I know you’ve heard this before, but choosing my favorite games of 2009 was rough. There were a few titles that were heartbreaking to leave off this list. Some of my favorite titles may not have been the most technically impressive, or the most innovative, but they are the games that offered me more hours of sheer enjoyment than any other. Whether saving worlds alone, fighting zombies with a friend or three, stealthing in the shoes of the world’s greatest detective, reliving the career of one of history’s greatest bands, or simply simulating day-to-day activities, the ten games listed here are titles I will keep in my gaming library forever, and go back to again and again. These are my favorite games of 2009.



Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Let’s get the most obvious title out of the way first. Was there any way this game wouldn’t end up on my personal top ten list? No way. Uncharted 2 impressed me every single minute that I played it. The graphics were fantastic. The environments were varied. The story was well-written. The dialogue and voice-acting were absolutely top notch. On top of that, Naughty Dog added multiplayer to this sequel that was actually a lot of fun. If you haven’t played Uncharted 2 yet, you’re robbing yourself of one of the greatest gaming experiences of this generation, if not of all time.



The Beatles: Rock Band

Again, there was very little chance that I wasn’t going to love this game, and love it I did. Harmonix knew that they had to be careful when they got the rights to the Beatles’ music catalogue, and that The Beatles: Rock Band couldn’t be a simple cash-in on the Rock Band franchise. They delivered, big time. Though the gameplay is similar to past titles in the series, the addition of harmonizing vocals was a fantastic element, and one I hope to see in future Rock Band games. The recreations of famous venues and beautiful dreamscapes, along with a wonderful setlist filled with #1 hits and some less obvious picks, made this a game that brought people together like no other. In the end, it didn’t matter that there were only 45 songs on the disc; I’ll happily play those songs over and over again.



A Boy and His Blob

Finally, after twenty years, A Boy and His Blob was given a second look. I loved the Nintendo game as a child, but it was frustratingly hard, to the point of being almost broken. This game proves that Wii games are capable of delivering beautiful presentations if developers just take the time to figure out what works best on the system. The gameplay was simple, and sometimes held your hand a little too much, but the later levels offered a genuine challenge, and the game was relentlessly charming and fun throughout. Listen, there’s a hug button that allows the boy to hug his pet blob. What else do you need to know?



Left 4 Dead 2

Second verse, same as the first. Left 4 Dead 2 didn’t change the basic concept of Left 4 Dead, nor did I want it to. Instead, Valve simply improved an already-fantastic experience by adding more weapons, more bad guys, more multiplayer modes, and more levels. The presentation is better, Versus mode is more balanced, and Realism added a touch of… well, realism. I could easily play this game every night for the next six months and probably never get sick of it. Some gamers complained when Valve announced a sequel to L4D so soon after the first game, but I would rather thank them for giving me many more hours of blissful zombie killing in 2009.



Resident Evil 5

Speaking of zombies, Resident Evil 5 also made obliterating the undead with a friend fun. Though the controls felt a little antiquated, and your teammate A.I. could be brain dead, the cooperative play made up for most of the game’s issues. This is one of few games in my lifetime that I have started again immediately after beating it. Upgrading weapons and collecting trinkets became just as addictive as making your way through each level, and the teamwork aspect was great. I’ve been meaning to go back and finish my second playthrough for months now, and talking about it has made me want to play even more.



Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box

Last year, Professor Layton and the Curious Village came out of nowhere and won over just about everyone who played it. When Diabolical Box came out a few months ago, I was ready for it, but still ended up being blown away by the wonderful story and high production values. Level-5 have proven themselves to be fantastic developers once again, and in addition to hours of satisfyingly challenging puzzles and brain teasers, the game’s ending was one of the best conclusions of the year. I’m a diehard Layton fan now, and I eagerly await the next game in the series.

Batman: Arkham Asylum

I love Batman. He’s my favorite superhero, despite having absolutely no supernatural powers. He also has the best villains, particularly the Joker and Harley Quinn, my favorite people in the DC Universe. When it was announced that an unknown, unproven developer, Rocksteady Games, would be creating a new Batman video game, I think we were all a little wary. After all, past Batman games were mediocre at best, and embarrassing at worst; no one had ever been able to properly translate the rich history of Batman into a video game. As it turns out, Rocksteady knew what they were doing, creating not only the best superhero game ever made, but a fantastic title in its own right. Using the voice actors from Batman: The Animated Series certainly helped, but the entire experience of Arkham Asylum is great from start to finish.



Trials HD

Just like Braid last year, this downloadable Xbox Live Arcade game took everyone at Gamervision completely by storm. What seemed like a simple, maybe even generic 2.5D motorcycle game turned out to be an insanely addictive and challenging physics-based platformer. Competing for high scores on leaderboards kept me playing this for weeks after it came out, and now that the DLC is out I'm right back in.



The Sims 3

Few games are as much of a time-suck as the Sims series. Killing productivity since 2000, the latest installment in the life-simulating series has kept me coming back for more since its June release. All it takes is one tiny spark of an idea, and before I know it I’m spending hours designing a beautiful mansion, and some human trainwrecks to live inside of it. Seriously, I have tried to get away from The Sims 3 so many times in the last six months, and it keeps pulling me back in. Whether it’s an expansion pack, a quirky trailer, or just another crazy idea that pops into my head, I’m never able to take this out of my computer for very long.



New Super Mario Bros. Wii

As fantastic as Super Mario Galaxy was, for me, there’s nothing like a classic 2D Mario platformer. Because of this, I was thrilled when New Super Mario Bros. came out for the DS a few years ago, the first 2D game in the series in years. I would have been on board for New Super Mario Bros. Wii even if it hadn’t added multiplayer and upped the challenge factor, but those additions were nice bonuses. We all laughed when Nintendo called the gameplay “coopetition”, but as it turned out, that non-word perfectly described the experience of making your way through levels with some friends. I still wish the game had online co-op, that really would have put it over the top for me, but I’ll gladly whip out my extra Wii remotes any time someone comes to my house. This is the kind of game that you keep on playing even after you beat it, and since the experience is different depending on who you play with, NSMBW could just be one of the most replayable games of the year.

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This week, Gamervision’s writers will be listing their ten favorite games of 2009. They may not be the most technically impressive or innovative titles, but we loved them just the same, and will probably be playing them well into 2010. Whether it was unique presentations, addictive multiplayer, a compelling narrative, or just simply satisfying gameplay, these were the games that left lasting impressions on us regardless of review score or proximity to perfection.

Be sure to check back every day this week to see what games each writer has picked, and next week we’ll be continuing our annual Best Ever awards, determining the best games of 2009. On Friday, January 1, Gamervision’s Game of the Year 2009 will be announced, and you’ll want to see just how we get there.

Be sure to check back tomorrow to see which games of 2009 made Sean's Ten Favorites.