With 2009 having wrapped up a strong year in gaming, you can expect more of the same in the next 12 months.  While there are a plethora of other games that will garner plenty of attention and praise, here’s a list of what we here at Xbox 360 Digest are most excited for.

In chronological order of release date (Confirmed & Expected), hit the jump to see the list.

Mass Effect 2 [Editor’s Choice]

Release Date: January 26, 2010
Notes: If you played the first Mass Effect, then you should easily understand the hype behind the sequel.  However, if you were one of the few unfortunate ones to not have had the opportunity to play through it, then I’d suggest you get yourself a copy and finish it before the 26th rolls around.  With decisions made and the status of your character from the first carrying over to the second, starting from the very beginning of this epic tale becomes paramount.  Player saves from ME1 with a high level will gain a monetary boost and/or “additional research resources for use at the Normandy’s Tech Lab.”  Plus part of your Renegade/Paragon alignment will carry over.

Taking on the role of Commander Shepard once again, your are tasked with assembling a fierce and loyal crew of fighters to undertake a suicide mission centering on the mysterious disappearance of humans across the galaxy.  Featuring a new cast of warriors (Grunt, Jacob Taylor, Subject Zero, Miranda Lawson, Thane, Mordin, & Samara) and several new foes (Collectors, Abominations, Scions, & Batorians), expect to immerse yourself deeper into the vast world of Mass Effect.

The expansion of all the different classes has me prepared for several play throughs this time around.  Each class has seen a better balance of power with cooler looking abilities to boot.  Now all your biotic/tech powers will curve around objects to hit your targets instead of uselessly hitting objects that might be blocking its way.  You also get special weapons that do some serious damage against the heavily armored or larger foes.  I’ll be racking my brain over the choice of my first class up until the day of release.

Bioshock 2

Release Date: February 9, 2010
Notes: Bioshock enjoyed critical success when they introduced us to the world of Rapture.  The backbone of this horror survival game is the gritty tale of this underwater “utopia”.  Unique characters and combat certainly helped to differentiate this from your typical FPS, not to mention leaving you constantly on high alert as tension mounted with every turn.

For the sequel, Bioshock goes in a new direction.  Taking place 10 years after the events of the first, a considerable amount has changed in Rapture.  This time you will don the suit of a menacing Big Daddy as you roam the halls.  Throughout the campaign, you will be presented with moral choices that lead you down a path of good or evil.  For instance, you can adopt your very own Little Sister and escort her on an Adam hunt or you can harvest her instead.  You will also be given the option to punish or aid certain individuals throughout your stay.

Expect a dark world filled with with all sorts of new enemies to face off against.  The Big Sister’s will be replacing the Big Daddy’s as the enemy you hope to not run into.  They are quick, agile and very deadly.  To combat these more powerful enemy forces, you can now wield both a gun and a plasmid, making a number of devastating combinations for you to utilize.  Also, since you’ll be wearing the diving suit, you’ll of course be equipped with the huge arm drill to tear into opponents with.

Splinter Cell: Conviction [Editor’s Choice]

Release Date: February 23, 2010
Notes: The 5th installment in the Splinter Cell franchise looks to reinvent the stealth action wheel by introducing you to a different world as a rogue operative.  A series of delays has pushed the release date back much further than most would have liked.  Hopefully all the extra time spent to polish this title off is worth the wait.  If the previews of this title are anywhere near as good as they look, then Ubisoft has an instant hit on their hands.

Discovering the betrayal by the very organization he has dedicated himself to, Third Echelon, Sam goes renegade and looks to take matters into his own hands.  Focused on avenging the death of his daughter, Sam sets out as a man with nothing to lose.  You’ll start off as a destitute ex-spy, having to improvise to substitute the handy gadgets you were given as a member of Third Echelon.  For example, you may have to break off a car door mirror to take the place of the optical cable you were used to having in past versions.  Eventually you’ll work your way up the ladder and get your hands on some new toys.  The most interesting is the new Sonar goggles.  Taking a page from The Dark Knight, you can use these to map out the area around you, seeing through walls and objects to see patrols or different routes for you to take.

Mark and Execute is a key addition that really helps in making Sam Fischer feel more like the badass superspy he is portrayed as.  As a highly trained operative, one would assume you would be able to execute several people with quick, accurate headshots.  Implementing this feature does exactly that; you can now mark several guards and/or objects and quickly execute them with the press of a button.  Last position known is a nice addition as well.  When you are spotted by the enemy, you leave a ghost like trail that indicates where the guard thinks you are.  You can use this to your advantage by taking a different route to flank or get by your pursuer.  Interrogation takes a new turn with the ability to improvise using the environment around you.  The previews of this look fantastic as you can take your targets head and use it as a battering ram against a plethora of environmental elements surrounding you.

Included alongside the main storyline are 2 other game modes.  The first is a cooperative-only prologue that will feature 2 new characters.  One is an American agent, Archer, and the other is his Russian counterpart, Kestrel.  You will go through 4 different missions with the ultimate aim of finding and disabling stolen EMP warheads.  Building upon these maps while taking a different approach, Denial Ops is the nest game mode that uses 4 different gameplay types (Hunter, Infiltration, Last Stand and Face Off) and applies them to the 4 missions from the prologue along with 2 extra maps.

Alan Wake

Release Date: TBA Q2 [Expected: June 30, 2010]
Notes: Following in the footsteps of Splinter Cell, this is another title that has seen several delays push back its release a considerable amount of time.  First announced in 2005, to say this game has been a long time coming is an understatement.  With a tentative release date set for this summer, one can only hope that this date is final.

Remedy is creating a new chapter in the horror survival genre.  Using a TV show style episode arc to lay out its story, you take on the role of Alan Wake, a best selling writer.  Set in the town of Bright Falls, you explore this small town as you search for your missing wife.  As you embark on this hunt, a novel you have no recollection of writing, begins to unfold before your very eyes.

Light plays a crucial role in this game.  During the day, you can interact with the people of Bright Falls.  However, when the sun goes down, the “dark forces” come out to play.  These unseen forces stick to the shadows.  You’ll be equipped with a flash light and pistol to combat these creatures of the night.  Since your flashlight runs with a limited capacity, you have to find points where some sort of light is available in order to fight off or hold these lurking enemies at bay.

This dark, rich world of Bright Falls figures to be the main drawing power of this game.  Already seen as being part of a bigger story, a sequel will depend on the success this game enjoys.  Having made the first game will certainly aid in cutting down development cost/time for a second go around.

Alpha Protocol

Release Date: June 30, 2010
Notes: You may be noticing a theme here; delayed games are all the rage in 2010.  Like all the other games on the delayed list, this game is very ambitious in scope.  It was only a matter of time before a RPG that takes place in world of espionage was released.  Being the first, Alpha Protocol certainly has its hands full as expectations run high.

You will be filling the shoes of American Spy, Michael Thornton.  After a mission takes a turn for the worse, you are cut off and given a “Burn Notice”.  With the US government on your tail, you call on an Alpha Protocol to operate as an undercover agent in order to unveil a conspiracy.

Safe houses are your secure locations that will be spread out in various cities around the globe.  These home bases are pivotal to the game.  You communicate with your handler here in order to advance the storyline and setup different missions.  Through your safehouse computer you can access your email (gives way to optional missions, contacts, etc.) and the Clearinghouse, which is basically the Black Market.   A weapons locker is also setup in each of your safehouses.  It is here that you will customize and tailor your arsenal and armor for specific missions.

The dialogue system runs in real time, giving you a limited amount of time to choose a response.  They take 3 different personality responses and have named them appropriately (the JB’s: James Bond, Jason Bourne and Jack Bauer).

Character and weapon customization are extremely deep here.  You will be able to level your character up using a number of different abilities (Sabotage, hacking, Martial Arts, etc.).  Weapon customization takes a similar route with the option to add on a large number of different accessories (think weapon customization in COD:MW2).

Halo: Reach [Editor’s Choice]

Release Date: TBA Q3, 2010 [Expected: September 26th, 2010]
Notes: Anytime Bungie is readying a Halo release, loyal fans everywhere wait on their every word.  While details are still a bit sketchy about this release, just the announcement of a new Halo title has their fanboys giddy with excitement.  It is also enough to earn a spot on our most anticipated list.

The trailer doesn’t showcase much in terms of gameplay, but it gives you an idea of where the story will take you.  Donning the Spartan armor once again, the 4th and final (announced) Halo game looks to deliver and go out with a bang.  Squad based combat, introduced in ODST, looks to make a comeback with the confirmation of multiple Spartan warriors.

Medal of Honor

Release Date: September 30, 2010
Notes: Taking a cue from the massive success enjoyed by the Call of Duty franchise, Medal of Honor is going modern.  While there is still a lot unknown, particularly what types of new gameplay elements are available, the trailer from the 2009 VGA shows a lot of promise for the direction this franchise is headed.

EA has dedicated a large team to this release, having EA LA develop the single player while Battlefield developer veterans DICE will be handling the multiplayer side of this title.  DICE certainly has the pedigree to pull off a massive and successful multiplayer mode, which is a requisite in the FPS genre.  You can definitely expect vehicles to be a part of the multiplayer, which may be the make or break factor in determining if this can have any sort of staying power.

Taking place in Afghanistan, EA promises to have a “best-in-class single-player campaign” inspired by “real events”.  The development was aided by real life Special Ops soldiers to create an authentic modern war experience.  Focusing on Tier 1 Operators, basically the best of the best, MoH looks to tell the tale of this elite group.  They’ll certainly need a polished title as they’ll be competing against the juggernaut that is CoD.

Fable III

Release Date: TBA Q4, 2010
Notes: Taking place approximately 50 years after the events of Fable II, you take on the role of a character whose parent(s) has fallen victim to the injustice of a tyrant king.  (A bit of a spoiler) After laboring to overthrow this evil king, you will eventually take his crown and become the new ruler.  With a kingdom to oversee, the decisions you make will have far reaching consequences.  The most important will be when a foreign nation threatens your own.  How you react to such a threat will play a pivotal role.

Like Mass Effect, your character save from Fable II will carry over.  Your parent in III will be your character from II.  How exactly this import will have an effect on this new world has yet to be seen.

Peter Molyneux has confirmed that Project Natal will be a part of Fable III.  However, the manner in which they’ll implement it is still unknown.

Hardware: Project Natal

Release Date: TBA Q4, 2010
Notes: This is Microsoft’s prized new development and potentially the most universally anticipated release of 2010.  Unless Nintendo has something up its sleeve, this could be the project that kills the Wii.

Project Natal looks to significantly extend the life of the Xbox 360.  Instead of relying on just a controller, Project Natal focuses on using full body movement to power your games.  Couple that with the power of Xbox 360 graphics and you no longer have any reason to waste your time with the Wii.

Just thinking about boxing in Fight Night Round 4 has me ready to buy this when it’s released.  Hopefully when it comes out, it supports a wide array of games.  For now, we can only hope that Microsoft is able to successfully pull this off, because this new hardware is ambitious on a scope not yet seen before.

Notable Mentions:

• Bayonetta
• Darksiders
• Army of Two: The 40th Day
• Dante’s Inferno
• Aliens Vs Predator
• Lost Planet 2
• Final Fantasy XIII
• Just Cause 2
• Battlefield: Bad Company 2
• Dead Rising 2
• Red Dead Redemption
• Madden NFL 11
• Brink
• Max Payne 3
• Crackdown 2
• Rage