NOTE: If you don't want to read this massive opinionated wall of text, just go to the bottom for a quick summary.

When I was growing up, I imagined running through a vast land of beauty and riches untold, battling titanic foes with the most awe-inspiring and experience-defining music I ever knew. When I played through Shadow of the Colossus (a friend's copy), I was overly satisified, and was left wanting more. I still can't get that game out of my head.....all it takes is one vision and I will start humming the tracks from that masterpiece. Mind you though, I beat the game last year; a PS2 game that had been released in 2006. I was far behind.....and I was happy for it. But now, ever since getting a little old PS3 for Christmas, I think I am.....unsettled. I certainly love the visuals of these games, but I tend to find that many games seem to take their visuals too seriously and simply tend to have bad controls, bad plot/storyline or mediocre gameplay. Or I just find they aren't all that good as games anyway. Now, it's undoubted that 2009 was the year of the PS3. Most seem to believe the 360 will have it's time again this year, but that remains to be seen who is the victor.

Personally? I think the console wars is the dumbest thing I have ever seen. Now, I'm a Playstation person through and through, and I tend to love Microsoft for inventing computers, but I can honestly say they have both disillusioned me to what they have both made; great platforms. Why can't Xbox fanboys accept the PS3 is more powerful? Why can't Playstation fanboys accept cross-platform games are almost always better on the Xbox? And then, away from all this stupid BS, you have the PC; many seem to believe it is 'withering', but I know it certainly isn't dying. The PC sure doesn't have many big name exclusives these days, but that doesn't mean the quality of those games that are released are worse than on consoles; plus, what about all those little gems no one knows too much about? Anyway, whatever way you slice it; 2010 is going to be a absolutely massive year. Like, perhaps one of the biggest of the decade.

Let's make a list....I'll start with the exclusives. You've got the most famous console racing simulator ever and it's (extremely) long-awaited full PS3 title, Gran Turismo 5. There's the always massive next Halo game, Halo: Reach. There's the game everyone is looking at; God of War 3. (I know a lot of xbox jockeys who genuinely look forward to that game) There's the Last Guardian, another game most believe will be an artistic stab at perfection. There's Fable 3, the game series that always impresses but never goes beyond brilliant (but many believe third time could be lucky). There's Heavy Rain by Quantic Dream (nice name!), On PC, you've got the much-hyped Napoleon: Total War, a chronic take on a brilliant franchise that looks to impress just a short year after Empire. There's Chaos Rising for.....well, everyone. There's the oh-so-lovely Elemental, and various others. On the Wii you've got the always awesome Mario; Super Mario Galaxy 2. That new Metroid game.....hehehehehhe. Then, in the multiplatform releases you've got a big year too; Bayonetta, Dante's Inferno, Supreme Commander 2, Mass Effect 2, Alan Wake, Final Fantasy 13, AVP and the list just goes on. And those are just the games most people know about and expect to be AAA.

The reason I started this topic isn't the most obvious one. On IGN, Microsoft said something that really ticked me off; that now too clear trend to annoy people just rears it's head all over the place. They said "Halo Reach, which is expected to be the biggest title of 2010." in an article about Fable 3. Now, many will argue this; a lot won't. The point is, and why Microsoft and Sony piss me off so much these days, is that they each assume they are better than the other and tend to think the other has nothing on them. This is quite obviously far bigger with Microsoft than Sony, but again that doesn't mean I'm going to look at Sony in a white light. This was Microsoft pretty much flat out saying 'we're the best, we have the best' yet again. And this is why sometimes I wish I had never gotten that PS3; so that I could stick to PC gaming and avoid this preposterous 'conflict' between junkies and morons. 'Look at me I've got Natal, what appears to be a clone of Eyetoy!' 'Look at me, I've got 3D capability! Woohoo! It doesn't matter everyone else will have it anyway!' Stuff like that.....but this is where I reach a standpoint. I'm starting to lean off the PC anyway, and having my real origins as a console gamer, I can say I'm out there in that world. Will I eventually start spouting 'Microsoft is gay, Sony is king' crap? I can hope I don't end up being a biased moron.

But you know what? For the first time in many years, I'm happy, and it has nothing to do with games. My life changed dramatically last year, and only recently have I truly broken out of those bounds. But guess what? I would be happy anyway, even without the whole life-changing experience. I'm getting Mass Effect 2 when it comes out, God of War 3 and Final Fantasy 13 for my birthday, Chaos Rising more than likely at Easter, and without a doubt Gran Turismo 5 and AVP. I'm having a big year, and it's partly due to all the amazing games that are going to be released. And, for some reason, I think the end of the decade is going to mark a turning point for many people. But no one really knows what's happening, do they? Can Mass Effect 2 live up to the hype? Can God of War 3 outdo it's prequels? Can Halo: Reach be unique? Will Gran Turismo 5 downright destroy every other racing game on the planet? We'll just have to wait and see.....

Personally.....I don't really know. People seem to think, like I mentioned earlier, that this is the year of the 360....and I honestly don't know why. Sure, there's Halo Reach. Sure, there's Fable 3 and Mass Effect 2. Sure, they are finally getting a taste of FF. But I think Gran Turismo 5 alone can topple any of those, and that isn't because I'm a Playsation 3 owner. Make no mistake, I'm not a huge fan of Gran Turismo-no matter how crazy that sounds-but I can seriously acknowledge that GT5 could single-handedly beat Microsoft at their own game. And then there is the fact that Final Fantasy 13 was made from the ground up on the PS3, and God of War 3 is quite obviously the most hyped action game of the year. Dante's Inferno and Bayonetta both look brilliant....I mean Bayonetta getting perfect scores off Famitsu is amazing in of itself, but popularity probably doesn't match Sony's juggernaught. But that's just the thing I'm getting at.....why exactly is it suppossed to be the year of the Xbox? Wy can't it be the year for everyone? I'm really confused. Does everyone expect Sony's exclusives to flop? Does everyone think Natal is the best gaming invention ever? That's something....Natal VS 3D. See where I'm going with this? Yet another topic war for Sony and Microsoft to greedily wash their hands on. And that's one of several reasons why I don't think it's the year of the Xbox 360 at all.....if anything it would be the PS3's year again, considering last year's exclusives don't even come close to this year's in terms of sheer popularity. But you know what? I'm throwing it to no-one. If I said PS3, I'd be a fanboy-sure, but that's not why I say no to my own console. I say no because each platform, and not just the 360 or the PS3, each has their own massive take on the year that will be. Us 'hardcore gamers' (suppossedly) can all whine as much as we want, but the Wii is still the top of the ladder in terms of sales. I hate the Wii though. Does that mean I don't give it credit? Of course not. I hate Microsoft nowadays. Does that mean I don't like the Xbox 360? Certainly not.

This is my take on the year that will be. I simply expect every platform to outshine themselves when compared to previous years, and PC gaming is definitely not dead-it never will be. I'm expecting Gran Turismo 5 to be the biggest game of the year, perhaps even this end of the decade. I think Halo: Reach looks amazing, even though I know PS3 exclusives can bottle that up pretty easily visuals wise. I expect God of War 3 to outdo it's predecessors. I know Mass Effect 2 will be brilliant. Little stuff like this......no matter which way you slice it, 2010 is set to be the perhaps the biggest year of gaming ever. For some people anyway.

Sound off in comments....if there is even any point. I avoided the other 2010 topics because they weren't exactly what this topic was aiming for. This is my opinion, and in no way is a matter of fact. Please post whatever you think of next year, and which platform you expect to be the biggest or what games will be the biggest. Or, save yourself the trouble and don't comment in the ever-increasing platform wars. It makes life oh so much easier.