2008 Gaming Goodness... better than 2007?!

Everyone speaks of 2007 being a banner year for gaming, yet here we are in the later half of 2008, and the list of gaming goodness that's fixing to be released is delicious!!

I hopped on the Gamestop website to see when Rockband 2 would be coming out, and the list of upcoming games was remarkable.

Here's a short list of titles that I'm most likely going to purchase in the next few months:
Rockband 2 (360)
Star Wars: Force Unleashed (PC?/360)
Fallout 3 (PC)
Gears of War 2 (360)
Fable 2 (360)
Mercenaries 2 (360)
Spore (PC/360)
Left 4 Dead (360)

Games that I may not purchase but could easily be persuaded to:
Starcraft II (PC)
Far Cry 2 (PC)
Alan Wake (360)
Call of Duty: World at War (360/PC)
Tom Clancy's End War (360)
Saints Row 2 (360)
Guitar Hero World Tour (360)
Facebreaker (360)

And finally if reviews are good I might buy:
Dragonquest IV (DS)
Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia (DS)
Ghostbusters (360)
Too Human (360)
Infinite Undiscovery (360)
Mirror's Edge (360)
Warhammer Online (PC)

In the 'Games I won't buy but will surely have stellar sales' category (I don't own a PS3):
Little Big Planet (PS3)
WoW: Wrath of the Lich King (PC)
SoCom (something or other) (PS3)
Disgaea 3 (PS3)
Resistance 2 (PS3)

I don't know if this year will be better but it's going to be very comparable. My list is very close to your's:

Rockband 2 (360)
Star Wars: Force Unleashed (360)
Fallout 3 (PC)
Gears of War 2 (360)
Mercenaries 2 (360)
Spore (PC)
Left 4 Dead (PC)
Starcraft II (PC)
Far Cry 2 (PC)
Alan Wake (360 But Not Coming This Year)
Call of Duty: World at War (PC)
Tom Clancy's End War (360, Rent)
Saints Row 2 (360, Rent)
Guitar Hero World Tour (360, Maybe for the Drums Only)
Ghostbusters (360, May Not Come Out)
Too Human (360)
Mirror's Edge (360)
Little Big Planet (PS3)
Resistance 2 (PS3)
Dead Space (360, Possibility)

This year really shaped up nicely. I don't think we can make a good call until December, because there are a number of those games that (like in 2007) may not be released or meet expectations.

For example I'm excited but concerned about:
Too Human
Spore
Little Big Planet
Far Cry 2
Resistance 2
among a few others.

At least a few of those will probably be duds.

But, man this really turned out to be a much more interesting year than it looked back in January and February.

I'm not sure that this year will have any absolute must-haves like last year's, but there's a massive amount of games coming out in the next few months.

Possible buys:
Fallout 3
King's Bounty
NWN2: Storm of Zephyr
Rock Band 2 (glad we waited)
Spore
Fable 2
WoW: Wrath of the Lich King
Viva Pinata (360? DS? Maybe both)

Solid rentals:
Too Human
Dead Space
Saints Row 2
Banjo Kazooie
Mercenaries 2
Silent Hill: Homecoming
Far Cry 2
Mercenaries 2

Interested enough to monitor reviews:
Left 4 Dead
Prince of Persia
Mirror's Edge
Fracture
Legendary
Rise of the Argonauts:
Star Wars: Force Unleashed
Samba de Amigo
Cooking Mama: World Kitchen
Monster Lab
Animal Crossing: City Folk
Mushroom Men: Spore Wars
Captain Rainbow

Much the same as everyone elses but here's my list anyway (with a couple not yet mentioned)

PC

Mercenaries 2
STALKER Clear Sky
Spore
A Vampyre Story - Adventure game by some of the monkey island folks
Rise of the Argonauts
Brothers in Arms : Hells Highway
Crysis Warhead
C&C Red Alert 3
Project Origin
Cryostasis : Sleep of Reason - russian horror shooter in the Bioshock / System shock mould
Sacred 2
GTA4 - better graphics, better controls and mods
Tomb Raider Underworld - especially now I heard it continues directly from where Legend left off
Legendary (??) - Jury still out on this one
Fallout 3
Left 4 Dead
Mirrors Edge
Wrath of the Lich King - hurry up blizzard :(
Far Cry 2
Deadspace
NWN2: Storm of Zephyr
Prince of Persia

360

Viva Pinata - missed out on it first time around
Force Unleashed
Gears 2
Fable 2 - or I may wait, as the inevitable PC version will no doubt be announced a couple of months down the line
Too Human
Infinite Undiscovery
Silent Hill: Homecoming

PS3

Little Big Planet
Disgaea 3

DS

FF IV - Not out over here yet

Phew....don't know where I'm going to find the money for all of that 0_o

Yeah, it's hard to tell until the end of the year to be sure, but this is looking to be a great time. There was even quite a bit this spring coming out that I didn't even get to play catch up with 2007 titles I missed as planned.

Aside from the titles mentioned, I'm looking forward to a lot of under-the-radar titles too, like King's Bounty, Cryostasis, Velvet Assassin, White Gold, Valkryria Chronicles, etc. I guess that's the one drawback: with so many AAA titles coming so often instead of a short wave every two or three years, a lot of great titles that aren't big budget but also aren't small Xbox Marketplace-type games have an even greater chance of being smothered by the hype then ever before.

Speaking of which, I came to a shocking conclusion this year when planning my pre-orders. Steam has Ubisoft (Brothers in Arms, Prince of Persia, Far Cry 2), 2K Games (Colonization, Fallout 3), Activision (COD5), Gamecock (Velvet Assassin), STALKER: Clear Sky, and obviously Left 4 Dead. Direct2Drive has most EA titles (Red Alert 3, Spore, Dead Space, Crysis Warhead, Mirror's Edge, although that one I'll probably get on console). Gamersgate has 1C games (King's Bounty and Cryostasis).

All I need is one of these distributors to carry Project ORIGIN, and then in a season where I plan on buying at least 12 to 15 PC games, I won't be purchasing a physical copy of a single one of them.

Oh, forgot about The Witcher : Extended edition, but technically I wont be buying that since it's a free download

I'd been meaning to put together a list like this for myself. So I'll take the opportunity to do it now.

Definite buys:
Fallout 3 (PC/PS3?)
Mirror's Edge (PS3)
Little Big Planet (PS3)
Valkyria Chronicles (sp?) (PS3)
Street Fighter 4 (PS3)
Street Fighter II HD Remix (PS3)

Want but will probably have to wait till next year:
Resistance 2 (PS3)
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (PC/PS3?)
Spore (PC)
Prince of Persia (PS3)

Knowing my pace for purchasing games I'll be lucky if I get half-way through the definite buys by the end of the year.

I'm excited about a PS3 price drop, what with a promotion complete and two raises due by Christmas... oh yeah, along with:

Mercenaries 2
Saints Row 2
Galaga Legions
War World

.. and like Parallex, if Ghostbusters comes out this year, I'll probably pick it up. If not, the XBLA will keep me going through to the winter.

Definite:
Rock Band 2
Left 4 Dead
Prince of Persia
Gears of War 2

Likely:
Mirror's Edge
Mercenaries 2
Fallout 3
Far Cry 2
Brothers in Arms
The Witcher: Extended Edition

Possible:
Viva Pinata 2
Dead Space
Banjo Kazooie
Project Origin
Guitar Hero: World Tour

Pretty long list for me. Really hard to say how it will compare with last year until the games are actually out. There was just so much awesomeness last year that I haven't even gotten through yet.

My must buy list depends on my financial (Namely, if I have a PS3 and/or a 360 by december) Like Infinite Undiscovery and Disgaea 3 (Seriously, how did I miss Disgaea until Lobster mentioned it?) I'll likely wait to pick up Fable 2 on PC, Fallout is a PC game for me,

Looks like the launch schedule is more conductive to picking up a 360 first.
There's a Tales game coming out for the 360, Rock Band 2, Infinite undiscovery, Too Human looks good, Mirrors Edge looks good.

I forgot about POP and Left4Dead. Though, that one I'll likely wait to see if there's a PC port. (Console FPS and I are like oil and water.)

AmazingZoidberg wrote:

I'd been meaning to put together a list like this for myself. So I'll take the opportunity to do it now.

Definite buys:
Street Fighter 4 (PS3)

Want but will probably have to wait till next year:

I think you'll have to move SFIV into your next category... I was going to list it in my original thread as well, but saw that it was an early 2009 release...

Like many of you've said, a lot of these games are wait and see, but seeing the sheer volume of games coming out, I think the odds are most of us will be overwhelmed this holiday season rather than the inverse...

Left4Dead. Though, that one I'll likely wait to see if there's a PC port

er...if your talking about left4dead you *DO* realise it's primarily a PC game first, console game second right

Also, as with Team Fortress 2 the benefits to getting the PC version will no doubt be valve's usual stellar post-release support, regular updates and a vast array of excellent user-created maps.

Woo list time!

Day One:
Infinite Undiscovery
Fallout 3
Dead Space
Fable 2
Left 4 Dead

Eventually:
Project Origin
Gears of War 2
Midnight Club: LA
Last Remnant
Saints Row 2

Probably:
Mirror's Edge

Maybe:
LBP
Far Cry 2

Doubtful:
Resistance 2

Seems to me every year sans launch years is a good year for games. Launches sadly make production on current consoles lag (though PC games stay consistant) but I can't think of any year I didn't find at least three really good games.

My list is much the same as everyone else's, no need to repeat.

WoW: Wrath of the Lich King (PC)
My list is short

07 = cod4 , orange box , bioshock
08 = d3 announce

therefore 08 wins

TheWalt wrote:
AmazingZoidberg wrote:

I'd been meaning to put together a list like this for myself. So I'll take the opportunity to do it now.

Definite buys:
Street Fighter 4 (PS3)

Want but will probably have to wait till next year:

I think you'll have to move SFIV into your next category... I was going to list it in my original thread as well, but saw that it was an early 2009 release...

Like many of you've said, a lot of these games are wait and see, but seeing the sheer volume of games coming out, I think the odds are most of us will be overwhelmed this holiday season rather than the inverse...

Good catch. I hadn't heard any firm release dates but somehow I had the impression that was going to be a holiday title. I'm perfectly happy to wait, there's more than enough gaming goodness to keep me this winter.

Short list here too: Fallout 3 (PC) and Mirror's Edge (360)

For me, this is nothing like the blindingly bright 2007.

Only definites for me right now are Fallout 3 and STALKER: Clear Sky. Probably Far Cry 2 and there is a good chance I'll pick up Spore. Beyond that, we'll see.

I'm another shortlister.

PC
Starcraft II

360
Rock Band 2
Star Wars: Force Unleashed

And that's pretty much it. WAR, WotLK mean little to me. Most everything else is kinda eh. Good year for gaming, but so little that matters for me, even if the stuff that matters is off the charts

Last year was great on paper, but a lot of the games ended up falling short for me. I think 2008 has a very good chance of beating 2007.

I have high hopes for this fall:

Fallout 3
Gears of War 2
Mirror's Edge
Rock Band 2
Guitar Hero: World Tour
Dead Space
skate. 2
Far Cry 2
Castle Crashers
Left 4 Dead
Call of Duty: World at War
Tomb Raider: Underworld
Spore
Wrath of the Lich King

- Viva Pinata 2
- Maybe Little Big Planet if it reviews well (not scores, but what people have to say about it).

Those are my most highly anticipated games.

Otherwise there's Banjo and Fallout 3. We'll see.

The year so far has been good, though.

Braid, Geometry Wars 2, Rez HD, Burnout Paradise, Civ Revolution.

Not as good as 2007, but good. The games I play the most (skate., All Pro Football 2k8, Halo 3, Viva Pinata) are still pre-2008.

Long List for me too - I think I'll personally be very happy with 08 since 07 was pretty short on RPGs. (Mass Effect and The Witcher being the notable 2 exceptions) Apart from the greatness that has already come (GTA4, Braid, Audiosurf), I'm definitely picking up

Fallout 3
Fable 2
Mirror's Edge
Starcraft 2
Rock Band 2
GH: WT
Left 4 Dead (Drool)
Spore
Civ 4 - Colonization

Maybe's on Prince of Persia, Dead Space, Too Human, and King's Bounty - might be delayed until 09 depending on Time/Budget.

I'd get LBP in a heartbeat if I had a PS3 - It's actually the only PS3 exclusive that I've been jealous about.

Frankly, I don't know how I'll have time for it all.

While I am excited for the upcoming 2008 releases, I have a feeling we're going to see a lot of games fall short compared to their hype. Not that they won't be great games, but not the amazing blockbusters we saw in 2007.

In particular I'm concerned with:

Dead Space (I really want this to be good but something just feels... off)
Far Cry 2
Call of Duty: World at War (Not at all impressed with what I've heard and seen. Hands-on previews indicate it's more of the same from Treyarch)
Fable 2
Saints Row 2
Force Unleashed
Mercenaries 2
Crysis Warhead

As for Little Big Planet, I got to play and watch it at Comic Con and I think it's going be a great game for the core gamer. Unfortunately I don't think it's going to have that mass market appeal that Sony is hoping for. Many of the kids playing it were pretty confused as to what was happening on screen, what was an enemy, a platform, or what to do. And some of the previews for the level building feature have noted that it's not as easy as it's said to be. Just my two cents.

For me here is my outlook

Since I have been playing catchup and playing a lot of these 2007 games this year its been a banner year for me. lol

Day 1

Fallout 3
Colonization

Next Year

Total War Empires
Alpha Protocol

(purchase when price drops probably next year sometime)

Mass Effect
COD 4
Crysis Warhead

I just saw a Yahoo article that claims Xbox 360 outsold Playstation 3 for the first time ever in weekly sales 2 weeks ago in conjuction with the exclusive release of Tales of Vesperia from Namco Bandai.

I'm going to keep an eye on this, although the last game I kept an eye on with a story like this was Blue Dragon, which just didn't do it for me... Supposed to hit North American stores next week I believe...

Luna and I have a pretty monstrous list this fall too; the asterisks are our definite immediate purchases, but I expect we'll be picking up a great many of the others to hold us through the winter as well.

August
* Too Human
Castle Crashers
Mercenaries 2

September
Witcher Special
* Rock Band 2
Infinite Undiscovery
Spore
Force Unleashed

October
Saints Row 2
* Fallout 3 (L)
* Little Big Planet
* Fable 2 (L)
Dead Space
Far Cry 2

November
* Gears of War 2 (L)
Valkyria Chronicles
Prince of Persia
Mirror's Edge
Last Remnant
* Animal Crossing
Left 4 Dead

Well, I might as well throw in:

August
Too Human (360)
Castle Crashers (360)
Tales of Vesperia (360)
Mercenaries 2 (360)
Disgaea 3 (PS3)

September
Rock Band 2 (360)
Infinite Undiscovery (360)
Spore (PC)
Force Unleashed (360)
DQIV (DS)
Warhammer Online (PC) - maybe
Viva Pinata (360)

October
Saints Row 2 (360)
Fallout 3 (PC/360)
Little Big Planet (PS3)
Fable 2 (360)
Dead Space (360)
Castlevania (DS)
Red Alert 3 (PC)

November
Gears of War 2 (360)
Valkyria Chronicles (PS3)
Tomb Raider Underworld (PS3) - maybe
Prince of Persia (360)
Mirror's Edge (360)
Last Remnant (360)
Left 4 Dead (360)
Age of Empires (DS)
WoW Lich King (PC)
Legendary (PC) - maybe
Resistance 2 (PS3)
Tom Clancy's Endwar (360)

December
ChronoTrigger (DS)
Starcraft II (PC)

Wow. There are games after Spore?

I want so many of these games, but between Spore and Fallout, I don't know how I'm going to have time to play any of them.