Kotaku reader Trevor H’s girlfriend has made him this pretty good Smoker (from Left 4 Dead) plush toy, as part of her mission to create toys “for every wicked Valve game that comes out.” Reportedly she’s also made a plush headcrab.

A headcrab, eh? I bet it’s nowhere near as awesome as the one our very own Giant Lenin made. It’s got gore and everything, and proves inarguably that Ripten has awesome readers. Hit the jump or click the link to the forum post to see it.

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In case you’re new to the site, or just a little forgetful, I’d like to remind everyone that Ripten does actually have forums. Unfortunately, we’ve had trouble with people trying to advertise their products for free (Spammers) in the past. However, I’ve made sure that the forums are completely free of spam, but alas, that meant losing a lot of old threads and posts, as well as users. If you registered after the 30th of August 2008, your account has been deleted. I sincerely apologise for this, as well as for the loss of all the threads, but it was necessary to clean up the damn place. I urge you to sign up again and get the forums going again- they’re a bit bare at the moment, but start some threads, make some posts, and have a good time.

Before you sign up for a new account, though, take a look here. Because of spammers, I’m going to be approving your accounts manually for now, so email me (sam[at]ripten[dot]com) with the info in that post and I’ll approve you within a day.

We’re also looking for community moderators. If you wish to become a moderator, let me know (email, comment, post on forums) and if you’re a pretty cool guy then I’ll make you an all-powerful and respected mod. As a mod, you’ll help us clean out spammers, so we’ll be able to have open registration again, and keep the forums in tip-top condition. Remember, the more people that sign up and socialise, the better the community. The better the community, the better the site!

If you have been following our coverage of fan reaction to 2K’s PS3 Bioshock demo, then you are well aware of some gamers voicing complaints about a pixelated Daddy and unsatisfactory graphics (although I frankly find it a bit much), and you are also aware that 2K has responded to the collective cries for help.

Well, a few hours ago they responded again. This time, the post by 2K community manager, Elizabeth Tobey, promises a patch for the game. Anticipating that the public would want to know the exact release date of the patch, Tobey proactively stated:

I do know this will not be until after the game’s launch, and I will update you with details on that date as I receive them.

Tobey adds that a complete list of fixes has yet to be finalized, but assures the community that the texture/pixelation and white bar issues are definitely on the list.

Hit the jump to read her full statement. Read more…

Here’s your useless factoid of the day: BioWare’s online community has out paced the nation of Puerto Rico for population.

According to EA, BioWare’s parent company, the number of registered users on BioWare’s community site has hit the 4 million mark, with an estimated 38,000 new accounts being created every month.

BioWare, makers of such titles as Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Jade Empire and Mass Effect, has more than their share of top-notch titles to draw in such a number of fans. But, it helps to remember that not all registered accounts are active, nor are they limited to one person per account. So, while the numbers may say 4 million, the number of actual people is probably a bit lower.

Still, it’s an impressive number, and a hard-earned and well deserved milestone.

Chris Satchell, head of XNA, has given a few more tantalizing details of what to expect from Microsoft’s community-driven game development tools, as well a few more details on how the community will be used to self-moderate the games produced. He also talks about what his hopes are for the service, so read on for more.

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