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  • Weekly Report 2010

    We didn’t have too many new features and enhancements over the past week, but they are bound to be happening this year. We do have news about the GameSpotter of the Year and other happenings in the community worth mentioning. Let’s get started!

    Announcements

    GameSpotter of the Year Reveal
    The GameSpotter of the Year honor was put in place to recognize one member spotlight who was already featured in 2009. As mentioned in the tip of the week last year, users were not always chosen based on flagging their blogs with the editorial dropdown menu. We occasionally pulled member spotlights based on the rotation avatars on the forums page. So, some of these member spotlights were noticed based on pure luck!

    SolidTy took the lead on votes made by GameSpot members, but what made his new title of GameSpotter of the Year was how much involvement he has in the System Wars forum. He already has been handed the titles of System Wars King, System Wars Hero, and System Wars Hippy Manticore, which makes us think he was a solid choice. Congrats once again to SolidTy!

    Game Night Recommendations
    Game Nights will make a return as soon as the editorial staff confirms dates and the games they would like to play. You can start by recommending the games you would like to play. Also let me know which staff members you would like to play with or against.

    Member Spotlight

    This week’s member spotlight goes to Paul_GameFury for his blog about GameSpot’s Game of the Year. Paul_GameFury shares his opinion about the game of the year not being based on popular votes, so much that I think he was eavesdropping during the debates the GameSpot staff had behind closed doors! You can check out his blog to find out more about what he has to say, including his original game of the year.

    Blog Bunker

    - Doctor-McNinja shares his thoughts on secondhand games.
    - c_rake shares thoughts about the Nintendo DS motion control.
    - Senor_T_Dub asks whether or not level grinding is worth the effort.
    - GamingQueen explores the evolution of the turn-based battle system.
    - masterpinky2000 considers when is the best time for games to be difficult to play.
    - Banjo_Jake112 shares his Plants vs. Zombies game impressions.
    - GameBlender and wonderboy_46 share their top 2009 games.
    - AK_the_Twilight and ehsan8888 take a look at the last decade of gaming.
    - archenemy4, jazzfan4, Scientist8, Gigastormz, and RealKilla_789 share their anticipated games of 2010.

    Randomness

    - User reviews and videos will be added in the next weekly report. Review emblems need to be cleaned up, and there weren’t any outstanding user videos to feature.
    - Subyman and evrdayblues were added to the Soapbox feature.

    Tip of the Week

    For this week’s tip, let’s remind ourselves about what we were reminded in last year’s tip of the week. Consider spicing up our profiles! Some of you have outdated signatures and About Me pages and even Christmas avatars that should be updated. Thanks again for some of the tips, GabuEx.

  • Blog Backlog

    Here is a backlog of blogs worthy of checking out since the last weekly report.

    - The Stagnation of MMORPGs by subyman
    - GH: Van Halen - Neversoft Phones It In by polsci1503
    - Medal of Honor- Doomed to Fail? by jrabbit99
    - The Final Fantasy VIII Logs by MrCHUP0N
    - Gamespotter of the year? plus a funny video by Wootex
    - Rewarding Bad Behavior by TurtlePerson2
    - 10 things I wish my PSP could do by aerobie
    - Most Anticipated Games of 2010! by PSFreak1
    - Greatest Games of the Decade Part 2 by spinoff
    - The wide world of reviews by GabuEx
    - Do exercise videogames really work? by Safad0
    - Tips for your system wars thread by sonicare
    - Happy gaming guide by evrdayblues
    - Gaming on a Budget by gdw0908
    - Why Competitive Gaming Is In Good Hands by dtujd2
    - Ten things learned while playing the Call of Duty series online by rando22

    Check back in the next day or so for the latest community happenings that will be included in the first weekly report of the year!

  • GameSpotter of 2009

    Announcements

    The GameSpotter of 2009 honor goes to SolidTy with 68 votes. He will be featured in the member spotlight until a new person is chosen this coming Friday.

    Each vote gives the following users 1,000 points toward their profile level too! Those who voted for a GameSpotter of the year also received 5,000 points for taking the time to participate in this little activity.

    68000 SolidTy
    42000 david_lck
    38000 TreyoftheDead
    32000 Garrison_Ford
    32000 Safad0
    30000 Wootex
    26000 buft
    20000 PixelHunter
    18000 GameBlender
    12000 ClayMeow
    12000 DouglasBuffone
    12000 Setho10
    10000 Bozanimal
    10000 Sandpiper121PP
    8000 bacchus2
    8000 laughlyn12
    8000 Brianfox1
    6000 Drfish62
    6000 sequekhan
    6000 Tyzwain
    4000 AnelZukic
    4000 Earththatwas
    4000 ehsan8888
    4000 ErrolJames
    4000 finalcross
    4000 masterpinky2000
    4000 Pooyanh
    4000 Arcticcop
    2000 rykh

    Let's make your 2010 blogs count! Make sure your About Me pages have text even if it isn’t much. When users don't have an About Me page filled out, they are less likely to be featured because the member spotlight on the forums page highlights this information.

    If you want to know what attracts staff to your blogs, read about how to get featured in the Soapbox, because it describes how the member spotlights are chosen.

    On a side note, I plan to do some weeding out of Soapbox users in a couple of weeks. If you have the Soapbox emblem in your profile, check to see when you last flagged an editorial blog. If it is has been more than a year since you flagged an editorial blog, it’s highly likely your Soapbox access and emblem will expire.

    For those of you who have asked about an emblem for this activity, I have contacted the design staff to see if they have any time to create an emblem or two. I can't make any promises just yet. If they do get around to creating an emblem, it won't be ready for at least two weeks. I'll see if I can get a confirmation about this soon. Happy 2010!

  • Additional DLC Coverage!

    You go to the store. You buy a game. You go home. You put it in your system. You play. That’s how it used to be. But not anymore. And we get it. Games don’t start or end with the game you buy in a store. Maybe you download a demo before it’s released, to see if the game lives up to the hype. Or you see an expansion pack for a game you love but you want to learn about it before you shell out your cash.

    Earlier this year, we gave GameSpot members access to review downloadable content add-on packs. We now think it would be best to offer GameSpot members a chance to rate and review even further coverage that includes demos, expansions, songs, map packs, and much more!

    Starting this week, GameSpot is expanding its coverage and product catalog to as many pieces of downloadable content (DLC) as we can. Whether it’s original downloadable games for the PlayStation 3, downloadable songs for an Xbox 360 game, or a classic on the Wii Virtual Console, you can browse, research, and discuss it all.

    GameSpot editors will continue to review some of the hottest expansion packs and other content, but more importantly, we’re letting you have your say. Think Fallout 3’s Brotherhood of Steel is awesome? Review it for your fellow GameSpotters. Think Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Horse Armor is not worth the money or the hard drive space? Tell them that, too.

    We’ve created hubs for Xbox Live, PlayStation Network, and Wii Shop. We’ve also created a DLC & Expansions tab on a game’s main page that links to descriptions and reviews for each item, like the demo for Lost Planet 2 or Killzone 2 map packs.

    So when you’re playing that new game over the holidays and wondering “What else can I do with this?” all you have to do is check out GameSpot, and you’ll know the answer. Enjoy!

  • Turned On the Lights!

    We’ve gotten in touch with scientists who did some science and crunched some numbers to find that most people prefer the light to stumbling around in the dark. You’ll have to trust us on this one--the math’s pretty complex.

    These two themes have been available since 2004, and we decided to enter 2010 with the light theme, while maintaining everyone’s ability to use the dark theme if that’s their preference. If you’ve ever used our handy theme selector icons on the right side of the masthead, you won’t notice any change. If you haven’t set this site option before, and you prefer the dark theme, just click on the icon with the dark background and the white “a” to make that switch.

    Here’s a handy screenshot of what you should be looking for:

  • Weekly Report: Gift Exchanging!

    Announcements

    Raptr Integration
    GameSpot has recently partnered with Raptr. Check the official news for the scoop. I’ll share more information as soon as it becomes available.

    Vote for the GameSpotter of 2009!
    Those who were member spotlights over the past year caught our attention with their impressive blogs, and we have plans to recognize one of them with some schwag. Go make a difference by voting for the blogger who makes you smile.

    Left 4 Dead 2 Game Night
    The last game night of the year will be Left for Dead 2. For details about the GameSpot UK game night held on December 14, check their official thread.

    Best of 2009 Forum Opens
    The Best of 2009 forum is now open for discussion. Let’s celebrate the Best of 2009 feature by guessing the categories we’ll have this year!

    TOTS Trivia Winners
    The Today on the Spot trivia winners of the Tales of Monkey Island codes, World of Warcraft books, and Zelda book have been announced.

    Downloadable Content Revamp
    The word on the street is that we’re going to be adding a downloadable content filter to show you all what is an add-on. I’ll update the section as more information becomes available.

    Member Spotlight

    The last member spotlight of the year goes to GameBlender for his art illustration of the Holiday Gift Guide. While GameBlender does explain that he isn’t good at drawing, he does an amazing job of illustrating his opinions through humor.

    Miscellaneous

    - The HotSpot winners: i_b_ray, chicknfeet, Capt_Ventris, beomonkey, and RoganSarine.
    - Recommend GameSpot user reviews and video reviews: I’m interested in seeing more video reviews to grant the emblem. Start your collection of awesome video reviews and get recognized by simply posting in the User Reviews Recommendation thread!
    - Unofficial Modern Warfare 2 Competition If you love playing this game and would be interested in participating in a little competition, drop by GameSpot’s game night union for details.

    Tip of the Week

    The Gamespot.com default theme will be changing from dark to light. If you’re not accustomed to the light theme, just click the dark "a" listed on all GameSpot pages. If you have been using the dark theme for years though, I highly recommend trying to view the site for a couple of days with the light theme. If you have been using the light theme for all of these years why n ot change to the dark theme? Since I have always used the dark theme I am forcing myself to use the light theme from now until the end of the week. Maybe I can make a chance to see the site differently in 2010!

    -----

    This is the last weekly report we’ll have for the year. Check back for updates about the DLC filter and Raptr! Happy Holidays!

  • Vote for the GameSpotter of the Year!

    We’re going to shake things up a bit this year. The users below have been noticed by staff because they have posted fascinating blogs during the past year. With your help, we would like to recognize one of them as the GameSpotter of 2009!

    GameSpot members have the opportunity to vote for one of the member spotlight mentions below. The votes are counted for the remainder of the month, and the GameSpotter of 2009 will be announced in early January.

    What’s at stake? I’m going to raid GameSpot editorial desks with a Nerf gun to demand schwag from each of them! If the Nerf gun doesn’t intimidate them, I’ll get a water gun! Who knows what kind of goodies I’ll collect. Shh, don’t tell them about this plan. I need to get them when they don’t expect to get the best schwag!

    How to Vote:

    1) Review the list of usernames below. Check to see the reason that the user was the member spotlight and consider if that user is actively blogging!

    2) Send a private message to our staff account. In your message, add the username in the subject field and add a period in the message field. Here is an example of what the private message should look like before you send it to our staff.

    Please don’t add anything but the username in the subject title field so we can insert your username and the person you voted for into a spreadsheet.

    Note: The 2009 member spotlights are not eligible to vote in this little activity, but they can notify their friends about it.

    Please check each user profile to see if the user is an active contributor and check to see why the user received the member spotlight.

    Here are the member spotlights of 2009!

    - bacchus2* [01/05/09]
    - Wootex* [01/13/09]
    - finalcross* [01/20/09]
    - im-a-roustabout* [01/26/09]
    - jsmoke03* [02/02/09]
    - Sandpiper121PP* [02/09/09]
    - TreyoftheDead [02/17/09]
    - Arcticcop [02/23/09]
    - EarthThatWas [03/03/09]
    - PixelHunter** [03/09/09]
    - AnelZukic [03/17/09]
    - DouglasBuffone [03/23/09]
    - Whoozwah [03/31/09]
    - Sequekhan [04/13/09]
    - Bozanimal [05/05/09]
    - Spoogei [05/11/09]
    - laughlyn12 [05/20/09]
    - ehsan8888 [05/29/09]
    - ClayMeow [06/11/09]
    - Drfish62 [07/06/09]
    - Safad0 [07/15/09]
    - EE2lemmonhead [07/22/09]
    - Sieg6529 [07/27/09]
    - masterpinky2000 [08/03/09]
    - ErrolJames [08/11/09]
    - Samson089 [08/17/09]
    - david_lck [08/24/09]
    - rykh [09/11/09]
    - Garrison_Ford [09/18/09]
    - Pooyanh [09/27/09]
    - Brianfox1 [10/05/09]
    - dtujd2 [10/12/09 ]
    - SolidTy [10/16/09]
    - Tyzwain [10/30/09]
    - Setho10 [11/16/09]
    - buft [12/04/09]
    - GameBlender [12/11/09]

    Voting ends January 2, 2010!

    *Note: During January and February, the member spotlights were labeled as the "blog of the week" or "GameSpotter of the week."

    **Additional note: PixelHunter is formerly known as EAjack.

    Moroes and Spazzx625 are 2009 member spotlights who have asked to be excluded in this activity to increase the chances for other GameSpot members.

  • Weekly Report: Guacamole!

    Announcements

    Best of 2009 Coming Soon!
    The Best of 2009 games are about to be revealed soon. Get ready to place your vote in this interactive feature in the coming week!

    James Cameron's Avatar Weapon Pack Codes
    For those of you who have the James Cameron's Avatar game, we now have weapon pack downloadable content codes available for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions. The weapon packs include five exclusive weapons.

    Game Night Update
    The last US Staff Game Night for the year will be held on December 15 at 4:30 p.m. PT. The game will be Left 4 Dead 2 on a variety of platforms. The GameSpot UK game night has been rescheduled to December 14th 7pm GMT. Stay tuned for further details about both game nights. Speaking of GS UK game nights, they tracked the scores for those who participated. Drop by the game night forum to check out the top UK Modern Warfare 2 players!

    Member Spotlight

    This week’s member spotlight goes to buft for his research about speed runner aficionados. Buft shares his report about communities that work toward player skill and glitch exploiting.

    Featured User Videos

    - Lego Star May Cry by hoodedpython
    - Leliana's Song by topsemag55

    Staff Fingerprints

    - HarlockJC posted in Ask GameSpot! Forum about DDR games.
    - Shaun McInnis exposed a dirty secret about Borderlands.
    - CyleM has posted in Off-Topic about what everyone does outside video games. What kind of things do you enjoy doing outside games?

    Blog Bunker

    - TheKungFool posted a blog entitled The PlayStation2: A Retrospective.
    - Doctor-McNinja shares a flashback about controllers.
    - AK_the_Twilight sheds some light on The Great Mighty Poo.
    - Ghanima_A reveals a variety of stories about how her kids are game addicts.
    - WTA2k5 shares his impressions about the ending of Dragon Age (SPOILERS)
    - DKant discusses the GameSpot Australia feature entitled Black or White about morality in games.

    Miscellaneous Drawer

    - No user reviews for this week.
    - Member Spotlight of the year will be happening soon. Keep an eye out for the scoop!
    - TheHotSpot Homework emblem was granted to zestolime, forumrider23, DJJC2k3, whynotdairy, Caddy06_88, and binggeba.

    Tip of the Week

    This week’s tip is brought to you by MrChupon! Read his advice about what kinds of things to report for abuse so that we can keep the user reviews on the gamespaces worth reading!

  • James Cameron's Avatar Weapon Pack Codes

    For those of you who have the James Cameron's Avatar game, we now have weapon pack downloadable content codes available for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions. The weapon packs include five exclusive weapons.

    Grab your free code and lock and load!

  • Weekly Report: Mini Update

    Announcements

    Recruiting Teams & Guilds
    The Union Recruitment forum now has a dedicated thread for those of you who have a team or guild looking for members. Those posting in the thread need to be active GameSpot members. Please read the instructions in the thread to see if you are eligible.

    Child’s Play Contributors
    The HotSpot staff would like to give a big thanks to the following Child’s Play contributors:

    withoutdoors
    Amozarte
    Simmo75
    Poetsoul
    TheCarl
    K3vinkha0S
    michaelusso
    Pigswell
    Brawl_96
    True_Avery
    Uglykidspike

    Unionites

    - DBGU is hosting an RPG Reviewer of the Month Contest. Members are asked to review one or more favorite RPG games (one review per game, but one person can write as many reviews as he or she wants). The person who writes the best review will be declared "Member of the Month" and will be awarded a special MOTM signature.

    Blog Bunker

    - ChaosRyder665 posts a thankful blog on Thanksgiving day.
    - Soulreavercross made it to GameSpot level 64!
    - Dan_Lero has posted round 2 of Guess That Game Hero.
    - Psycho-Hazard has posted his list of the top weapons in games.
    - Samson089 has a top 10 stress relievers game list.
    - Doctor-McNinja takes the time to remember Pandemic Studios.

    Misc. Drawer

    - Saving the user videos, member spotlight, user videos, and the tip of the week for this Friday.

  • Weekly Report: Report Cards!

    Announcements

    Bayonetta Xbox 360 Demo!
    We have a couple more early access demo keys for US registrants.

    Betas Giveaways
    Battlefield Bad Company 2 and Command & Conquer 4 keys are still available!

    Member Spotlight Reward
    Keep an eye out for the next community report because I plan to share details about a contribution reward I’ll be handing out to one member spotlight winner.

    Member Spotlight

    This week’s member spotlight goes to Spazzx625 for creating report cards for consoles. Spazzx625 covers the hardware, game selection, multiplayer experience, upcoming trends, and overall impression. With the blog only being up for a little over a day, 119 comments have already been posted! Drop by the blog to join in on the discussion!

    User Videos

    Featured Videos
    - Creative Nintendo Miis (vgm007) includes Star Trek, Star Wars, and Obama.
    - GTA4 Freestyle (Crimsader) uses the motorcycle
    Honorable mentions.
    - inFamous Electrified Tribute (scayzie_cell06) shares cutscenes and gameplay.
    - MW2 Training SpeedRun (Printul_Noptii) uses the Beretta M9 handgun only.
    - MW2 Alpha Pit Speedrun (HydraRizlim) in 0.33.45 seconds.

    User Reviews

    - Audiosurf (PC) Aberinkulas
    - Dragon Age: Origins (PS3) 3KindgomsRandy
    - Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier (Platform) 3KindgomsRandy
    - Marvel vs. Capcom 2 (PS2) ebbderelict
    - Game Name (X360) NeonNinja
    - New Play Control! Pikmin (Wii) bacchus2
    - Pariah (PC) Cunhao
    - Saw (PC) dark_being
    - Sly 2: Band of Thieves (PS2) c_rake
    - The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (X360) khoofia_pika
    - Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PS3) Setho10
    - We Love Katamari (PS2) AK_the_Twilight

    The Trenches

    - SciFiCat posted a discussion thread about how PC and video game collectors might not get much out of games that have been purchased digitally along with downloadable content. Join in!
    - Duckman5 is considering building a gaming PC, but his friend told him not to because he is a console gamer.
    - ag3ntz3rox0x has asked Aion players what their opinion is about the game. Something to pass the time until GameSpot posts the review of the game.

    Staff Fingerprints

    - Justin Calvert is in the process of getting the review complete for Aion and has been responding to private messages, e-mails, and forum discussions. To get the latest update, check out the thread he responded to in the PC and Mac game board.
    - Jody Robinson (me!) is looking for recommendations on keeping hands warmer this year. Keyboards, warming pads, pocket heaters, and wool gloves have been the latest recommendations. Share your stories.
    - Sophia Tong was influenced by all of you and posted a tagged blog. If you feel sorry for her for being easily influenced, go post a comment in her blog.

    Miscellaneous Drawer

    - The trenches will be the new section for forum disc.
    - Skipped blogs this week and will share the ones I found in the next report.

    Tip of the Week

    This week’s tip is about our winter 2009 moderator draft. In mid-October, we invited a variety of GameSpot users to try out for being a volunteer moderator. When new moderators comes on board, they have limited access to the moderation features and go through a 60-day probation phase. There are many pieces to the process, which can be found in the latest post of the Moderator Collective Union. Without further ado, introducing…the Winter 2009 Modlings!

    rragnaar is a five-year registrant who can often be found in the General Games Discussion forum. HarlockJC and Hallenbeck77 are four-year registrants who are often found in the System Wars forum. -Sun_Tzu- is a three-year registrant who can be found in the Off-Topic forum. ttobba07 is a five-year registrant who can be found in both Off-Topic and PC Hardware forum. gmax is a five-year registrant who is often found helping others troubleshoot in the Technical Support forum. Sandpiper121PP is a four-year registrant who can be found in many gamespace forums. Wasdie is old school as it gets with nearly eight years!

    If you’re interested in getting to know them better, I also share their moderation history backgrounds in the Moderator Collective Union.

    ----------
    That is all for this week's report! The next community report might be a little late because of the Thanksgiving holiday. Be sure to blog about your experiences and contact me if you think it needs a mention in the next report.

  • Early Access to Bayonetta Demo!

    I've been notified that we have only a few of these left! Get early access to the demo of Bayonetta now! Please note that this offer is for US residents only.

  • New Mobile Gaming Forum!

    By popular demand, we now have a new forum dedicated to iPhone and mobile games. Stop by to get the discussions rolling, and be sure to post the mobile phone you play games with in the welcome thread. See you there!

  • TOTS Spotlight on November 17

    Every week Today On the Spot has a community spotlight that highlights the member spotlight and a couple of other interesting tidbits. This week's report shares the latest beta key offers, and Setho10 gets a mention for being the member spotlight. Check it out!

  • Weekly Report: Game Releases Brain?

    Announcements

    Command & Conquer 4 Beta Keys
    We have a variety of beta keys set aside for GameSpot Total Access subscribers. While this may be a closed beta test offer for premium members, there are plans to have an open beta offer for everyone else in early 2010.

    Battlefield Bad Company 2 PlayStation 3 Beta Keys
    All GameSpot registrants who live in the United States should take advantage of the beta keys giveaway this Thursday!

    Modern Warfare 2 Game Night
    The official Modern Warfare 2 game night is set for December 1. I am hearing a lot of people around the office with a desire to play sooner. If editorial staff sneak behind my back to play the game, you might want to check their blogs and the radar thread in the game night union to play it sooner than December 1.

    Forza 3 Game Night Update
    The GS UK/US/AU editorial staff showed off their racing and paint job skills, but there was one thing on the minds of everyone--Modern Warfare 2. We were surprised by how many people actually stopped playing Modern Warfare 2 just to play Forza 3 with us for a couple of hours.

    New Emblem Unveil!
    This emblem was used for the Forza Motorsport 3 game night, but we also have plans to repurpose it for other Forza related paint job activities that happen on the site. Keep an eye on Justin Calvert’s Forza Paintjob Union to increase your chances of getting it.

    Member Spotlight: Setho10

    This week’s member spotlight goes to Setho10 for offering his perspective about the single-player campaign length in Modern Warfare 2. One of the interesting aspects about the blog was how he described the number of people who actually finish games. Here is an excerpt:

    “… over 80% of all people who play games never finish any game they start. Making a game 20 hours long is nice but the fact is that only a fraction of your audience will see the game through to the end.”

    User Reviews

    - Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PS3) celtic1962
    - Return to Mysterious Island (PC) SYdoggXxX
    - Aion (PC) Azghouls
    - Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters (PS2) ebbderelict
    - Shadow Complex (X360) NeonNinja
    - Super Bomberman Party Pak (SNES) Garrison_Ford
    - Star Wars: The Force Unleashed: Ultimate Sith Edition (PC) LGTX
    - Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus (PS2) c_rake

    Staff Fingerprints

    - Shaun McInnis shares a list of games he has been playing.
    - Ryan MacDonald posts a variety of blogs about the Modern Warfare 2 game launch.
    - Sophia Tong updates everyone with the latest happenings.

    Blog Bunker
    - ImagineryFriend purchased a Modern Warfare 2 Xbox 360 machine.
    - johnsteed7 believes that role-playing games are the last hope for single-player fans.
    - ubergusterfan is considering older games that remind him of the Diablo series.
    - PAJ89 and dark_being posted Dragon Age: Origins impressions while topsemag55 posted sweet Lair of the Werewolves screenshot.

    Misc. Drawer
    - Skipped the featured user videos for the week.
    - The HotSpot homework emblem granted to punkrocka and gopulpfiction.
    - New addition to Soapbox feature: johnsteed7.

    Tip of the Week
    This week I share some general tips about how you can share GameSpot user videos. That is all for this week. If you have any tips worth sharing with others, feel free to send me a PM.

  • Tip of the Week: Sharing User Videos

    This week’s tip is about exposing your GameSpot user videos. One of the easiest ways to gain exposure can be set by choosing the public option during the process of uploading a new user video. The public option allows your video to surface on the user videos page , which is sorted by date. Also, if you flag your video with a related game it will also surface on the gamespace. The private option does not surface your video under these two locations, but it will display them on your videos page located in your profile.

    If you would like to share more about the background of your recently uploaded user video, you should post the BB code in your blog. Click on Embed Icon and a window will open up with the BB code. Copy the BB code and paste the short text in your blog. Unfortunately, GameSpot does not allow the usage of video embeds in your blogs at this time. If you want to link to a user video outside GameSpot you are welcome to hyperlink the text and refer to the user video outside GameSpot.

    The last tip is something everyone probably already knows: You can copy and paste the URL of your user video page and share this link on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, or any other site you are a part of.

  • TOTS: Community Spotlight

    This community spotlight was supposed to be in last Tuesday's episode of Today On the Spot, but it will be in today's episode instead. We took out the game-night information because that happened on Tuesday. I plan to post the latest community spotlight in the Spam Filter blog each week.

    Thanks for watching!

  • Command & Conquer 4 Beta Keys!

    Calling all GameSpot Total Access subscribers!

    We have set aside many Command & Conquer 4 beta keys just for you! Mark your calendars to drop by GameSpot on November 16 at 12:00 p.m. PT to claim your spot in the beta test!

    While this may be a closed beta test offer only for GameSpot Total Access subscribers, there are plans to have an open beta offer for everyone else in early 2010.

  • Weekly Report: Twitter Time

    Announcements
    Twitter Icons
    We now have a tweet icon tweet icon found on the majority of the content around the site. One problem you might notice is the icon being overlapped on the front page of user profiles. We hope to have that problem resolved soon.

    Video Features
    If you’re not an avid viewer of Today on the Spot, you should catch up on the latest features located in the Producer’s Note. Be sure to let us know what you think!

    Game Night Schedule
    Next Tuesday’s game night will be Forza Motorsport 3 on the Xbox 360. The game night will offer the three emblems, and the US/UK/AU editorial staff will be hosting game nights for their time zones on November 10. Also, if you bring a GameSpot-themed car, we may have an additional treat for your profile!

    Mod of the Month
    The mod of the month for November went to m0zart. As a registrant of the site since 2003, m0zart became a moderator in 2007 to offer volunteer services in many areas on the site. Thanks for your contributions over the years, m0zart! Also, if you’re interested in chatting it up with the moderators, you are welcome to drop by the Collective Moderator Union.

    Member Spotlight: Talonfire
    This week’s member spotlight exposes old-school games in his blogs. Much like Talonfire's former old-school editorials, the Command and Conquer feature shares details about the history, gameplay, design, screenshots, and much more. If you never played the original game, you should at least understand why this game meant so much to gamers in the early '90s; it offered single-player campaigns and an online multiplayer game experience.

    User Reviews
    - Mirror's Edge (PC) chandu83
    - Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days (DS) c_rake
    - Mysteries of Westgate (PC) fastpunk
    - Def Jam: Icon (X360) celtic1962
    - Deadly Creatures (Wii) monco59
    - Red Faction: Guerrilla (X360) Garrison_Ford
    - Risen (PC) Jd1680a

    Blog Bunker
    - Samson089 shares his experience with Shareware.
    - Auron11022 discovers the top nine video game supporting characters.
    - HeyMaa describes the differences between realistic and artistic design.
    - WTA2k5 shares his history about playing rhythm games.
    - Little_Socrates has some impressions of The Beatles: Rock Band.
    - VXLbeast writes a letter to Nintendo with the hope it uses history to shape the future.
    - masterpinky2000 asks how old people should be to walk away from video games.
    - bacchus2 shares a He-Man story with some toy figures.
    - xboxrulze reveals his Forza 3 impressions.

    Staff Fingerprint
    - Stanley Lin is looking for combat tips in Dragon Age Origins.

    Misc. Drawer
    - No user videos featured this week.
    - The HotSpot homework winners: Lobert124 and Blankgen86

    Tip of the Week
    This week's tip is about how GameSpot handles review scores based on the game and the way the platform handles the game. Read what Justin Calvert had to say about a question that was sent to me earlier this week.

  • Tip of the Week: Ratings Across Platforms

    This week’s tip is about how GameSpot handles review scores based on the game and the way the platform handles the game. I have asked Justin Calvert to answer a question that was sent to me.

    Question:

    I see games on the 360 and PS3 reviewed [and] you guys always seem to put down the PS3 version even though it has the same issues as the 360 version. Whenever I see the reviews for a game that is on both consoles there is always a .5 deference in score, yet reading the review they have the same issues. There isn't a little biased in there is there?

    Answer:

    Firstly, none of us on the reviews team have any bias toward any platform--we all own both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles, and we all enjoy great games regardless of which platforms they appear on. For the most part, we test all versions and find that the PS3 and X360 versions are more or less identical, and so our review scores reflect this. Occasionally, though, after testing all versions, there's simply no escaping the fact that one is inferior. When I reviewed Baja: Edge of Control last year, for example, the PS3 version looked far worse AND had an unstable frame rate--that version scored a 6.5 while the X360 version scored a 7.5. On that occasion, and on any occasion that different scores are given to different versions of the same game, the reason for the discrepancy is detailed in the text of the review.

    More recently, Kevin VanOrd reviewed Dragon Age: Origins, and, as you may have noticed, all three versions of the game got different scores. On the PC it was a 9.5, on the PS3 it was a 9.0, and on the X360 it was an 8.5. The PC version is a quite different and superior game, and although the console versions are very similar, there are noticeable differences that make the PS3 version better. Read paragraph four on page two of the review if you're interested in exactly what those differences are.

    We're often accused of bias toward one platform or another, but since we're accused of loving Sony, Microsoft, AND Nintendo, I think that just proves that we're not really biased at all, doesn't it? It's true that, on occasion, we post X360 reviews ahead of other versions, but that's not because we want to, it's because we insist on reviewing from retail discs and because, for whatever reason, publishers are often able to send us X360 copies long before we get PS3 copies. That's not always the case (we have retail Assassin's Creed II on the PS3 but not the X360 right now), but more often than not it is.

    Anytime you have a question about reviews, please feel free to either PM me or send me an e-mail at justin@gamespot.com--I can't guarantee that you'll get a response right away, but I do try to respond to every intelligent question that I'm sent.

    Related link: GameSpot Rating System