This post has not been edited by the GamesBeat staff. Opinions by GamesBeat community writers do not necessarily reflect those of the staff.
This week’s Bitmob Reviews Spotlight has plenty of variety: We’ve got games for folks who like to shoot Nazis, grognard wargamers, puzzle fanatics, stealthy killers, Facebook farmers, cake fans, gearheads, and island vacationers.
I’m very curious to see what the Bitmob community thinks about the fall’s first big game, Batman: Arkham Asylum. Maybe we’ll even have some reviews to spotlight next week.
Wolfenstein: Unfulfilled Potential
By Davneet Minhas
Wolfenstein consists of many well-executed and polished elements, Davneet says. But it ends up being forgettable because the game doesn’t incorporate these elements into a satisfying, fulfilling experience.
World of Goo Review
By Mike Gnade
Mike says that World of Goo is “one of the finest and most original games I have played in recent years…much like XBLA’s Braid, Goo maintains an interest and high quality throughout every level of the game.” It’s one of my favorite games of the past year as well, even if the puzzles are especially challenging. There’s another reason to like World of Goo — it’s also available for the Wii, the PC, the Mac, and even Linux.
Hearts of Iron 3
By Eric Majkut
This isn’t for mainstream gamers, Eric writes: It’s clearly geared toward the old-school grognards that like their sims difficult and overwhelming. He says no other games does such a great job at simulating every aspect of WWII — it even allows you to play some of the smaller countries in addition to the major players (a challenge he appreciates). He does hope, however, that Paradox and the community do more to address bugs and the game’s A.I.
ComboReview: Riddick, Meet Dexter
By Tyler Samson
Only at Bitmob would someone do a combo review of The Chronicles of Riddick and Showtime’s Dexter. Tyler compares Riddick and Dexter’s stealth-killing styles, noting that Dexter will make you root for a serial killer while Riddick will turn you into one.
My Weekend as a Farmer
By Jazz English
Jazz spent a weekend absorbed by the metagame of Facebook’s Farmville. He originally meant to rant how much time he spent with the game; somehow, it turned into a review.
Unfashionably Late: Portal Review
By Garret Staus
Like many gamers, Garret has a backlog of games with some surprises in it. One of those surprises was Portal. Despite 2 years or Internet memes and other exposure to the game, Garret still found Portal to be a memorable experience.
XBLI Trial Rundown — 8/25/09
By Joe Donato
This week’s look at Xbox Live’s independent games is a bit depressing. Joe liked only two this week: Shellblast HD, a take on Minesweeper, and Octagon, a shooter that borrows from Ikaruga but somehow manages to set itself apart.
The Brian Shirk Report
By Brian Shirk
This week, Brian’s got not just the standard bevy of reviews, but he also found time to write about role-playing games as well. How does he do it? A time machine? No need for sleep? Clones?
Dead Space: Brian says one of 2008’s sleeper hits is better at survival horror than Resident Evil in nearly every way.
Wario Land 2: Brian got a kick out of Wario’s shapechanging and puzzle-solving platforming, even if it’s not as challenging as Briad.
Project Gotham Racing 3: Brian enjoys arcade racers, but Gran Turismo turned him off the entire genre for a while. Then he picked up PGR3 for $5. It may not be as good-looking as other Xbox 360 games, but its fantastic gameplay, he says, is enough to attract gearheads and nonmotorists alike.
Crash Commando: Brian doesn’t dig Crash Commando as much as the other games he reviewed this week. Its tired gameplay overwhelms its unique ideas.
Wii Sports Resort: Brian offers a deep evaluation of Wii Sports Resort. He was especially surprised with how much he enjoyed the canoeing minigame. He also points out that the disc golf mode is better than the similar mode in Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 for Wii.