Continued from page one…
4: Halo 3: ODST
Bungie’s dark and brooding New Mombassa made an immediate impact on the 7outof10 staff earlier in the year, with our resident expert bestowing a fine 9/10. Whether or not you agree with the score, ODST undoubtedly carried the Halo flag into its most innovative territory yet, and we can only hope Reach follows suit.
“I know I’m a stock Halo fanboy, but I really liked the direction they took. Personalities shone through, and the tone of the story gave it a brilliant layering effect” enthused Pogo, whilst Dan Kelly declared it a “thinking man’s Halo”, and BIGsheep was taken with “its grim and poorly lit streets”, which “combined with a beautifully subtle score to create a very eerie world – far from the brushed purple metallic of previous games.”
3: Batman: Arkham Asylum
Who’d have thought a Batman game could ever be this good? Little-known developer RockSteady turned the comic book adaptation cliché firmly on its head in with Arkham Asylum – before skulking in the shadows for a bit, kicking it in the face and then punching it into a wall. Repeatedly. Because it’s moody like that.
For a game that boasted unmitigated success from top to bottom, perhaps most surprising was the level of polish that went into each and every aspect of gameplay; from the Valve-inspired environmental storytelling, through to hand-to-hand action that simply oozed with refinement and extensive playtesting.
Indeed Robin was most pleased with this facet, declaring the “Innovative and effective combat system” a triumph. Several readers, including Preston Mcghee noted the “best comic-book game ever”, whilst Mike found it “stunning” and SRuss praised “one of the best action games” to ever exist.
Arkham took no prisoners on its march into our top 10, and some may say that even a top three position is criminally underrated.
2: CoD Modern Warfare 2
So you’ve heard our thoughts already, and partaken in a wider debate over that scene, but as the dust settles, MW2’s qualities have ensured it will be remembered for a lot more than controversy alone.
It’s hard to pick out a high point from a campaign built around one-upping itself with every consecutive level, so we’ll simply praise the package instead, offering as it does some of the finest single-player shooting galleries on any console or PC, along with a maddeningly addictive online component that seems destined to be top-billing on Xbox Live and PSN until the next generation of IW tech puts it to shame.
AndrewB worryingly observed that the game was “practically porn” for mentalists like himself, whilst Mike confirmed that it did indeed leave him “wet in certain areas”. Ricardo “loved the online multiplayer”, as did David Cazarez; but Eric B declared the “lack of PC dedicated server support” as “frustrating”.
With that particularly thorny PC issue being the only blemish on IW’s otherwise unprecedented service record, MW2 deserves its place as second-billing to our champion for 2009.
1: Uncharted 2
With a fairly decisive margin of votes, Naughty Dog’s spectacular Croft-em-up is our very first award winner here at 7outof10, with reviewer and readership unanimous in high praise for the evolved and supremely entertaining action-adventure formula in this spectacular sequel.
Whether it was the evolution of videogame narrative characterisation, the refined play mechanics, or the procession of incredible visuals that stood out the most; Uncharted 2 simply reeked of a big-budget game, with money well-spent by a talented project lead and confident team.
DavidGR was similarly effusive in his praise of the “best story of the year”, whilst KingKONg agreed, stating that “Drake had an uncanny knack of saying the wrong thing at the right time”, and that man AndrewB experienced the most “cinematic experience you’ll find outside of a movie.”
Murilo shuddered with a slightly disturbingly-titled “techgasm” on slipping Drake into his drive, kratos_671 found solace in the “absolute top notch” visuals, whilst Julias was so hyped with anticipation that he played through the original beforehand, for what turned out to be Migel56’s “finest experience of the year.”
So. Uncharted 2 reached the very heights of our expectations, took things a step further, and raised our hopes for traditional narrative within videogames. If that doesn’t deserve a win, I have no idea what does.
We’d like to offer our thanks to everybody that voted, and a quick nod to the likes of Killzone 2, Left 4 Dead 2, Resident Evil 5, infamous, Shadow Complex and Street Fighter 4; all of which were close but no cigar for 2009.
All feedback is welcome below, and if you fancy getting involved in 7outof10’s continuing evolution you can find details over here. Finally, we hope to see you back in the coming weeks for our second vote, details of which will be revealed on January 1st 2010.
It’s the future!
Professional enthusiast, videogame "journalist" and all-round spectacular sofa dweller. "
7 Comments
Im calling Zombie bullshit on the lack of Left 4 Dead 2 in that list!!
Left 4 Dead 2 smells like a bad add on pack to me. I’m waiting for Left 4 Dead 4. Prob out in Feb?
I was disappointed by Borderlands. I was excited by the concept, but it seemed to opt for the least satisfying RPG elements: repetitive grind for items and XP, tacked-on “Kill X Bandits” sidequests, and a confusing, often depopulated overworld.
The FPS parts worked adequately, but were not particularly compelling. The co-op was a nice addition, but didn’t seem to bring too much to the game.
Not terrible, just very average.
Mikey….i do hope your not being serious there.
Well i ain’t played it, so can not comment, got the first one, was fun but anoying, i’m an old fashioned aim down the barrel of your gun kinda guy, not a spray and hope you hit something guy. Have they added aiming? Please. Ok. Then. I love your beard.
Hmm I own the games in 2 & 3 but haven’t even looked @ the game occupying the No1 slot, keeping in mind my fondness for anything involving aiming on a PC, am I missing out? I mean its a reason to fire up the Ps3 that isn’t a Blu-Ray or Singstar!
@Robin: Are you (or have you ever been) a fan of Tomb Raider style adventure games? If so, please, please give it a try – it’s nothing short of fantastic. If not, it might sway you anyway!
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[...] of gaming. 2009 was a good year, handing us a length list that you all obviously enjoyed if your Top 10 Games of the Year voting was anything to go by, and with the high calibre of Bayonetta leading the charge into 2010 [...]
[...] of gaming. 2009 was a good year, handing us a length list that you all obviously enjoyed if your Top 10 Games of the Year voting was anything to go by, and with the high calibre of Bayonetta leading the charge into 2010 [...]