custom Mario furniture. It’s the work of Dennis and his lady friend Judith, who as a mechanical engineering student probably did most of…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 10, 2010
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  God of War III Demo Looks Different From Final Game

  The God of War III game demo was first revealed at the E3 2009 gaming expo in Los Angeles. The game will be released this March. And my, how the game has changed. For the better, too. The DigitalFoundry blog has side-by-side comparisons of the demo and the final retail game. Things to notice? The…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 10, 2010
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  Proposed Virtual Child Porn Law Trucking Along

  Won’t someone think of the children? The imaginary children? Don’t worry, Japanese politicians are. The Tokyo Metropolitan government is moving forward on legislation that sets out to ban provocative “visual depictions” of characters who appear to be 18 years-old and younger. According to website Anime News Network, the proposal, submitted on February 24, would amend…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 10, 2010
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  The Kotaku RSS Feed Two-Step

  You may have noticed, if you’re reading this through an RSS reader, that we’re not all quite there anymore. Have no fears, there is a solution. As of earlier today, Kotaku’s default RSS feed is an excerpt-only feed. Unless you’re a VIP. Fortunately, you’re all VIPs to us. So here’s how to get back to…

  By Brian Crecente Published March 10, 2010
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  Civilization V Preview: Small Changes, Big Differences

  Civilization was never the most realistic game, and those who enjoyed battling against a nuclear-armed Gandhi have not minded. The next one, Civilization V, though may be the most natural one thanks to some crafty tweaks. Kotaku was shown an early version of development studio Firaxis’ Civ V running on a PC on the first…

  By Stephen Totilo Published March 10, 2010
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  Yakuza 3 Has More Cuts Than You First Thought

  So you thought the hostess bars were the only thing cut from Yakuza 3, a very Japanese game that’s being brought to the West by Sega? Nunh unh. There are way more changes than that. As you’ll see below, the edits are everywhere. And before you complain, remember: Sega did so because if it had…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 10, 2010
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  Oscar-Winning Duo Working On Ghost Recon Movie

  The creators of Logorama – an Oscar-winning short film that featured its fair share of video game companies – will be sticking with a gaming theme for their next work, creating a live-action short for Ubisoft’s Ghost Recon series. Francois Alaux and Herve de Crecy will be working with writer Tim Sexton (Children of Men)…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 10, 2010
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  A Week In Comments

  I Was An Xbox Live Celebrity, For One Night Only Comment by: The Forgetful Brain Nominated by: puresewas1de I think one of the keys is anonymity. And the fact that every Xbox comes with a microphone (even though a lot of the harassment you got, came by way of message). There’s a massive portion of…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 10, 2010
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  God Of War Tears Head Off Copycat Claims

  In 2008, Jonathan Bissoon-Dath and Jennifer Barrette-Herzog sued Sony and God of War creator David Jaffe for copyright infringement over the original PS2 game. That case has now been dismissed. While official notice of the motion has yet to be published on public court records, one of the accused – game designer David Jaffe –…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 10, 2010
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  China’s Cutest Comic Book Artist

  Xià Dá is a 28 year-old Chinese manhua (comic book) artist. Japan has just fallen in love with her. Her work has been translated into Japanese and is being serialized in Japanese manga Ultra Jump. While she certainly does appear to have comic chops, that’s probably not why her photos are rampaging through the Japanese…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published March 10, 2010
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  Hakan Oils Up For Super Street Fighter IV

  While everyone pretty much knew he was coming, it’s still nice to see Capcom take the wraps off Super Street Fighter IV’s final new character Hakan with a couple of trailers. Click to view There’s a gameplay trailer, above, and a character trailer below. Amazing how, even in these lo-fi web clips, he’s already so…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 10, 2010
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  EA Sports Getting More Active With Fitness Game Sequel

  With the first game a surprising hit, EA Sports revealed today that a second EA Sports Active game is in development, this time called…EA Sports Active 2.0 (working title!). Like its predecessor, it’ll focus on more energetic workouts than Nintendo’s rival Wii Fit, and will include a heart rate monitor, leg and arm straps with…

  By Luke Plunkett Published March 10, 2010
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  Street Fighter IV iPhone Hits Tonight

  Ready? Fight! Because Street Fighter IV is coming to Apple’s iPhone and iPod Touch. As Kotaku posted previously, the game is played like most iPhone titles, press “buttons” in the corner of the screen. The virtual button and joystick do take up a great deal of on-screen real estate. It is worth noting that the…

  By Brian Crecente Published March 9, 2010
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  Sony Motion Control Support Confirmed for Tiger Woods Title

  The next edition of Tiger Woods PGA Tour will support the PlayStation “Arc” motion controller, though it’s not due for release until fall. So the game isn’t technically an Arc launch title, but still one supporting Arc at launch. EA Sports confirmed the support among a package of upgrades and other features for the golf…

  By Owen Good Published March 9, 2010
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  The Types Of Games That Might Earn You Xbox Achievements … On Your Phone

  Microsoft wants game developers to make games for its next cell phone platform, Windows Phone 7. And, today, Kotaku got a look at demos of games you might play (or make) on them… to help me raise my Gamerscore. The Windows Phone 7 platform is coming this fall and represents Microsoft’s push to make a…

  By Stephen Totilo Published March 9, 2010
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  Blade Kitten Hands On: Not Quite Old School, But Close Enough

  Pink-haired bounty-hunting cat-girl Kit Ballard is the star of Blade Kitten, a PlayStation Network platformer that’s less furry than its 2D/3D platformer predecessors Crash Bandicoot and Klonoa, but very promising given the mental comparisons I made while playing the game. Krome Studios brought a playable Blade Kitten to GDC, helping us to better understand what…

  By Michael McWhertor Published March 9, 2010
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  Aliens vs. Predator Gets Its First Map Pack March 18

  The four multiplayer maps released in Aliens vs. Predator‘s Special Edition will be available to the general public as DLC beginning next Thursday, March 18. The Swarm Map Pack will run you $7. The DLC delivers four maps, two for the game’s competitive multiplayer and two for its cooperative modes. “Docks” and “Machine” are available…

  By Owen Good Published March 9, 2010
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  Ready For God of War III? Come Chat Live With The Game’s Director

  This Wednesday, God of War III director Stig Asmussen joins us live from the Game Developers Conference on our weekly podcast to take your calls. God of War III hits Playstation 3s next week, so I’m sure you’re bursting with questions for Asmussen. No problem, he will be on Kotaku Talk Radio this Wednesday at…

  By Brian Crecente Published March 9, 2010