The IncGamers Awards 2009 Part 1

30 Dec 2009 at 06:36:03 by Tim McDonald

It's been a really, really good year for games. Looking back, it's hard to find a month where there hasn't been at least one top-notch, must-have title, and we consider it our task – nay, our duty to go through each and every one of them, and tell you which ones were our absolute favourites.

This is our list of the best games of 2009. It was hard-argued and hard-fought (at least one staff member will be having their Christmas dinner through an IV) but we've finally compiled a list of the best games of the year, sorted by both the best in each genre, the best on each platform, nods to the best publisher and developer, and – of course – what we reckon is the best game of the year.

That's enough of a preamble so, as the song goes, here it is. Happy Holidays!

The team also discuss their choices in part one of this special video feature. (View part two here)

Best MMO of 2009 – Aion: The Tower of Eternity

Forget “best-looking MMO” - Aion is one of the best-looking games we've seen, and the sharp graphical styling helps create an almost unprecedented feeling of adventure. Your character (which you will craft, over the course of several hours, into a bronzed god of a being using the ludicrously in-depth customisation tools) has wings, and with these wings you can soar about the gorgeous landscape for the best views of the utterly stunning vistas. It's not all about the graphics, though: a smart combo system, well-designed instances, and clever social tools draw players further into this beautifully realised world.

Best RPG of 2009 – Dragon Age: Origins

Despite early worries that Dragon Age was focusing on sex, violence, and Marilyn Manson, it instead turned out to be a deep game that mixed the best of old BioWare with the best of the new. It's a classic RPG with the stats and tactical combat that we hoped for, but it's all combined with the best of BioWare's story-telling, characterisation, and world-building. As astonishingly good as everything else is – and I could wax lyrical about all of it - it's the world that's the real star of the show here, not only in the way that its history and all of the related prejudices unfold as you progress, but in the way that you feel like an important part of it with the power to change things around you. Anyone craving a spiritual successor to Baldur's Gate, a tactical challenge, an immersive world, or simply a bloody brilliant RPG, should look no further.

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