Gamasutra Member Blogs: From Fixing Racers To Paper Box Games

Author: by Staff

In highlights from Gamasutra's Member Blogs, our weblog writers examine boring driving games, the evolution of the high score, video game auteurship, and free video games in every box of paper. 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 - On driving games and the challenge of challenge (Bjorn Temte) Most driving games are flat-out boring, says blogger Bjorn Temte. He says the answer could lie in a revised reward structure.... For his effort, Bjorn will receive a lifetime subscription to Gamasutra sister publication Game Developer magazine. - Score Big With Social Gaming (Glenn White) Glenn White looks at the social opportunities presented by one of video gaming's classic elements: the high score. Leaderboards are an evolution of the arcade's high scores, but social gaming will continue to look for new ways for friends to impact each other through gameplay... - Is Auteurship Possible In Game Development? (John Mawhorter) John Mawhorter asks four questions about the idea of auteurship in video games -- the main query being whether or not it's possible at all, given the many facets of game creation. - Where Is Our Pitchfork? (Adam Bishop) The indie game scene and indie rock scene have similarities, from a DIY attitude to a desire to think outside of the status quo. But while indie rock has a taste-maker like the website Pitchfork, indie games don't really have such a site, says Adam Bishop. - Everyone Wants Games! (Randell Trulson) When a paper company had an idea to boost sales through a video game pack-in with every box, blogger Randall Trulson was there to pitch some ideas. He shares them here...