We're proud to present The Score's 2009 Top 10 Games of the Year. With as many great games that were released in the last 12 months, the games that made this list are truly worth your time to seek out and enjoy. Hopefully, 2010 brings a list even half this strong of quality titles by this time next year.
HONORABLE MENTION: Scribblenauts (Nintendo DS)
The most innovative game currently on the Nintendo DS platform. A thinking person’s game, Scribblenauts pushes the limits of both vocabulary and creativity to devise solutions to pass level after level. Think of a word, and you can draw it using the DS stylus and have that object appear in the game to use to solve a puzzle.
10) The Sims 3 (PC)
The life simulator returns with greatly expanded features and new gameplay options. The addition of entire communities of Sims with which to interact, along with the addition of customizable character traits and aspirations, give the franchise a breath of fresh air. Oh, and it’s nice to have a PC game that doesn’t require a new graphics card to play!
9) Mario and Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story (Nintendo DS)
An accessible, funny, highly-enjoyable role-playing game for the Nintendo DS. Mario and Luigi team up once again, and this time work in tandem with Bowser to take on Lord Fawful, the main enemy from the previous game in this series. The sheer variety of things to do in this game will provide hours and hours of gameplay, and as usual, the visuals and sound are top-notch. This is the best handheld game on any platform released in 2009.
8) DJ Hero (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii)
It’s unfortunate that the market is saturated with Guitar Hero and Rock Band titles, causing many gamers to overlook one of the best and most innovative titles of the year on any platform. The game’s variety of difficulty settings make it accessible for just about anybody, and the variety of music genres represented in the game’s huge track list make it fun for groups to play. Just like Guitar Hero, any music fan or budding musician should play this game.
7) Borderlands (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC)
The distinctive art style and the flavorful personalities grab you right away, and the enjoyable gameplay and rich, dynamic world don’t give you back. Borderlands, and it’s four-player-cooperative multiplayer full of rewarding quests and big, bad bosses to take down, is the perfect complement to more straight-ahead first-person-shooters like Halo or Call of Duty.
6) Dragon Age: Origins (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC)
This is as much of a classic storytelling experience as any piece of fiction you’ll read this year. BioWare has done it again, creating in the world of Ferelden a place that you won’t want to leave. The depth of the characters, the intrigue of the plot, and the strength of the gameplay are enough to make a strong case for Game of the Year, and the fact that it’s not even the best role-playing game of 2009 is a testament to the quality and quantity of video games that were released over the past 12 months. Still, Dragon Age is absolutely a must-own title for any role-playing game fan.
5) Batman: Arkham Asylum (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC)
Well, this was a bit unexpected: a Batman game NOT tied in with a movie? Yes, and it’s the best Batman game ever, with arguably the most engrossing realization of the Batman universe ever created in any entertainment medium – TV, movie, or game. Sneak stealthily through danger, deploying Batman’s wealth of gadgets and weaponry on his utility belt as needed to take out the Joker’s henchmen. If you missed this one in September when it was released, give it a spin soon, or we’ll have to send Scarecrow after you.
4) Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC)
The next iteration in the Call of Duty franchise does not disappoint. Plenty of multiplayer depth, including the new addition of a two-player cooperative mode, complement a pitch-perfect single player campaign well. The addition of customizable killstreaks was a nice touch. Even though Modern Warfare 2 is one of the best games of the year, perhaps it’s a bit too realistic: controversy over the terrorism scene in the single-player campaign, along with some launch-day multiplayer bugs, keep it from claiming the top overall award from us.
3) Demon’s Souls (PlayStation 3)
Absolute masterpiece and the new standard of role-playing gameplay on any console. Demon’s Souls, yet another niche title from little-known RPG-maker Atlus, fuses innovative multiplayer elements into a primarily single-player RPG experience to create something totally new and fresh for fans of this genre of games. The raw, unforgiving difficulty of the game is so intense that it draws you in, adding another layer of depth to one of the most unforgettable, rewarding games you’ll ever play. We can’t rave about this game enough – this game will change the way role-playing games are created for years to come.
2) New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Nintendo Wii)
Can a game be innovative and nostalgic at the same time? The new Super Mario Bros. game on the Wii manages to do both, taking cues from previous Mario games with its ingenious level design and hidden secrets sprinkled throughout, and including brand-new four-player cooperative gameplay that makes this the one and only must-have Wii-exclusive video game released in 2009. The inclusion of Coin Battle and Free-for-all multiplayer modes add hours of replayability to the game – a first for the Mario series. This one has been hard to find since it was released in November, and for very good reason.
1) Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PlayStation 3)
Uncharted 2 isn’t just a crowning achievement for the video game industry, it’s a sign of things to come as entertainment media continue to converge. Some games are just as fun to watch as they are to play, and this is one of those games: part Hollywood blockbuster, part Silicon Valley tech showpiece, Uncharted 2 is so accessible and fun to play that owning a PS3 without this game should be a crime. Throw in some incredibly addictive, very-well-thought-out multiplayer modes, and you’ve got The Score’s 2009 Game of the Year.
