Gamasutra Expert Blogs: From The 'Indie' Label To The Wii's Threat To Traditional Controllers

In highlights from Gamasutra's Expert Blogs, industry notables write about diverse topics, including the pointlessness of the "indie" label, the role of story in games compared to other media, and how the Wii may prevent future generations from adopting traditional controllers. 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 - A Boston Indie Manifesto (Scott Macmillan) Frustrated by debates over what makes a developer "indie," Scott Macmillan explains why the label is pointless, and instead encourages developers to strive not for a brand, but for more creativity in the games they make. - 3D Glasses: it’s Not “If,” It’s “How” (Neil Schneider) Continuing the ongoing debate over the viability of 3D, Neil Schneider uses survey data to argue that the stigma against 3D glasses may not be as severe as the press has made it seem, and why the glasses will be a necessity for 3D displays for the foreseeable future. - Story Transplantation - Part 1 (Josh Foreman) In part one of a series of blog entries, Josh Foreman examines the use of story in games, focusing primarily on the relationship between game stories, cinema, and other media, and examines whether simply transplanting the core elements of cinema into a game world will create a successful storytelling experience. - Is It Time To Review Reviews? (Andy Satterthwaite) Online review aggregation sites have become a key factor in the way users navigate reviews and judge games. Andy Satterthwaite explains why the Metacritic and GameRankings systems are ineffective, and instead suggests a proven system that would more accurately represent the general opinion of a game. - Wii Remote: Nintendo’s Generational Lock-In (Matt Matthews) Matt Matthews provides his own anecdotal evidence and examines the next generation of players growing up with the Wii remote, and how their acclimation to motion control may become a handicap when they try to use more traditional controllers.