It’s been tough looking back on this last year and trying to think on what my favorite games were.  I figured I would take each console and choose one game that I enjoy and tell you why I enjoyed it.

Xbox 360: Modern Warfare 2.  It should be rather obvious why this game is a favorite for most.  If I am to look back this year on gaming memories for the Xbox 360 I would definitely say that this game stands out the most for me in just a few months of play time.  The single player is absolutely epic, Infinity Ward does an outstanding job finding the best film-worthy moments and incorporating them into their game.  Controversy didn’t even hold much weight when it came to the awesome that was held in the single player missions.  Infinity Ward even added a Spec Ops mode, allowing players to game cooperatively on or off line, which brought back memories of early Halo CoOp.  The multiplayer reset the bar on well done online gaming.  Offering so many different weapon layouts, titles, emblems and more.  It’s easy to see why this game is on my list.

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Since gaming news has all but vanished at this time of year, I thought I’d put together a Top Ten list of sorts. Instead of calling it a “ten best games” list, however, I prefer to think of it as a list of my top ten favorite games from this year. After all, the games I enjoyed the most might not necessarily be the best, but that doesn’t diminish their value to me. And keep in mind that I didn’t play everything released this year—not that I would, even if I could.

So, without further ado, here are my ten favorite games released this year, in no particular order. (more…)

It seems delaying BioShock 2 until the first half of 2010 wasn’t enough for publisher Take-Two Interactive. We now know that in addition to the aforementioned title, Take-Two has delayed Mafia II, Max Payne 3, and Red Dead Redemption until 2010.

Take-Two wasn’t as specific with these three titles as they were for BioShock 2, so we can’t say if this a delay until fiscal year 2010, or just plain ol’ 2010. If it’s the former, these games could still come out in 2009. If the latter—which is the most likely possibility, given the glut of titles already confirmed for late ’09—then who knows when we’ll see them.

As some of you folks commented on the previous delay article, this is largely a good thing for gamers. We’ll have far less stacked on our plates so that we can savor every bite. And is anyone really surprised? Take-Two did the same thing in 2007, pushing Grand Theft Auto IV back until an unspecified time in 2008, only giving us a firm date further down the line.

Of the three additional titles being delayed, the only one that bothers me is Red Dead Redemption. I was disappointed by Red Dead Revolver, but the sequel is shaping up quite nicely. It looks like the game the original should have been. What about you folks? Any of these delays got you down?

According to the loose lips working at Game Informer Magazine, Rockstar North is hard at work on the next installment of the wildly popular Grand Theft Auto series. Apparently they are working so hard that a release date of November 09 is floating around. This will not have any effect on the upcoming Xbox 360 downloadable episodes, rather it would be an entire new experience in the vein of Vice City or San Andreas.

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As an avid non-paintball-er I wasn’t sure where to begin with NPPL Paintball for the Xbox 360. On one hand I was excited to try out something new, on the other I was nervous because I was unsure how a game (simulation) that is about simulating war would pan out.

Right from the jump I could feel that this game was developed by some guys and gals that may not have had the largest budget for creating a game. The facial graphics are terrible (thankfully your guys wear masks) and the soundtrack including the voice clips get really repetitive really fast. This doesn’t seem to completely affect the game though and you can turn the music down.

The premise of the game is to play the speed-ball version of paintball. It’s fast paced, the rounds only last about 8 minutes and there aren’t more than 14 players out on the field at any given time. The primary objective in most of the tournaments is to capture the other teams flag and bring it back to your headquarters. If you eliminate a player he is out and if you eliminate all the opposing players then it’s a walk in the park to take the flag and place it at your base. You can plan before each match and route your team mates to different parts on the playing field.

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