Gears of War 2

Publisher: Microsoft
Release Date: Released
Platform: Xbox 360

Gears of War was the second-best selling game on the Xbox 360 last year. With the improved game play, graphics, and online experience, this could well surpass its predecessor. With a new and improved game engine, this game has already won multiple awards for its life-like graphics.

Gears of War is similar to the wildly popular Halo series. Like Halo the game is a very fluid shooter set in the future with a solid sci-fi storyline. It allows gamers to shoot brilliantly-created alien creatures with futuristic weaponry, which has a surprisingly broad range of appeal.

Gran Turismo 5

Publisher: Sony
Release Date: TBA (probably 2009 but might be bumped to 2010)
Platform: PlayStation 3

Sony issued a demo of Gran Turismo 5 for PS3 called "Gran Turismo 5: Prologue." That demo sold over 2 million units and was the best-looking game on any console at the time mathematically (most polygons per model).  The game defines the racing genre for video games, and each previous installment in the franchise sold over 10 million units.

If you ever wanted to test the top speed of a Porsche or Aston Martin, or if you ever wanted to turn London or New York into a race track, this game is for you. Gran Turismo 5 lets you do all of those things in the most realistic simulation to date.

This game is notorious for having real racecar drivers test it to prove it. When a race car driver gets x time with y car on z course, they also get the exact same x time - within a couple milliseconds usually - with the same y car on the same z course in the game.

Guitar Hero World Tour

Publisher: Activision Blizzard Inc.
Release Date: Released
Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PlayStation 2

This is the fourth installment in the hugely successful Guitar Hero franchise. It lets gamers play along with their favorite tunes on what is, essentially, a toy guitar. Unlike previous editions GH World Tour features support of a drum set, microphone, and bass, allowing players to form complete bands in their living rooms.

The appeal of this game is that it lets players who may, or may not, have any musical talent whatsoever enjoy the rock star experience. It also lets them take their friends along for the ride. Players can travel from city to city and bask in all the adulation of adoring fans without spending months on end in a tour bus. And if your band breaks up, you can always find some new mates online.

Rock Band 2

Publisher: MTV, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA-B)
Release Date: Xbox: Released
Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PlayStation 2

Rock Band is the main competition to Guitar Hero. Like GH World Tour, Rock Band features a guitar, drum set, and microphone and let’s players create their own characters. These games are essentially the same thing. The only thing that sets them apart is the set list. Both, no doubt, be hugely successful.

Wii Fit

Publisher: Nintendo Co. Ltd.
Release Date: Released
Platforms: Wii

This game is already selling out and on back order at most retailers. It is by far the best exercise video game that has ever been released, if not the only exercise video game ever released. It is one of Nintendo’s most successful innovative ventures to date and will undoubtedly continue to attract users for the next year or two.

This is one of those truly innovative games, like Guitar Hero, Grand Theft Auto, or Gran Turismo that comes along only once every so many years. Wii Fit turns exercise, which many consider to be a chore, into a game. There is no annual membership fee and no overpriced equipment. And it lets a user work out in the comfort and privacy of their own living room.

Call of Duty: World at War

Publisher: Activision
Release Date: NA: Released
Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC, Wii

This is the next installment in the extremely popular Call of Duty series, which received significant recognition after its blockbuster game, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. While Call of Duty, Call of Duty 2, and Call of Duty 4 were developed by the Infinity Ward game design team, Call of Duty 3 and Call of Duty: World at War were developed by the Treyarch design team.

This game is a first person shooter set during WWII. Another notable feature of this game is that it will take place in the Pacific, rather than on the European, front - a rare choice for WWII games.

However, is unlikely that Call of Duty: World at War will be as popular as its predecessors. The media will also hype this game and, for a small moment before it’s released, it will seem like it will ACTUALLY be able to surpass all previous Call of Duty games. But I believe it will fall short.

Call of Duty 4 was a blockbuster for two reasons:

1. It didn’t take place in the overdone WWII era (hence the game’s full name: Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare).
2. It was developed by the amazing team that did the original Call of Duty, Infinity Ward.

This game is not only going to be done by the team that did the extremely tedious and overly boring game known as Call of Duty 3, it is also going to be put BACK into the WWII era. If there is a game on this list that will be a complete flop, this is it.

Fable II

Publisher: Microsoft
Release Date: NA-October 21, 2008 UK-October 24, 2008
Platforms: Xbox 360

Fable II is a Role-Playing Game (RPG) that features advanced level "artificial intelligence" (AI) and a never-before-seen online system that lets players interact much more easily than in previous games. It is the sequel to the well-received Fable for the original Xbox and PC. Fable II is well on its way to becoming one of the most anticipated RPGs on the Xbox 360.

An example of this game’s advanced level of intelligence and responsiveness:

Roughly 45 minutes into the game, the player’s character will encounter a pet dog. The dog will obey three laws: First, do not irritate the player. Second, unconditionally love the player. And third, self-preservation. When the player goes into a shop, the dog will wait outside. If the player is wounded, the dog will become more protective. It will alert the player to threats, attack enemies and will learn different behaviors over the course of time, based on the player’s experiences.

This is just the beginning. Throughout the game, the player’s character will have the choice of marrying (same or opposite sex) and having children. The player may also choose whether or not to join the side of good or the side of evil. This, and a number of other decisions, alter the gaming experience, and ultimately, its outcome.

Killzone 2

Publisher: Sony
Release Date: February 2009
Platforms: PlayStation 3

The original Killzone, while having minor technical issues, was one of the best sci-fi shooters on the PlayStation 2 and was hailed as the ‘Halo Killer’ prior to its release. Killzone 2 might just accomplish what its predecessor couldn’t do, or at least get much closer. Killzone 2 is a first person shooter that takes place in the future on an alien planet (stop me if you’ve heard this before), where humans are battling an evolved species of humans for domination.

The game is going to try to deliver not only an amazing shooting experience, but a breathtaking Hollywood cinematic experience. As has already been discussed numerous times in this report, gamers are perfectly comfortable buying and playing reworked releases of games they’ve enjoyed in the past.

The game may be unoriginal, but so long as it adheres to the formula of its predecessors, and combines familiar controls with well-designed graphics and a captivating storyline, Killzone will be a success. 

Animal Crossing: City Folk

Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: Released
Platforms: Wii

This is the sequel to the original Animal Crossing for the Nintendo GameCube, which makes Animal Crossing: City Folk is a surefire sale to fans of the old game.

Animal Crossing is an open-ended life simulation game with little, if any, plot. There are tasks the player can choose to complete, but nothing is required. The game is played in real-time (observing days, weeks, months, and years) and has a full calendar of holidays. The main goal is for the player to increase the size of his or her home.

The game will be the first to utilize the Wii’s new, soon-to-be-released speaking module.

Resistance 2

Publisher: Sony
Release Date: November 2008
Platforms: PlayStation 3

The Resistance series is based on an alternate reality timeline where WWII never happened due to alien interference. The aliens, of course, now try to take over humanity.

Resistance 2 is a first person shooter where the player is tasked with the objective of surviving while the human race is destroyed. Resistance was a flagship game for the PlayStation 3 and its sequel is sure to continue the quality of gaming.

Resistance 2 has a very interesting storyline that appeals to most sci-fi buffs, while not actually being in the future on another planet. A big reason the original Resistance sold was because of the ingenuity of the guns and what they could do. A player could have a gun that shot through walls, or one that had bullets that got directed to the enemy.

Combined with the processing power of the PlayStation 3, this game’s innovation will be its selling point for gamers.

World of Warcraft and MMORPGs

A large group of western gamers enjoy what are known as Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs). These games let a player create a character of his choosing, and then shepherd that character through an imaginary world.  What sets them apart from the rest of the games we’ve covered is that there are just a few dominant titles and they are generally played on personal computers, rather than a video game console.

The most popular MMORPG is World of Warcraft (WoW). This PC game lets a player create a being of his choosing (elf, dwarf, troll, undead, or just plain human) and take them on adventures that build that character’s attributes and earn in-game money to buy in-game items. To play WoW however, the player must pay a monthly subscription of $12.99 to $14.99 depending on the subscription length.

With 10 million subscribers, WoW is the world’s biggest MMORPG and a lot of other similar games are copying its price model. World of Warcraft is made by Blizzard Entertainment which was recently bought by Activision, creating Activision Blizzard Inc.

The Four Best Ways to Invest

If you want to invest in video games there are, essentially, four ways to do it…

• Investing in video game publishers.
• Investing in video game retailers.
• Investing in companies that make video game consoles.
• Investing in companies that make video game accessories.

Game Publishers

These are the companies that make the games.