If you've been playing big-budget action video games over the last couple of years, you've probably noticed a few trends. The graphics have gotten better. The animations have become more lifelike. The explosions have gotten more explosive.

And more recently, amid all those improvements, has come a trend that's even more earth-shattering and important: Video games have discovered the bow and arrow.

Call it the "bowification" of video games. Far Cry 3. Crysis 3. Assassin's Creed III. Tomb Raider. In just the past six months, we've had four high profile games include a bow and arrow as a primary weapon. In an impressive bit of reverse evolution, it seems video games have finally discovered the bow and arrow, decades after they discovered the assault rifle.

All this goes along with pop culture's more general bow-obsession, with Katniss Everdeen using her archery chops to survive The Hunger Games and Brave's Merida besting each of her suitors in an archery contest, Robin Hood-style. Way to be current, video games!

A few notes: First of all, cossbows don't count. Sorry, Dishonored! I'm going to focus on four games that are pretty recent, as they represent the current height of video game bow-and-arrow design. So, I've left off games like Turok, Wii Sports Resort, and any of the Zelda games. I've also left off a few games where the bows don't really have a mechanical component to them—my bow and arrow in Guild Wars 2 operates pretty much like a gun; same thing with Diablo III or Torchlight II. I am including Skyrim, because that game is interesting and its iteration on the Elder Scrolls' bow and arrow design is cool. If there are other video game bows you think are worthy of recognition, I hope you'll mention them in the comments.

Here we go, ranked from last to first:

How it works: Aim and fire with the Y/Triangle button.

How you cancel a shot: Press B/O.

How you aim: You select a target using the aiming feature, then Connor does the rest for you.

One hit? One kill with most humans, but not with animals.

Better than a gun? No, not in this case. The Assassin's Creed III bow is silent, which is good for taking out guards quietly, but in general it's inferior to the game's pistols, particularly the moment you've been spotted. Aiming and firing simply takes too long to be effective.

Upgrades: None to speak of.

Fakest thing you can do: The more I think about it, the more I think that Assassin's Creed III's bow might be the most realistic of all the video game bows on this list. Which unfortunately seems to have contributed to it being in last place.

Greatest moment: There's something to be said for hunting from the treetops in Assassin's Creed III, and the bow always felt at home in the woods.

John Rambo says: "Your worst nightmare."

Overall Opinion: The bow in Assassin's Creed III just doesn't feel very good to fire. The auto-aiming is strange and doesn't allow you to track a moving target, and as I've noted before, pressing "Y" (or triangle) to aim a weapon feels a bit like standing on your tiptoes to reach something in a high cupboard. There's a lack of satisfying impact, as well.

How it works: Zoom with the left trigger, pull the string back with the right. Release to fire.

How you cancel a shot: Click the right thumbstick.

How you aim: You don't actually aim along the arrow, but rather using crosshairs on your HUD combined with a green line indicating the arrow's trajectory.

One hit? One kill, provided you've got your draw-strength up for the bigger baddies.

Better than a gun? Without question. It's so much better than a gun, in fact, that it makes the guns totally pointless and throws off the balance of the game.

Upgrades: Your bow comes outfitted with all manner of special arrows, so they don't really qualify as "upgrades." But Prophet's bow can fire regular arrows, explosive arrows, thermite-tipped arrows that explode on a delay, and arrows that deliver a deadly electric shock.

Greatest moment: The sound design on the Crysis 3 bow makes up for its odd feel—the tension of the arrow combined with the thunk of impact makes it clear that this thing is really a deadly future-weapon in the guise of a bow and arrow.

Fakest thing you can do: At first I was going to say that having your arrows designed so that they'd show up on your heads-up display for gathering was unrealistic, but actually, that's exactly the sort of thing that some military weapons-designer would probably do.

John Rambo Says: "I could have killed 'em all, I could've killed you. In town you're the law, out here it's me. "

Overall Opinion: Prophet's bow in Crysis 3 is sort of a "bow in name only." Sure, it looks like a tricked-out compound bow. Yes, it fires arrows. But it's so powerful and futuristic that it's almost entirely removed from the more primal appeal of the weapon itself. Furthermore, because the bow can be fired while cloaked, it throws off the precarious balance struck by the first two Crysis games and makes Prophet overpowered.

How it works: Aim with the right trigger, release to fire. Hit the left trigger to toggle slow-mo, if you have the ability. As a demonstration, check out this TOTALLY SICK VIDEO I just shot today. I was going to grab a screenshot to show how the bow works, but I happened to fire this arrow and... yesssss.

My first thought was "I can't believe no one saw that." Then I checked the corner and saw that I'd accidentally hit the record button and captured the whole thing using Fraps. Victory! So, I thought I'd share it here. (And okay, maybe it's not actually that hard to do—it does kind of look like the bird relocated so that my arrow would hit it. But I felt pretty proud, so. Anyway.)

How you cancel a shot: Press X, a welcome addition to the Elder Scrolls series, as in the past you'd have to fire into the ground and then pick up your arrow.

How you aim: Right along the arrow, with a zoom-in if you've purchased the required perk.

One hit? Rarely one kill, unless you're up against a weak enemy or you're firing from stealth.

Better than a gun? There are no guns in Skyrim, though video game marketers seem fond of suggesting that there are several other games that satisfy that particular fan desire…

Upgrades: The most important upgrade is the ability to slow down time while aiming, which is a boon for those who play this game with a controller, in particular. However, thanks to the game's crafting system, you can upgrade your bow in all manner of other deadly ways. My Daedric bow shoots lightning arrows, for example.

Greatest moment: Picking off an entire roomful of bandits without alerting a single one. The "bang!" sound of a successful sneak attack is never less that satisfying, and it's only heightened by the goofy way the ragdoll physics can take over once they go flying. It's also fun to peg a dragon in midair with an arrow, partly because it's such a difficult trick to pull off. Unless you're me, as evidenced by that amazing video I've already talked about too much.

Fakest thing you can do: You can upgrade your bow so that it fires lightning and traps souls! God, how unrealistic.

John Rambo says: "It's in the blood! It's natural! Peace? That's an accident!"

Overall Opinion: While Skyrim's combat is generally not on par with the other games on this list, I actually like the bow and arrow a lot. It never quite has the stopping power I'd like it to when I've got a troll charging at me head-on, but when sneaking, there are few weapons in the Skyrim universe as deadly and satisfying.

How it works: You aim with the left trigger and pull the string back with the right trigger.

How you cancel a shot: There isn't a consistent way, unfortunately. You can switch arrow-types if you've got an additional arrow assigned to the D-pad, but that's an unsteady workaround at best. I have memories of being able to inconsistently cancel pulled arrows, but haven't been able to recreate that in my game. If there's a way, I'm not sure what it is. Meaning that I wind up shooting my arrows into the ground and grabbing them. You got so much right, Far Cry 3!

Update: Since enough of you guys pointed out that in theory it's totally easy to cancel a shot, I thought I'd give it an even more thorough test. Looks like this issue is only on PC, or even just my PC, and it's inconsistent. I'm able to get "R" on the keyboard to cancel the shot every time, but "X" on the controller is inconsistent at best. Often it won't work at all. So, good on you for the most part, Far Cry 3—the issue isn't with your design but appears to be with your PC controller setup. Your bow is still pretty cool, though.

How you aim: You can get either a red-dot sight or a more advanced hunter's sight, which accounts for drop-off. I never quite mastered the way aiming works, but I did always use the hunter's sight, even though it was more difficult to see what was going on.

One hit? One kill.

Better than a gun? Not really. The bow is arguably better for silent takedowns, but it's hard to top a powerful silenced assault rifle or sniper rifle, particularly if you've unlocked the later weapons in the game. That said, it's certainly cooler than a gun, and holds its own.

Upgrades: You could eventually either make fire-arrows or explosive arrows. The explosive arrows were oddly underpowered, and often it took more than one to blow up a vehicle or kill a guy.

Greatest moment: Hunting actual animals, actually. Some of the most enjoyable side-missions in Far Cry 3 were the advanced bow hunts, where you'd be tasked with taking down a deadly jungle beast using only the bow and regular arrows. Usually it involved finding a good vantage point and hitting shots from far enough away that the tiger/leopard in question wouldn't be able to find you. But these sequences effectively captured the thrill of creeping through the underbrush, bow in hand.

Fakest thing you can do: Make an explosive-tipped arrow out of a hand grenade while under duress in the wild. Look, I get that Jason Brody has become something of a badass while on this adventure, but.

John Rambo says: "You know what you are... what you're made of. War is in your blood. Don't fight it. You didn't kill for your country. You killed for yourself."

Overall opinion: The bow in Far Cry 3 is a cool, empowering weapon, and easily the game's defining mode of dealing destruction. While silenced sniper rifles can generally get the same job done from a longer range, the bow itself was my weapon of choice for the majority of the game, particularly when hunting.

How it works: Aim with the left trigger, pull back the string with the right trigger.

How you cancel a shot: Let go of the left trigger. Okay, hold on. This is the only game on this list to adopt this method of canceling a shot, and it deserves mention, because it's great. Initially, I was uncomfortable canceling shots this way, but only because it felt so unfamiliar. As it turns out, this is a very natural, subtly brilliant way of doing things. It's a much more accurate amalgamation of what you'd actually do if you decided you didn't want to shoot an arrow. You'd release the string.

How you aim: Down the arrow using a crosshair.

One hit? One kill, as long as you're sneaking or can score a headshot. In combat, it depends.

Better than a gun? Absolutely. The bow is a silent killer, has a ton of non-combat uses, and is wicked powerful and accurate over long distances.

Upgrades: By the end of Tomb Raider, Lara's bow has become something of a swiss army knife. It can fire regular, flaming, and explosive arrows, sure. It can also fire a rope that can manipulate objects in the environment and even attach to cliff-sides and set up ziplines. Coupled with her automated rope-retractor, she can demolish large chunks of wood and access new areas. She also uses her arrows as a makeshift melee weapon, and to skin animals after hunting. After a couple of days on the island, Lara's bow is no longer the sad little wooden thing she pulled off the corpse at the start; it's a wicked-looking high-tech compound bow with a counterweight and nasty arrows.

Greatest moment: There's a sequence near the middle of the game where Lara enters a large wooded area at night. It's full of guards. The first time I played this bit, I was able to creep through the woods, silently picking off guard after guard until none were left standing. It was probably my favorite sequence in the entire game—Lara Croft as deadly predator, dealing death with a bow and arrow.

Fakest thing you can do: While I value the utility, I'm not at all convinced that a bow could fire a rope-arrow into a cliff face firmly enough to let me peg that rope and climb across a chasm.

John Rambo says: "When you're pushed, killing's as easy as breathing."

Overall Opinion: Turns out there's a reason that Lara's bow has been featured so prominently in Tomb Raider's promotional materials—the weapon feels inextricably tied to Lara in the new game, and between the two of them, they can overcome almost any obstacle. The bow has a marvelous feeling of physicality to it, including how Lara can only pull the string back for so long before her aim starts to shake. The decision to give players the ability to hit "up" and flick Lara's lighter, igniting the arrow, was inspired. I found it telling that in the game, I used Lara's bow whenever possible, even when it wasn't the most powerful option, unless I was getting rushed by enemies on either side. Even then, whipping out a machine gun or shotgun just felt wrong somehow.

So, Tomb Raider wins it by a neck. Far Cry 3 put up a good fight, but while that game does have some very fun bow-hunting, the bow itself doesn't match Lara Croft's weapon in all its upgraded glory. My Skyrim bow is all well and good, but falls short in heated combat. Crysis 3's bow is barely a bow at all, really—more of an overpowered killing device—that may be to some players' taste, but it isn't to mine. And Assassin's Creed III's bow, like so many other things about that game, is better in concept than in execution.

Congrats, Lara. Take a bow. You are currently the video game archer to beat. At least until it turns out there's an awesome bow and arrow in BioShock Infinite or The Last of Us. Which, given the industry's current bow-happy state, wouldn't surprise me in the least.

I'm having a hard time remembering Dead Space 3.

It's not that I've recently become afflicted with amnesia or anything like that. I just don't find the game all that memorable. If you read my review, you'll know that I had my share of gripes with the third title in what was previously known to me as one of the better sci-fi horror series I've played.

I can recount scenes to you that stuck with me from the original Dead Space and its sequel. I can slip off and recall memories filled with genuine fear and creepiness. The first time I floated through zero gravity, or the infamous eyeball scene. Revisiting Ishimura, or the baby Necromorph introduction. These are all memories that I've kept with me since playing the previous two Dead Space titles.

What Dead Space 3 was missing, among many other things, were those memorable moments. It was the lack of creepiness that really struck me as odd about Visceral Games' latest foray into their horror series. Where were the hallucinations? Where were the mind twists and the horrifying cultist attitude?

They were saved for Awakened, apparently.

Awakened actually starts off sort of weak. The new content picks up where the game left off, somehow sparing the lives of Isaac and Carver, who are left stranded on Tau Volantis. Their initial mission is to find a way off the planet, to get back home safely. Ok, so far so boring. But the duo soon meet what appears to be a sect of the Church of Unitology crazier than any worshipper you've ever encountered before. They're self-mutilating and whispering their fears to no one in particular, over and over again. This is more like it.

WHY: All of Dead Space 3's creepy is hiding in Awakened. And the cooperative portions are fun and fairly clever.

---

Dead Space 3: Awakened

Developer: Visceral Games
Platforms: PlayStation 3, PC, and Xbox 360 (reviewed)
Released: March 12th

Type of game: Third-person shooter, survival horror

What I played: Two-ish hours cooperative on hard difficulty.

Two Things I Loved

• Creepy, mutilated cultists and the psychological thrill of hallucinations.
• Fun cooperative elements, including the evolving relationship between Isaac and Carver.

My Two Things I Hated

• Boring introduction that dragged its feet before getting to the fun parts.
• Rough storytelling that doesn't play up its strengths, like its villains and the mystery behind them.

Made-to-Order-Back-of-Box-Quotes

• "Are you next to me? Where are you? Are you seeing this? What's happening? Who's attacking you? Do you see me? Is it over?" —Tina Amini, Kotaku.com
• "It's evil Edward Scissorhands!" —Tina Amini, Kotaku.com

It doesn't take long for it all to start getting to Isaac and Carver. They suffer from frequent, and what look like painful hallucinations. Granted, most of these hallucinations are the same image burned into your screen at random intervals. Other times it involves battles against the new mutilated enemies (which you can watch in action in the video posted at the end of this article). Are you being attacked? Did you get separated from your partner? Who knows. You just shoot and pray, and hope there's a bottle of advil somewhere to quiet the inevitable in-game headaches.

The hallucinations begin to take their toll on the two, and it becomes a divisive point between them, which then begets some interesting tension in the storyline. Yes! Finally, I say aloud to my co-op buddy. This is what I've wanted. A reason to feel more invested in the people I'm adventuring with/as. Dead Space 3 felt like it was filled with characters I couldn't care less about. I was listening in on the drama of some bizarre romantic triangle instead of getting deep inside the psychological damage these horrors were inflicting on Isaac, and potentially other people. But Awakened ignores all the cheesy film fodder in favor of real drama, and Isaac and Carver's relationship unfolding throughout that is a good execution of it.

Isaac's unhealthy drive to purge the universe of Necromorphs becomes abundantly clear, all the more so when juxtaposed with Carver's no bullshit demeanor. Carver works almost to balance Isaac, giving him a good slap across the head when he needs it, sometimes literally and sometimes figuratively.

I've said here on Kotaku that Dead Space 3 is more fun to play with a friend. That holds true for Awakened. The creepy interlude is followed by some really interesting cooperative elements that were surprisingly fun to play. Visceral toys with some good ideas in the latter half of this new content. It's not just about watching your partner's back in battle. You'll work together to complete tasks. You'll interact in an entirely unfamiliar way than you have ever before in this game.

The new downloadable content may not be perfect. The pacing is a little odd and the framing of the villain side of the story feels hackneyed even though there's certainly potential for it to be unique. The main villain seems like he could be a fascinating character, but he's drowned out with focus leaning favorably to other angles, like on Isaac and Carver and their escape. It may also be somewhat "too little, too late" when thinking about Dead Space 3 as a whole. But it's a welcome addition to a horror experience that was seriously lacking in horror. And the fun cooperative elements? Well that's just the perfect excuse I need to get a friend online to play a game with me.

Proof That There's Some Creepiness Left In Dead Space 3, Thanks To New Content

One of my biggest problems with Dead Space 3 is that it is utterly lacking in the hallucination department. What happened to all those twisted, freaky things I witnessed in the first two titles?
Playing as Isaac got you close to zero hallucinations. More »

One of my biggest problems with Dead Space 3 is that it is utterly lacking in the hallucination department. What happened to all those twisted, freaky things I witnessed in the first two titles?

Playing as Isaac got you close to zero hallucinations. You could get minor satisfaction in co-op while playing as Carver, but even then the acid trippy moments felt thin. And weak.

Well, fortunately we're getting more Dead Space 3 content. Awakened, the DLC that releases today, brings some of the much-needed creepy back.

What kind of creepiness, you say? Look no further than the video above, which I captured earlier tonight while playing cooperatively with a friend. Beware of minor enemy spoilers, which are new in this latest chapter. But if you're up for a little tease, the video will give you a glimpse at what I'm referencing.

Expect my review of Awakened tomorrow.

Dead Space 3 presented a pretty radical departure from the first two games in the sci-fi horror series. Too many fetch quests and co-operative play made Isaac Clarke's third outing against the Necromorphs feel less scary and atmospheric than DS1 & DS2. But, most of all, longtime Dead Space fans missed the freaky hallucinations that made Isaac Clarke doubt his own sanity.

But, you don't have to worry: the mindfuckery is coming back.

Next week's Awakened DLC is an epilogue to Dead Space 3's main storyline that pits Isaac and partner character John Carver against crazy Unitology cultists on the derelict wreck of the Terra Nova. At a recent preview, an EA representative told Kotaku that head trips are going to be a major part of Awakened and that those who play as Isaac will experience up more hallucinations in the DLC than in the whole game. You can still play co-op, too.

If you want the horror to come back to Dead Space 3, then you should know that Awakened is coming to PSN, Xbox Live and Origin on March 12. European PSN gets it on March 13.

It's been over two years since we saw the design for the first one, but Indonesian artist machine56's amazing line of Dead Space hoodies and shirts are now finally ready to order, direct from the artist.

You'll find ordering info below, as well as a full catalogue containing other pieces, some Dead Space-related, others less so. Those RIG and Ishimura hoodies are just the best.

5060 X DS3 PREORDER [machine56]

One of EA's top executives says the website VideoGamer fabricated news yesterday when they reported that Dead Space 4 was no more.

The VideoGamer report, which cited an anonymous source, said that "EA has ceased development on Dead Space 4 and effectively axed the series following lower than anticipated sales of Dead Space 3."

According to the VideoGamer story, the studio Visceral Montreal (Army of Two) had been prototyping Dead Space 4 when EA came in and cancelled it. VideoGamer also reported that EA pushed the SF-based Visceral Games to make Dead Space 3 "feel more like BioWare's Mass Effect."

Last month, EA laid off a number of Visceral employees and shut down Visceral Montreal.

Multiple EA and Visceral employees denied the VideoGamer rumor yesterday, but not before a number of websites picked up on it, including the trade site GamesIndustry.biz, where EA's Chief Operating Officer Peter Moore took to the comments, calling it a lie:

(EA confirmed to Kotaku that the comments are really by Moore.)

Moore followed up:

We reached out to VideoGamer this morning, but they declined to comment.

Update: VideoGamer tells us they'll be commenting on their own site later today.

Update 2: VideoGamer has released a statement on their website detailing the steps they took to reach out to EA's UK PR. They stand by their story:

VideoGamer.com would never publish information from a source whose identity could not be verified, or that we do not believe to be accurate. We carried out internal checks to verify the validity of the comments made by our source - and while we have a duty of care to protect their identity - we stand by the comments made in the original story.

We would also like to reiterate that we ran the story in good faith, taking the necessary steps with both EA and our source to ensure that the story was as accurate, fair, and well-represented as possible.

We find it perplexing as to why EA changed its stance on its decision not to comment on rumours and speculation, especially given the opportunities that the publisher had to clarify the situation before and after VideoGamer.com published the story. We firmly deny any accusations of fabrication on our part.

A report earlier this morning, citing unidentified sources, suggested that Electronic Arts had terminated its Dead Space franchise—including work on an unannounced Dead Space 4—in light of poor sales of Dead Space 3. The game's studio says the rumors are false, and EA itself disputes the portrayal of Dead Space as a troubled brand.

"The reports of our death were greatly exaggerated," said Dino Ignacio, a member of the Dead Space development team, over Twitter. Another Visceral Games developer, writing on NeoGAF, called the rumor "completely false based on my knowledge."

An EA spokesperson at first told Kotaku that the company wouldn't comment on rumor or speculation, but later added: "While we have not announced sales data for Dead Space 3, we are proud of the game and it remains an important IP for EA." In another statement to Kotaku, echoing comments made elsewhere, she called the rumor "patently false."

Despite what Nintendo would likely call its own best efforts, the Wii U has struggled to attract third-party game makers. Some developers might tell you that's because the Wii U is underpowered, but Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli told a different story to VentureBeat this week.

When asked about the Nintendo console, Yerli offered up the following:

We did have Crysis 3 running on the Wii U. We were very close to launching it. But there was a lack of business support between Nintendo and EA on that. Since we as a company couldn't launch on the Wii U ourselves—we don't have a publishing license—Crysis 3 on Wii U had to die.

It's a shame when games fall victim to the politics of business, which sounds like what happened. But if the Wii U can indeed run the technically impressive Crysis 3, who knows what else is possible on Nintendo's latest system?

The full interview goes into the nitty-gritty of Crytek's upcoming free-to-play shooter Warface, and it's certainly worth a look for those interested in the German studio's wildly varying business models.

Crytek chief puts on his Warface and says why Crysis 3 for Wii U ‘had to die' (interview) [VentureBeat via Game Informer]

Whoo boy, those Crysis 3 graphics. I knew they were good, but I had no idea you could get so enthusiastic about it. I guess I underestimated the passion of bros.

Now excuse me—I'm feeling the urge to make some modifications to my PC.

Bro Team: Crysis 3 [Machinima]

Crytek head Cevat Yerli has come out in defense of his studio's latest game, Crysis 3. In an interview with Gamasutra, Yerli says that the game is "so far, our masterpiece," and that he feels it's better than both Crysis 2 and the original Crysis in all aspects.

He blames the game's tepid reception on the fact that gamers have fatigue with this console generation and with sequels, and says that because the first Crysis was such a different sort of game for its time, it had a bigger impact, which has caused gamers to remember it more fondly than it deserves.

While I agree that history has warped our view of the first Crysis a bit—it's a fun but uneven game with some glaring flaws—for the most part I just don't agree with Yerli's assessment. I found Crysis 3 to be mediocre in almost every way, a short, unfocused, un-engaging game that fell short of both of its predecessors. Crysis 2 was a well-constructed quasi-linear shooter that made up for its personality deficit with enjoyable, balanced combat and polished production. Crysis 1, while uneven, at its best was yards beyond either Crysis 2 or 3. Though I do agree that the first Crysis had a lot of problems that are easy to ignore in favor of focusing on those great opening chapters.

Yerli goes on to say that while Crysis 3 had triple the budget of its predecessors, the only way it could secure that budget was by going multi-platform. But developing for the Xbox 360 and PS3 along with PC held them back.

"The consoles are eight year old devices. Of course, in one way or another, they will limit you. It's impossible not to be limited by a limited console. By definition it's the case. So if it were PC only, could we have done more things? Certainly, yes. Could we have afforded a budget to make a game like Crysis 3 PC only? No. People have to understand that this is a journey of give and take."

That must be frustrating. Visually, the PC version of Crysis 3 is miles beyond the console versions, but the core of the game—the size of the levels, number of enemies, and basic design and artificial intelligence—remains the same. While a PC-only version of the game may indeed have been cost-prohibitive, it's not hard to imagine what Yerli and his team could have done had they been able to make Crysis 3 for the PS4 and the next Xbox, rather than the current generation of consoles.

As it stands, the game is still technically impressive in a lot of ways, but it'll likely be remembered as an end-of-generation footnote as we make the leap to new, more powerful consoles. Timing is everything, I guess.

Go read the full interview at Gamasutra.