For those of us eager to see what awaits us this new year, well, here’s the feed right from Capcom’s PR department: their 2009 lineup of videogame gems just waiting to blow our socks off. Or mildly entertain us for a bit before we point our browsers to /v/ and rage at every little thing we don’t like about said games. But it’s all  good, right? Anyway, let’s get to them vidya gaems before I just copy-paste the entire damn PR press release.
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2009 will definitely be a year to look forward too. Obviously Obama being in office and Bush getting the hell out will be a great way to start things off, though what does the rest of the year entail, especially for gamers? Fortunately, I managed to grab a crystal ball off the E-bay that’s supposed to give a glimpse of the future. Apparently the old owner died of some sort of ancient Mayan curse, or something.

So, gather around all ye faithful, and let’s take a look and see what we’re in for in the new year.

GTA on the DS? It's more likely than you think.

Nintendo: There is no doubt that Nintendo is making bank with the Wii, choosing to cater to the non-gamer crowd more so than it’s own fan base. The sad thing, though, is that the most loyal of Nintendo fans are now feeling left behind by Miyamoto and company. According to my crystal ball, that trend is likely to continue onwards through 2009, with the brunt of non-shovelware titles being released consisting of ports and multiplatform titles. Hope is not lost, though, as developers are slowly but surely working on games that take advantage of the motion sensor controls, and (*gasp*) aren’t shovelware. One such game is the controversial title Madworld, coming from Platinum Games (comprised of former members of the dissolved Clover Studios), which will attempt to bring a comedic, ultra-violent side to a console that has developed a “family” image. Other games to watch are a new Tenchu game, as well as a title that will serve as a prequel to the Overlord series.

On the handheld side, the DS is also dominating, and will likely continue to do so through 2009 when the DSi hits shelves worldwide (the system has already been released in Japan). Unlike the Wii, the DS library is becoming more varied, as developers are finally noticing the potential of the system. The roster for the DS looks very promising, and include a new Dragon quest game, an Atlus RPG, and even a handheld version of the Grand Theft Auto franchise. The DS shows no signs of slowing down in it’s control of the handheld market.
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Until the latter part of 2008, one of the biggest gripes with the PS3, aside from its price, was the fact that its game library pailed in comparison to that of the Wii or Xbox 360. With 2008 nearing a close and the fatigued masses finally emerging from beneath a pile of games both exclusive and multiplatform, it is time to look into the future and examine some of the heavy hitting games likely to grace the PS3 in 2009. While this list is by no means all encompassing, it does seek to point out the PS3 exclusives in 2009 that will undoubtedly have you begging for more. It also serves to show the breadth of genre across exclusives.

Heavy Rain – Adventure/Mystery
While the adventure games of old like Carmen Sandiego have seemingly passed into obscurity, The creators of Fahrenheit are looking to bring back the adventure/detective genre into its once fine form. Among this game’s impressive qualities are 60 10-20 minute scenes of dialogue, the ability for the main character to die and keep progressing in the main story line, as well as the pain-staking detail that has gone into creating the game, whether it be in faithful real world creations of city terminals or using random french people as mo-capped facial extra’s in the game. Maybe if we are lucky, Quantic will add a sex scene that isn’t painful to look at either.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBlWTd3puAk&feature=related – The Casting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwZ9eCRm1SM&feature=related – Gameplay Footage
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