Most Anticipated Games of 2009: 10-1

And in the blink of an eye 2009 is upon us, and games like Gears of War 2, Metal Gear Solid 4 and Animal Crossing: Let’s go to the City seem like a distant memory. Now, as is the way with the world, we turn to the future without having given the past the time it deserves. Fable 2 creator Peter Molyneux says nothing in 2009 excites him. Well that’s not how we feel. And in an attempt to get all that excitement off of our chest, allow us to present the culmination of our week-long Most Anticipated Games of 2009 feature, where we’ve compiled the 40 games that make us wet with excitement just at the thought of playing them. Here, in the final instalment, we run down from 10 to 1. Read on, and let the hype begin, or check out 40-31, 30-21 and 20-11 first.

10. Diablo III, Blizzard – PC – 2009

Blizzard sure knows how to announce a new game with a bang. Back in June last year, following weeks of fevered speculation, lead designer Jay Wilson stepped on stage at the Blizzard Invitational event in Paris to give a gameplay demonstration, crushing plenty of demons in the process. It was the first time the game was seen by anyone outside of the famously perfectionist PC developer, and the internet went into meltdown. While the game looks like classic Diablo refined and perfected rather than revolutionised, that’s all we need to get us dribbling with excitement. If you need another excuse to upgrade your rig this year, look no further.

9. Street Fighter IV, Capcom – Xbox 360, PS3 and PC – February 20

With the arrival of the stupendous Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix on Xbox LIVE and PSN, our excitement for the console release of the first proper true Street Fighter sequel in a decade has been dulled somewhat, but it’s still reaching stratospheric levels. We’ve played the game loads, in the arcades and on consoles, and can safely say it’s fantastic. The game will be out on Xbox 360 and PS3 in February, so there isn’t long to go, but it’s still excruciating. Hadouken!

8. Resident Evil 5, Capcom – Xbox 360 and PS3 – March 13

If you don’t like Resident Evil 4 we don’t want to know you and you probably have no business reading this website, so assuming you’re like us and loved the game to bits, you’re probably counting the days until Resident Evil 5 arrives on PS3 and Xbox 360. We’re not totally sold on the co-op gameplay yet (we kind of liked being the lone hero) and we’ve yet to see enough of the game to know if it’ll match Resi 4’s multitude of stunning locations, but you can get eaten by a crocodile and there’s a man with a chainsaw and bag on his head. Enough said.

7. Half-Life 2: Episode Three, Valve – TBC

Although far from confirmed for 2009, it makes sense. By late in the year it will have been two years since The Orange Box and time for the third and final instalment in the Episodes series. Without giving anything away, Episode Two ended on rather a big OMG moment that we can’t wait to pick up from, and we’re also excited to see what Valve has been able to squeeze out of the almost constantly modified Source Engine. If the mega developer/publisher can somehow find the time to make a new Portal and Counter Strike, and bundle all three together, we might just have a package that could better The Orange Box.

6. Halo 3: ODST, Microsoft – Xbox 360 – Autumn 2009

We love Halo 3. Despite what some people think, its online multiplayer is revolutionary, even to this day, and the game continues to be a perfect fit for not only the 360 but for Xbox LIVE. Despite the fact that we’re a tad disappointed that Halo 3: ODST won’t feature everyone’s favourite super-powered marine, what we’ve heard about the expansion makes us feel all warm inside. It’s open world, supposedly, and incorporates stealth gameplay, since the ODST you’ll play as will be a lot more vulnerable than the well hard Master Chief. With that in mind, and given the fact that the game is being made by Bungie, one of the world’s premier FPS developers, Halo 3: ODST deservedly ranks as one of our most anticipated games of 2009. And, unless Microsoft’s got something incredible up its sleeve, it’s a shoe-in for 2009’s biggest-selling Xbox 360 exclusive.

5. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Activision Blizzard – Xbox 360, PS3 and PC – 2009

World at War’s excellence surprised a lot of people in 2008, but we’re still eagerly anticipating what many people think of as the next real Call of Duty game, the one with Infinity Ward at the helm. Assuming it’s the Modern Warfare sequel Activision has practically already confirmed, we might finally be able to put our copies of CoD4 on the shelf with all the other games. We’re expecting a breathtaking single-player campaign, co-op and the best multiplayer experience ever. Infinity Ward didn’t let us down last time and hopefully Treyarch’s rather spectacular effort will give the developer even more incentive to reach that little bit further.

4. PES 2010, Konami – Xbox 360, PS3 and PC – 2009

PES 2009 was a bitter disappointment. It wasn’t rubbish, but it was well and truly shown up by EA’s excellent FIFA 09. Konami, we’d like to think, will, as a result of less than stellar review scores, put all of its energy into righting this wrong with PES 2010. Because we believe Seabass and co will be forced into going back to the drawing board, because we believe he won’t simply pump out a PS2 game in HD, as many have called recent iterations of the beloved series, PES 2010 is one of our most anticipated games of next year. We know the next FIFA is going to be great. It is a known quantity. Pro Evolution Soccer’s return to glory is not.

3. BioShock 2, 2K Games – TBC – Before November 2009

Now we know that BioShock 2 will be out before November 2009, getting excited about it is not only allowed, it’s unavoidable. BioShock was one of the best games of 2007, pretty much perfecting the “story-telling without cut-scenes” method of game narrative. Not only that, but the plasmid and gene tonic upgrade system, the wonderfully atmospheric art design and the philosophic undertones made it the thinking man’s shooter. Because it was so great, we’re about as excited for the follow-up as our melting minds will allow. And, given that we know next to nothing about the game (the first trailer suggests some out of water gameplay), the fire is being well-fuelled by speculation, and we all love well-fuelled speculation.

2. God of War III, Sony – PS3 – 2009

We’re struggling to contain our excitement for this one (especially Tom) – so much so that we might shed a few real tears if it fails to make the much talked about late 2009 release date. All we’ve seen is a tiny teaser trailer, but it’s enough to have us growing rock hard goatees in anticipation of the great bald one’s return – well, it’s easier than a six-pack. Sony’s Santa Monica Studio has managed to produce two incredible entries in the series so far and we’ve got no reason to doubt them now. You know a game’s worth getting excited about when the lead producer of Fallout 3 says the thought of it makes him feel faint. God of War 3’s biggest problem is living up to the hype that’s sure to build over the coming months. Will the mighty Kratos live up to impossible expectation? Every PS3-owner on the planet it praying he can.

1. Heavy Rain, Sony – PS3 – 2009

Heavy Rain is our number one most anticipated game of 2009, and that’s despite the fact that, right now, we still have more questions than answers. Like who the main characters will be, what the plot is, essential stuff like that. But what we do know makes us feel like we’re somehow 15 again, and Final Fantasy VII is about to come out. Heavy Rain looks too good to be true, and it’s a genuine attempt to revolutionise in an era when evolution is about as good as it gets. We have concerns, of course. We’re praying it doesn’t end up as more of a QTE interactive movie than an actual video game, and we hope the controls don’t fall down when things get really tough, but the potential for greatness is unquestionable, irrevocably there. What Heavy Rain could be, what we hope it will be, is the best game of 2009, and the PS3’s best game so far. Now it’s up to David Cage to make it happen.

That’s your lot. Did we miss anything that you’re excited about due for release in 2009 or did we list something that no one should be excited about at all? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.