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Making Room for Baby Means Saying Goodbye to Old Friends
Parting with one’s treasured game collection can be an unthinkable proposition for many. But having a baby absolutely transforms your life, as one long-tenured Kotaku commenter writes. And that makes such decisions not only possible, but downright necessary. You might know longtime commenter Spoony Bard here—he was also our comment ombudsman last year. He’s currently…
By Owen Good - Uncategorized
Performance and Mastery: Changing One’s Motivation as a Gamer
Faced with a challenge, people are largely motivated by one of two processes – either the opportunity to demonstrate their talent, or the opportunity to improve it. Game genres also appeal to these processes. Doctor Professor, the nom de plume of the writer behind Pixel Poppers, assessed his sense of satisfaction in playing RPGs and…
By Owen Good - Uncategorized
Back Pay is Hell, and Utah Devs Still Aren’t Getting Any
When we last left Sensory Sweep, the Utah studio that just stopped paying employees, it cut a deal with the government to pay back nearly $1 million by September. That hasn’t happened, and its founder is facing tax evasion charges. The Salt Lake City Weekly has a comprehensive roundup of the Sensory Sweep fiasco, and…
By Owen Good - Uncategorized
Not the Bottom of the Ninth, but a Big At-Bat Coming for MLB 2K10
Scapegoated by its ownership and sandbagged by both declining sales and declining reviews, MLB 2K is a seriously troubled franchise. Flawed though it is, the title’s biggest problems going into 2010 are not entirely of its own making. Let’s recap. In a conference call with investors and analysts last week, Take-Two Interactive said its quarterly…
By Owen Good - Uncategorized
Weekend Coupons: Sweet Sixteen
Sixteen shopping days are left until Christmas, dragging out more deals this week on games, hardware and bundles. See inside for the latest inducements and enticements, or see what otther readers are touting in the comments. Hardware • Amazon is bundling the Xbox 360 Arcade with free Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and Star Wars:…
By Owen Good - Uncategorized
Kotaku Originals: Chunk of Funk
Bravely revisiting his childhood typecasting, Jeff B. Cohen – “Chunk” from 1985’s the Goonies, and now a high powered Hollywood lawyer-mans – dispensed solid legal advice to the gaming community, going far deeper than the usual can-you-trademark-edge questions. Totilo also took a look at EA’s claims it put out the best reviewed games, we inked…
By Owen Good -
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Judge Rejects Bethesda Motion to Stop Sale of PC Fallout Bundle
A federal judge has shot down a motion by Bethesda Softworks to stop Interplay from selling three PC Fallout titles it published. The decision also means Interplay’s work on the Fallout MMO continues, though the lawsuit against them still lives. Here’s the score: Bethesda sued Interplay, claiming the Fallout Trilogy bundle it was selling and…
By Owen Good -
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For EA Sports, Few Options Other than Toxic Tiger
“Sponsors like Gillette and Electronic Arts are going to drop Tiger Woods regardless of what they are saying now,” writes a Forbes national editor. But who would that leave to carry on EA’s golf franchise? Nobody, basically. “Forget about any golfers picking up the sponsorship slack,” says Michael K. Ozanian. “According to E Poll Market…
By Owen Good -
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Dozens of Tester Jobs Affected in Sony QA Consolidation
Sony Computer Entertainment America is consolidating its two QA groups in one location, meaning 30 staff positions are being sent from the Bay Area to San Diego, Calif., and we hear another 100 contract positions were affected. SCEA’s Patrick Seybold confirmed to Kotaku the consolidation of the company’s first-party QA operations, saying the decision was…
By Owen Good -
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See the REAL Lego Rock Band at Ümloud!
Yesterday, my ears were ringing a little too loudly to make heads or tails of all the flickr galleries and YouTube posts on Ümloud! But today I finally found a video of my friends’ band rocking out. My buddy Andrew and his housemates have been playing Rock Band for ages, so it wasn’t much of…
By AJ Glasser