2010 is a massive year for the PC, with a huge range of titles in every genre on the way. We've picked out 15 of the best (not the necessarily the best) you should definitely keep an eye on throughout the year!
Finally, just a quick note on the hype meter. It's based on how much media hype the game has generated, or we predict it will closer to its release if it's TBA, not necessarily its quality, as they all look great.
Check out our most anticipated big name titles on the PC in 2010.
Global Agenda
Release Date: February 1, 2010
This one's actually already out, but we complied the list a few weeks ago and don't see any reason to omit it now.
Global Agenda is a MMO developed by Hi-Rez Studios running on the Unreal Engine 3. It's set on a 22nd century Earth, where the human race is slowly dying out due to shortage of sustainable land. An interesting one for any MMO fan.
Hype Meter: MEDIUM
Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty
Release Date: February 4, 2010
Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty has been a long time in the making. The original game was released well over a decade ago, and it'd be understatement of the year saying there're a few fanboys that would trade their first born for the sequel.
If you aren't familiar with the series, Starcraft is a real-time strategy game, developed by Blizzard, set in the 26th century. The Protoss, Terran, and Zerg races return, and build on what the first game has achieved over so many years. Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty looks set to be one of the best real-time strategy games in a long time.
Hype Meter: HIGH
Star Trek Online
Release Date: February 5, 2010
The PC is really getting ahead of itself with the third (from 3 so far) game set in the future. Development for Star Trek Online started way back in 2004 and hit more hurdles than you could possibly imagine to finally be here 6 years later.
Players will have the opportunity to visit iconic locations from the popular Star Trek fiction, reach out to unexplored star systems, and make contact with new alien species. With Episode Missions, every moment spent playing Star Trek Online will feel like a new Star Trek episode in which you are the star.
Hype Meter: HIGH
Bioshock 2
Release Date: February 9, 2010
You stand in a city on the brink of a historic shift. As a Plasmid test subject for Sinclair Solutions, a premier provider of Plasmids and Tonics, you're one of the many residents of the underwater city of Rapture. But as this city increasingly fails to live up to the promise of its name, you will be forced to use every tool at your disposal simply to fight for survival. Do you have the courage and skills it will take to weather the crisis when an underwater city begins its spectacular fall?
Return to the gripping underwater world you first visited in BioShock for a compelling new chapter in the Rapture saga. In BioShock 2, you'll see Rapture at the height of its power, then do your best to live through its subsequent terrifying fall. Step into the shoes of Rapture's citizens to experience the crisis from their perspectives, and fight for control in iconic locations like Kashmir Restaurant and Mercury Suites. Blast your way through the fall of Rapture in exhilarating 1st-person shooter style and engage in a unique multiplayer experience that compounds the dangers and rewards that lie in wait within Rapture's boundaries.
Hype Meter: HIGH
Battlefield: Bad Company 2
Release Date: March 5, 2010
Battlefield Bad Company 2 brings the spectacular Battlefield gameplay to the forefront of next-gen consoles and PC - featuring best-in-class vehicular combat set across 8 huge sandbox maps each with a different tactical focus.
Players can also compete in 4-player teams in 2 exclusive squad-only game modes, fighting together to unlock exclusive team awards and achievements. Spawn on your squad to get straight into the action, and use gadgets such as the tracer dart in-conjunction with the RPG to devastating effect.
Hype Meter: HIGH
Supreme Commander 2
Release Date: March 5, 2010
Set 25 years after the first game, Supreme Commander 2 begins with the assassination of the newly elected president. Shortly after everyone starts pointing the finger at one another and galactic turmoil is ensured.
Hype Meter: LOW
Assassin's Creed 2
Release Date: March 5, 2010
Assassin’s Creed 2 is an improvement on its predecessor in almost every way. The story, which starts slow, becomes very engaging and evolves almost perfectly for a videogame. The action/adventure gameplay has the right mix of platforming elements, side quests, assassinations and general combat. Best of all, every one of these things can be done in numerous different ways, leaving the tactics down to the individual player. Assassin’s Creed 2 looks and sounds great, and really immerses the player into 15th century Italy. It’s a great step forward for the series, one of the more mature games out there that uses strong platforming elements, and leaves you wanting more at the end of each mission.
The only problem is it was released on consoles months ago, and while we highly recommended it, there was no real reason to wait for the PC version.
Hype Meter: LOW
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II - Chaos Rising
Release Date: March 12, 2010
Another RTS on PC in 2010, this one based on the popular tabletop game Warhammer 40K. Chaos Rising takes place one year after the events of Dawn of War II and follows the return of the Blood Raven heroes, the Chaos Lord Eliphas, Derosa - governor of Meridian, and the heretical Vandis.
All the races from the previous game will be given new units and upgrades, and Chaos Space Marines will be introduced to the game, which is sure to please Warhammmer fans.
Hype Meter: MEDIUM
Metro 2033
Release Date: March 19, 2010
Metro 2033 looks like a rather interesting title. We say that because it's marketed as a game with horror, survival, RPG, and first-person shooter elements. Sounds like awesome, yet difficult, fun!
The whole world lies in ruins. Humanity is almost annihilated. Due to the high-level of radiation cities became unsuitable for living. Humans have yielded the supremacy on Earth to a new species. Creatures mutated by radiation are more adapted to the changed world. There are only clusters of humans left on the planet ... At least, that's what the ten thousand survivors camped out in the various sections of the Moscow metro must believe, since they have no evidence that they are not the last ones alive. And now, even this way of life is being threatened by the evolved evil from outside. As Artem, you set out from the first invaded colony, fighting through a society of divided by desperate politics, ideologies and economies to warn the rest and reach the Polis stronghold before everything is destroyed.
Hype Meter: MEDIUM
Just Cause 2
Release Date: March 26, 2010
Just Cause stars Rico Rodriquez, back to wreak havoc once again, this time with a new destination – the huge playground of the South East Asian islands of Panau, in an over-the-top Hollywood-esque blockbuster of a videogame.
With more stunts, vehicles and weapons than ever before and an incredible overhauled grappling hook, Rico returns to action in Panau, an incredibly detailed and vast 1000 sq km game world of different climates and ultra-realistic weather effects. Leap from your plane and skydive from 10,000 feet down into a tropical jungle, tear across an arid desert in a dune buggy or climb your way up a snowy mountain in a 4x4. The vast open-ended, unique gameplay is back, allowing you full freedom once again to free roam and explore the massive world of Panau and tackle your assignments however you want.
Hype Meter: MEDIUM
Alan Wake
Release Date: April 13, 2010
Alan Wake is a psychological action thriller from Remedy, the legendary and renowned developers of highly successful action titles. In this exciting new title, gamers assume the role of Alan Wake, a best-selling suspense author who escapes to a small town to recover from the mysterious disappearance of his fiancée.
Set in the deceptively idyllic town of Bright Falls, Wash., “Alan Wake” immerses players in an intense and expansive cinematic world that enables players to roam freely in hyper-realistic, dynamic and interactive environments. “Alan Wake” is mission-based with a deeply engaging and suspenseful story line unveiling new twists and profound character revelations at every turn. Players will unravel the riveting plot through multilayered character interactions, unique problem-solving and intense combat against terrifying enemies. In this nightmarish world, Alan Wake must use a variety of weapons to survive, including his most powerful ally against the creatures of darkness — light itself.
Hype Meter: MEDIUM
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction
Release Date: April 26, 2010
You are a fugitive and you’re being ruthlessly hunted by the very government you once served. The key to your survival is to improvise, adapt and overcome. Experience original game play based on improvisation where your environment becomes your weapon. You need to react to changing situations and use the environment and the crowds around you to create diversions and deter your enemies.
Hype Meter: HIGH
Deus Ex 3
Release Date: TBA 2010
The prequel to the award winning Deus Ex, taking place in 2027, Deus Ex 3 is one of the most anticipated games of the year with dedicated PC gamers. Adam Jensen works as a security officer for a Nanotechnological augmentations, for which the technology is yet to be developed. After witnessing crimes against his company Jensen finds himself caught up in the conspiracy.
Hype Meter: HIGH
Fallout: New Vegas
Release Date: TBA 2010
Set in a post-apocalyptic world following the Great War between the US and China, a conventional and nuclear war that occurred on October 23, 2077 and lasted less than two hours. Before The Great War were the Resource Wars, during which the United Nations disbanded, a plague rendered the United States paranoid, and Canada was annexed.
Hype Meter: MEDIUM
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm
Release Date: TBA
WOW. Do I really need to say more? The third expansion for the game that's ruined the lives of countless gamers is going to be a massive hit, assuming it's released before the year is out.
It includes a stack of new content including a new Goblin race for the Horde, and the wolf-like Worgen for the Alliance. The level cap will be raised to 85, and there will be a host of new dungeons to explore and quests to complete. Archaeology will be introduced in the expansion as an all new secondary skill. There's no point me telling anymore, as true WOW fans will know way, way, way more than me.
Hype Meter: HIGH
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