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How appropriate that the year should end on a Thursday. Perfect time for me to talk about my Top 5 GOTY (Games of the Year, if you don’t know) 2009. As can be seen from the picture above, the first and in top spot is definitely Batman: Arkham Asylum.

Batman is a name that almost every geek can identify with. And for many years, we have been waiting for the day a good Batman game to hit our PC or consoles. 2009 is the year. Even if you took away the name Batman, this game can hold its own ground. Excellent voice acting, great graphics, a strong plot, fantastic gameplay, this is everything you would expect in a game.

Put in one of people’s favourite character, and you got a winning combination. This was definitely the game of the year for me.

Zombies. Four people. Killing everything that moves (sometimes including your team member). What more could you ask for? While the single player campaign is a bit weak since there really isn’t a story, the appeal of L4D2 is when you play with friends.

Nothing is greater than chopping or shooting zombies and occassionally hearing your friend scream for help. The zombies are as zombie-like as they possibly can and the inclusion of special zombies just makes it even better. The formula isn’t that different from L4D, except its more refined.

The only gripe about the game is when you don’t have friends and have to rely on AI. They are quite dumb unfortunately which is a surprise because the AI in L4D was pretty good.

Let’s get it out of my way first. Assassin’s Creed 1 was fun, for about an hour, then it got repetitive and the endless horse riding got on my nerve. Thank god Assassin’s Creed 2 realised that and changed the formula quite drastically. We still have the free-running, roof-hopping character and the killing is still the same and even more satisfying this time around.

But they finally removed the needless travelling but giving you an option to pay, and instantly you are in your location. That is such a life saver. Not only that, the eavesdropping and spying missions are now weaved into the story so you do not feel like its forced upon you.

The graphics are better, the gameplay is improved, Assassin’s Creed 2 is simply a must-have game. I can’t wait for Assassin’s Creed 3 now. After watching Bodyguards & Assassins, maybe they should the third part in China. :P

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is a tough act to follow so Infinity Ward needed to put in the extra effort to make sure that Modern Warfare 2 will be bigger and better. In a way, it is. The graphics are again improved, the setting is varied and apparently, multiplayer is way better (I don’t play COD multiplayer so this is hear-say).

Judging it on the single player campaign, it has all the elements I loved in the first game. Engaging story, great voice acting, fantastic graphics and very, very action-packed. If you like military games, then this should by all means be in your library. But.. yes, there is a but. Somehow, the story is still great but it is less explosive than the first. Maybe because we were already expecting the twists and deaths. I know it is a winning recipe, but it could have done with a bit more variety.

A Top 5 list wouldn’t be complete without my favourite soccer game! I know there a lot of Winning Eleven fanboys out there but you have to admit it. This year, FIFA10 officially knocks Konami off the throne.

While Winning Eleven caught up in graphics (pretty much on par), FIFA10 continues to trump them in the licensing department and they finally added Netherlands into the list. The gameplay for FIFA10 is now more realistic, more fluid and Winning Eleven have a lot of catching up to do.

Not only that, Be a Pro mode is more refined than its competitor and the 10v10 online multiplayer can be a blast (if you have good Internet connection). EA Sports have finally created a game that can attract players not just through licensing power alone, but through it gameplay. Well done!

And that is all for my Top 5 GOTY. 2010 is going to be another great year for gaming as the start of the year alone promises titles like Darksiders, Splinter Cell Conviction and Bioshock 2.

Happy New Year and have a great gaming weekend!