Blog Herding: Community Edition 08/01/13

There's been a lot of discussion among readers about the fate of Blog Herding recently, and while the future is uncertain, that shouldn't stop you from enjoying another week of quality content from the community. Enjoy.

Blog Herding Stats:

Period Reviewed: July 22 – July 28, 2013
Number of User Blogs: 93
Number of User Bloggers: 48
Number of User Blogs Herded: 13

Community Events:

Extra Life 2013 – Team GIO Update #1
Zachary Pligge provides an update on the preparations for the Extra Life charity event coming up in November. See how many people signed up already and how many donations have been made.

Community Blogs:

What Is Next Generation Multiplayer?
With Sony and Microsoft on the precipice of releasing their next generation consoles, LetMeGetToACheckpoint considers what it might mean for the future of multiplayer gaming.

Top Ten Kingdom Hearts Characters
Kingdom Hearts has amassed a cult-like following, and with news of a sequel being confirmed, fans of the game are excited. The Destroyer reminds us of some of the best characters from the series.

Inside The Mind Of A Completionist
Marco Polo explores the behavior associated with gamers who attempt to finish a game while pursuing all of the achievements, and then offers an explanation why he thinks some strive for perfection.

"Citizen Game": The Peril Of Comparing Games To Film
A provocative blog published by Desert Rat discussing the comparisons of The Last of Us to Citizen Kane being made by some and why he doesn't necessarily think it's a rational association.

Stopping To Savor The Story
The importance of a game's story seems to be a hot topic lately. Oni no Tenshi is the latest to tackle the subject, which she does with the finesse and charm you've come to enjoy from her blogs.

Calling All Superheroes! (And Villains?)
Not all gamers are also interested in comic books – but a lot of them are. RFXRage mentions a number of comic book-inspired video games and some characters he'd like to see featured in a game.

How Upset Should Gamers Be About Spoilers?
Another of Hist's clever approaches to blogging about issues on his mind, this time tackling the matter of spoilers and what the statute of limitations on not revealing sensitive information about a game is.

Five Accessible Sleeper Franchises
While accessibility concerns might not be an issue for everyone, they are for many. Josh Straub does a great job listing some of the more accessible games from the past and present.

Nintendo Saved Me From My Achievement/Trophy Addiction
Mike Presler shares an interesting perspective on achievements and his personal experience with how the Wii U delivered him from the addiction of trying to obtain all the trophies for each game he played.

Can You Feel The Music In The Air?
You may recall a few weeks ago when it was mentioned how video game soundtracks are a popular topic around here. Well, this week Tim "Fluff" Gruver takes a crack at sharing his favorites.

Top 10 Licensed Games
A licensed game is one based on an existing property (usually a movie, television show, or comic book) and in his latest top ten list, thegodofwine7 shares his favorites.

My Top Ten Video Game Siblings
Having posted blogs on the best mother and father figures from video games, Eric Watson now focuses on his favorite sibling relations. Do you think Mario and Luigi make the list? Read and find out.

Why Diversity In Video Games Matters
Saturday Morning Replay muses about the significance of diversity in video games, while providing a number of reasons why it is important to gamers. Join the discussion and voice your opinion.

Community Reviews:

The Walking Dead: 400 Days DLC
A detailed analysis of the latest Walking Dead title from Telltale Games, and despite not being a direct sequel to last year's huge hit, it is billeted as an additional episode to merge the original with the sequel.

Castlevania: Lords Of Shadow – Mirror Of Fate Review
A sequel to the reboot of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, Mirror of Fate was considered by many to be a mediocre game for the series. Buddy Acker's review is a bit more critical of the game.

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 (07/22/13 – 07/28/13):
Alex; alex720; alphaomegax3; Anthony D'Elia; AshaMan3000 (2); Blue blood outbreak; born4this; caniac96; Chelsea Pruitt (2); codforlife (5); Cyndaquill; deadpoolsdefender; demax51 (2); Desert Rat; Elgarta (4); ElGato (2); Epic Professor (2); Eric Watson; Fluff Turkey; haitian88; Hist (2); Irwin529; Jeremy Sturgill; Joe; Josh Straub; Juanolo (3); Kid Ica; LetMeGetToACheckpoint; lovemeorshootme; Marco Polo; Matt Akers; Matt-boy; Mike Presler; NO MAN (2); Noobtubin8er; Oni no Tenshi; Paradigmthefallen (7); Redguard Assassin; RFXRage; robotprincessbubblegum; Saturday Morning Replay (7); StonedMagician (2); The Destroyer (7); thegodofwine7; Tim Gruver (7); Ucantfindme; Volt Devilray; and xl9 (5).

Video Game Archives – Quote of the Week:
"I originally wanted to make movies and novels, but I just couldn't do it..." – Hideo Kojima