So often, Western games are marred by buggy launches that take at least a few patches to work out, losing at least some players in the process.
The real reason that I put Aion on the top of the heap though is probably the fact that it has the advantage of being a rare imported game that was designed with our market in mind. This first major launch since the cancellation of the company’s previous flagship title, Tabula Rasa, has a lot riding on its shoulders and NCsoft didn’t gain a reputation as one of the premiere publishers on this side of the world by letting opportunities pass them by in a pinch. Then, you’ve got the fact that NCsoft North America needs Aion to be a success on this side of the world. In 2012, Aion will be closing in on its third birthday, so why is it that I think it’ll be rounding out the top ten? I’m going to go out on a limb right now and say that it really could be any number of games from the crop here in 2009 that could fill this spot, but in my opinion, Aion has the best chance.Īion is a game designed to appeal to number of different player types: PvP, RvR, PvE, RP and others. They include: The Secret World, The Agency, Copernicus, Lord of the Rings Online, Global Agenda and Fallen Earth. Many quality titles didn’t make the list, but were kept firmly in mind. It’s tough enough to define the Top 10 Games of 2009, let alone three years from now. The next Blizzard MMO, for example is left off because there’s a good chance it won’t yet have launched. When I was putting this list together, there were a number of games that cropped up as possibilities that, for whatever reasons, I decided not to include in my top ten.