Taking both ‘Home Entertainment Device of the Year’ and ‘Games Console of the Year’, the PS3 Slim trumped rivals, taking close to half of the votes in both categories.

However, the Slim wasn’t exactly up against overwhelming competition; the closest rival in ‘Home Entertainment Device of the Year’ was the HP MediaSmart Home Server, taking a measly 9.6% of the votes, while the Slim took home the trophy with 54.3%.

In the ‘Games Console of the Year’ awards, the Slim’s main rival was the Xbox 360 Modern Warfare 2 Edition, which took a significant 31.2% against the PS3 Slim’s 43.3%. The Slim was also the Editor’s Choice top pick for Console of the Year.

In other Engadget award news, the Wii MotionPlus took home ‘Game Accessory of the Year’, beating Modern Warfare 2’s Night Vision Goggles’s by just 4.7%.

5. SCAR-H

Modern Warfare 2

A beastly weapon, on all accounts.

The SCAR-H is a fantastic weapon. Highly  used in MW2 multiplayer, and often equipped with a Red Dot Site, this thing is unstoppable. With high accuracy, long range and dishing out a lot of damage, what more can you want?

4. Cannons

Empire Total War

Cannons can be devastating, not only to flesh and blood, but moral.

There are few things more demoralising than a massive cannon barrage from a well placed artillery battery. And if you find the round shot pretty destructive, wait until you get a hold of quicklime. That stuff is evil, it acts like toxic gas that lingers on the battlefield.

3. Hidden Blade

Assassins Creed II

Who doesn't want a pointy blade up their sleeve?

The Hidden Blade makes a reappearance from the original AC with devastating power. With the ability to swiftly and silently make your kills, the Hidden Blade is a very valuable asset. It may not be big, but I bet it certainly feels painful when an assassin is sticking it your throat.

2. Needler

Halo 3: ODST

Spiky.

When you get hold of a weapon that shoots out exploding spikes at a rapid pace, you know it’s badass. Not only do the large spikes themselves do a fair bit of damage on impact, they then explode, causing considerable damage to the erm… recipient- and anyone standing near them.

1. Electricity Gun

Killzone 2

There are few things more satisfying than liquidating someone with the Electricity Gun. There is a reason why you only get to use this awesome gun a few times- its bloody powerful. It takes but a second to cook your opponents with this high-voltage weapon.

Q1 2009

Halo Wars was one of the highlights of 2009.

The Xbox 360 had a great season last year in 2008. Heavy hitters like Gears of War 2 and Fable 2 sold like hot cakes making the Xbox the most wanted console in Fall 2008. January just like any other year was very slow for the video games industry. There were two notable releases for the 360 in Skate and Conquest, which were both multiplatform games. However, Skate 2 was a bit of a disappointment since the predecessor was such a good game. January ended with the release of Fallout 3: Operation Anchorage which was a unique experience for Fallout 3 fans. It had its problems, but it’s a fun 3-4 hours of action that anyone with the game should experience.

February saw the release of the sequel to one of the best survival horror games ever;  FEAR 2 was a little less scary than its predecessor but it was a solid shooter overall. The month was very good for Microsoft since it had two major games in Street Fighter IV and the exclusive DLC for Grand Theft Auto 4: The Lost and the Damned. L&D offered a superior multiplayer to the vanilla game. Various GTA IV modes are included in addition to plenty of new modes like lone wolf biker, chopper v chopper, witness protection etc. All these new multiplayer modes and slight gameplay tweaks made L&D an amazing new experience. February ended with reasonable games like Star Ocean: The Last Hope and 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand.

March was the month the majority of the 360 owners were waiting for. No prizes for guessing; Halo Wars. Halo Wars was the premier console RTS and the one that other developers will use as a blueprint for many years to come. Ubisoft’s new multiplatform game for jet fanatics HAWX came out and did fairly well along with the epilogue DLC for the critically acclaimed Prince of Persia. Capcom’s next game, Resident Evil 5 also saw the light in March and did fantastically well on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, and even though the series was big diversion from the previous games it did very well nonetheless.

Q2 2009

Sorry! By ripping Ryu Hayabusa, you are not going to win any hearts!

Q2 began with another exclusive: Ninja Blade. It tried to better to what Ninja Gaiden achieved but in the end it was nothing but a cheap rip off. Ninja Blade was a decent attempt at stealing Ninja Gaiden’s thunder, but fell short on everything it tried to do. Next up was The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena which was a good attempt but fell short compared to the original. April also saw the release of the stealth action game Velvet Assassin, which was not without issues. The stealth mechanics had been executed very well but it was often nullified by some really awkward and frustrating combat sequences. However, it was the best exclusive that the system had in April. May was the time for Mutants. May 1^st 2009 saw the release of Origins: Wolverine, the next installment in the X-men franchise. The game was very well developed and had a good plot (better than the movie) and had some of the craziest action sequences seen in an X-men game. Then it was time for yet another Fallout 3 DLC ; Broken Steel, which gave a good bang for your buck and was a must buy for any Fallout 3 owner. May also saw the release of several multiplatform games like UFC 2009, Bionic Commando and Sacred: Fallen Angel.

June started with a bang with the release of Volition’s Red Faction: Guerilla which featured a load of destructible objects in the game. Hell yeah! The game is easily one of the best examples of mayhem and utter destruction in 2009. Next up was Prototype which was one of the highlights of June. Unfortunately, we then had one of the worst as well; Virtua Tennis. Next up was the highly anticipated Ghostbusters: The Video Game which made you feel like you were a Ghostbuster in real life. The month ended with great games like Fight Night Round 4, Call of Juarez and the next game in the Transformers franchise: Revenge of the Fallen.

Q3 2009

Halo to the rescue...again?

July 8^th saw the release of one of the bigger and better downloadable games: Battlefield 1943. It’s difficult not to recommend Battlefield 1943 to anyone. Whether you are a shooter fan or not there is tons of fun to be had, and at 1200 Microsoft points or $14.99 on the PSN the price is right. One of the better deals that was released in July was the combined package of BioShock and Oblivion. I am not sure how many of you actually missed this one, but it was a pretty good deal considering you can get two of the best games this generation in one bundle. The end of July saw the release of Gears of War 2: All Fronts Collection which included several maps and the deleted chapter in the sequel ‘Road to Ruin’. One of the most under rated fighting games Marvel versus Capcom 2 also came out during this period. August saw the release of GI JOE which got panned by the critics. Madden NFL 10 came out and was the best Madden experience to date with more realistic gameplay than ever. Another good deal was the release of Trials HD on XBLA.  For 1200 Microsoft points, TRIALS HD isn’t a bad buy, 800 would feel a bit better though. I’d suggest trying out the demo before going in full throttle to decide for yourself. If that was not enough, Shadow Complex came out and proved itself to be a decent downloadable game. This wasn’t the ’side-scroll’ game you’ve seen in the past; this was revolutionary with a new and improved style.

At the end of August we had the release of Batman Arkham Asylum. It was hands down the best Batman game ever, and probably the best superhero game too! It’s one of the greatest stealth- action games we have played on the 360 yet. Do yourself a favour and pick it up if you haven’t already. September saw the release of two exclusive games for the 360. Gears of War 2 game of the year edition and Section 8. Section 8 was a pretty good take on dynamic mission structure and combat.  September also saw a plethora of multiplatform games such as Dirt 2, The Beatles, Mini Ninjas, NHL 2010, Marvel Ultimate Alliance, Shift and much more. Phew! September was damn hot. And we are not even done yet. Halo 3: ODST came out and did pretty well in sales and was generally applauded by many critics included us. Folks…let me say it again- it’s not an expansion pack. I would say the Firefight mode is alone worth 60 bucks.

Q4 2009

Welcome to the party folks.

October started off with a couple of neat basketball games from EA and 2k. Operation Flashpoint kick started the battle for the shooter genre. If you’re into a military based FPS’s that are more about tactical gameplay, this isn’t the worst game you’ll ever play. It may not be the greatest, but I enjoyed it and had a hard time putting it down. Next up was Brutal Legend. Brutal Legend came with a lot of promise. While it excelled at atmosphere it didn’t excel at anything else, making it a good game, but nothing memorable. One of the Wild Cards of 2009 was also released in October: Borderlands. In my opinion, it’s a better game than Fallout 3 just for the fact that it has so many cool weapons and the variety of enemies it presents to the player is incredible. October ended with another great FIFA game and WWE: Smack Down versus Raw: 2010.

October 27^th saw the release of Forza 3. Forza Motorsport 3 offered a mind blowing package overall which sure raises the bar high for racing genre. Simulation fan or not, this game is a must for each and every racer. Another exclusive DLC for the Xbox 360 was The Ballad of Gay Tony, which is well worth your 1600 Microsoft Points ($19.99). Those tired of the L&D or the original GTA IV story will find a thrilling new experience but those looking for tons of new content will feel disappointed, although far from ripped off. October finally rounded off with releases of Tekken 6 and DJ Hero. November saw some huge releases on the Xbox 360. Games like Dragon Age Origins, Assassin’s Creed 2, Left 4 Dead 2 and the biggest release of all time: Modern Warfare 2. All these games did very well on the Xbox 360. The only thing missing in November was a major 360 exclusive. December also saw the release of the usual multiplatform games like Avatar, The Saboteur and MX vs. ATV Reflex.

Judging by the number of games that I have mentioned throughout this article, the 360 had a ton of them until November where it failed to provide a major exclusive. Overall I believe the 360 had a good year in 2009 and it was not bad as many outlets make it out to be. However, I will agree it was no way as close to what they had in 2008, but 2009 was not something that Microsoft should forget about. They had a lot of positives this year and next year they have some major releases like Alan Wake, Splinter Cell, Halo Reach and much more.

For more:

PlayStation 3: Year in review

PC: Year in review

Q1 2009- A Period of Strategy

Dawn of War II got the year off to a good start.

To start off 2009, we had some kick-ass releases. In a remarkable coincidence, almost all of the notable releases were strategy games. When Dawn of War II came out it knocked us flat with its fantastic visuals and RPG-esque tactical gameplay.  Following this was Tom Clancy’s Endwar. With some interesting voice control options and a cool continuous multiplayer scheme it sounded like an interesting premise. Unfortunately, it failed to live up to its promises. Another much-hyped release was that of Empire Total War. Highly anticipated, it had high expectations. And while the game succeeded in creating a game that was yet even larger and better looking than ever before, it was riddled with bugs. To this date it still crashes, and the AI is still incapable of making naval invasions. Nevertheless it was a mixed bag to say the least.

To continue the trend of strategy games in Q1, we had the release of Men of War in late March. This game combined the small scale squad tactics of Company of Heroes and the innovative Direct Control as seen in the 2004 classic, Soldiers: Heroes of World War II. Also worthy of mention is Cryostasis, an indie horror game that had many people on the edge of their seats. Selling at a knock down price, it was a bargain worth snatching up.

Q2 2009- A period of Stalin and Martians…Oh dear

Socializing with my pixelated friends.

A little way into the year, things cooled down a little. We had some big names like The Sims make a reappearance after a lengthy hiatus. The Sims 3 managed to generate a fair amount of interest too, selling almost 1.5 million copies in its first week. And who can mention Q2 of 2009 without Stalin vs Martians! In the words of Gamespot’s Kevin VanOrd, “Do not play, look at, or even think about this mangled wreck of a strategy game.” Quite right he was too. Stalin vs Martians was a dire game in just about every area. It had horrible sound, horrible graphics, terrible controls and more bugs than a British hospital.

To help pad out this fairly desolate part of the year, Velvet Assassin was released in May. It was a unique stealth action game set in World War Two and it provided great sound with some great graphics. Unfortunately though- it just wasn’t that much fun due to unsatisfying gunplay and poor AI. However, for the more die-hard shooter fans out there, the biggest release of the quarter was ARMA II. This was not just a standard bubblegum shooter though- for many missions you were simply dropped somewhere in the 225km² map, given some rough directions, and off you went. Little guidance, lots of frustration and a punishing difficulty. Doesn’t sound like much fun does it? In fact what kept people coming back for more was the huge map editor, and the tons upon tons of equipment and vehicles at your disposal. Don’t fancy a long run? Take a chopper.

Q3 2009- Turning old ideas into new ones

Nothing like a little ‘umph’ to start off Q3. Now, being that these are the summer months and game developers have a tendency to hibernate until winter, we didn’t see too much action. However, Street Fighter 4 with its fantastic online play and quirky retro visuals helped many a gamer through weeks of boredom. As did Batman: Arkham Asylum, which took the gaming media by storm. This was not simply a feeble movie-game seen so many times before; it was a visceral, exciting and adult adventure through the depths of DC’s underworld. To put it plainly- the best superhero game ever made.

However, if this didn’t take your fancy then in September we saw the highly anticipated yet slightly disappointing Resident Evil 5. Sporting a strong emphasis on 2-player co-op and taking place in bright African sunshine, Capcom’s latest was more of a gory third person shooter than the shit-in-your-pants survival horror game it once was. Nevertheless, it provided some entertainment, and it wasn’t a horribly botched port like RE4. It was also around September that anticipation of the now-infamous Modern Warfare 2 began to grow. Receiving pages upon pages of optimistic media coverage, it looked like a winner for sure…

Q4 2009- Dizzying highs and crushing lows

Hooray for BioWare!

The last few months have probably been the most eventful. Partly, this is because developers try and get their big budget releases out before Holiday to maximize profits, but this year there were several noteworthy events. First off we have Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising. Now, even with hindsight, I know that there were a LOT of PC gamers out there who were wary of this game before it’s release. While the original had been good, ARMA II had been released only months before, and it had set the bar high. Also, it was not totally unfair to suggest that because OF:DR was being released on consoles as well as PC, that it would be either a simple port, or just not have the epic scope of a game like ARMA II, purpose built for the PC. Upon release, it seemed like this was correct. The game didn’t have the realism or scope of ARMA, but it still had the bugs to match- most people found little reason to buy it. Following this we had Fallout 3: GOTY edition. Nothing new here, just a compilation of all the DLC’s and the full game in one package. It would have been nice if they had solved the crashing issues with it, though. To top off October, we had Boderlands. And do you want to know why this game is great? Loot. Lots of loot. Now I don’t know about you, but I just love the feeling you get when you find a monstrous cache of weapons in Fallout. Now imagine doing that every 10 minutes, and you get the basic idea of Borderlands. Seriously though, the gunplay and role playing elements all came together nicely in this superior game.

Now as we venture into November, things begin to heat up. Dragon Age Origins. Nuff’ said, right? This game was simply incredible; bringing together a mix of old style D&D action and beautiful modern day graphics, we had a game that felt both refreshingly new and comfortingly familiar at the same time.

Then, sometime around the end of October, the bombshell that MW2 would not have mod support or dedicated servers was dropped with an almighty shockwave. Forums were flash mobbed with angry PC gamers, and there was a huge outcry. However, Infinity Ward were not backing down (at that point in time) and refused to comment. Most of you will already know the story, so I will not elaborate further (if for whatever reason you don’t, check the links at the bottom for more info). So the MW2 release date came and went with the astonishing sales figures that everyone expected to accompany it. At this point, PC gamers were feeling very sorry for themselves- but just then, along came Left 4 Dead 2. Made by our loyal and friendly developer Valve, we expected class and polish, and we got every ounce of it.

To top it all off, and to bring us back to today, we had another decent release recently; namely DiRt 2. Good game if you have a steering wheel, but my opinion remains that driving games just don’t work so well on PC.

And the rest, as they say, is history…

2010

And now we look towards 2010. 2009 was a good year, but it certainly had it’s ups and downs. But next year…PC gamers are in for a treat. Let me list some of the games we might be seeing in the next 12 months;

• Starcraft 2
• Command and Conquer 4
• Napoleon Total War
• Guild Wars 2
• Diablo 3
• Star Wars: The Old Republic
• Red Orchestra 2
• Stalker: Call or Pripyat
• Silent Hunter V
• Supreme Commander 2
• Brink
• MechWarrior
• Mafia II
• Deux Ex 3
• Mass Effect 2
• Splinter Cell
• Max Payne 3
• Bioshock 2
• Assassin’s Creed II
• Battlefield 1943
• Final Fantasy XIV Online
• Medal of Honor
• Batman Arkham Asylum 2
• R.U.S.E
• Just Cause 2
• Dead Rising 2

These are just some of the games you could be playing this time next year. Boy, I’m going to be strapped for cash next Holiday…

For further info on the Modern Warfare 2 scandal:

Connection and ping issues

A little satire

IWNet hacked!

Issues with the game

Modern Warfare 2 Review