Kotaku
An American video game website and blog launched in 2004.
Kotaku is an American video game website and blog originally launched in October 2004 as part of the Gawker Media network. Its name comes from the Japanese otaku (obsessive fan) and the prefix 'ko-' (small in size).
Quick Facts
- Type
- Video game journalism website
- Founded
- 2004
- Founder
- Brian Creasey
- Primary audience
- Video game players and industry professionals
- Format
- Digital (web-based news, reviews, features)
Lore & Background
Kotaku was first launched in October 2004 with Matthew Gallant as its lead writer. About a month later, Brian Crecente was brought in to try to save the failing site. The site has launched several country-specific sites for Australia, Japan, Brazil and the UK. Stephen Totilo replaced Brian Crecente as editor in chief in 2012. In April 2014, Gawker Media partnered with Future plc to launch Kotaku UK, and with Allure Media to launch Kotaku Australia. Kotaku was purchased by Univision Communications in August 2016; Gizmodo Media Group was subsequently founded. The Gizmodo Media Group was acquired by Great Hill Partners in April 2019 and renamed G/O Media. In December 2018, Pedestrian Group acquired Kotaku Australia. Kotaku UK closed on September 9, 2020. Totilo departed as editor in chief on February 5, 2021. Riley MacLeod served as interim editor in chief, then Patricia Hernandez commenced as editor in chief from June 2, 2021. Jen Glennon was appointed editor in October 2023 after Patricia Hernandez was reportedly fired in August 2023. In November 2023, G/O Media announced layoffs of 23 people across Kotaku and other sites. Jen Glennon resigned in March 2024. In July 2024, it was reported Kotaku Australia would shut down; by October 2024 it redirected to Kotaku and its archive became publicly inaccessible. In March 2025, the Kotaku Australia domain was redirected to a content farm called The Kotaku Times. In July 2025, G/O Media sold Kotaku to Keleops, a Swiss media company.
Reader's Guide
Kotaku covers video game news, reviews, and culture. Notable former contributors include Luke Smith, Cecilia D'Anastasio, Tim Rogers, and Jason Schreier. The site has faced controversies including a 2007 lawsuit from Jack Thompson, a 2010 blacklisting by Konami, a 2021 article about Metroid Dread emulation that was revised after a complaint from Nintendo, and blacklistings by Sony (2007), Bethesda and Ubisoft (2015), and Nintendo (2023). It was also involved in the Gamergate harassment campaign in 2014. In March 2025, former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick sued G/O Media for defamation over articles in Kotaku and Gizmodo.
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