Generally speaking and as Patman said, I too look for big oil capacity for any engine. That way the burden is spead out or diluted.
Harder to find is whether the anticipated duty cycle for the engine includes heavy duty service, in which case I would expect it to be relatively easy on the oil.
Some engines can be upgraded to be "easier on oil". Check out this month's Motor Trend. They interviewed Bob Lutz on the SBC. At one time he ran Opel. He tried using base SBCs in a new executive car for the European market. The engines kept failing in usage (high speed) testing. They finally upgraded the oiling system, among other things, to include large capacity, a cooler, and a finned oil pan. They ended up with the then racing version of the engine.
The other interesting note from that article was that the US guys told Lutz his customers were crazy to drive over 70 mph anyway, as "it is dangerous" so obviously the original SBC wasn't designed to sustain high power output. That thinking kinda factors into the xw-20 debate if you know what I mean.
The 3800 is a low pressure engine like the Rover V-8 (my current engine), both of which have similar roots. For the turbo Grand National engine for example, the min oil pressure at 4000 rpm is just 24 psi, and 6 psi at 1000 rpm. The low pressure might have something to do with it being easy on oil.
Hence the 10w-30 oil spec. The engine needs to pump higher viscosity oil at low pressure, but does it at large volumes (no shearing please as thinner oil flows off the bearings faster). My Land Rover dealer puts 20w-50 in Rover engines, which continues with a similar oil pump and block design.