Kotaku

Child Waiting for New Heart Has PSP Stolen

An 8-year-old Colorado boy awaiting a heart transplant had his Playstation Portable stolen by a teenage bully while visiting a relative, deputies said.

While the 19-year-old suspect was arrested, the gaming system was never located, so Adam's County deputies pooled their money and bought Juan Martinez a new PSP and a dozen games for the system.

"He's just a little kid. I don't like bullies," Deputy Michael Robbins said. "That's what it seemed like to me, one older kid picking on a little kid.

"We couldn't let the bad guys win."

And that's your moment of zen for the day.

Deputies give boy new game system after his was stolen [Rocky Horror News Mountain]

Early Images From Games Convention 2008

Behold the official Kotaku logo for Games Convention 2008 in Leipzig, Germany. It was designed by our very own Adam, who proves his worth in new ways every day. The logo is just one of the preparations being made for next Sunday, when McWhertor and I make the trek overseas to cover the massive game festival. The folks over in Germany are busy preparing as well, if these images of the early booth assembly are any indications. They've got pics up for Sony, EA, and Toshiba at their official site, and as you can see...well I am sure they'll look better once the lights are turned on.


Through the back-door … [GC Blog]

Star Trek Online Debut Webcast This Sunday

The big gameplay reveal of Cryptic's Star Trek Online is taking place this Sunday in Las Vegas, with a special guest appearance from Spock, who portrays Leonard Nimoy in real life. If you, like me, have spent several hours sitting in the corner curled up in a ball crying because you couldn't be there, dry those tears! The Star Trek Online website has updated today with info on the simultaneous live webcast of the event. It kicks off at 1:30 PM Pacific on Sunday afternoon, so you might want to pencil that stardate down on your...starcalendars?

Sure, it'll be in a small window and you won't be able to physically touch Mr. Spock, but think how much nicer your house smells compared to the event! Come to think of it, if I wanted to smell unwashed Trek fans I just wouldn't shower for a couple days. Bad smells are better when they're yours.

August 10 Webcast Info! [Star Trek Online]

Nintendo And MotionPlus Creators Have Open Relationship

The Wii MotionPlus accessory is the next big thing for Nintendo, but it could very well wind up being the next big thing for many companies, both in and out of gaming. Joe Virginia, the boss of MotionPlus accessory maker InvenSense, told Eurogamer that the tech isn't exclusive to Nintendo, and it's generating a large amount of interest.

"Of course we're incredibly pleased - delighted would probably be a better adjective - that Nintendo approached us... but it's not an exclusive relationship," Virginia told us. "I can't get into details about other folks that are interested in this technology, but as you might imagine of course there is more interest out there."

We've heard rumblings about Microsoft and Sony exploring motion control in the past, and those rumblings should only get louder now that the tech is available to make it actually work.

MotionPlus tech not exclusive to Nintendo [Eurogamer]

Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars

Sorry about the headline containing only the game title, but developer Psyonix Studios didn't leave me much room for anything else. Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars is a game that combines automotive acrobatics with soccer, coming to the PlayStation Network early this Fall. While there'll be mini-games and single player matches for the loners out there, the game will feature extensive multiplayer community support, with team and league play, stat-tracking, trophies, and the ability to upload game videos directly to YouTube. This will probably be the last time I refer to this game by its full name. I hereby dub this game Battle-Cars. Hit the jump for the first Battle-Cars screens and the full, lengthy press release!

Godfather II: More Visceral, Strategic, Open in Feb.

As we mentioned earlier this week, the wraps have been taken off of Godfather II, in fact we'll be playing a bit of it next week.

Today, though, Electronic Arts officially unveiled the game which will go beyond the second film's story and have gamers take on the world of organized crime in 1960's Florida, Cuba and New York. After taking over New York in the first game, players will work to expand their organization to other cities through extortion, crime rings and wars with other crime families.

As Luke mentioned, the game will include an strategy-heavy Don's View:

To help players manage their empire, The Godfather II introduces “The Don’s View” – an innovative strategy meta-game that allows players to oversee the entire world as they grow the family business. Using the Don’s View, players will be able to build, defend and expand their crime rings, while keeping an eye on the movements and plans of the rival families. Players will also learn to master the business of organized crime by building a family of Made Men, hiring crew, handing out orders, and promoting their best men up the ranks.

The lengthy and detailed release is on the jump.

Does Kotaku Manscape?

E3 was pretty hectic for me, so I only vaguely remember Flynn and the GayGamer crew pulling me aside to answer me several questions, most of which were gaming related. Thankfully they've been posting a series of videos called "My Scrapbook of Precious E3 Memories, in which members of the gaming press offer up their opinions of the import topics of the show, such as Favorite Game, Worst Game, Pet Peeves, and the most important question of them all, "Do you manscape?"

Manscaping is what a man does to maintain his appearance, generally referring to certain places that shall remain nameless. Aren't you dying to know our answers? Hit the link below to see McWhertor, Ashcraft and I handle the question with varying degrees of tact, and be sure to check out the whole series for more opinions we'll probably regret having put to video later.

My Video Scrapbook of Precious E3 Memories Part 8: Do You Manscape? [GayGamer.net]

BioWare Pondering Mass Effect DS

If you're going to make the move from PC and console epic RPGs to handheld titles, testing the waters with someone else's property is pretty smart smart way to do it. That's what BioWare is doing with Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood, according to the game's lead designer Miles Holmes. The Sonic RPG will launch BioWare's handheld division, which could then explore the possibility of bringing Mass Effect, Jade Empire, and Dragon Age to the handheld.

"We have a lot of big plans for Mass Effect. Having a DS version would be an awesome way to keep interest alive and keep it going in addition to the next one [Mass Effect 2]," said Holmes.

While I myself am partial to their big production numbers, having handheld versions to keep me occupied between their larger efforts is a rather attractive prospect. Plus, the Nintendo DS can only make hot alien sex that much better.

BioWare liebäugelt mit einem Mass Effect für den Nintendo DS [Eurogamer.de via GamesIndustry.biz]

Kotaku's New Tool: The Straight Razor of Disemvoweling

I think it's fair to assume that everyone on Kotaku is very familiar with the Banhammer, wielded now with force by Shiraz. But I've never been totally happy that our only options for comment management is to either do nothing or ban someone. In fact for months, maybe years, I've been asking tech to whip something up that would allow us to warn users that they are tip-toeing into banhammer country, traipsing into the cave of the angry comment moderator.

My suggestion was that we create an opposite to that fancy star you get for being an exceptionally insightful commenter. Maybe a grey dunce hat or an exclamation point. Well, neither have come to fruition (yet). But I still have hopes.

Yesterday afternoon there was a knock at the front gate of Kotaku Tower. When I opened the doors I discovered a small box sitting on the splintering doorstep. Inside, a straight razor. And not just any straight razor, but a straight razor of disemvoweling. With a flick of the wrist troublesome commenters have all of the vowels of a post sliced free. Consider it a warning, because there aren't too many people who can survive more than one dance with the razor.

How Not To Get Banned: A Primer [Kotaku]

Pain Trophies Detailed, The Dude Abides

Pain producer Travis Williams has once again dropped in over at the official PlayStation Blog, this time revealing some of the trophies being added to the game in the upcoming Amusement Park expansion, due out on the 4th of September. There's a nice little selection of trophies, ranging from the impossible Gold "Affliction Addiction" - Get one billion points - to the more modest (in a way) Bronze trophy "Harder Dick's Balls, which challenges you to get all of Dick's Balls in the Block Party dumpster without resetting.

My personal favorite would have to be the Silver Trophy for scoring 50 strikes in Bowling with The Dude, which they have named "The Dude Abides". Indeed he does.

PAIN Trophies [Official PlayStation Blog]

Divine Divinity Sequel Coming To PC And 360

To be honest, I never played the 2002 isometric action-RPG Divine Divinity or its first sequel, Beyond Divinity, mainly because of the game's name. I couldn't say it without bursting out laughing, which made going to a store and asking for it near impossible. Perhaps I'll do better with Larian Studios' upcoming sequel Divinity 2: Ergo Draconis. Taking place once again in the magical world of Rivellon, an uneasy peace is broken by the return of the demon. Rather than choosing a class, players will begin as a Dragon Slayer, slowly evolving into a legendary Dragon Lord.

As you can see from these first screens, the game isn't actually looking half bad. Of course looks are only about a quarter of what makes an action RPG, but they're definitely on the right track. Look for Divinity 2: Ergo Draconis for the PC and 360 in Q2 of 2009.

Far Cry 2 PC Specs Revealed

Ubisoft just unleashed the Far Cry 2 requirements for the PC version of the open-world shooter and the minimum requirements actually aren't that bad. The recommended requirements? Don't ask, I'm still trying to get over the realization that my one-year old computer is now officially out-dated.

Minimum requirements
CPU: Pentium 4 3.2 Ghz, Pentium D 2.66 Ghz, AMD Athlon 64 3500+ or better
RAM: 1 GB
Video card: NVidia 6800 or ATI X1650 or better, Shader Model 3 required, 256 Mb of graphic memory
Media reader: DVD-ROM
Hard drive space: ~12 Gig or HD space. (tbd)

And The G-Phoria Winners Are...

Weren't those G-Phoria awards exciting last night? I was on the edge of my seat the entire time! Okay, I was at Walmart buying cat litter, but I did brush precariously close to some seats in the office furniture section. So what did I miss? Nintendo getting shut out of every award except best racing game for Mario Kart Wii for one...an award it really didn't deserve. Rock Band and Grand Theft Auto IV each came away with three awards, with Metal Gear Solid 4 and Call of Duty 4 taking home two each. For those keeping track, that's seven awards to games that were number four in their respective series. It was a year of damn fine sequels, wasn't it? Turok walked away with the coveted Uwe Boll Film Award, which seems far more fitting than Skate winning Best Sports Game.

Keep in mind that these awards are all voted on by viewers, so the Game of the Year Award winner should be a pretty good indicator of the sort of audience G4 has left after they hacked away most of the good bits. And the winner is...Halo 3. Really. Hit the jump for the full awards listing.

WoW Celebrates The Olympics - New Tabard, Pet

So I am playing World of Warcraft last night and my more PVP-oriented guildies start linking these Competitor's Tabards that are showing up in their mailboxes after they finish playing in the battlegrounds. No one has any idea what is going on, and then this morning I see a story over at MMO Champion explaining that the tabard is part of WoW's Olympic event, which is the only reason I know the Olympics have started.

From now until August 25th, anyone who participates in a full battleground will receive the nifty ring-themed tabard. The pet, modeled after Olympic dragon mascot Sooty the Air Pollution Dragon, who I just made up, is randomly awarded to players who are on the winning team of a battleground. Being a hordie on the Ysera server, I will never, ever get one.

Olympic Tabard & Pet, WotLK Class Changes [MMO Champion - Thanks Kurt!]

Arrested Teen Blames GTA For Hit Firebombing Spree

Three teens were arrested Thursday in connection with the firebombing of three cars with Molotov cocktails, devices one of the suspects said he learned to make by playing Grand Theft Auto.

The 15-year-old and two 16-year-olds face 57 felony counts of first- and second degree arson, first- and second-degree criminal damage to property and possession of explosive devices.

While the Milton (Georgia) police chief was quick to blame violent video games for the spree, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution made sure to balance to the story by interviewing someone who actually knew what they were talking about.

Lawrence Kutner, co-director of the Center for Mental Health and Media at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, disputed the police chief's claim that the firebombings were "another strong example of the serious ramifications that can come from letting impressionable teens play violent video games like this one."

Fireworks, Kiddy Yukata And Tom Waits (Oh, And The Olympics Started)

To: Crecente
From: Ashcraft
RE: Covering PAX, Now In Stealth Mode

Headed over to the in-laws tonight for dinner. Mini-Bash wanted to wear his new summer yukata. Kinda odd, because he doesn't want to change out of it! (Typically kids find wearing yukatas uncomfortable as they're a tad tight around the wist.) From the in-laws place, we could see the huge fireworks display that lit up Osaka tonight.

Fireworks are very much a summer thing here, with places like 7-11 selling fireworks. Though, the big display tonight was all kinds of spectacular. Like there were fireworks exploding into the shape of Doraemon's face! o_0

Surprising thing was when we arrived, my father in-law was listening to Tom Waits' Closing Time. And I was like, "You know who Tom Waits is?" To which he replied, "I've probably know who Tom Waits is longer than you!" Very cool that he's into Tom Waits — considering how he speaks zero English. Then again, music is more than *just* words.

You see the opening ceremony for the Olympics?

What you missed last night
Child vs Crane
Master Chief in my Fable II
Japan only limited edition DS comin Stateside
Nintendo Say Hey, Third party Games Do So Sell On The Wii
New Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy Versus XIII And Final Fantasy Agito XIII Screens
New Dead Rising Screens: Added Waggle, No Added Zombies
Get Your Gears of War 2 Lancers!

Sierra's Last Game Is A Sad Way To Go Out

Ah, Sierra. So, so, so many fond memories. King's Quest, Space Quest, Police Quest, Quest For Glory, Half-Life 1, Homeworld, SWAT...so many good games, so many good times. So it's crushing to see that, as the label prepares to fade into oblivion following the Blactivision merger, its last game is...less than memorable. Hitting the printers as the ink dried on the Activision-Vivendi merger was Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, making it most likely the last game to be sold under the Sierra brand name (at least until someone digs it up, Atari style). An awful game based on an awful movie. Shame, that.

Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor: Sierra's sad swan song [Variety]

TV Ad Focuses Only On PS3 As Blu-ray Player

The above ad shows a father and Sony with a PS3 either buying or renting (can't tell) a bunch of Blu-ray discs. Haven't really seen the PS3 promoted solely as a Blu-ray player on TV here, but yeah, why not? It makes sense — the machine plays Blu-ray discs and help win the format war. I use my PS3 to watch tons of Blu-ray discs. You?