Gamasutra Expert Blogs: From Ebert's Heroics To Making Small Good

In highlights from Gamasutra's Expert Blogs, industry notables write about diverse topics including the vagaries of NDAs, Roger Ebert's discourse heroics, and making small good. 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 official posting guidelines. Here are the top blogs for the week: This Week's Standout Expert Blogs - Roger Ebert: Hero of Videogame Discourse (Christopher Totten) In recent weeks, the whole of the video game development, criticism, and player community has been set aflame by passionate arguments trying to answer one eternal question: Is Roger Ebert art? But Christopher Totten has decided to take a slightly different approach to the debate in this post, instead asking whether Roger Ebert is the hero of video game discourse. - The Problem With Non-Disclosure Agreements (Jas Purewal) The video game industry loves non-disclosure agreements almost as much as it loves soullessly laudatory executive statements in press releases. But is that love justified? Official actual lawyer Jas Purewal discusses the dark side of NDAs. - Pre-Pwned (David Hayward) More like pre-bwned, if you know what I mean. (What I mean is that, according to David Hayward, gaming retailers might be the only ones getting "bwned," or "boned," by EA's recent practice of charging used game buyers money for content included free with new copies. "Bwned" is pronounced like "boned.") - Make Small Good (Alexander Brandon) Instead of making big bad, consider making small good. It's more practical and affordable anyway! - What We Can Glean From Lost Planet's Chaotic Multiplayer (Nick Halme) Have you ever considered what might be gleaned from Lost Planet's chaotic multiplayer? "No," you might respond. "I believe there is nothing to be gleaned." But you would be wrong. There is much to glean -- much to glean indeed. And here, Nick Halme gleans all there is to be gleaned. Glean away, my friend. Glean away. Glean glean glean glean glean.