y" for some of the popular female game characters. Taking a step in the other direction, Ars Technica is an exceptional source for more mature readers, featuring insightful and analytical reviews of the latest games. While the reviews are some of the best-written in gaming journalism, the writers choose not to use a simple scoring system when rating games, instead requiring readers to trudge through lengthy articles to get to the bottom line. IGN uses an effective design layout to highlight the most popular games and topics of the day, giving the site a dynamic feel from day to day. The most frustrating aspect of the structure of the site is the overwhelming amount of advertisements. GamesRadar is designed with the young adult male as its target audience with edgy articles and features aimed for the hardcore gamer. Unfortunately, the busy homepage bears resemblance to crowded Myspace pages of teenagers. Playstation.Blog is a corporate-sponsored blog that delivers first-hand news from Sony Computer Entertainment on the entire line-up of their Playstation family of hardware and software. Because the blog is designed and operated by Sony, they have a strong control over the content, resulting in a rather narrow viewpoint. Gametrailers is the one-stop site for video-related media for games. Owned by MTV, Gametrailers often receives exclusive media to promote the industry's most anticipated games. However, everything is driven by video, requiring people to have speakers/headphones and a speedy internet connection to receive content. The gaming section of Digg is an excellent resource to find the most popular issues in gaming, seeing as users submit and rate each topic. The topics that receive the most attention find a home on the front page, but each feature is only a link to an interesting article found elsewhere on the web, with no original content to be found. Finally, VGChartz is a vital resource to find sales numbers of both hardware and software, with an extensive library of games. The rating system is governed by users, and due to the lack of credibility, game reviews are entirely subjective on this site.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Exploring Further: 10 Additional Websites from the Interactive Realm
In continuation of my previous post in which I explored various gaming-related websites, I will further develop the linkroll by citing ten additional resources. First off is Giant Bomb, a game reviews and news blog with essential information and an excellent, simple design to deliver it. While the feature set is particularly rich, with videos, podcasts and RSS feeds to keep the reader in the know, the back-catalog is rather limited with the site having just launched a few months prior. Next is G4's X-Play, a site that takes the news and features approach of similar blogs, yet focuses more on building a community around the most recent topics with the use of forums, polls, and live TV chat to encourage interaction among gamers. Unfortunately, with so many options to explore, the site layout can feel quite overwhelming at times. GameDaily takes one of the core aspects of games, cheat codes, and makes it very easy for the player to secure the desired information right from the home page. Unfortunately, the site sometimes features rather immature headlines, such as "Babe of the Day" for some of the popular female game characters. Taking a step in the other direction, Ars Technica is an exceptional source for more mature readers, featuring insightful and analytical reviews of the latest games. While the reviews are some of the best-written in gaming journalism, the writers choose not to use a simple scoring system when rating games, instead requiring readers to trudge through lengthy articles to get to the bottom line. IGN uses an effective design layout to highlight the most popular games and topics of the day, giving the site a dynamic feel from day to day. The most frustrating aspect of the structure of the site is the overwhelming amount of advertisements. GamesRadar is designed with the young adult male as its target audience with edgy articles and features aimed for the hardcore gamer. Unfortunately, the busy homepage bears resemblance to crowded Myspace pages of teenagers. Playstation.Blog is a corporate-sponsored blog that delivers first-hand news from Sony Computer Entertainment on the entire line-up of their Playstation family of hardware and software. Because the blog is designed and operated by Sony, they have a strong control over the content, resulting in a rather narrow viewpoint. Gametrailers is the one-stop site for video-related media for games. Owned by MTV, Gametrailers often receives exclusive media to promote the industry's most anticipated games. However, everything is driven by video, requiring people to have speakers/headphones and a speedy internet connection to receive content. The gaming section of Digg is an excellent resource to find the most popular issues in gaming, seeing as users submit and rate each topic. The topics that receive the most attention find a home on the front page, but each feature is only a link to an interesting article found elsewhere on the web, with no original content to be found. Finally, VGChartz is a vital resource to find sales numbers of both hardware and software, with an extensive library of games. The rating system is governed by users, and due to the lack of credibility, game reviews are entirely subjective on this site.
y" for some of the popular female game characters. Taking a step in the other direction, Ars Technica is an exceptional source for more mature readers, featuring insightful and analytical reviews of the latest games. While the reviews are some of the best-written in gaming journalism, the writers choose not to use a simple scoring system when rating games, instead requiring readers to trudge through lengthy articles to get to the bottom line. IGN uses an effective design layout to highlight the most popular games and topics of the day, giving the site a dynamic feel from day to day. The most frustrating aspect of the structure of the site is the overwhelming amount of advertisements. GamesRadar is designed with the young adult male as its target audience with edgy articles and features aimed for the hardcore gamer. Unfortunately, the busy homepage bears resemblance to crowded Myspace pages of teenagers. Playstation.Blog is a corporate-sponsored blog that delivers first-hand news from Sony Computer Entertainment on the entire line-up of their Playstation family of hardware and software. Because the blog is designed and operated by Sony, they have a strong control over the content, resulting in a rather narrow viewpoint. Gametrailers is the one-stop site for video-related media for games. Owned by MTV, Gametrailers often receives exclusive media to promote the industry's most anticipated games. However, everything is driven by video, requiring people to have speakers/headphones and a speedy internet connection to receive content. The gaming section of Digg is an excellent resource to find the most popular issues in gaming, seeing as users submit and rate each topic. The topics that receive the most attention find a home on the front page, but each feature is only a link to an interesting article found elsewhere on the web, with no original content to be found. Finally, VGChartz is a vital resource to find sales numbers of both hardware and software, with an extensive library of games. The rating system is governed by users, and due to the lack of credibility, game reviews are entirely subjective on this site.
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1 comment:
QGR,
I have to admit--you've managed to concisely critique the websites and blogs in your linkroll to near perfection. Job well done on a such a feat. Having prior knowledge of most of your links, I understand quite well how you have come to summarize each one. With some minor improvements, you will enhance the quality of your post even further. Many of those websites already include forums, but the blog aspect is lacking. If anything, you can try to include more blogs. Also, the post needs fluidity, at the moment feeling like a list of reviews. If possible, find a way to connect your links by comparing the similarities and differences between them. I recommend you try to include a closing thought too. A little work will make this post that much better. Job well done!
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