Gamasutra Expert Blogs: From Classic Level Design To Overpopulated MMOs

[In highlights from Gamasutra's Expert Blogs, industry notables write about diverse topics, including level design analysis for Super Mario Bros. 3 and why MMOs feature too many NPCs.] In our weekly Best of Expert Blogs column, we showcase notable pieces of writing from members of the game development community who maintain Expert Blogs on Gamasutra. Member Blogs -- also highlighted weekly -- can be maintained by any registered Gamasutra user, while the invitation-only Expert Blogs are written by development professionals with a wealth of experience to share. We hope that both sections can provide useful and interesting viewpoints on our industry. For more information about the blogs, check out the latest official posting guidelines. Here are the top blogs for the week: This Week's Standout Expert Blogs - Super Mario Bros. 3 Level Design Lessons, Part 2 (Radek Koncewicz) In part two in a series of blog posts, Radek Koncewicz breaks down the level design of a number of stages from Super Mario Bros. 3. - The Performance Of Play 2: The Sequel (Jason VandenBerghe) Responding to a number of criticisms regarding a recent blog post, Jason VandenBerghe elaborates on his explanation of the "performance of play." - Daily iPhone App Sales Trends (William Volk) William Volk examines sales metrics for iOS titles, explaining how to best read this data and identify market trends and the causal elements behind sales fluctuations. - Monetizing Griefing - The Next Stage In Social Gaming (Robert Boyd) Looking at the evolving use of monetization in social games, Robert Boyd imagines a scenario in which companies charge money to enable griefing and attract new customers. - The MMO With A Thousand Faces (Joao Beraldo) Joao Beraldo considers the current state of MMOs, and wonders whether online games with fewer NPCs would allow for more cohesive storytelling.