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Dark SoulsThe Community Spotlight features some of the best unedited articles that didn't quite make the front page. This week, we examine the difference between challenge and difficulty, point out a flaw in the PlayStation Vita, rediscover gaming after leaving World of Warcraft, and more. Buckle up, kids.


Challenge vs. difficulty
By Nathaniel Dziomba

Think those two words mean roughly the same thing? Not so, says Nathaniel. He argues that any game can be difficult, but games with challenge reward the player for accomplishing diffcult tasks fairly. He points to Dark Souls as a prime example; I'm sure many of you would agree.

If I could change one thing about the PS Vita
By Errol Burke-Horner

Errol's got beef with one particular "feature" on Sony's latest high-tech handheld: the game slot. Apparently it ain't the easiest thing to get open. And Errol said he'd have bought his games digitally, but that requires a memory card that he couldn't afford. Sounds like Sony has a ways to go toward making the Vita user-friendly.

Rediscovering gaming in a post-WoW world
By Ty Swenson

Ty finally decided to leave World of Warcraft behind. But what do you play when you've only played one game in years? Answer: Everything you can. Ty found new joy in playing even mediocre titles. "Thanks, WoW," he says. "You made gaming fun again."

Commercials in my video games? No thanks
By Justin Davis

Justin's not happy with a rumored report of a Sony patent that would allow the insertion of commercials into gaming sessions. His biggest problem with the idea: the way it would break immersion. "I understand that games are getting more costly to develop," he writes. "I don't care. Find another way to do it."

NPD reports integrate Walmart: Too little, too late
By William Schink

Sales-data reporting group NPD has finally added Walmart to its monthly updates, but Williams says the reports have outlived their usefulness anyway. He writes: "When the use of the NPD reports is to try and determine the health of the industry, the fact that they ignore the increasingly large amount of indie-devloped titles is evidence of their inability to do just that."