This post has not been edited by the GamesBeat staff. Opinions by GamesBeat community writers do not necessarily reflect those of the staff.
M
y backlog is depressing. It’s grown to scary proportions in recent weeks, thanks to a number of interesting new games and some digital gorging from Direct2Drive’s anniversary sale (it’s hard to beat eight games for $40).
Then I looked at the backlog of Bitmob reivews.
The Bitmob community’s produced a prodigious amount of reviews recently — and not just on new games. We’ve got a lot of older games spawning reviews as well. So I decided it’s time for a Review Spotlight: Backlog edition. This complements the normal Reviews Spotlight, which is scheduled for its usual time Sunday (be sure to check it out to see Bitmobbers’ reactions to Brütal Legend and Uncharted 2).
I’m even going to make a little game out of this. Three of these are either sitting next to my desk, taunting me, or are on my “Check This Game Out” list that’s buried deep in one of my Bitmob management folders. Can you guess which games are in my backlog?
Professor Layton and the Improved Sequel
By Suriel Vazquez
Suriel approves of the improvements in the Professor Layton and The Diabolical Box. Professor Layton and games of its ilk interest me because you’re always at the peril of overthinking the puzzles because some solutions seem so simple. Suriel deals with that, too. But he makes a good point about multiplayer — how much fun would it be to figure out these puzzles with your friends. Until it comes with multiplayer, may I suggest, Suriel, that you and a bunch of friends hop on Skype the next time you play Professor Layton.
Rant Review — Conflict: Denied Ops
By Kevin Zhang-xing
Wow. I don’t remember anyone giving a negative number as a score. Conflict: Denied Ops brought out a lot of negative emotions for Kevin, and I hope by providing an outlet for this outrage, Kevin, that Bitmob’s helped you purge that anger from your system. Somehow, deep inside, I think Kevin’s still steamed about this game.
IQuickies: iBlast Moki
By Stephano Neverez
I took one look at the first screen and thought “World of Goo clone.” While iBlast Moki may share a similar look with that indie puzzler, the concept’s different — instead of using sticky strings to solve the physics puzzles, the player uses bombs to break obstacles and propel the little guys to their goal. It looks cute and fun — and those were two things that Stephano liked about it as well. It does get challenging, he says, but he enjoyed it enough to recommend it.
Persona PSP: The Extended Review
By AJ Hurst
AJ writes reviews for his student newspaper at the University of Missouri-Columbia. (Note: It’s one of the best schools for journalism in the United States) Dissatisfied with writing tight for print, AJ offers extended versions of his reviews on Bitmob. He takes a look at the first Persona, which was recently released for the PSP. He wasn’t happy — what makes Persona 3 and Persona 4 so good are missing in the original, he says, calling it “just an outdated RPG.”
Andy’s Retro Review: Metroid
By Andy Bates
Andy is a child of the Atari 2600 generation. He missed out on the NES. Talk about a backlog! So he decided that he’d go back and play three of the system’s most-loved games: Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, and Metroid. He enjoyed the sense of openness and discovery, but he was frustrated by the lack of modern amenities (he even drew a map, like many of us undoubtedly did when we played through the game two decades ago). He recommends Metroid: Zero Mission for gamers who want those modern amenities but want to give this legendary game a try.
Prepare for Descent
By Brian Petro-Roy
Brian strapped in for this review of one of the classic space sims, Descent. The review’s in a first-person perspective, from his mission briefing with Post Terran Minerals Corporation (where Brian proclaims he hatred for suits) to a detailed log of his experiences in the game. I enjoy this format for a review — what do you think?
Getting My Teeth Kicked in by Wizardry 8
By Reggie Carolipio
Wizardry 8 could be considered as the pinnacle of old-school RPG development. Reggie believes so. A game that mixes many existing RPG concepts with forward-thinking ideas of its own, Wizardry 8 was one of the most difficult — and rewarding — games that I’ve ever played. Reggie compared the sense of progress you get from the game, from dishing out skills point, choosing spells, and character advancement, along with nice touches like copious amounts of solid story and strong story, to a piece of “bittersweet old candy.”
Anime Maybe Golf Thing
By Travis McReynolds
Travis went all the way to Japan to bring back this “gem” of the Famicom era. Since it’s not in Japanese, and Google Translator is unreliable at best, we get “Anime Maybe Golf Thing,” replete with his guesswork on what the game’s about. Actually, his guesswork is probably much more enjoyable than the game is. Mr. Sparkle even makes an appearance years before he sends Homer Simpson into an identity-crisis snit.
One $15 Game, Psychologist Not Included
By Brian Shirk
No Review Spotlight would be complete without a review from Brian Shirk, Bitmob’s most prodigious community reviewer. He admits that he made a mistake in passing over Psychonauts because he had too many triple-A games to play — and because he was turned off by its art style. That art style ends up being a major positive for Brian, crediting it as “…one of the most atmospheric titles of its generation, if not all time.” He also digs the humor and points out that each level is a drastically different experience.