Why are you making games? 7
by Gamasutra Community [04.26.13]
Sometimes you hit a creative standstill. That is when it is time to do some soul searching and figure out why you're making the game you are making -- and this inspirational post suggests how.
Console/PC, Indie, Design

---

Rethinking difficulty levels: What does your audience want? 77
by Gamasutra Community [04.25.13]
What does Bayonetta get right and Tomb Raider get wrong? How could BioShock Infinite be improved? This blog post explores game difficulty and how it affects your audience.
Console/PC, Design

---

Blog: Horror games - What kind of enemy should you create? 11
by Gamasutra Community [04.25.13]
Horror games often face you off against hordes of enemies -- but there is another choice. Some games have pitted the player against a single antagonist. The two approaches are contrasted in this blog.
Console/PC, Indie, Design

---

The blissfully awkward controls of Surgeon Simulator 2013 3
by Mike Rose [04.25.13]
"We're fairly sure the real procedures are nothing like what happens in the game," Luke Williams of Bossa Studios tells Gamasutra of the company's big hit Surgeon Simulator 2013.
Console/PC, Indie, Programming, Design, Business/Marketing, Exclusive, Video

---

Video: Making a game while struggling with obsessive compulsiveness 3
by GDC Vault Staff [04.24.13]
At GDC, Matt Gilgenbach shared his struggles with obsessive-compulsive disorder while developing the PlayStation Network and PC rhythm shooter Retro/Grade.
Console/PC, Indie, Programming, Art, Audio, Design, Production, Business/Marketing, Video

---

The challenge of designing games in the next generation 58
by Gamasutra Community [04.24.13]
Adrian Chmielarz (Bulletstorm) argues that as visual fidelity goes up, the tropes designers rely on will become too awkward to use -- and games must change or suffer the consequences.
Console/PC, Art, Design

---

How to gather and best use player feedback 1
by Christian Nutt [04.24.13]
Getting player feedback is easy, but how do you gather useful data and then interpret it? Here's a guide to creating a player survey and interpreting the results.
Console/PC, Social/Online, Smartphone/Tablet, Indie, Design, Production, Business/Marketing

---

IGF China seeking pan-Pacific indie game submissions for 2013 event  
by GDC Staff [04.24.13]
The Independent Games Festival China – which will take place alongside this September's GDC China in Shanghai – is accepting indie game entries from the pan-Pacific area from now through July 19.
Console/PC, Social/Online, Smartphone/Tablet, Indie, Programming, Design

---

Hard work paid off in Dreamfall Chapters' $1.5 million Kickstarter 3
by Brandon Sheffield [04.24.13]
Make no mistake, running a Kickstarter is a full-time job that shouldn't be taken lightly. Designer Ragnar Tornquist explains how Dreamfall Chapters made it past $1.5 million in pledges.
Social/Online, Design

---

A postmortem on the indie 3DS game Mutant Mudds 2
by Gamasutra Community [04.24.13]
A look back at the development and release of the 3DS' popular indie platformer. Want to know how to settle on a gameplay hook, approach the press and other tips? Look inside.
Console/PC, Indie, Design, Production, Business/Marketing

---

Effectively managing player rewards  
by Gamasutra Community [04.23.13]
There's a way to reward players to make them fulfilled and keep them coming back -- and this post details what you need to keep in mind, including not rewarding them too much.
Console/PC, Social/Online, Smartphone/Tablet, Design, Business/Marketing

---

How one charity is using games to bring bicycles to those in need  
by Leigh Alexander [04.23.13]
After some tough lessons in being a new publisher, Global Gaming Initiative has regrouped with a unique proposition to fund games whose proceeds will tangibly benefit real-world charities.
Social/Online, Smartphone/Tablet, Indie, Serious, Programming, Art, Design, Production

---

8 tips for building your game's roleplaying community 9
by Gamasutra Community [04.23.13]
If your game has a strong community of RPers, cosplayers, or other creative players, you'll want to read this post on fostering its formation and enthusiasm.
Social/Online, Design, Business/Marketing

---

Blog: Can video games teach us about race? 40
by Gamasutra Community [04.23.13]
With an increased focus on diversity in games a hallmark of 2013 so far, the time is ripe to bring race into the conversation. But more skin tone options and token minority characters aren't the answer.
Console/PC, Art, Design

---

See this new fluid simulation algorithm in action 7
by Mike Rose [04.23.13]
A new fluid simulation algorithm that utilizes the same PhysX SDK framework that is used to simulate cloth and deformables is expected to be included in future versions of the toolset.
Console/PC, Programming, Design, Video

---

Video: #1ReasonToBe panel inspires industry at GDC 2013 6
by GDC Vault Staff [04.23.13]
Some of the most influential women in video games took the stage at GDC 2013 to review why being a woman in games is great, and why it's awful. This was one of the high points of the conference...
Console/PC, Social/Online, Smartphone/Tablet, Indie, Design, Business/Marketing, Video

---

What 'play' is, and how to use it effectively 4
by Gamasutra Community [04.23.13]
Developer and educator Michael Kelley explores why 'play' has evolved in species, and explains why using it in scientific research produced better results than computing power alone.
Console/PC, Social/Online, Smartphone/Tablet, Design, Business/Marketing

---

Lineup for the fourth No Quarter exhibition revealed  
by Mike Rose [04.23.13]
The fourth annual No Quarter Exhibition will take place in New York next week, and feature four new games from a selection of notable indie developers.
Indie, Design

---

The downward salary slope for game artists 18
by Steve Theodore [04.23.13]
From Gamasutra's sister publication Game Developer magazine, this article from Steve Therodore, technical art director at Undead Labs, explores the history of game artist salaries, and where they're headed next.
GD Mag, Design, GD Mag Exclusive

---

Vlambeer's games popular among players, cloners alike 34
by Kris Graft, Mike Rose [04.22.13]
Ridiculous Fishing developer Vlambeer's games are popular with players, and apparently also with cloners. Vlambeer's upcoming Luftrausers seems to have spawned a twin on the App Store.
Smartphone/Tablet, Indie, Design, Business/Marketing

---