Despite the spam attack plaguing the Game Informer website, the blogging community presses on and continues posting high caliber blogs for your viewing pleasure. This was also one of the biggest weeks of 2011 for the video game industry with the release of the critically acclaimed Arkham City and the highly anticipated Battlefield 3.

Blog Herding Stats:

Period Reviewed: October 17 – October 23, 2011
Number of User Blogs: 156
Number of User Bloggers: 80
Number of User Blogs Herded: 9

Upcoming Events:

FragFest Fall 2011 Event Schedule – Events 2 And 3
The release of Battlefield 3 is upon us and eyros2k is celebrating the event by hosting Frag Fest 9 this weekend. Check his latest blog for all of the details and join your fellow GI members online.

Community Blogs:

The Morality Of The Assassin Order
Discussing morality among assassins might seem a bit ironic, but this philosophical piece by Knapptime explores the fundamentals of the Assassin's Creed.

The Ten Commandments Of Gaming
Thou shalt read this brilliant and witty blog by 3D Titan offering some practical guidelines on how to be a righteous and upright gamer. Thou shalt do it now, so sayeth the Saint.

Five Franchises That Are Moving Gaming Into The Future
In a crowded market of video game development, innovation is a commodity. Read this fantastic blog by ShadowDragyn to see which titles are leading the way in development and setting the future standard.

Revisiting An Epic Adventure
With the recent release of The Ico and Shadow of the Colossus Collection by Sony, Samurai Zero shares his personal experiences with playing the epic adventure that is Shadow of the Colossus.

Playing For Keeps
An eloquently written blog by Shootist2600 that touches on the sensitive issue of successful studios developing premier titles, only to rush production and deliver shoddy or otherwise incomplete products.

Top Ten In-Game Wars
Known for his uncanny ability to create remarkable "top ten" lists, thegodofwine7 returns this week with a look at the ultimate conflicts and conquests found in the history books of our favorite games.

The Merits Of GIO User Reviews
EuphoricEnnui, in his typical snarky style, sets his crosshairs on the Game Informer user reviews and challenges those who "call themselves reviewers." Amidst all the satire, there is a valid point.

Why First Person Perspective?
There's no denying the magnitude of the First-Person Shooter (FPS) audience. Jack, The Quixotic Gamer wonders why, and then responds on paper with a few plausible explanations.

A Look Back At Gaming 2011 Part 1
As the end of the year gets closer, it's inevitable the community will start looking back over the past year to decide Game of the Year contenders. In this first part, Craigaleg provides a list of games released between January and April.

Notable Reviews:

The Batman Game We've All Been Waiting For
Arkham City is tearing up the charts with perfect to near perfect marks from everyone who has played it, including Masterassassin, who matched Game Informer's perfect score and awarded the game a 10.

Classics With Classic Problems
One post for two great games, o_JMan240_o reviews The Ico and Shadow of the Colossus Collection and provides his thoughts on each before finally awarding the game an overall score of 9.25.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution Review
An extremely detailed and thorough review of Square Enix's latest title, Lancehead255 sets the standard for what a quality review should look like. He awards the game a final score of 8.0 out of 10.

Community Podcasts, Vlogs, and More:

The Armchair Gamer Podcast Episode Five
In the latest episode of AGP, Light Gamebeast23456 discusses Batman: Arkham City, what DC heroes should get a video game makeover, and David Cage's (Heavy Rain developer) attitude towards games.

The 4th Floor Episode 24
More music, movies, and video game mayhem, TOGNick interviews MC Lars, talks about the Extra Life charity event fundraiser, and shares his thoughts on the movie of the week, Session 9.

The Indie & Mojo Show Episode 10
In what is being self-described as the raunchiest episode yet, Jeremy and Daniel discuss Arkham City, the Extra Life charity event fundraiser, and of course what burns and butters their biscuits.

Robot In The Corner Podcast: Episode 2-6
The RITC hosts chat about their most anticipated games releasing this fall, the new science-fiction horror film, The Thing, and the Netflix Instant Queue Movie Review, King Kong.

Don't forget to send your feedback, recommendations, and community events in to my personal Game Informer account located here to ensure this feature continues to provide the content you're eager to read.

Happy Blogging!

Your friendly neighborhood blogging community (October 17 - 23, 2011):
3D Titan (2), Allen, Altair Ibn-La'Ahad, Apozem (2), benderstrike64 (3), BlackHeartedWolf (3), blaze6106 (8), born4this (3), brainraider1 (3), Craigaleg, Darth Kill, DeadManWalking (7), Derreck, dragonryder (2), Drym Shyuan (2), dude the hedgehog, Dustin G, Enigma (2), Erin McDaniel, EuphoricEnnui (2), fps gnome, Forever_Feral, FrankxthexBunny, Gordon Freeman, Harbinger journey man, Hist, Icefire13, indiejones (2), Jack, The Quixotic Gamer (3), jacktheglueman (3), JBBs, Jellosnake, John Jones, Joshua Weibel, Knapptime (5), Lancehead255, Laws1, LEVON, libertydude (2), Light Gamebeast23456, Mafia Merc Mike, Matt-boy, Matthew Fugere, Max the young true gamer (2), mojomonkey12 (2), Nick, o_JMan240_o (3), Oni no Tenshi, Ownzoir, R christensen, RatchetGuy, reidloS doG, Robo LoCicero (4), Romars202129 (2), Sabrina Brixton, Samurai Zero, ShadowDragyn (2), Shootist2600 (2), Silvershine08 (4), sk8terguy97 (3), Special Agent eyros2k, stayedstar, Steve Patriot, System of a Down, The Game Store Guy (4), The Legendary Ewok King, The Midnight Mayor, the mods (2), The Most Interesting Fox in the World (4), The Stranger In Us All, thegodofwine7 (2), TheLastTactician (2), Titus212, TOGNick (2), Tony DAurio, Torimidori, triforcekeyblade, wayoverdue (4), xXBourne07Xx (6), and of course yours truly...Saint.

* Due to the significant number of spam blogs, I regret any names inadvertently left off of the list *

Video Game Quote of the Week:
"Well, kiddies, it's been more fun than a jump-suit full of weasels." – Dr. Fred, Day of the Tentacle

Editor's Note: This week's Blog Herding was accidentally posted under Jeff Marchiafava's name instead of Saint's ghost account. We have reposted it under Saint's name, but unfortunately this means we also lost the comments for the original post. Sorry about the confusion!