PS3 Fanboy

It seems everyone's getting into the Christmas spirit today. First free Santa costumes and now we find out that Insomniac are releasing some Resistance related gifts onto the PSN Store during tomorrow's update. These gifts take the form of Resistance 2 XMB themes and a new trailer for the game. Not only that but the map packs for Resistance: Fall of Man will be made available to download for free, in case you're feeling retro this Christmas.

Bryan Intihar also states that more Resistance 2 patches are on the way and that "some really cool" new features are coming to MyResistance.net. The PlayStation Blog will have more news on both of these in the near future. In the meantime, be sure to grab all these free goodies when they arrive tomorrow and check out G4's X-Play this Friday at 8pm to see Ted Price talk about his favorite games.

[Update: All gone already!]

Amazon is offering a free copy of The Dark Knight on Blu-ray and Resistance 2 Collector's Edition with the purchase of a PlayStation 3 80GB for $399.99 with free shipping. Just click here, add all three items to your cart, then enter the coupon code PSKNIGHT during checkout.

The weird thing is, some parts of the site are claiming the deal is valid for today (December 9th) only while the official rules are stating the offer is "valid 12 AM Pacific time, December 9, 2008, through 11:59 PM. Pacific time, December 10, 2008." Our suggestion? If you are interested, take advantage of this today and not wait until tomorrow to find out if the offer is still valid. The deal is right through here.

[Via Slickdeals]

Insomniac has been a terrific supporter of Sony platforms. Although not owned by Sony, the independent developer has crafted a number of hit titles for PlayStation systems, from Spyro to Ratchet & Clank to Resistance. The partnership between Sony and Insomniac has been quite beneficial for both parties -- Sony gets exclusive AAA titles to market for their platform, while Insomniac gets the resources of Sony. Unlike other publishers, Sony isn't overbearing as well: "Our relationship with Sony is one where we develop autonomously. Sony certainly gives us great feedback on the games, but we're in control of the development process, and that is a great place to be. Especially with a partner as powerful as Sony."

Being an exclusive developer has given much more attention to Insomniac's games. For example, could Resistance have done as well were it a multiplatform FPS game? "Because we were a launch title, we did get a lot of additional exposure simply because it was synonymous with the PlayStation 3. And it's hard to break into the genre; and it's cool that we were able to do it with a brand new entry."

However, the success of multiplatform titles does appear lucrative to Price. Speaking to Gamasutra, he also adds that We see games that are multiplatform succeeding wildly, and doing great, and that too is a fantastic place to be." That doesn't mean Insomniac is planning on making games on Xbox 360 any time soon -- however, as an independent studio, they're certainly free to keep that option available.

[Via 1UP]

Were you able to go to Insomniac's Community Day? Don't worry -- neither were we (California's far away!). For those that weren't able to make it, the PlayStation.blog has a new video highlighting events from the day's activities. Obviously, a lot of Resistance-themed talks were at hand, as various members of the Insomniac Games team shared their studio to their loyal fans. This outreach shows why Insomniac Games is such an incredible studio.

You should also mark November 7th on your calendars. If you are at least 17 years old and live/plan to be in the Los Angeles area on November 7, you can e-mail RSVP@insomniacgames.com to get details on a "community day," which will open the studio's doors to the public. There, you'll be able to see the house of Ratchet and hang out with the Insomniac gang. If you've never been to a development studio before, this may be your chance!

Want to get in on the Resistance 2 action? You'd better be quick! Registration for the open beta in the US closes at 4PM Pacific time today. If you miss it, however, don't be too sad. There'll be other chances to get a key, what with USA Today handing out a load of them, starting on Tuesday. No doubt other media outlets will get their hands on them too.

If you get your hand on a code make sure you use it before 5pm October 29th. At that time the download servers will be turned off. At one minute to midnight on October 30th the gameplay servers will be switched off and the beta will effectively end. After that you'll have only a few days to wait before the full game releases. Maybe you could use the time to replay Resistance 1 in preparation.

This video is probably not for those of you who are trying to stay away from spoilers. The clip shows some cinematic footage from Resistance 2 and give us an indication of where the story's headed. It seems that Nathan Hale could be going through some changes fairly imminently. What was that he said in the original teaser? 19 hours left to live? We're excited to get a proper narrative experience out of Resistance 2 and it's nice to see Hale talk, finally. Even if the lip syncing isn't perfect ...

Insomniac's CEO Ted Price knows about fun and games. However, he takes the issue of games legislation quite seriously. "I think video game legislation has no place in America," Ted Price told Shacknews in an interview. "It saddens me to see legislators stomping all over our First Amendment rights for their own specific interests."

Although they may be most famous for Ratchet & Clank, Insomniac is no stranger to creating games meant for adults. Their PS3 launch title, Resistance has sold millions of copies, with a sequel being readied for launch in November.

He believes that video games are being painted as the "scapegoat" of society's problems, much like movies, radio and even books in the past. Just like in the past, it will take some time before this attitude is rectified. "It won't be until we have more gamers running for office that this will calm down," he added. "It's something that we'll weather, because we are right, what we do is defensible under the Constitution and shouldn't be regulated by the government."

[Via GameDaily]

Some of you just can't get enough of Resistance 2. Neither can we -- so we've got ten, that's right, ten gameplay videos from the upcoming PS3 exclusive first-person-shooter for you to enjoy, right after the break. Each video highlights a different aspect of the game from multiplayer to co-op to our 150-feet friend Goliath.

This should quench your thirst for all things Resistance until the November 4th release date. Still not satiated? Check out our hands-on impressions with the both the single player campaign and the full 8-player online co-op game.

[Via Joystiq]

Looks like Project Abraham, getawarjob and America First America Only, three of the four Resistance 2 ARG sites, have been met their ends. There is nothing left on getawarjob, while Project Abraham left us a few clues. A letter in the inbox shows the Project has been stopped and moved from Alaska to Bryce Canyon facility, as well as an end letter from Dr. Aklin summarizing the work she has done. The last test subject, Kenneth Danby, was apparently released as well.

At America First America Only, a letter declaring "They've been on to us!" has been left behind. They are moving "further underground" and the last issue of their news letter, volume 7, is hidden away in their archives.

The only site remaining is SrpaNet, but we haven't had any luck figuring out the new login. Is the Resistance 2 ARG over until the release of the game in a couple of months? Or will there be more? Luckily for us, there is a Resistance wiki over at Wikia, and almost all the documents on the site can be reviewed there. Check it out.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

So you've probably already voted for your favorite Resistance 2 Collector's Edition boxart (if not, you've probably missed the boat), but until now we've had no idea what the CE will actually contain. Enter, Amazon.com, stage left. If these details are to be believed (and they're a little too specific to be doubted, at this point) then the Resistance 2 special edition will be well worth the price for any fan of the franchise.

The price, which is probably the most likely detail of the bunch to be changed down the line, is set at $79.99. For this, you'll get a bonus DVD with a behind the scenes documentary, video commentary by Insomniac and a "Twisted History" chronology video. You'll also nab yourself an exclusive multiplayer character skin, a double-sided Resistance art book and a sneak peek at the upcoming Resistance novel, "The Gathering Storm." Wait, there's an upcoming Resistance novel?

Finally, the package is rounded out with a five and a half inch tall Chimera Hybrid action figure. With a Bullseye, naturally. That's quite a lot of swag, but is it worth the extra 30 dollars? Sorry, we couldn't hear your response to that question, we're too busy preording the Resistance 2 Collector's Edition.

[Via MyResistance.net, thanks Zoibie]