A Kuribo's Shoe stocking. Again, why didn't I think of that.

Industry and multi-console news

• Gamasutra compiles all their best of 2007 features into one tidy package.
• Edge magazine also lists their best of 2007.
• Gamespot talks to Will Wright, Lorne Lanning and Dylan Cuthbert about game ideas they pitched but then dropped. In addition, they talk to several other famous designers about the difficulty they had pitching games that would later become exceedingly popular.
• Gamasutra has a Q&A with Castlevania series producer Koji Igarashi.
• Getting Rock Band to Canada is not going so well.
• A judge has ruled against the Romantics in their case against Activision, in which they claimed the cover of their song in Guitar Hero Rocks the 80s was too close to the original and could create confusion.
• Red Mile Entertainment has licensed Unreal Engine 3 for a Sin City game.
• The 2008 recipient of the Pioneer Award at the Game Developers Conference will be Odyssey creator Ralph Baer.
• The Half Life Saga story guide has been updated with information from Episode 2.
• Hilary Clinton tells Common Sense Media that she would support video game legislation.
• A Wisconsin senator wants to tax video games to fund a juvenile rehabilitation program.
• Racketboy lists the best multiplayer Dreamcast games.
• GameTrailers has a Devil May Cry 4 PS3 and Xbox 360 comparison video, but there's a good chance that if you notice any difference between the two at all, it's all in your head.
• TellTale games has released a short film called Sam & Max Nearly Save Christmas, rendered using their in-game engine.
• Just to end this segment on a light note, a 37 year old Tennessee man has been arrested for stabbing his uncle in the head and stomach over a video game.

PC and mobile news

New content: Team Fortress 2 patch, SunAge 1.06 patch, Darkness Within 1.01 patch, Ship Simulator 2008 1.3 patch, Nvidia GeForce drivers for Vista

• NiGHTS Into Dreams is coming to GameTap sometime in 2008.
• Hackers have posted exploits that they say can brick almost any HP or Compaq laptop.
• Players report that running Windows Media Player 11 can cut World of Warcraft load times by up to 50%.
• Nokia has announced a delay to the N-Gage First Access platform.
• Rockstar's entire game catalog is now available through IGN's Direct2Drive service.
• A Christmas version of the Crash map for Call of Duty 4 is now available for download.
• EA has released a pair of casual games in the Sims franchise on their downloadable games service Pogo. The Sims connection seems to not be much more than cheap tack-on branding.
• NCSoft is holding a series of auctions to benefit Child's Play, selling anything from signed posters to the chance to be an NPC in Tabula Rasa.

Nintendo news

New media: Smash Bros. Brawl trailer, Bomberland DS trailer, Bomberman Land Wii trailer

• Atlus is bringing DS turn-based strategy title Drone Tactics to America.
• In a little more than a year, the Wii has surpassed Gamecube total sales.
• No More Heroes has a comic book styled instruction manual.

Sony news

• Nihon Falcom is bringing PC strategy series Vantage Master to the PSP.
• PSP sales doubled in Japan last week following the release of a red version. Yes, that's all it takes.
• Unreal Tournament 3 on the PS3 has gotten its first user-created mod.
• Amazon's deal of the day is Fire Pro Wrestling Returns for $4.99.

Microsoft news

New content: Dark Messiah: Elements demo
New media: Yet another Ninja Gaiden 2 trailer

• Wednesday's Live Arcade title will be Spongebob SquarePants Underpants Slam!
• Lost Odyssey will be getting free downloadable content in Japan early next year.
• Sensible World of Soccer has been fixed and put back on Live Arcade.
• The cast of Senko no Ronde 2 has been revealed.
• A new Mass Effect novel has been announced, taking place between the first and second games. I'm not sure how they'll account for the choices the player makes towards the end of the game, unless they say "screw it" and just declare one particular path as canon.
• Amazon has Xbox Live Arcade Unplugged on sale for $7.99.