One of the most striking features of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, was the way the main character's clothing would actually get wet after trudging through a stream, gradually drying over time. According to Richard Lemarchand, the co-lead designer on Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Naughty Dog isn't keen to rest on their watery laurels, upping the ante with impressive new snow and ice effects in the sequel.

We've spent a lot of time focused on the distinctive look that snow has as it falls and is blown by the wind, and of course on the way in which Drake leaves footprints as he trudges through the snowdrifts in the Himalayan mountains that he ventures to. When he's out in the snow he'll accumulate a layer of snowflakes on his clothes and in his hair, which will slowly thaw when he gets back inside under cover. Ice reflects light in a way that cleverly mimics the sub-surface scattering that goes on inside a chunk of frozen water, and gives it a look of incredible volume and density.

Excellent! I spent several hours running in and out of the first stream you come across in the original game. I look forward to standing out in the snow and then running under cover over and over again in the sequel.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Interrogation [IGN UK]

What I want to know is, where were these guys when we were giving away copies of Lost Planet for creative snow sculptures? Michael McWhertor

That's the second biggest Monkey Island head made out of snow I've ever seen! [The BBPS]

There was a pretty swell Kotaku Lost Planet contest earlier this month in which we asked readers like you to build something game-related out of snow, ice, sand, dirt, etc. Reader Daniel did just that. Weeks late. He writes:

My friend and I made a Katamari, Prince, and a few mushrooms. It does not snow to often here so we decided to do some thing cool and video game related. We also used Chocolate syrup on the mushrooms and in the first attempt at the face.

And then, we assume, ate it.

Kotaku-land, we have stuff. Stuff we want to give you. Sometimes, it's games, sometimes it's free crap Crecente has sitting around the house and once in a blue moon, it's a trip to the Tokyo Game Show. This is an amazingly fantastic wonderful super-dee-duper contest, and we are looking forward to putting a lucky winner on a plane to Japan, where we will make him or her buy us stuff. Expensive stuff.

Click below for the contest's first question. There are three total, and the next will be here before ya know it. Till then, good luck with the first one. Brian Ashcraft

TGS Contest. Question Numero Uno [Kotaku]

Want Lost Planet? We've got ten, count 'em, ten copies of the Xbox 360 game to put in your greedy hands. Just handing them out ain't no contest though, but a giveaway. So here's our newest contest:

Using ice, snow or sand (for you warm weather folks) sculpt something game-related, snap a pic and send it our way to kotakucontest@gmail.com. Be sure to include your name and address as well as some info about your creation. We'll post the entries and from that select the winners. Contest ends January 5th, and the winners will be announced the following day. Like any contest, this one's got rules. Good luck and happy sculpting! Brian Ashcraft

It's about 8 a.m. and it looks like we're already in full-on blizzard mode. It's windy, 24 degrees, there's two inches on the ground (they're calling for two feet today) and three people died this morning in a fiery interstate crash, but I'm still planning on going to meet with Nintendo downtown.

I'm supposed to be meeting with them at 11 a.m. Hopefully the trains are still running.

...

Oh that's nice, they just said the windchill is 6. As in 26 degrees below freezing. Brian Crecente

Apparently inspired by yesterday's Yoshi snow sculpture, or "Snowshi" as one reader dubbed it (trust me, it was just a matter of time), Kotakuite Steve, sends in this picture of his sculpture of Animal Crossings traveling canine minstrel, K.K. Slider. I'm interested to know what the facial features are made out of, although I must say I'm a little concerned for the condition of that guitar. Flynn De Marco

I'll refrain from calling this a "snowman" because obviously more work went into this than your run of the mill, coal for eyes, carrot for a nose snowmen. Then there's the question of Yoshi's "manhood", which I have serious doubts about to begin with.

Regardless, someone obviously has some awesome sculpting ability and this is definitely the best snow Yoshi I've ever seen. The fact that's it's the only snow Yoshi I've ever seen is beside the point, it still rocks. Thanks, Ryan! Flynn De Marco

Edgy company Take Two might be known for hard hitting titles like Grand Theft Auto, but looks to be side-stepping controversy by canning Snow. Not connected with that Canadian reggae musician, the real-time strategy game lets players pedal and smuggle drugs. At last year's E3, the game was on display at last year's E3, but didn't make an appearance this year. Has gaming's bad boy, Take Two, gone soft?

Last year'sGTA Hot Coffee scandal lowered Take Two stock prices and angered many as the incident became a rallying call for all that was wrong with gaming. Snow and it's drug-related plot would've fueled the Jack Thompson-fire. 2K Games, the division behind the Snow, confirmed the cancellation, but failed to provide the rational. The shoveling of Snow could be an early reaction to possible criticism. Take Two gun-shy? The irony. Brian Ashcraft

More Here [CNN Money]