Top 10 Xbox 360 Games of 2008

10. Dark Sector
- Yeah, I really digged this game. It feels like a Gears of War clone but Gears of War doesn't have the glaive! I love what you can do with the glaive, it's a very satisfying weapon. Overall, the game is quite short but exciting with gorgeous visuals and great gameplay, and with the glaive. Yeah, I'm sold on this game thanks to the glaive. Come on, admit it, it is fun!

09. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
- I've think I've written about this game twice already so I won't say much about other than, despite its bugs and glitches, it's incredibly fun to play, to just go rampant with the Force Lightning or whatever your favourite Force Power is. :D

08. Tomb Raider Underworld
- The Tomb Raider series have undergone some changes in the past few years, since Crystal Dynamics took over from Core. Tomb Raider Underworld is the sequel to "Legends", and I admit I didn't play that game so luckily, there's a "Previously on..." video available to watch to catch up with the story. The visuals are terrific - especially the Thailand level. There are two underwater levels in this game that are just awesome, the first one had me gasping because it looks really good. Wow! There's plenty of puzzles (which I love) and acrobatics but not so much action and no bosses except a final boss (I thought that was strange, hmm). If you don't liked Tomb Raider before then your opinion won't change with this game, but if you are a Tomb Raider fan then you will probably love this game.

07. Soul Calibur IV
- So finally came the sequel to the legendary beat 'em up (or is it Fighting these days?) series Soul Calibur! Did it deliver? Yes! But it doesn't live up to the greatness that was Soul Calibur II, but it's still a very good game. It introduces some new concept like the Soul Gauge - in short, if you guard too much your, er, soul will break and your opponent can, if quick enough, tap a button and end you instantly. This works good but I'd want something for the players that just tap one button and kill you that way, like some of my friends who just taps X repeatedly and gives me no chance to stand up or do anything. Oh well, Soul Calibur has always been casual! The game is still the best fighting game of 2008.

06. Ninja Gaiden II
- Blood! Bodyparts! More blood! This is the ultimate slasher of 2008! If you like sharp weapons that chop enemies into pieces or blunt weapons that crush them, then you will love this game. There's a load of weapons to choose from and you will be satisfied, I bet. My personal favourite is the huge Scythe, muhahaha. It all looks beautiful, too, all that blood. Storywise there isn't much to get from this game as that is probably the weakest point but it doesn't matter because this game is just meant to be a brainless slaughter fest!

05. Condemned 2: Bloodshot
- The anticipated sequel to Condemned: Criminal Origins. First-person horror at its best. It took me a while to get this game and I regret I didn't get it earlier. Once again, you play as Marcus. He's now living his life as a drunk and is one night plagued by visions and appearances, which is where the adventure starts off. This is truly a terrifying game and just like in the first game, the focus is on melee combat (but there are guns if you want to use them) which forces you to go up close and personal with the enemies which makes the game more challenging. There is now also a combo system in place which works well but it's really hard to master them because the enemies are ruthless. I played on hard and I found myself resorting to guns because it was so challenging, so I didn't experience the melee combat as much as I would have wanted to. If you like a scary game with a good story, challenging difficulty, and intense moments, then this is the game for you.

04. Prince Of Persia
- Forget all you know about the Sands Of Time-trilogy - this is Prince of Persia 2008! Ubi Soft has refined, modified and changed their Prince and the result is this beautiful game. This game feels more like art than a game, and it's a good thing. What you will notice early on in the game is the breathtaking visuals - the game looks fantastic and hosts a variety of different environments and in two forms - one corrupted version and one healed version. Gone is the emphasis on fighting - here you fight one bad guy at a time, at regular intervals as the focus is on acrobatics and exploring the beautiful world. When you do fight, forget button smashing, that doesn't work - instead you are invited to learn combos and practice tapping the right button at the right time. It all works really well and when the adventure was over, I sat there overwhelmed by the ending (I thought it was great) and feeling the urge to play it again - which I rarely feel after just finishing a game. The replay factor is HUGE because the game is so far away from being linear as possible - I don't think I've ever encountered a less linear game (bar RPGs) before.

03. Dead Space
- EA surprises big time with this sci-fi survival horror set on a, seemingly, deserted spaceship. This game is exactly what the survival horror genre needed, seeing as Resident Evil now has lost its roots and Alone In The Dark was a major disappointment (Silent Hill: Homecoming isn't out in Europe until February...). I've always felt like Dead Space is a game of the second Alien movie - there are many similarities in both the settings and the story - which I think is quite cool but also proves that there isn't much originality to the story. There's also a twist near the end of the game but I had it figured out long before, which was a shame. Dead Space is eerie and atmospheric, certainly not for those with a weak heart, but also gorey. There are also no real weapons in the game, you have to improvise with the different tools left behind by the miners, and it works really well. Ammo is scarce, too. There's also a change of the cliché that you gotta shoot them in the head - in this game, that's not the way to go, you gotta shoot the limbs off or else the monster might mutate. A very cool change that works great. This is everything you can ask for from a survival horror game and it really delivers, having moments of panic, moments of unsettling peace, and moments of action.

02. Gears Of War 2
- The sequel to last year's terrific third-person shooter delivers on pretty much all levels. It manages to feel fresh despite being so similar to its predecessor - much thanks to the various vehicle stages, the new weapons and the new multiplayer modes. This game has many awesome moments that just made me feel cool and in awe (how satisfying isn't the Rumak ride!?), and I'm itching to have another go at the campaign mode - this time on Insanity difficulty. The game also features a bit more humanity (in terms of feelings) and soul than the first game which is played out rather good by Dom. Gears 2 also introduces a couple of new characters and sees the return of many characters from Gears 1 - Cole is back and I just love his remarks and style, no matter how cliché they are! What doesn't boost this game up to #1 is the length of the campaign mode (it feels a tad short) and the music (at least in comparison to the #1 on this list). I am now eagerly awaiting Gears Of War 3 - teased by the very last few seconds of the ending. Bring it on!

01. Fallout 3
- Featuring over 100 hours of solid adventuring, the best soundtrack of the year, some great gameplay mechanics (like the V.A.T.S.), a massive, haunting world filled with locations and stuff to do, lots of freedom, and stellar graphics surely make this game, without a doubt, the best Xbox 360 game of 2008. It might even be one of the best games I have ever played in my life! Of course, the game has some bugs and graphical glitches but that doesn't matter when everything else in the game is so awesome. I also have Bethesda to thank for introducing me to such wonderful music - the music that plays on Galaxy News Radio is not only perfect for the post-apocalyptic world but it's also some damn good music and I have the entire soundtrack now. I never, ever, saw myself listening to music from the 40s. Thank you, Bethesda, for this very impacting game. Thank you!