You could argue that 2009 hasn't been quite on par with previous years in gaming. With an army of current-gen sequels under pressure to deliver, and the threat of Modern Warfare 2 looming in November, most big name releases abandoned ship to 2010 - but that doesn't mean we haven't had some stunners in our gaming system of choice.
Batman: Arkham Asylum was a big surprise in the summer, while in the last month we've seen Christmas titans Uncharted 2, Zelda: Spirit Tracks, Assassin's Creed II and yes; Modern Warfare 2 all deliver.
The Runners Up Batman is a masterfully crafted action adventure, but few would put it above the other contenders this year, the same for Nintendo's effort - one of the best DS games ever - Zelda: Spirit Tracks.
We absolutely adored Modern Warfare 2 and Assassin's Creed II this year, but in our eyes only one sequel truly blew us - and the entire gaming populous - away...
The Winner: Uncharted 2
What. A. Game. In early 2005 when we waited in wonder of what the 'next-gen' consoles would be capable of, THIS is what we imagined.
Uncharted 2 got rave reviews - several awarding it perfect scores, including us. It follows the template from many tried and tested games - the exploration of Tomb Raider, acrobatics of Prince of Persia, cover-based combat from Gears of War and stealth from Splinter Cell. Yet it manages to significantly raise the bar in each of these areas, amalgamating them all perfectly into one near-flawless work of art.
The voice acting and character interaction is more convincing than we've seen in any other title - finally movie-quality stuff in a videogame. The visual detail and sheer splendour of Uncharted 2's environments still have us stopping Drake in his tracks to admire what Naughty Dog's managed to squeeze out of the PS3 - even on our third play through. And under all of that tech lies a fantastic story with rich characters and some excellent shooting action.
For production values and polish, Uncharted 2 raised the bar for videogames as a whole, no matter the genre. It's a truly stunning game, which is why it gets our vote as the best of 2009.
Your Shout We've told you ours, now you tell us yours. Stick your top five and overall winner in the comments field below and we'll tell you why you're wrong.
While I perfectly agree with Uncharted 2 as GotY, but seriously? Batman AA beat Empire: Total War?
While Batman is a great game, it's got none of the longetivity or sticking power of Empire, none of the political backstabbing (albeit at later patches), grand invasions, sheer scale (almost 3 entire continents) and depth.
Though these articles were some of the most console centered lists ever. While you get some awesome games on consoles, this hasn't been a decade with only counter strike and WoW on the PC. Crysis, Civilization, Total War, Deus Ex, Eve Online and Thief III all should have had at least a mention, even if they had missed out on the top 5 by a place or two.
Runners Up Uncharted 2 Dragon Age: Origins Liberty City Stories Assassins Creed 2
All in all I don't think it has been a great year for gaming, I think 2007 and 2008 were both much better. Thankfully 2010 looks like it is going to blow us away.
now seriously, COD Modern warfare 2 is the 'BEST'. Uncharted 1 went platinum and u can get it for like £10 online, MW1 will never go on platinum, what does that tell u, they hardly lower the price, same for MW2. It's just too good
A much better effort than yesterdays...weirdness. Can't comment on Uncharted 2 as never played but everyone I know who has played both that and Zelda: ST have raved about both.
I would put Batman AA at the top of my list for last year - agree with one of the former posters that it lacks longevity to a certain extent (the stealth / combat sub games are a bit hit and miss and never draw any sort of lengthy gaming sessions out of me) but the main adventure is incredible: great script superbly acted, awesome, recognisable cast, unique application of a familiar character revolutionising (I hope) how licensed games are dealt with in the future. A masterpiece and my fingers are crossed for AA2.
The rest of my top 5 would be:
2. Modern Warfare 2. Yes the main campaign falls just short of the greatness of the original and some of the multiplayer maps are fairly uninspired but the variety offered in terms of game types, customisation and challenges - and not forgetting the superb addition of Spec Ops - means that this has legs that only GoW2 and the Halo's can compete with online.
3. Assassin's Creed 2. A lesson in the benefits of listening. Fixed most of the problems of the original and brought us into a much more interesting setting than it's predecessor. Just a shame they muffed the story a bit.
4. Street Fighter IV (admittedly one I would have missed if not for the timely reminder of ledickolas). Pure 1-on-1 fighting perfection. I'm not a one for fighting games, bar really the Soul Caliburs and hadn't enjoyed a SF type 2d fighter since the days of the one featuring the X-Men on the Saturn (Children of the atom?) but this gets so many things right, including a superb online component. Super SFIV promises to enhance the experience with options and - of course - the return of the car and barrel mini games can only mean GotY 2010!
5. Battlefield 1943. Simple, effective and a bit expensive for what you get 1943 get's the most important thing right - gameplay. Was there anything more joyful than running someone over in a jeep in online play in 2009?
now seriously, COD Modern warfare 2 is the 'BEST'. Uncharted 1 went platinum and u can get it for like £10 online, MW1 will never go on platinum, what does that tell u, they hardly lower the price, same for MW2. It's just too good
dont only 1st party games become platinum? You are also probably one of the 5 people who think MW2 was the best this year so you don't count.
Batman was awesome but never blew me away like uncharted did, that game was epic. Anyways, DA wasnt anywhere in tht article and it could have taken it. It seems a game just has to have zelda in the name and its lapped up, doesnt matter if its the exact same thing as 10 years ago.
Personally, I'd place Forza 3 over MW2, other than that I agree with the choices. Haven't played Uncharted 2 yet as I just got a copy of the first yesterday and that is a great game, so the sequel must be worthy of these awards.
A worthy winner, Modern Warfare 2 isn't that great, the multiplayer is the key feature, and the storyline isn't bad, but isn't great either. I got Batman for Xmas, just about to fight Ivy I think, Assassins Creed 2 was another gift, I'm in Venice now. I haven't played Zelda, but Uncharted 2 deserved to win.
Demons souls is to hard for it's own good. I've beaten lots of games like Ninja Gaiden, Super Ghouls and Ghosts, Gradius v and a whole other bunch of tough games. But Demons souls is just brutal. It doesn't explain the game very well, as in what road you should take next, it expects you to jump from world 1-1 to world 2-1, without telling you. Most people go 1-1 to 1-2 and die. it takes great joy in killing you and no joy in explaining the game mechanics like stats and status effects, good builds, souls you should hold on to. And other things.
I've heard a lot of people calling it best game ever, no it's just hard which is why they are all over it. respect and all that balls. It's decent but no game of the year. I'm up to world 4-1 and can't say I've enjoyed it much at all, most of the game was spent trying to figure out what level I should be on that wouldn't cause instant death. These are the reasons why noone wants to publish this game in Europe, it's it's not very gamer friendy. From Software needed to spend more money on explaining this game. It just dumps you into a rock hard world full of monsters that kill in a couple hits and expect you to sink or swim. It's like playing Diablo 2 on hell mode without ever playing the game on a easier setting.
I'm pleased "Uncharted 2" beat out "MW2" however, for CVG to state that "Uncharted 2" "blew the entire game populous away" is patently false considering that it is limited to the PS3 platform.
As another poster mentioned early on "Dragon Age: Origins" is easily a worthy contender for the Top Five of 2009 - that's both my opinion and based upon the scale and achievements made by the game which can be measured in a more empirical manner. It seems that the further along this list of best games over the past decade we travel, the more the CVG staff member(s) responsible for it have lost the plot. Bravo... *slow, sarcastic clapping*
I am fine with that list, I havent played Dragon bAge, and im not sure if it would be my kinda thing, but Its meant to be good. Glad that you gave Uncharted 2 the win.
I'm going to start the new year by saying that I think you lot are being a bit too hard on CVG.
They can't cater for everybody's tastes, but I do believe they chose the right game for no1. Also, CVG have played all games for all systems, so their opinion is fairly strong.
The only thing that surprises me is the fact that so many of you gamers haven't tried Uncharted 2. It's pure sacrilege.
Uncharted 2 for me too. I'd probably have Forza 3 on there somewhere too. But from what I've read on most of the innertubes, MW2 is pretty much just CoD4 in a dress with no real evolutions in the multiplayer.
Demons souls is to hard for it's own good. I've beaten lots of games like Ninja Gaiden, Super Ghouls and Ghosts, Gradius v and a whole other bunch of tough games. But Demons souls is just brutal... etc
Every point you made about this game is spot on, although they are EXACTLY the reasons I am loving playing it. Getting to a seemingly impossible area so returning to other parts to collect souls and obtain something that can get you through those REALLY tough parts is what makes it so satisfying. You're right, it doesn't hold your hand and explain everything (I've had to Google twice), but it's one of the most addictive games I've ever played.
now seriously, COD Modern warfare 2 is the 'BEST'. Uncharted 1 went platinum and u can get it for like £10 online, MW1 will never go on platinum, what does that tell u, they hardly lower the price, same for MW2. It's just too good
No because Activision are money grabbing buttholes and they didn't want to let the game go 'Platinum', at least until MW2 was out. In doing so the price would have to be slashed. AFAIK, retailers give a proportion of the money from a sale to the distributers, who pass on a portion to the publisher, and they in turn may or may not pass on some to the dev (depending on what the deal was). If Acti want £30 from every sale, then retailers will never be able to drop below £40ish unless they want to lose money. You'll notice that Activision rarely allow the price to be dropped on any of their published games, not for a considerable amount of time. And also, you'll notice how if one retailer does a deal of the week, most others also do the same with the same game. I guess there's a reason for this, the publisher has agreed to take a price cut for a limited time on that game.
MW1 can now be picked up for £20 brand new in most places, but only since MW2 came out. I bet MW2 won't drop in price until MW3 comes out.
totally agree, uncharted was just awesome then somehow the blow the original out of the water and made a better game, they didnt even need to, if it had been the same par it would still be the winner, but Nuaghty Dog I think is one of the more insperational, best developers of gaming history so far
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wasnt anywhere in tht article and it could have taken it. It seems a game just has to have zelda in the name and its lapped up, doesnt matter if its the exact same thing as 10 years ago.
