Shut up, it’s been too long since I’ve written anything. Bear with it.

I figured instead of listing what I thought was the best of 2009, I’ll take it to the future with the games I’m most excited about. As a game developer (especially working at perfectionist-filled, and often haterade-drinking Naughty Dog) it becomes difficult to enjoy games and anticipate things being awesome. I don’t know how many times I’ve seen a trailer and scoffed: “probly gonna suck”. So I find that me being excited about a game is a rare occasion worth writing about!

It will be interesting to see at the end of the year what I really enjoyed, and what really DID suck.

Red Read Redemption
Right now, this has got to be my most anticipated game. There really aren’t that many western games made, and I don’t understand why. I remember playing Red Dead Revolver and really enjoying it, and even Lethal Enforcers 2 on the genesis had all the crazy wild-west shootout stuff that’s never really been replicated recently. The most recent trailer looks to have train robberies, gatlin guns, shooting bears, dragging dudes behind your horse(!), and most promising of all: an intriguing story. Just hope they refined the hell out of the GTA shooting. At the very least, I hope it sparks a resurgence in the “Western” sub-genre.

God of War 3
It may be an embarrassment to admit this, but I had never actually played God of War until the remastered collection just came out. I now see what all the fuss is about. GoW1 freakin’ holds up! The combat is gorgeous! (in a game design-y way, not a visual way) The story is simple, but I got pulled into it pretty easily. And the final boss fight was insane! The potential for what can be done on PS3 fills my imagination with all kinds of cool and crazy shit. Especially with these Titans I keep hearing about. I guess I should finish GoW2 first.

Medal of Honor
I have hope that the reboot of this franchise will take MoH back to what made the first games so amazing to me: an awesome story, and a sense that one man is changing the course of a massive war. It’s modern day, and it’s afghanistan so I hope it’s based on real events. I mean, it’s no WWII but grounding it in reality makes it soo much better. I guess I’m excited because I think “it’s time” for EA to take back the war game crown. I believe modern war and good story can co-exist, and I think EA believes again! All has been lost, you’ve been wallowing in the dark night of the soul, now let Act 3 begin, find synthesis and give MW a run for their money! I’m rooting for you!

Split Second
As a huge racing game fan, it’s good to see the genre getting new life. How to make a better racing game: amazing crashes? No, Burnout has that covered. Super-realism? Uh uh. GT and Forza will crush you. The answer: blow up every fucking thing that’s NOT the car. Buildings, planes, the track itself! I know I will never get my beloved Need for Speed shortcut-laden, jump-filled, exotic-car-infused “good ‘ol days” back, but this looks like a step in the right direction. I LOOOVED Pure, so Blackrock’s take on hazard-filled street racing should be nothing less than fuckin’ rad.

Gears of War 3
This hasn’t been announced yet, and no I don’t have any “insider” info, I’m just assuming that it’s highly likely that a gears 3 will drop in 2010. Believe it or not, one of my most enjoyable experiences of 2008 was playing Gears 2 co-op with a stranger the night of release, and finishing it in one sitting. I don’t care what anyone says, I thought a level set inside a monsters digestive system was pretty frickin’ awesome. I respect Gears for knowing exactly what it is (testosterone, in game form) and just going all out with it. I’m curious where they go from here, gameplay wise. More traversal? Stealth? More manly chainsaws? No matter what they come up with, I’ll definitely be there day one with a friend.

Others Worth Noting
It’s worth mentioning that I’m super amped about Bayonetta, but it comes out Tuesday, so my anticipation will be quenched. And it’s a waste of energy to anticipate anything from Valve like HL: Episode 3 or Portal 2 as I’m sure both are years out. But if they did announce for 2010, those would go to the top of my list.

Sadly Un-amped About…
After playing the recent demo, I can’t seem to get myself excited for Gran Turismo 5. This is a small tragedy because I’ve been a die-hard GT fan since the first. Even the graphics didn’t excite me. Probly Dirt 2 spoiling me on fancy damage modeling and more arcadey gameplay. It’s probably just been too long. The desire will come back.

Since I’m not a big RPG fan, I can’t get my panties in a bunch over FFXIII or Mass Effect 2. But these games may just be big enough and talked about at the office enough that I take the plunge. We’ll see.