The 10 Best PS3 Games of 2009

F.E.A.R. 2 is an excellent, though old-school, first-person shooter. A majority of environments and weapons are horror clichés - subway system, hospital, derelict street, science lab and underground bunker let the game down slightly, but F.E.A.R. 2 picks it up in the final hours, including a thrilling cargo train assault, a chilling descent into Ground Zero and an ending so spectacularly odd it is likely to elicit more than its fair share of 'wha?'s.

One main issue with the PS3 port, however, is that, similar to the first F.E.A.R., the graphics seem to have been downgraded for some reason and the gameplay seems clunky in parts.

Despite that, in conclusion, F.E.A.R. 2 is a refined, all-round great and brilliantly gory horror shooter. Rather than stunning and complex places to explore and out-of-this-world guns straight out of a child's notebook, it's the trigger-fumbling tension mixed with the game's slick and superb underlining shooter mechanics that will drive you towards the baffling climax.

A spine-tingling follow-up by Monolith. Highly recommended.

IGN Score: 8.5

The second rally racer in the Dirt franchise boasts spectacular graphics, a copious number of interesting game modes and great online gameplay. Hardcore rally fans may be a little disappointed that the entire career isn't rally based, but this opens up new and innovative ideas for the game, and broadcasts to a wider audience.

The heart of the career mode is an RV which you travel the world in. When you step out, you look around the various festival-style locations, buy new cars and check tournament rankings. As you progress in the career mode, you gain experience, which in turn increases your level. This unlocks new tracks, game modes, and cutesy little items for your RV. The cars landscapes that you can race in are absolutely stunning and the tracks are extensively detailed to cater to where you actually are in the world - rather than simple, rolling desert roads.

In conclusion, Dirt 2 is an immersive, slick and technically sound game which is a lot of fun for anyone - even if you aren't a die-hard rally fan, this is a must-have for lovers of the racing genre.

IGN Score: 9.0

Never fear, comic book fans. Arkham Asylum doesn't fail where other games have in the past.

Rocksteady got every aspect of the Big Bad Bat right - from his use of gadgets, to his intellect, and to his unwavering will to pummel evil into submission. Though there is a fair amount of combat, depending on how you want to play the game, the focus is on Batman's detective and stealth abilities. The game has references to Calendar Man and Maxie Zeus, along with a great cameo by Clayface and a chilling performance by Mark Hamill as The Joker.

To conclude, this is an more adult-themed Dark Knight story that is well-told, packs some truly fun gameplay, has topnotch voice acting, and feels like it's part of Batman canon. Also, as a PS3 user, you can access exclusive 'Joker Challenges' from the PSN Store - and at last you get to play as the demented, but enthralling man. If I had to nitpick, I would wish that the cutscenes looked a bit better as they can distract from the tale, and also that the AI was a tad more responsive, but those are small flaws which won't take away from your experience much. Top to bottom, this is an amazing piece of work and a real tribute to one of comics' greatest characters.

IGN Score: 9.2

In brief, inFamous is a superhero game which is actually good. When you pick up the controller, you're dropped into the shoes of Cole - once an everyday bike messenger, but that all ended when he was delivering a package and the thing went off in his hands. The blast leveled a gigantic portion of the fictional Empire City and left Cole in a coma. When he wakes up, everything has gone to pot - there's a plague spreading like wildfire, the city is quarantined and various gangs have seized control of the three islands that make up the metropolis - and most importantly, Cole find's he's been imbued with electricity-based superpowers. Now that you're in control of a e can shoot lightning bolts, jump from the highest buildings, and flip cars with a shock-wave attack - what are you going to do?

You see, much like Grant Theft Auto, inFamous is an open-world game. Once you've gone through the basic tutorial, Empire City is yours to play with. You can go out on missions, take on the hordes of bad guys lining the streets and rooftops, tackle some side missions or just do a spot of free-running.

The game has a brilliant and intriguing story, the graphic novel-style cutscenes are stunning and Cole's powers are pretty damn cool. I could go on and on, but to truly appreciate what Sucker Punch has created, you'll have to sit down and play the game.

IGN Score: 9.0

Killzone 2 is an exhilarating and challenging sequel, with electric-paced first person shooter gameplay within vast sci-fi landscapes set on the fictional planet of Helghan.

The game has beautiful visuals and highly detailed environments, making it all the more realistic. However, beautiful they may be, the actual planet is unforgiving and leaves a multitude of obstacles in your way, such as thick, toxic air and violent lightning storms. And, for a change in many FPS games, the Helghast soldiers aren't stupid; they will flank you, work in teams and set up ambushes to take you out.

Albeit tough, Killzone 2 is a rewarding game that keeps you interested with varied opponents, unique characters and a deep, engrossing storyline. If you like the sort of sci-fi style the game offers, you've got to add this in your collection.

IGN Score: 9.3

Step forward Nathan Drake, star of Uncharted and its breathtaking follow-up Among Thieves, a game that sets a new benchmark for cinematic console romps. This is a sequel set in that traditional mould; bigger, bolder, and more polished, trumping first outing Drake's Fortune in nearly every regard and firmly establishing Nathan Drake as the PlayStation 3's most alluring mascot.

The bread and butter of Among Thieves is by-the-numbers shooting, broken briefly by some linear platforming and the occasional light puzzle. Some, if not all, of the cover system's quirks have been ironed out and, to add some much needed variety to gunfights, Nate's now a much more versatile character. Shooting with his free hand while hanging from a ledge is just one of his new tricks, but the most refreshing is the inclusion of stealth elements. While they don't run as deep as more dedicated sneak 'em-ups they still provide a much appreciated alternative when facing down the scores of enemies that Uncharted 2 throws out.

The gunplay is solid and relentless, although though on occasions weary, but any misgivings aren't enough to derail this immensely enjoyable rollercoaster. A spectacle without compare, its epic vistas and rip-roaring set pieces combined with writing of a quality that's alien to most video games, Among Thieves is one of the decade's most charming adventures.

IGN Score: 9.0

Fifa 10 lengthens its lead over Konami's Pro Evolution with the 'perfect' football game. The players actions in-game and their looks are both get 'realism' just right. The ball physics have been improved, the AI have been made more authentic, the players have more flexibility in direction...though small tweaks, the tweaks make a great difference on the whole.

There's not really much one can say about a football game, but Fifa 10 is the most polished, the most realistic, and the most adaptable football game of this generation - some would go as far to say that it's the best sports game of all time. A must for footie fans.

IGN Score: 9.3

Fundamentally, this is the same arcade game we played years ago. There's no unbreakable armour, no barbaric weapons to clatter our opponents around the head and no way of tearing a downed combatant's eyes out at a fight's conclusion - it's realistic.

The game is commendably faithful to the arcade original, but is simply so much more astounding. The shift to 3D visuals has been handled impeccably throughout, with hulking character models aching with muscle defined by flat textures and exaggerated features that anchor them to their 2D heritage. It's the sheer size of the 'battlefield' as well - no Street Fighter game has ever allowed it's characters to use so much screen space as they do here - that lends a new, more brutal physicality that's carried through with weighty animations and pixel-perfect collision detail. Get an arcing Dragon Punch to land squarely in an opponent's midriff and the feeling of contact you get is huge, your opponent doubling over and their features transfixed in a caricature of pain.

It's the level of detail that's echoed in the backdrops that makes each stage feel alive as the fighters win or lose. Regardless, Street Fighter IV is no less than the new standard for beat em' up games. It's a stunning - both in visuals and in gameplay - return for the series after an eight year hiatus, with a seamless and fitting blend of the old and the new; this allows the game to be accessible to new fans of the game while being retro enough for the dedicated core following to love and cherish. Street Fighter IV takes an ageing template and makes it fresh once more, offering a revival in every sense. The wait is over - Street Fighter IV is finally here, and it's one special game.

IGN Score: 9.5

For once, we have a sequel that actually far surpasses it's predecessor. It's regularly the case that the first installment is brilliant, and then the second is boring and pretty average in comparison. With Assassin's Creed II, that is definitely not true. It is a sequel that triumphs over the original in every way, and in some ways it is a good thing that the first Creed was repetitive and laborious at points - it left so much scope for the second to improve upon.

Assassin's Creed II is set in Renaissance Italy improves on every aspect of Assassin's Creed while also righting all of it's flaws. With a few minor exceptions, the game's environments, animations and art are beautifully portrayed. As well as this, the sequel's gameplay builds so much upon the foundations of the first that it makes Assassin's Creed look like a 'technical demonstration' - everything from the new monetary system to the ability to buy armor and weapons makes it a richer, and ultimately more satisfying game than its predecessor.

Even if you ignore the extras, Assassin's Creed II is still a fulfilling and lengthy experience that leaves little to be desired - the main story lasts upwards of 18 hours and this time includes enough variety to be interesting throughout. Assassin's Creed II gets the pacing just right.

Assassin's Creed II transforms a middling action game into an intriguing and consistently entertaining open-world adventure. The experience is layered, unique, and shows and incredible attention to detail. This is one instance where the sequel has triumphed over the original - in this case by catching up the gameplay with the already stunning visuals. No matter what your preconceptions are about the franchise, believe me - the game is well worth your time and money.

IGN Score: 8.8

You all know the name...Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2!

This outstanding sequel boasts gorgeous graphics, powerful AI and a unique game mode which will keep you interested named Special Ops. Special Ops, although you can play solo, is based on online and offline cooperative play, with levels spawned and edited from the campaign. The levels range from shooting targets in the assault course to racing your snowmobile icy land at electric speeds, to an attempt at survival from wave upon wave of hostiles. For the progressively difficult Special Ops levels you can earn a maximum of 3 stars, depending on the level you're playing at (Regular, Hardened or Veteran) which in turn earn you trophies to boost your PSN level.

The campaign, in keeping with it's predecessor, is short but very sweet indeed. Set 5 years after the events of Call of Duty 4, the Ultranationalist s that you fought to contain have essentially taken control of Russia, and have made Imran Zakhaev their hero. Vladimir Makarov, one of Zakhaev's old lieutenants, decides to take action by committing a number of terrorist attacks on the west. Your first encounter with the man is not a pretty one - the controversial, but skippable, level 'No Russian', where, as an undercover agent for the elite Task Force 141, you are forced to massacre a horde of innocent civilians, police officers, and Russian FSB troops in an attack on Zakhaev International Airport. The mission finishes with Makarov climbing into a stolen ambulance, and shooting you in the head. This exposes to the FSB troops that you are an American, and so they believe that the attack was carried out by the USA.
This sparks a surprise invasion of the States by Russia, and the campaign from then on is based around the two stories of Pvt. James Ramirez, a Ranger attempting to crush the Russian attack in Virginia and later Washington D.C., and Gary 'Roach' Sanderson, a Sergeant of Task Force 141. While Ramirez tries to save his country with intense battles and destruction, the Task Force 141 missions take a stealthier route, where they try to find any sort of evidence that it was in fact Makarov who carried out the airport attack, and not the Americans.

The campaign features many old faces, such as our old protagonist Soap MacTavish, now Captain of Task Force 141, Zakhaev, Nikolai and Captain Price. It is a diverse and brilliant campaign which, though short, engages the player and intersperses the intense fighting with hectic snowmobile races, chases across the rooftops and ice climbing.

Modern Warfare 2 is filled with heart-pumping battlezones

The multiplayer, as before, is brilliant. The only major difference is the addition of so many new killstreak rewards - unmanned sentry guns, Harrier jet airstrikes, the control of an AC-130 gunship, calling in a chopper armed with a minigun, and an omnipotent tactical nuke. I mean, who doesn't want to kill everyone, in one go, with a frickin nuke?!

All round, this widely acclaimed game deserves it's praise - an exceptional campaign, a polished multiplayer, and a fun and thrilling side order in the form of Special Ops. If you didn't get it for Christmas, go buy it. Seriously, go grab it from Amazon module below, right now. You won't regret it.

IGN Score: 9.3