Gamasutra Member Blogs: From Chinese MMOs To A Choice To Kill

Author: by Staff

In highlights from Gamasutra's Member Blogs, our bloggers write about transmedia games, firsthand observations of the Chinese MMO market and the choice to kill or incapacitate enemies. Member Blogs can be maintained by any registered Gamasutra user, while invitation-only Expert Blogs -- also highlighted weekly -- are written by selected development professionals. Our favorite blog post of the week will earn its author a lifetime subscription to Gamasutra's sister publication, Game Developer magazine. (All magazine recipients outside of the United States or Canada will receive lifetime electronic subscriptions.) We hope that our blog sections can provide useful and interesting viewpoints on our industry. For more information, check out the official posting guidelines. Here are the top member blogs for the week: This Week's Standout Member Blogs - To Kill Or Not To Kill part 1 (Anjin Anhut) Anjin Anhut says that making the player have to decide whether to incapacitate an enemy or outright kill him “can add an interesting layer of depth to the gameplay and can be of strong support for the narration.” For his effort, Anjin will receive a lifetime subscription to Gamasutra sister publication Game Developer magazine. - Skill, Luck, Wonder, Puzzle, Story -- What Neurochemical Rewards Attract What Audience? (Shava Nerad) Shava Nerad is back again, this time saying that there are five different kinds of achievements: skill, luck, puzzles, gifting, stories, false/illusory. Click through to see what she means. - Jack Of All Trades: Can 'platform-agnostic IPs' ever work? (Xander Markham) Xander Markham writes: “Syfy President Dave Howe told Gamasutra that he wants to expand his channel's best shows into the gaming medium. But can so-called 'platform agnostic IPs' ever produce faithful, creatively satisfying results and what are the challenges facing them?” - Similarities Between Social Interaction in Online Gaming and Social Media (Windi Tapawan) Windi Tapawan said that she found it easy to apply social “skills” she learned in World of Warcraft to Facebook. Here she draws similarities between Blizzard’s MMORPG and the massive social gaming network. - The China MMO Market - Tapping the China Pie (Andrew Esswein) Andrew Esswein is an American expat living in China. Here, he gives an intriguing perspective on the online gaming habits of the Chinese population.