It’s that time of the year again…as 2009 draws to a close and the holiday season is upon us, cmfl3x and I decided that we wanted to do our own “Leveling Down” gaming awards for 2009 where we choose winners in several categories for Xbox 360 games that have been released in 2009. At the same time, we also wanted to preserve the holiday shopping guide that Leveling Down produced last year but felt that the awards and the shopping guide were too similar.
Instead of separate 2009 awards and holiday shopping guide posts, we’ve decided to combine them this year into one. Every game we’ve nominated within our awards are games worth considering for the holidays, but at the same time, we’re also declaring the winner. Consider the awards as, if you can only buy one game from the nominees of the category, buy the winner. But if you are further interested in other games from the category, you should definitely pick them up as well as they have aspects that all make them worth considering. Game boxes have been provided for all nominees, and all of them link to Amazon, our gaming retailer of the year due to not only their ridiculous gaming deals, but their constant vigilance in price matching practically all competitors.
Our 2009 awards/shopping guide will span all week, with cmfl3x and me alternating posts and writing about a few categories each day. This will culminate on Friday when we both share our own nominations for Game of the Year, and our picks for Game of the Year. I will kick things off today with three categories: 2009′s Best Fighting Game, Best Role Playing Game, and Best First Person Shooter for the Xbox 360.
Best Xbox 360 Fighting Game of 2009
Street Fighter IV [winner]
BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger
Marvel vs Capcom 2
Tekken 6
It’s hard to believe that Street Fighter IV released this year since it was back in February that the game came out. Compared to the other fighting games that were released in 2009, Street Fighter IV reigns supreme. It is THE sequel to Street Fighter II for many of us that grew up with the game, and jumped off the band wagon once Street Fighter III came out. It unites fans of the classic Street Fighter games with fans of the more current Street Fighter games – a remarkable feat. The roster is huge and full of fan favorites, the gameplay is simple to learn yet deep enough to be played at a competitive level, the graphics are truly revolutionary and fitting for this generation, and the excellent matchmaking allows fans to play the game competitively from the comfort of their own homes. In short, it’s easy to understand why Street Fighter IV is our 2009 fighting game of the year.
BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger is our runner up for fighting game of the year. Developed by the makers of Guilty Gear, BlazBlue came out of nowhere for me and after I picked it up and played it, I had a great time. The game is fresh with completely new characters, contains very functional matchmaking, and a single player mode that has players really learning about the storyline and background of each character. I would have liked to see more characters, as BlazBlue’s playable roster doesn’t compare to Street Fighter IV’s, but the game should be next on your list to buy if you’re a fighting game fan and Street Fighter IV has lost its appeal for you.
Marvel vs Capcom 2 is a $15 Xbox Live Arcade title, and while it’s worth mentioning here as a fighting game to look into, it is beginning to show its age. All the craziness of the game is still there and matchmaking works online, but at this rate you’re either still a fan or have moved on. Today’s fighting games are a bit less frenetic, but if jonesin’ to play as Spiderman and Wolverine once again, Marvel vs Capcom 2 will deliver. Just be aware that the character list is quite unbalanced and you may get frustrated playing online against others that have been playing it for many years.
Tekken 6 is the last fighting game to be released in 2009 worth considering for fighting game fans. At its initial launch, the game’s online was terrible but over Thanksgiving Namco has since released a patch to alleviate the problems. I haven’t played the Tekken games since the PS2, but I have picked up Tekken 6 and plan to delve into it later this month. The game has a huge roster of characters, but for some reason or another, its core gameplay has never really resonated with me compared to other fighting games. Tekken tends to focus more on juggling combos than traditional combos, and has single-player departures that tend to suck. Tekken 6 appears to be no different. I don’t see much innovation in this game compared to Street Fighter IV and BlazBlue, the other stronger titles in this category. Still, it’s the only 3D fighter released this year, so if you prefer that to 2D fighters, this is the game to get.
Best Xbox 360 Role Playing Game of 2009
Star Ocean: The Last Hope
Sacred 2: Fallen Angel
Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition
Magna Carta 2
Dragon Age: Origins [winner]
2009 was a tough year for role playing game fans on the Xbox 360. After the deluge of titles from Mystwalker and Square Enix in the past, we’re left with just one pure Japanese RPG released in 2009: Star Ocean: The Last Hope. I actually owned this game for a while, and tried it out for a bit. It’s not a bad game, as it follows traditional J-RPG classic RPG design. If you like J-RPGs and the idea of spending hundreds of hours in a sci-fi based one, Star Ocean 4 is worth considering – even if the reviews of the game are less than stellar. It seems like American reviewers don’t really enjoy J-RPG games much these days, as they didn’t score Lost Odyssey too highly either so if you liked games like Lost Odyssey, perhaps Star Ocean: The Last Hope may also provide you with similar enjoyment.
Sacred 2 was a 360 port originally released on the PC. I tried out the PC demo and while it was decent, I wasn’t going to seriously play it enough to get it. It’s gotten mixed reviews, but it resonates strongly with the right crowd. If you’re a Diablo fan and enjoy collecting loot in an action-RPG style game, Sacred 2 is the only game you’ll be able to play this year on the 360 that can handle that. However, there are inherent technical issues with the game, with complaints such as slowdown, interface problems, and other minor things that account for a lack of presentation. Players also complain about the lack of a pause feature. But, if you want an action-RPG game to play on the 360, this is most likely the primary replacement to Too Human.
Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition I mention here only because it was released this year. With it being our pick for 2008′s game of the year, it cannot seriously be considered as a competitor for this year. Having said that, if you have not played the game yet, this is the definitive title to get as the game of the year edition contains all five released downloadable content that would have cost players $50 or so alone for just downloading. The most important part of the DLC is that it raises the level cap from 20 to 30, ensuring a much lengthier experience you can enjoy in the world of Fallout 3.
Magna Carta 2 is a Korean developed J-RPG game, and I say “J-RPG” because the developers have created it specifically adhering to Japanese RPG game design. However, the game actually plays more like an action-RPG, and is very reminiscent of Infinite Undiscovery. Sadly, Infinite Undiscovery and Magna Carta 2 were devastated by american reviewers. I personally enjoyed Infinite Undiscovery a lot, and because of that I’ve already picked up Magna Carta 2. There are still fans for both games, and there seem to be more fans of Magna Carta 2 than I would have thought. So with Magna Carta 2, perhaps it’s worth not listening to the reviewers if this type of game interests you.
The final nominee we have for best 360 role playing game of 2009 is Dragon Age: Origins. Compared to the other games, it was easy to realize that Dragon Age: Origins would be our winner even though neither cmfl3x and I have even played through it yet. It’s in my backlog (like practically every other big game released this holiday season), but I’ve read enough about it and even played the web-based game to understand what it’s going for. To be honest, it wins by default because Fallout 3: GotY is ineligible, and the other three RPG games are good for only certain types of RPG fan types, while Dragon Age: Origins brings it all together. If you are simply a general RPG fan, Dragon Age: Origins is the game to buy. The game is quite lengthy, has a deep storyline, and is developed by the team behind RPG greats such as Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic, Mass Effect, and the game is considered the spiritual successor to the PC franchise Baldur’s Gate. The one big negative to the game appears to be the graphics. The game looks gorgeous on the PC, but on the 360 version, complaints seem to condemn the game as having Xbox 1 level graphics. I’m sure they can’t be that bad, but that is perhaps the biggest thing to consider. Most people recommend picking the PC version if possible but if the 360 is all you got, it’s still the best RPG game of this year.
Best Xbox 360 First Person Shooter of 2009
Battlefield 1943
Halo 3: ODST
Borderlands
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 [winner]
Left 4 Dead 2
What defines what is the best first person shooter of the year? Of course it would have to be played in first person, but what I’m thinking about is when one is shopping for a gamer who doesn’t have any of this year’s top FPS games and is a FPS fan, the winner of this category is the game to get. Which is the overall package that will delight a FPS fan?
Battlefield 1943 is an Xbox Live Arcade only title, and while it has a hard time comparing to the other games on this nominee list, it holds its own as quite an enjoyable Live Arcade title. The game released in the summer of 2009 for $15, and prior to that, there had been no other online FPS game for fans to engage in. Battlefield 1943 definitely scratched the itch, as it brought the core Battlefield Conquest gameplay back, with three different land maps and an air map. Does it still hold up compared to this holiday season’s titles? Not really, but for a fraction of the cost, it’s still worth checking out for multiplayer FPS fans.
Halo 3: ODST did not release to rave reviews like its predecessors. It did some interesting things with the “open world” campaign and Firefight modes, but many felt that its $59.99 price tag was far too high for what it provided: a 6 hour campaign, co-op Firefight without matchmaking, and all of the Halo 3 multiplayer with all DLC maps and three new ones. Most fans of Halo already had Halo 3, so while it sounds like a good deal for those completely new to Halo, people were upset that they were spending $60 to complete a short campaign and play Firefight. The game did not have legs, and many players have already moved onto either Modern Warfare 2 or Left 4 Dead 2. Is it a good game? Sure it’s worth playing if you’re a Halo fan and the Firefight mode is a lot of fun with friends. But with no truely new multiplayer component, it’s a game that will most likely gather dust once you’ve gone through it.
Borderlands is more of a mixture between FPS and RPG, as you play the game in first person and shoot guns but you have to adhere to RPG principles like finding new weapons for damage upgrades and taking into account damage increases and reduction due to player and enemy level differences. Borderlands proves that this mixture between FPS and RPG works brilliantly, and for fans of both genres, the game is worth picking up. Unfortunately, like Halo 3: ODST, it doesn’t seem to be a game that has legs. It’s quite lengthier than Halo 3: ODST (at about 25 hours for each playthrough, with 2 playthroughs required to max out at level 50), and even provides 4-player co-op, but the RPG limitations prevent co-op from really being possible unless you have a dedicated crew that will only play it together at the exact same time.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is the juggernaut in this list, and easily the winner of this category due to it being a more complete package than any other FPS on this list. If you want to play the game’s multiplayer, it’s awesome and has so many things going on that you could be engaged with it for months or years. There’s so much going on that I’ve even had to write a guide for it, and it’s so fun that even when you die you can’t help but keep coming back. At the same time, the campaign, while a bit on the short side at 6 hours, is also quite a thrillride from start to finish with a storyline that has you on the edge of your seat at practically every level. Still on top of that, if you wanted even more from the game, there’s an entirely new mode called Special Ops that consists of over 20 levels that you can play through co-op with a friend. These levels are quite enjoyable, ranging from one player in an AC-130 covering another player as he makes his way across the map to both players holding out together against several waves of increasingly difficult enemies. In all, Modern Warfare 2 is the First Person Shooter of 2009, and should not be missed. It has practically everything a first person shooter fan could ever want.
Left 4 Dead 2 was released one week after Modern Warfare 2, and amusingly enough, I am now writing about it in the paragraph after gushing about how amazing Modern Warfare 2 is and why it won. Left 4 Dead 2 actually pulls second in this category for 2009, as it brings more to the table over its predecessor: more special infected zombies, more weapons, more levels, longer levels, more adversarial modes, increased difficulty, and the list goes on. Of course, whether it was all necessary is questionable by fans of the original but I will definitely admit that if I ever get tired of Modern Warfare 2, I can see Left 4 Dead 2 carrying my FPS burden until Battlefield: Bad Company 2 releases in March. My recommendation is to pick up Modern Warfare 2 & Left 4 Dead 2, but if it can only be one for your FPS fan, it’s Modern Warfare 2 all the way.
Stay tuned tomorrow when cmfl3x presents our next categories!
