From the moment the pre-game cinematics kick off, you know this is going to be something special.  An anime-inspired portrayal of the Liverpudlian lads takes you on a whirlwind journey across a distinctive scape of art and sound as you visit the sights, sounds and spirit of what The Beatles had to offer.  And that’s just before you get to the title screen.

The Beatles: Rock Band is the ultimate tribute to what most would agree is the greatest musical act of the 20th century.  If you’re even the slightest bit a fan (and who isn’t) you’ll need to give this a playthrough.  Normally our reviews try to be a little more level headed than this one is sounding (and I assure you, by the end it will be), but when something that is such a love letter of fan service comes across our desks it hard not to squeal like a teenage girl at... well, at a Beatles concert.

My earlier criticisms of Arkham Asylum are starting to feel a little silly right now.  In Bitcast #76 I railed against the critical acclaim this title was getting.  I was convinced that reviewers has lost their damned minds.  At that point, I was only a few hours into the game.  Now that I've finished it, it's time for me to eat crow (or in this case, SCAREcrow -- get it??) 

Arkham Asylum does something that few developers before have been able to: make a good Batman game.  Sure there was the occassional fluke charmer like Batman on the NES, but all-in-all this is one caped crusader whose never seen justice on a home console.  Here's the thing; the team at Rocksteady didn't just make a good Batman game -- they made a great one.

Yeah, it came out a few months ago, but give me a break - I like to finish games before I write a review for them, and Raiden Fighters Aces has not one, not two, but three games on one disk.  Oh, and it's only $20.  Dayum!  So does Raiden Fighters Aces warrant a purchase, or is its quality as low as its price?  Hit the link for the review.

Now that the game has been released (and patched), we can get past the FANTASTIC name and get down to whether or not the game is worth the time and money.

Fat Princess is essentially capture-the-flag using two 16 player class based teams. The intent is similar to what you’d find in something like Team Fortress 2, though the presentation and play style is different. The goal (in the standard game) is to invade the other teams fort, grab your princess and bring her back to your fort. See? Capture-the-flag. But how do you do that? By working as a team of different classes (warriors, archers, priests, mages and workers) to get a good balance of all to get the job done. The team that works together, wins together. This statement lays bare one of my issues with the PS3 and it’s one they could fix tomorrow.

Last week Jim asked if the new GI Joe game could be the next member of the eensy-weensy fraternity of games that are better than the movies. The movie isn't out yet, but I've played the game, and I can tell you right now whether or not it'll make it into the hallowed halls of movie game success.

As you may have seen, I was lucky enough to play King of Fighters XII a little early.  Fighting fans, including myself, have been anxiously awaiting this game for quite a while.  Personally, I was looking forward to the smoother gameplay like that of more recent KoF installments, and silky, hand-drawn graphics.  My heart was pounding as my PS3 booted the game up, but I was left scratching my head after a few hours of playing time.  Hit the link for the full article.

Don't shy away from X-Men Origins: Wolverine just because you went and did something foolish like saw the movie. This game is one of those rare creatures: the movie adaptation that is far better than its source. Welcome to the teeny, tiny club.

Indie games.  They can be hit or misses.  But beautiful and amazing things can happen when an indie game gets it right.  Flow, Braid, Fieldrunners, Everyday Shooter, and DeBlob all got it right.  Can And Yet It Moves join the ranks of excellent indie titles?  If you read my review you might just find out.  Then again, maybe not.  But you probably will.  Though I'm not going to promise anything.

What if Left 4 Dead was a 90's style top down shooter with RPG elements, but still maintained the killer co-op experience?  That's the question that Dead Frontier attempts to provide an answer to.  Currently in public beta, Dead Frontier is the latest in a new breed of social web games, and it's one that takes some bold new steps that we have yet to see from the burgeoning market.