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Is it already October? Yes, it is. And do you know how I can tell? Because my wallet's already lighter as the rush of holiday game releases begins. (Hang in there, buddy. It's gonna get worse for you before it gets better.)

Fortunately, our loyal Bitmob community churns out great content no matter the time of year. This month's list has includes analyses, apologies, and anecdotes galore. But sometimes, you've just gotta give it up for Master Chief dancing Gangnam Style. Congrats to everyone!

Here are the most-read community articles for September 2012:

10. Fan-made HD Arwing shows what Star Fox might be like on Wii U by Jan Neves

9. Nudity in gaming shouldn't be a bigger taboo than violence by Mark Willette

8. Why the reaction to Bayonetta 2's Wii U exclusivity is annoying by Ryan Conway

7. Why Borderlands 2 is more exciting than Diablo 3 by William Franklin

6. The Wii U is a stopgap at best by Ethan Clevenger

5. L.A. Noire: A case for the future of gaming by Chris Sampson

4. An open apology to associates and influences by Ryan Perez

3. Papo & Yo: A mirror of my childhood by Louis Garcia

2. Why Portal 2 should really get us excited for the next Half-Life by Justin Raymond

1. Halo's Master Chief puts down his rifle and jams to Gangnam Style by Jan Neves

Do you want to be on next month's list? Here are some tips:

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I received my copy of developer Arkane Studios' stealth-action title Dishonored today. Because I preordered it from Best Buy, I received a special bonus item along with the game: a USB-powered "whale oil lamp." I've written before about all the useless plastic crap I've accumulated over the years, so, hey...here's some more.

I can't fault anyone for wanting to throw a little something extra in with a video game, but what exactly do I do with this thing? I turned to the instruction sheet for some guidance.

"The Dishonored USB Whale Oil Lamp," it reads, "is a fun way of making your computer more attractive and your workstation more inviting."

Huh.

I read the rest of the page looking for anything else that might tell me what to do with it, but all it had to offer were a few safety tips ("Do not cover the lights with paper or cloth") and some extra-helpful troubleshooting tips ("If lights do not illuminate, make sure switch is in ON position").

OK, so it looks like I'm on my own here.

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Not that long ago (OK, OK ... it was a long time ago!), we announced that VentureBeat had acquired Bitmob. Naturally, since we've been telling everyone the merger would be done in a couple of months, it didn't. It's taken a lot longer than that.

Well, we're almost there now.

The code's finished, and we've done a lot of testing on it. We really, honestly, totally, truly believe that, by the end of October, Bitmob will shut down for good and move completely over to GamesBeat. If we do it right, we'll have migrated all profiles and articles over, and we can do the "business as usual" thing over there.

Phase one of this migration will be missing a few minor features from Bitmob, but it will have gained some new ones, too (especially in the Department of War Against Spam). We'll be improving the site from this upcoming initial launch, but the main hurdle now is just getting the first version of the site up with the ability for community members to post stories.

Please stay tuned!

In the meantime ...

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I’m kinda fickle when it comes to most game elements. Eye candy is alright, and gameplay is important. But if a developer wants to instill a lasting, meaningful connection between myself and its game, the music needs to be amazing. I don’t like Halo: Combat Evolved, but its theme is fantastic. Mass Effect and Mass Effect 3? Amazing soundtracks. Bastion? Fez? VVVVVV? Win. Win. Win.

I could go at this all day. Mega Man, Super Meat Boy, The Binding of Isaac, the Prince of Persia reboot (yeah, I said it), Ninja Gaiden, Faxanadu.... Rush‘n Attack? Awful game, kick-ass first-stage song. Contra, Castlevania: Bloodlines, Earthworm Jim.... You got a good game? Show me the soundtrack.

But this write up isn’t about any of those releases. We’re gonna take a trip back to 1998. The place? My computer desk. The reason? Let’s just say Nintendo’s reputation for family-friendly gaming had my parents ridiculously locked in on one brand of console, so it was either Nintendo or Nintendon’t. The PC was my last, best hope for non-Mario goodness.

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A nagging problem kept bothering me while playing Battlefield 3. It had nothing to do with the server speed or my overheating Xbox 360.

I just couldn't think of a great rock-music playlist to listen to during my sessions.

I really wanted to capture that ruthless environment of Battlefield 3 in a playlist. The game has an edgy visual atmosphere that always crawls under my skin whenever I boot it up. The colors are dark and rusty. Every ricocheted gunshot causes some sort of explosion.

I thought that 2000s post-punk would work pretty well. That decade, however, also coincided with the happy-indie-rock movement. I certainly couldn't play Modest Mouse's "Float On" while mowing down hordes of soldiers.

Then I came up with the sound. I had to add in my favorite Generation X music from my childhood.

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The Community Spotlight features some of the best unedited articles that didn't quite make the front page. This week, we explore whether the survival-horror genre is dying (or just undead), examine what the Wii U will offer gamers, and explain why video games are good for you. (Told you so, Mom.)

Survival horror is dead
By Jason Rose

While he acknowledges that different things scare different people, Jason identifies two key components of successful horror games: danger and difficulty. The problem? Today's titles, like Resident Evil 6, have abandoned these principles.

What does the Wii U stand to offer?
By Chandler Tate

Chandler wants to like the Wii U, he writes, "but at the same time, my mind is telling me no." He's not sold on the controllers and doesn't see much new in the gameplay, either. Do you agree?

Video games are good for you: The positive effects of video games
By Jesse Meixsell

Jesse gives us a collection of arguments in favor of playing games, including a number of sourced citations. What benefits have you seen from your time on the sticks?

The curse of graphic adventure games
By Alexander Kraus

Remember the old PC adventure games where the only method of movement was pointing and clicking? Alexander says the influence of that antiquated control scheme still affects games today, for better and worse. Interesting observations. 

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I can hear their pleas at night. More like cries for help, really. They speak through the walls, calling for release. These lost souls came to this vile place with the best of intentions, and now they can only wait. And wait. And wait.

I am, of course, talking about my shamefully unplayed collection of fighting games. What did you think I was talking about? Because I'm not just a player. Oh no, it's far, far worse than that. I'm a collector.

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If you have never played a game in the Final Fantasy series, somehow managing to avoid exposure to Square Enix's behemoth for its long existence, where would you begin if you were interested in checking out the franchise?

This question has been on my mind for the past several weeks as I've put many hours into a game that I like more than I should, Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy. 

Dissidia 012 isn't a game for everybody. It's a game for people who like Final Fantasy. As a devoted fan of the series, I like a lot of things in this little handheld brawler. I like the subtle differences in the way that the different characters play. And I like how the title asks you to play as each of the fighters, forcing you to learn their different styles.

But I also feel alone in my appreciation for Dissidia 012. Most of my friends don't know about Final Fantasy’s fine details. And so, as I have played, I have been mulling over the question of how one might introduce others to this beloved saga.

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I recently read through many of the Resident Evil 6 reviews, so I feel qualified to give you my critique of this blockbuster title. Let me start off by saying that I haven't played the game or the demo. I believe playing it before reviewing it will give me an unfair bias toward the game.

Let's start with Gamespot. They gave the game a 45/100. WOW. These guys are garbage. These guys obviously didn't play the game, either. I mean Game Informer gave RE6 an 88/100. Gamespot said that while the narrative is good, everything else sucks. I honestly don't get why people still go to this publication.

I mean c'mon; the reviewer says that the quick-time events are too long. How is that a bad thing? Quick-time events are soooo much fun. They also said that the game's set pieces are mediocre. I doubt that is true. But let's move on to a much more qualified publication.

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The guys at Did You Know Gaming are back with a new video filled with interesting trivia -- this time focused on the famous Mario series. I like to think that I know a thing or two about that adorable, italian plumber, but I have to admit to not knowing a single one of these facts. Live and learn, I guess.

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I hate many current action games because their controls are often too complicated. I still can't remember all of Bayonetta's moves unless I have an FAQ file on my computer.

But Assassin's Creed made action games fun for me again ... just by simplifying all the controller commands.

Its control scheme might almost be too simple. You get one attack button and one jump button. Holding down the right trigger (on the Xbox 360; R2 on the PlayStation 3) opens up a bunch of other moves, but  I usually only use attack and jump. That's all I need to pull off all the acrobatic moves I want to use..

Expert gamers would say I'm just an amateur who doesn't understand hardcore action. They're wrong. Game developers started making controls too complicated right around the Playstation 2 era -- I don't know why ... maybe to make the action more intense. But whatever the case, you don't need to make things complicated just to make them fun.

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Sony recently announced that players can buy retail games from the PlayStation Network on launch day. Digital distribution is slowly encroaching, and for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, I welcome this idea. I've realized that many of the games I purchase for these consoles are ultimately disposable and rarely ever retain value. As much as I might have liked Call of Duty 4, it is virtually worthless to gamers eagerly awaiting Black Ops II. 

Nintendo is also pushing into the digital market with downloadable versions of first-party 3DS games, and I am far less eager to participate. 

Even though Nintendo first-party titles sell well, they almost always retain their value. If you go into a used game store today you're sure to find copies of New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Kid Icarus Uprising, and Super Mario 3D Land hovering around their launch price points, even on the used game shelves. Mario Kart Wii is still incredibly hard to find over four years since its launch. 

While this reasoning feels very flawed, I can't help but view Nintendo games as more of an investment than things on the 360 or PS3.  Perhaps its because weird titles go missing (like Mario Kart Wii still selling for around $42 used) or that I typically enjoy replaying Mario and Pokémon titles. 

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