Uncharted Next Game To Receive Trophy Support

Because Sony's trophy system is only being implemented now, a bunch of games have already been released that don't make use of the feature. Meaning developers will need to go back and bolt on trophy support in their own time. So when 2.40 becomes available, which games will have them, and which ones won't? While Sony released a preliminary list of titles that will be the first to implement trophies the other day, they've since added one more: our 2007 NQGOTY, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, which "will also receive a patch at some point in the foreseeable future".

Sony's Eric Lempel Talks PS3 Version 2.4 [GameSpy]

Yeah, that Uncharted airgun? Totally not official. And not being official (and trying to make money off the official product) tends to piss folks off. A Sony mouthpiece says this about the King of Swords gun:

The Drake's Gun is not licensed or in any way sanctioned by SCE and one we certainly do not condone... We are investigating the source of this product and will proceed with the most appropriate action.

Like telling King of Swords to put the newer blond lady sidekick in its ad?
Sony To Take Action [Games Industry]

An Uncharted Gun You Can Own

Uncharted: People Killing, OK, Animal Killing, Not OK

In an interview with SCEE blog Three Speech, Naughty Dog's Evan Wells has been answering a bunch of questions sent in by Three Speech "readers". Most are fairly run-of-the-mill, but one's pretty interesting, if only from a cultural standpoint. The question was, basically, why can't I shoot the fish in the game? The answer:

We had hit reactions and even some death animations for the wildlife in the game but we chose to remove it. It was flagged as a potential issue by the ESRB and it seemed like a small concession to make in order to maintain our "Teen" rating. It may have also affected the rating in Europe.

YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED BY NAUGHTY DOG'S EVAN WELLS: PART ONE [Three Speech, via Game|Life]

Are We Going To Get An Uncharted Movie?

Narrative-based videogames have a wish fulfillment aspect to them, and gamers expect their protagonist to match the setting and game play. People don't buy Gears of War so they can hear Marcus Fenix wax philosophical on the nature of the soul, crying softly every time he curb-stomps an enemy.

How Uncharted: Drake's Fortune Makes Home Really, Really Cool

While Resistance: Fall of Man's integration with Home should have bonus content fans excited, old school run-and-gun shooter fans should be pretty pumped about what they may be getting with Uncharted: Drake's Fortune's contribution. We hear that the Home portal for Naughty Dog's PlayStation 3 adventure will follow in Resistance's footsteps, allowing Home avatars to explore the game's levels without the threat of being shot at, a nice feature.

But it's the Uncharted mini-game that has us far more pumped.

Zero Punctuation Takes On Uncharted: Drake's Fortune

This week, in between some scathing political commentary, Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw reviews Uncharted: Drake's Fortune for the PS3. Does he like it? Of course not. Can you imagine his reviews happy? We can only pray that divine intervention keeps both love and ecstasy from Yahtzee's grasp, lest we lose Zero Punctuation forever.

Quote of the week: "Saying that an action game's got a vehicle section these days carries about as much weight as saying that it comes in a box."

Zero Punctuation [TheEscapist]

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

I'll be playing a very realistic driving in a matter of hours, a sort of Need For Speed Most Wanted recreating using a rented Chevy Impala controller. It should be very, very exciting following the blue line from Vegas to LA. When I finally get home, expect me to unwind with a few rounds of Team Fortress 2, a title I've been chatting about a lot with colleagues and developers and DICE. Demos for Patapon and God of War: Chains of Olympus were stashed in the DICE schwag bag, so I'll be giving those a spin, too. Yeah, I'm late to the party. So what?

Enough reading of this drivel. Make with the comments about your weekend gaming plans, pronto. Anyone going to grab a copy of Professor Layton this Sunday?

New PS3 Bundle Coming To Australia

While this has nothing to do with a larger hard drive, Sony will be offering a new bundle in Australia that includes a 40GB PS3, second Sixaxis controller and one of the following games: Heavenly Sword, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Ratchet and Clank: Tools of Destruction or NBA 08 all for $799.95. Wow, that's looking a LOT better than the original $1000 PS3 launch price that Luke had to put up with.
New PlayStation 3 bundle confirmed by Sony [PALGN]

First a thing about the name: I didn't pick it. I think it's hilarious, but I'd never name an award after myself, it's obnoxious... and quite funny. Which is what I think the Rocky was going for. There are quite a few closet smart-asses over there. :)

So my annual pick for best video game ran in the Rocky Mountain News today and I picked Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare as the overall winner. The game beat out The Orange Box, Bioshock, Super Mario Galaxy and Uncharted: Drake's Fortune.

Here's why I decided to pick a war-time first-person shooter sequel over the splendor of a dystopian society, amazing character interaction of Uncharted and innovative design of Galaxy and Orange Box:

Double Fine Productions founder and funny man Tim Schafer isn't so much a fan of Naughty Dog's Uncharted: Drake's Fortune as he is the next-gen thermal shirt that protagonist Nathan Drake wears throughout. The Psychonauts creator compares the PlayStation 3 title's heretofore ignored technological marvel that is a casually dirty, half-tucked shirt to "an unfinished symphony." He heaps praise upon the adventure game's clothing choices and lauds a poly-cotton top that speaks volumes about its wearer.

He writes of Drake's shirt "Jet skiing, swimming, and almost kissing—nothing can dislodge or fully tuck Drake's half-casual shirt. It is draped in a purgatory state, half in, half out, never completely free." A bold and fascinating analysis from a visionary mind that anyone who has even a passing interest in video game fashion should read. Compelling stuff.

Half-tuck is the new Mullett [Double Fine]

Naughty Dog On PS3 In 3 Years

Naughty Dog is surveying the land with its chest stuck out, planning its worldwide conquest following the critically solid launch of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. Where will things be in three years, someone asks (a child, maybe). Naughty Dog inhales deeply and ponders the questions. Somewhere off in the distance, wind chimes can be heard.

..., it's anybody's guess. At Naughty Dog, we're pretty sure we should be able to see leaps between games on the PS3 that are even bigger than they were on the PS2.

Me? I'm playing Advance Wars: Days of Ruin and I couldn't be happier to have the opportunity. In fact, I'm playing it right now. I swear. It's paused. Okay, that's a lie. I'm actually taking a break from the soon to be released strategy game while posting from an incredibly pretentious, over-priced coffee shop with a smarmy name. But, I promise, once all this unfortunate blogging is done, it's back to the darker, dust filled world of Days of Ruin for me. I'm also planning for a bit of Omega Five finishing and, apparently, a go at Undertow. Good times.

Your plans? What do you have on your plate for a game-filled weekend?

The PLAYSTATION 3 is a complex yet powerful system. We could not pull off the rich, seamless world of Uncharted on any other console. Because the system is so powerful, it means that tapping into that power requires great engineering efforts. We're lucky that Naughty Dog has some of the best programmers in the industry. I can also tell you that as we're finishing Uncharted, we've found new ways of optimizing our engine to take advantage of the hardware. All of which means that, as beautiful as our game is, there is a lot more in store for the PLAYSTATION 3.

Porn Queen, Hardcore Gamer

Do I like nerds? I am a nerd. I have shelves full of books at home about vampires and werewolves. And I always have my PSP with me. Right now I'm playing Jeanne D'Arc, which is just awesome. Also, I've got a PS3 and I'm dying for the new Final Fantasy to come out. See? I told you I was a total nerd.

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

Many of you may be in store for a long, long weekend, stretching all the way into a hangover recovery-filled Tuesday. Me? I'll be working my fingers to the nub, tapping away at a keyboard for various reasons, making lots of internet happen. But in the in-between, I'll be taking breaks to play Uncharted: Drake's Fortune and Team Fortress 2. I may find some sit-down time to work my way through the Temple of the Ocean King in The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, but a week away from my consoles has inspired a good deal of motivation to spend more time with them. I might do a bit of video card shopping and processor overclocking to better the performance of my PC, which whimpers during TF2 sessions.

Other than that, I plan for total maxin' and relaxin', but hit us up with your gaming plans in the comments area, if it pleases you.

PSHome Integration Coming to Uncharted?

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, despite being a late bloomer when compared to Sony's other AAA PS3 offerings, seems to be doing its share of defining the console and exciting the masses. (I say that, of course, with no scientific measurements, but only what I've sensed from the internet. So maybe I'm full of it). Regardless, Naughty Dog's Evan Wells is looking to embed the game even deeper within the platform, integrating it with PlayStation Home as much as they can.

We aren't planning any downloadable content for Uncharted...we are planning to take advantage of whatever kind of integration into Home is possible.

Uncharted getting Home support from Sony? [play]