So we all totally know that Insomniac is developing Resistance 2, but we don’t actually know that Insomniac is developing Resistance 2. A sequel to one of the PS3s most praised titles seems like a sure bet, especially after rumor monger Surfer Girl gave us specific tidbits about the game…which while we in no way can trust to be true, certainly inflate our expectations.
On December 18, 2007, Sony filed a trademark for “Resistance 2″ in relation to a video game. And while it’s not uncommon for companies to go on the trademark defensive, ensuring that another company won’t steal the title, we already totally knew that Insomniac is developing Resistance 2. You know, even though we don’t at all.
Resistance 2 [trademork]
It’s the day before Christmas and at least one of you haven’t gotten around to buying presents yet. Fortunately for you the folks here at Kotaku Tower have a solution… it’s called a card. Yeah, you’re screwed. But you can still give something nice after the holidays. Check out our 2007 Gift Guide of Obscene Nicety and Sublime Naughtiness for an amazing and eclectic list of gaming goodies and hardware or if you’re a stickler for giving games to the gamers on your list make sure to hit up our 2007 Video Game Wish List with oodles of ideas for which games to buy.
And if you buy that island you sure as hell better be inviting us to the island warming, you know how cranky pirates and ninjas can get.
The Scottish Government is worried about youth adult drunk driving. During their most recent drunk driving initiative, police caught 150 people under the age of 25 (granted, there are roughly 5 million people in Scotland, but the BBC feels the stat is important, so we’re letting you know). Now Scotland is putting £10,000, or almost $US 20,000, behind in-game sober driving ads. They’ll be popping up within online-enabled games Need for Speed: Carbon, Project Gotham Racing 4 and Pro Evolution Soccer 2008. Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson had this to say about this new campaign: It is innovative, it is new, and it is far removed from the more traditional methods we have been using. I believe that is what we need if we are to reverse the number of Scots families suffering the tragedy of a loved one being lost.
It’s good to see bureaucracy tweaking their gameplan with the times. Hopefully Scotland finds their money well-spent.
When the New York Times’ Seth Schiesel delivered this year’s video game awards in the paper, they arrived on the back of his hand. While some of the awards, like best newcomer for BioShock and Best Adaptation of an Adored Intellectual Property for The Lord of the Rings Online, are pretty straight forward and complimentary, most of them come with more than a little slap down.
Take for instance the Best Unambitious Representations of the State of the Art, awarded to Halo 3 and Super Mario Galaxy. While both receive an “award”, Schiesel uses it as an excuse to point out their flaws. Halo 3 is called a polished gem, but one that merely relies on the “time-tested Halo formula rather than a daring attempt to provide a new sort of experience.”
Super Mario Galaxy too gets a bit of a poke, with Schiesel calling it a “reinvention of classic play modes” and not something genuinely new.
Hit the jump for the full list of awards and the New York Times to read all of the “compliments.”
As I rush out to finish the last of my Christmas shopping in my usually timely fashion, visions of long lines of desperate holiday shoppers bumping into things while Christmas music chimed happily from the shopping center’s PA system. This of course led me to Christmas Lemmings, created in 1991 by Rockstar North back when they were DMA Design and killed more rodents – less prostitutes. We were so innocent back then. Merry Christmas, and should I be trampled to death in the mad holiday shopping rush, Happy New Year!
newVideoPlayer("BML_PSP_Low_Gawker.flv", 475, 376); We’ve shown you the Wii version and the DS version of this game, here’s the PSP. I’m starting to involuntarily associate touching and pointing with mini-games, so I can’t help but wonder if something will be lost with this game on the PSP.
While all of the other members of the Smash Bros. Brawl cast can change the color of their costumes or change accessories, Wario gets his very own change of clothes, presumably once he blows a hole in his other pants. Along with the Blue Oyster Wario we’ve seen since the very first trailers ran, classic Wario will make an appearance, wearing his traditional suspenders and cap combo in a variety of different colors and (gag) flavors. The promised daily weekday updates continue at the Smash Bros. Dojo! Join us later this week to see if Masahiro Sakurai finally breaks down and just posts a picture of his name scribbled over and over again on a diner napkin.
Overalls Wario [Smash Bros. DOJO!]
Are you getting a Wii for Christmas? No. Probably not. Either you already have one, don’t want one, or you just plain aren’t getting one, so today’s VC update only serves to grind glass into the already stinging wound. Here’s what you won’t be playing on the Wii Virtual Console over the holidays! First up, Blades of Steel for the NES (500 points) is possibly the best-named Ice Hockey game ever, and the game itself isn’t bad either. Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong’s Double Trouble for the SNES (800 points) has such a long title that I cannot actually write anything else about it. Finally we have Rolling Thunder 2 for the Genesis (800 points), which adds co-op to the original game’s arsenal of shooting and running goodness. All in all, not the greatest Christmas present Nintendo could have given us, but what do you care? You aren’t getting a Wii.
Ru Weerasuriya, Ready at Dawn co-founder, dropped me a line to let me know that his studio has put two eBay auctions up to hlp raise money for Child’s Play.
The studio managed to get their hand on one of the last Daxter PSP Entertainment packs around and then had everyone at Ready at Dawn Studios. As if the cool autographed, hard-t0-find PSP weren’t enough, the Ready at Dawn folks are throwing in an autographed piece of original production art from the game.
All proceeds go to Child’s Play. Hit up the link for the U.S. auction, and check out Ready at Dawn’s other auction if you live in Europe.
Kommenting = Kash
Don’t forget we’re running two commenting contests of sorts right now. If you’re into control and want to get paid to sort of work for Kotaku, then make sure to check out our Komment King Kontest, where we are desperately searching for the new Commenting Czar for Kotaku. A Kotaku Tower position which will pay $US 200 a month and grant one lucky reader access to the might Ban Hammer. Check it out here for all of the rules and such.
If you’re not into work, and who is, then check out our Shopping Bot contest. You just need to hit up the original contest thread and post a comment with the word ENTRY in it, an actual link to your favorite Kotaku story and a brief explanation of why it’s your favorite story. Think of it as a chance to reminisce. Just remember to include the link, a lot of people seem to be forgetting to do that, and that you can only enter once a day here.