The Best of 2009: FishHook Edition

Yeah, I return to Kidnapped by Ninjas to steal a gimmick that SonnyBone, Deli, and FNK did a few weeks ago....it's the cheesy, unneeded Best of 2009 awards!

BEST WII GAME
For the vast majority of the year, the Wii was the only current-gen system I had, as my Xbox 360 was dead and buried via RRoD and I had no access to it from about July to December, when my brother finally put up the money to buy a new one. So, 2009 was the Year of The Waggle for me, and the Wii I recieved for Christmas got a major workout that turned me into a major Nintendo nerd all over again. However, I spent most of the year playing games that were actually released in 2008, such as Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the first three episodes of Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, Mario Kart Wii, No More Heroes, and an assortment of other WiiWare games.

As far as games that actually came out in 2009, my Wii collection comes down to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Smash-Up, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Excitebike: World Rally, MadWorld, Pokemon Rumble, and Mega Man 9. I haven't played enough of MadWorld to really call it the best Wii game I played this year, and I really found the all black-and-white graphics disorienting. Feels like there's nothing to do but follow the trail of blood you leave in your wake, as it's the only distinguishing feature on any level to tell you which way to move forward or back. Pokemon Rumble and Excitebike are OK games, but not game of the year material, and TMNT is basically a Smash rip-off. That leaves us with Mega Man and Mario, and it's really a toss-up. Both games are great throwbacks to old school platforming of the early 90s heyday I grew up with. And although my fast-twitch platforming skills (which weren't great in the first place) have diminished greatly since my youth, leading to a great deal of frustration with both games on my part, there's no doubt that New Super Mario Bros. Wii is the one Wii title of 2009 that is an absolute must-buy for everyone, and I think it's the tremendously fun multiplayer options that put it over the top compared to Mega Man, which is a great, if unforgivingly difficult, return to the classic 8-bit Mega Mans of the day, before all the games released after Mega Man X killed the series dead. But Mario is head and shoulders above, with simple but challenging platforming and fun new power-ups.

Also, a special shoutout to Punch-Out!! Best game I ever played for only 2 days on a rental.

BEST 360 GAME
As I stated earlier, my 360 was dead for most of the year, and I'm not a big fan of shooters, so my 360 games library is quite different from most 360 gamers: it's older stuff that's more non-traditional from the typical "shooters and more shooters" mentality. With the limited time I've had with the 360, I basically only played two major games for my 360 this year that consumed a major amount of my time: UFC Undisputed 2009 and Batman Arkham Asylum, both multi-platform releases. And while I've only just started playing Arkham, it's already an A-list experience that gives me no reservations in calling Batman Arkham Asylum the best the 360 had to offer for me this year. It's the simple but fun Freeflow combat system and the immersive world that you're dropped into puts it over the top. While I'm not even the biggest Batman fan in the world, you become a Batman thanks to this game: you always feel like the Caped Crusader with every motion you make, and all the villians are perfectly portrayed. Arkham is a tremendous example of how to properly use a license for a game.

BEST NINTENDO DS GAME
I'M ALL BIAS in this section, because I have only had my DS for about a week of 2009, and only had one game for it. So in a not so shocking upset, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks was my favorite DS game of 2009. This might change when I actually start playing some more DS games from '09, but it may not, as Spirit Tracks is a truly great experience. I found the puzzles intuitive without being mind-bendingly difficult, and really, they didn't need to be. You don't have to break someone's brain with mind-numbing furstration to be a good game. Also, control with the stylus felt natural after a little 15-minute or so learning curve, combat and movement felt really natural on the touch-screen, and I think it's going to feel weird eventually when I actually have to use the d-pad and buttons to play other DS titles thanks to this experience. Also, the boss battles are really super-fun, and the music is phenomenal, as always from Zelda. Definitely a title deserving to be picked up.

BEST BARGAIN BIN GAME OF 2009
Sure, it came out in 2008, but how can I say anything less than No More Heroes? It's easily the best I've felt purchasing a $20 game, and the quality for the price was through the roof. No More Heroes' quirky sense of humor and tremendous stylized graphics make a world worth spending quite a bit of Waggle-time on. And not only is the sequel coming out soon (which will fix the problems the game has with the boring side-jobs and exploring, it will be worth the full $50 price tag it should recieve), but there's also talks of a 360 and PS3 port coming soon. If those two ports make it to America, there's no excuse not to play this game. A great experience, and I can't wait to play Desperate Struggle.

BEST WRESTLING MATCH OF 2009
I know this will seem obvious, but I watch a lot of pro wrestling. A lot. And I watched basically anything that I could get my hands on this year, and I still didn't find a match that topped the drama of Shawn Michaels vs Undertaker from Wrestlemania 25. In a match that basically saved the show, these two put on an absolute masterpiece. But what I'll remember more is how my friends and I reacted as the match went on, going along this roller coaster ride up and down, emotion with every count. THAT is pro wrestling: taking the fans on a ride.

BEST MUSIC OF 2009
I spent most of my year listening to Jonathan Coulton. Nerd rock FTW.

Well...that's about it. I hope everyone enjoyed 2009, and 2010 is shaping up to be an even bigger year in gaming and wrestling, my two main habits/obsessions. Hope the days are as good to you as they are to me, and I'm sure I'll be doing this list again by about mid-Janurary of 2011 for the 2010 stuff.

- FishHook