Blog Herding: Community Edition 09/06/12

One of the most diverse weeks of contributions from the blogging community, here you will find posts on a variety of subjects ranging from football to comic books, but each with a unique approach and definitely relating to the world of video games. Enjoy.

Blog Herding Stats:

Period Reviewed: August 27 – September 02, 2012
Number of User Blogs: 104
Number of User Bloggers: 61
Number of User Blogs Herded: 13

Community Events:

The Extra Life charity event is just over a month away and quickly approaching. If you haven't contributed yet and you're interested, it isn't too late. Contact Mojomonkey12 or Noobtubin8er for all of the details.

Community Blogs:

The Allure Of The Unknown
Is knowing too much about a particular video game detrimental to how you embrace it when it's finally released? It's certainly a unique idea, discussed in this well-received blog from Cru Hunter.

A Few Reasons Why Gearbox Software Deserves Some Love
Fans of a particular video game developer can easily provide plenty of reasons why they are fans, which is exactly what Hannibal does in his post about Gearbox Software.

My Top 10 Role-Playing Games (PC Titles)
A well organized and nicely constructed blog by Drym Shyuan listing his favorite role-playing games complete with a brief summary that you might enjoy whether you've played the games or not.

Core Online: The Future Of Gaming?
Daniel Campbell discusses the future prospects suggested by Core Online, a relatively new initiative from Square Enix that allows you to play high definition games being streamed to your web browser.

Half-Life 2 And The First-Person Shooter
A deep and provocative blog by quasiconundrum analyzing the merits associated with the First Person Shooter (FPS) genre and how some of them rich in story shouldn't be thought of as shooters.

Papa & Yo Could've Been As Big As Journey
Kate Willaert writes an expressive and thoughtful post about Papo & Yo, the debut title from the Montreal-based studio Minority Media that tackles some of life's difficulties and challenges.

Still Amazing: In Defense Of QTEs  And More
A great blog defending the techniques many games incorporate in their gameplay and are often criticized for. AshaMan3000 handles the issues with finesse and poise in a blog that's a joy to read.

The 2012 All-Video Game Football Team
Today marks the official start of the NFL season and Coach thegodofwine7 humors us with his roster for the 2012 All-Video Game team, including Nathan Drake as starting quarterback.

Comic Books And Video Games: A Shared History
Noobtubin8er explores the relationship between comic books and video games beyond just being something typically associated with being a geek. Is there really a deeper link between the two?

Making Friends, The Mass Effect Way
Can playing video games really lead to making real world friends? Most of us probably have a story indicating yes, and this blog by markus1142 shares his own personal experience of meeting new people.

Hype Makes The Game
An exceptional first blog from Mr_Tib speculating how games with a vigorous marketing campaign seem to fare better than those that don't, including a few examples to illustrate his point.

Characters That Made An Impact On My Gaming Life
Mike details the ups and downs of video game characters that had an impact on his life as a gamer. No doubt you've heard of these characters and might even feel the same way.

Why You Should Criticize Your Favorite Games
A popular but potentially controversial blog from Rabid Chipmunk questioning whether we should accept games the way they are or be vocal with our criticisms when we experience issues we don't like.

Community Reviews:

The Dark Knight Rises To New Heights
One of last year's hottest titles and one of only a handful of games to receive a perfect score from Game Informer, Doctor Apozem's review of Batman: Arkham City provides a great look at the caped crusader's latest title.

Way Of The Samurai
Craigaleg explores the open-ended world of Falana in Dust: An Elysian Tail, the newly released Xbox Live Arcade title developed by Humble Hearts. The review also includes the customary companion blog.

Community Podcasts:

The 4th Floor Season 2 Episode 8
TOGNick welcomes fellow community member Braden Fox to the podcast as the duo talk about video games, zombies versus vampires, and supporting Team GIO for the upcoming Extra Life charity event.

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 (08/27/12 – 09/02/12):
ace13; Angry Adam; Apricot; AshaMan3000 (2); BlackHeartedWolf (4); Cameron Koch; Caudex (2); Charles; Coachscorner00; Craigaleg; Cru Hunter; dadarkheart; Daniel Campbell; darkangelvxvx; DarkeonWarlord; Darth-Carbonite; Dawson Wyckoff (2); DJH (7); Drym Shyuan (4); Enigma; FAMESREVENGE; Frosty; Ghost (3); Glasses; God Of Irony (2); Hannibal (2); JakandRatchet79; JC; Jolt the Cynic (2); jordanthegamer (2); Joyful Penguin; Kate Willaert (3); lcompx (3); Luis E. Morales Falcon (2); Magnus the Historian; Marco Polo; markus1142; Mike (4); Mr_Tib (2); Noobtubin8er; OneArmedWonder; opposedcrow88; Orochi Assassin LEVON (3); Platysaur; Proprietary-Windmill (2); PudyMaster; quasiconundrum; Rabid Chipmunk; RadiantChaos; Reptar7; shadowBack; Sora Three Ben (2); sorryjzargo; Stranger; thegodofwine7 (2); TOGNick (2); wayoverdue; xking595x (3); xXBourne07Xx (2); YungDaVinci; and of course yours truly...Saint.

Video Game Quote of the Week:
"There are some things man was not meant to understand." – Boston Low, The Dig