When you're the North American publisher of a Korean MMO like TERA Online, the biggest hurdle you have to face is convincing the western audience that your game isn't just another pretty grindfest. Here's En Masse Entertainment's attempt.

Developed in Seoul, Korea, by Bluehole Entertainment, TERA, also known as The Exiled Realm of Arborea, sets itself apart from other massively-multiplayer online role-playing games by incorporating action game combat and cursor-based targeting. Instead of pointing and clicking, you're aiming and actively fighting the massive foes you come across, more God of War than World of Warcraft.

I played TERA briefly at GamesCom in Germany last year, and the combat system definitely has a unique feel to it. As one of the diminutive, animal-like Popori I found myself squaring off against tree creatures easily ten times my size. Combat was fast-paced and highly positional, definitely not your average targeting and auto-attacking.

Will this fresh take on combat be enough to help TERA Online avoid the stigma of being just another Korean MMO? We'll find out when the game launches in North America and Europe later this year.

As Rockstar's L.A. Noire approaches release, we're getting a closer look at how you'll rise through the ranks of the L.A. PD and solve "unassigned cases."

In the week since reports about Nintendo's next home console began appearing in the gaming press, several aspects of the controller of the system's controller have become more clear.

Its main controller, as rumored, will include a touchscreen, two analog sticks and a camera, we've confirmed with our own games industry sources who are familiar with Nintendo's plans for the machine.

That new controller's screen will measure 6.2 inches and the controller will also include eight buttons. It won't necessarily be, however, the controller that every Wii 2 gamer uses. It isn't even being positioned as a replacement for the famous Wii Remote.

The new Nintendo console, which some have been referring to as Project Café, will also support Nintendo Wii remote-style controllers.

We're not clear on whether the new console will simply use the current Wii remote tech or if Nintendo will offer a remote that improves upon the already-improved and more motion-sensitive Wii Remote Plus that launched last year.

What we are clear on is that Nintendo intends for many games on its new console to be controlled with the same kind of arm-swinging and controller tilting made capable by the Wii Remote. Think of it this way, hypothetically speaking: a new Wii Sports could use the Remote; a new Zelda could use the screen-based twin-stick controller.

The more intriguing option, which we've been hearing in bits and pieces from our sources since last week is that two people playing a Café/Wii 2 game could be using different types of controllers. One could operate the Remote; the other use the more traditional twin-sticks of the screen controller.

While a twin-stick controller doesn't sound like the kind of Nintendo gizmo that would charm talk show hosts the way the Wii Remote did, the capabilities of the the screen controller do have people buzzing. The 6.2-inch screen will receive data wirelessly from the Nintendo console and presents an array of options, from putting the player's inventory or map on the controller screen, to allowing players to combine it with the controller's camera to snap photos that could be imported into a game or even turning it into some sort of glorified viewfinder (we're unclear about whether the camera on the controller points at the player or can be outward-facing; we've heard both — maybe it swivels?).

The controller screen could even run a separate app. Consider a bad co-op idea from us as an example, though not a recommendation: one player zips through mini-games that run on the screen-controller. Succeeding in each keeps the player using the Wii Remote alive — in a game running on the TV in the same room.

A touch-sensitive inventory screen right near your thumbs would be handy, of course. A variation on that concept will be seen in Nintendo's June re-make of The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time for the company's newest two-screened handheld system, the 3DS. The Zelda game's original designers have said that players of the remake will greatly benefit from being able to tap the items they want to use on one screen while being to allow a different screen show, without clutter, the game's action. Clearly the new Nintendo console affords the same option, so the odds are that they'll take it. In fact, you could think of the new Nintendo console as turning your living room into a glorified mega-DS.... your TV is the upper-screen; your controller is the lower touchscreen.

The screen-in-controller idea isn't new to the games industry or Nintendo. Sega's 1999 gaming console, the Dreamcast, included simple monochromatic screens that were used for things like virtual pets. Nintendo pushed the concept in the early part of the previous decade, developing a handful of games that allowed players to link their Game Boy Advance portables to a GameCube console. That idea was used in a multiplayer Zelda game that allowed four players to share an adventure on a TV but occasionally duck into caves on their GBAs. Some iPhone developers have allowed people to use their iPhones as controllers for games running on iPad and PC. None of those executions compare to the idea of Nintendo pushing a screen controller as a principal innovation in its new console, a push that could transform the concept from an exception to a standard.

Nintendo isn't commenting publicly about its new console or its controllers, but the parts of this elephant are becoming more clear. We expect to see the full thing during Nintendo's presentation at E3 this June.

More Wii 2 News:
New Nintendo Console Debuting At E3 This June, Launching In 2012, More Powerful Than Xbox 360 and PS3
The Great Big ‘Wii 2′ Rumor Round-Up
Microsoft And Sony Targeting 2014 For New Consoles, Leaving Nintendo In The Clear

In today's episode of Speak-Up on Kotaku, commenter Phantomlink wants to know all about your deeply buried video game cheating past. Were you a cheater? Are you a cheater? Don't be shy.

Who here are cheaters? A pretty simple question. We've all had the temptation at one point or another, and everyone has given it a shot, even just to try it out ( Video games here people, video games )

I was talking with some friends the other day and it had me thinking. This era of console gaming I think I can only recall once where I've cheated in some way ( codes, glitches, "cleaver use of game mechanics" and that was in Grand Theft Auto IV ( because seriously... You've just gotta when you want to sit down and just cause mayhem ) Previous to that my cheating days were all back on the Ps2. Ya I had a Gameshark but a lot of the games I played back then had a good selection of built in cheats that gave it that fun factor. I have noticed however that whenever I visit a game's page on Gamefaqs that if I do click on the Cheats tab that a lot of games don't really seem to have cheats for them anymore, or at least the variety we've had 6-10 years ago.

Do you give cheating certain rules in your games? Like say, one cheat a level, x many cheats the entire game or do you beat it first legit then go through it again cheating your ass off just to have a good time or see how crazy things can stack up. Do FAQs count to you as cheating or is it a helping hand? I'll use a FAQ as little as possible when there's no other choice when I'm playing a game. I used to be a FAQ abuser but as you can guess I learned it takes some fun/frustration away from the game causing the experience to lower itself when the game is finally completed.

Does it give you that little Gamer-High to play like a God from time to time like someone would get from dominating an entire team or round of say... Call of Duty or Halo? Do you use it ONLY when there's no other choice for you because you just can't get past that next part of the game no matter how hard you try? Or are there people out there who are gaming Angels who play every game by the rules? Let's see what Kotaku has to say.

About Speak-Up on Kotaku: Our readers have a lot to say, and sometimes what they have to say has nothing to do with the stories we run. That's why we have a forum on Kotaku called Speak-Up. That's the place to post anecdotes, photos, game tips and hints, and anything you want to share with Kotaku at large. Every weekday we'll pull one of the best Speak-Up posts we can find and highlight it here.
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Capcom is calling Mega Man Legends 3 for the Nintendo 3DS the first Capcom game to be co-developed by fans. That's why there'll be a prototype version of the game available for testing as soon as Nintendo opens up the 3DS eShop.

That's right, Capcom is releasing an unfinished version of a game still in early development in order to let fans in on the creation process. Mega Man Legends 3: Prototype Version will give players their first taste of the new title's locations, characters, and the new close combat battle system over the course of a selection of missions. Once those missions are finished, players game access to unfinished areas of the game, along with a debug room where they can try out some special moves and hidden abilities.

This isn't a one-way deal though. Once you're done playing, Capcom fully expects you to join the Mega Man Legends 3 dev community, offering your suggestions for the game for a chance to see your name in the credits when the dust clears.

Of course we've still got to wait until Nintendo's eShop is open for business, but it shouldn't be too long now. In the meantime, enjoy the trailer and screens for Mega Man Legends 3: Prototype Version.

South Korea this week passed a new law that would ban children under the age of 15 from playing online games between midnight and 6 a.m., The Chosunilbo reports.

The National Assembly legislation is aimed at "protecting children from game addiction". It's still unclear if this will be for computer games only or include all platforms.

New Law to Limit Game Times for Young Teens [The Chosunilbo] [Pic]

You know what this Dean's List Dropouts version of Portal 2's Want You Gone wrap-up song is missing? Johnny Rotten screaming the Jonathan Coulton-penned lyrics. Oh, to dream. [Thanks Jer]

If you didn't like talking about video games you wouldn't be here. So get to it. Let's hear some talking!

Our thanks to ever-dependable reader ShinLord for his Preteen Mutant Ninja Class Pranksters. Like to see your artwork featured on Kotaku? Submit your own at #TAYpics.

(Read this thread for directions on how to do a TAYpic.)

In Guild Wars the warlike, feline Charr were one of the greatest threats the humans of Tyria had ever faced. In Guild Wars 2 they might be Tyria's greatest hope against the power of the Elder Dragons, when they aren't busy coughing up hairballs or desecrating innocent sandboxes.

The Charr haven't historically gotten along well with humanity. From being driven from the land of Ascalon by the arrival of humans to the area, to fighting back against the incursion so viciously that two human nations chose destruction rather than falling under Charr rule, it's safe to say that these are not your average house cats.

This great success came at a price. During the struggles against humanity the traditional Charr Legions (Iron, Blood, and Ash) were subverted under the Flame Legion, which used forbidden magics to achieve its goals, subverted female Charr that had once enjoyed equal status, and regularly sacrificed their own to dark gods in order to further their cause.

The Flame Legion was so successful that the king of Ascalon invoked the Foefire, turning the entire population of his city into ghosts, cursed to live out the final days of the invasion for all eternity.

The female Charr eventually rebelled against the Flame Legion, uniting the other legions in a successful effort to bring some order to the chaos. When the smoke cleared the Flame Legion was gone and the Iron Legion, the most technologically advanced, took control of Ascalon.

The Black Citadel is now the main fortress city of the Charr, built upon the ruins of the human city Rin. They have the power. They have the glory.

They also have a very large selection of enemies to contend with. The remnants of the Flame Legion are attempting to regain power. The ghosts of Ascalon continue to fight a never-ending war against their feline aggressors. The passage of the Elder Dragon Kralkatorrik split Eastern Ascalon in two, seeding the area with the dragon's minions and plunging the Charr into another endless battle.

It's the threat of the Elder Dragons that forces the Charr to begin negotiating with the humans they once sought to conquer, banding together against a common enemy.

And that's the Charr. Check out the video tour of the Black Citadel above, flip through the latest art, and visit the Guild Wars 2 website for more on the Charr, Tyria's fluffy little kittens.

The Ash Legion, from the Charr opening cinematic.

The Blood Legion, a painted-over screenshot.

Concept art team lead Kekai Kotaki explains the process of designing the new Charr for Guild Wars 2. "My approach was simple: make the charr badass. And then make them even more badass."

Several different Charr designs.

THE MAGIC OF SMILES | TOKYO, JAPAN: Members of idol group AKB48 promote the Japanese release of LEGO Harry Potter and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. (Photo by Game Watch Impress)

Make Games Or Porn? He Picked Games. Back before Sega game designer Toshihiro Nagoshi turned golden brown, he was just another kid from rural Japan, moving to Tokyo, trying to make it big.

The Colour Of Video Games Colour can be a strange and wonderful thing. Sometimes, all it's used for is to fill in the lines, or make something appear more "real", or more interesting. Yet other times it can be as powerful a force in our identification of a game as any character or soundtrack.

Super Mario 3DS Might Be Out This Year? When the Nintendo 3DS was first unveiled, we were shown a bunch of trailers from games that barely even existed yet. And even then, saw nothing of a new Mario game. So it'd be sweet if it actually came out this year.

Michael Jackson's Golden Game Boy Is Only $75! According to the bill of sale, this Game Boy was owned by Michael Jackson. He used it to court Macaulay Culkin. Culkin even set Tetris records on it. So $75 to call it your own is quite a steal!

Is The Entire PlayStation Network Down? [Update] Can you log onto the PlayStation Network via your PS3 console at the moment? We can't, and we're getting reports plenty of other people can't either.