2009 promises to be a great year for gaming, with some smoking hot releases scheduled for all platforms. My opinion? This could be the biggest year in gaming, despite the recession, since we might receive games we’ve been waiting for a long time (like Starcraft II, Diablo 3, Duke Nukem Forever). However, these titles have no release date set, so we must not consider them to be “coming in 2009”. But even without these titles, the games industry has a pretty impressive line-up, and we’re going to analyze it and choose the top 10 games platform by platform here at the Unigamesity. We’ll begin with the 10 hottest games to be released in 2009 for PC systems:

10. The Sims 3 – with over 100 million units sold, about the same number of expansions, add-ons and spin-offs, The Sims franchise is the biggest thing EA has in store at the moment (at least from a pure numerical point of view). Although it will probably be milked to the bone, just like its predecessors, The Sims 3 is highly anticipated by an army of gamer girls (and several other gamers) and it will definitely be one of 2009’s best selling computer games. Which makes it hot enough for us.

9. Mafia II – announced back in 2007, it was a game people soon forgot about, but 2K Games promise we’ll enjoy it more than ever – at least it is a welcomed alternative to GTA. And yes, it promises to offer us everything, from a deep, mature storyline to car-to-car and hand-to-hand combat. And hopefully more.

8. Trine – a game not many have heard about, but one with bags of potential (and if done well, we’ll certainly see it up in the charts near Braid). It is an action-platformer game with physics-based puzzles and a wonderfully painted fantasy world. Add to that three different characters, each with unique abilities to help you progress to the end and you have a possible surprise chart-topper

7. Alpha Protocol – KoTOR II and Neverwinter Nights 2 mixed together and turned into an even better game, that’s what Obsidian plans to offer us this year. Original IP, a spy-themed story and action-RPG gameplay is what Alpha Protocol will offer us – or in Obsidian’s words: “everything we enjoy about making RPGs “

6. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II – it was anticipated that the return of the franchise in the World War II setting will hurt the sales and popularity of Activision’s game, but it wasn’t so. It is expected that the release of a new Modern Warfare CoD game will prove to be more exciting than ever. And we believe there’s a big chance of that happening. We’ll see later this year.

5. Dragon Age: Origins – it would be enough to say “new RPG from BioWare” to rest our case, but we’ll also add the following: the game is considered the “spiritual successor” of Baldur’s Gate, it’s set in a fantasy setting and has a dark and mature story. Convinced? If not, you will certainly be when the game gets released, so prepare for some sleepless night already!

4. Batman: Arkham Asylum – Eidos considers Batman better than Lara Croft and therefore we consider this a very important title to look for. Of course, stunning visuals, a story-driven action-adventure and intense fighting scenes against The Joker and his pals add value to the title, which already has the potential to become a big hit.

3. Demigod – everybody loved Shadow of the Colossus because of the immense enemies and Stardock together with GPG decided to bring similar creatures back into video games, but this time let us control them. Although this alone would be a strong enough reason for most people to understand that Demigod will rule, it’s worth noting that the game will also offer a mixture of action, RPG and RTS for the most complex experience ever.

2. Ghostbusters: The Videogame – the game died and got reborn a couple of times already, and that proves that it’s a title meant to be played. It also brings back to life the Ghostbusters feeling of the hit movies, alongside some very game-friendly creatures: ghosts! Indeed, some videos we’ve seen don’t seem to suggest that Ghostbusters: The Videogame will meet the expectations, but people still want it badly.

1. Alan Wake – OK, I admit – we’re just hoping that Alan Wake will be released this year, but if it’s going to happen (and there are rumors it will), it’s going to be huge. Because we’re talking about developed by the creators of Max Payne, but one that allows us to roam freely in a “hyper-realistic, dynamic and interactive” town.

What PC games that will be released in 2009 would you add to the list?