2009! It's over!

2009 has come and gone. To commemorate, here’s my top ten favorite things from last year. I know this post is late, but it's still January, so I think we're okay.

10. Mutemath – Armistice: From their early garage-band days in New Orleans to their debut self-titled album on Teleprompt records, and their eventual current-day signing with Warner Bros. Records, Mute Math has come a long way. Armistice, while not the album that many expected, reflects their evolution as a group of musicians and “band of Christians” who are not a “Christian” band. It's a fun album. Don't think too much about the fact that they were on the Twilight soundtrack, and you'll find little to complain about.


9. Shadow Complex (Xbox Live Arcade): A Metroidvania-style dungeon crawling platforming combat heavy adventure, Shadow Complex is obviously difficult to describe in few words. With an adventure than can easily last eight to ten hours in a straight run, and upwards of fifteen if the player takes the time to explore everything the titular underground installation has to offer, Shadow Complex is well worth its weight in Gold – or Microsoft Points.


8. Star Trek (JJ Abrams): JJ Abrams alternate/parallel universe/reboot/whatever the hell you want to call it was met with both critical acclaim and box office success. Many decried the liberties taken with the story and the apparent overuse of lens flares, but there’s practically no denying that 2009’s Star Trek was a thrill ride unmatched by any other film last year. Sorry, Transformers.


7. David Crowder – Church Music: Crowder is back. The long anticipated follow up to 2007's Remedy is rife with what's made the DGB so well loved by the CCM community, while doing a fair job of avoiding the trappings of stagnant repetition that so often plague it. This is no “Jesus Messiah”, no Amazing Grace rewrite. It may not be the genre defying masterpiece that was A Collision, but it is very much its own animal. With tracks like Phos Hilron (Oh Gladdening Light[an updated version of the first Christian hymn ever known to exist]) a cover of Flyleaf's All Around Me (Lacey of Flyleaf also sings backup in one track) and whole table original pieces give Church Music a many-faceted and addictive quality. The collectors edition also came with an autographed vinyl of the album, which my friend Ryan gave me for Christmas.


6. Halo 3: ODST: By no means the best game of 2009, and not the most innovative (okay, not really innovative at all), ODST may seem rather mediocre when stacked up against other shooters – hell, other games in general – released during 2009, but there’s no denying that it was fun. ODST humanized the Halo universe in a way not done previously within the games in the series. We even reviewed it for you.


5. N9ne: CGI films about sentient toys, animals and automobiles have run a dime a dozen since Toy Story popularized the medium back in the day. N9ne, however, is not your run of the mill talking [insert object here] family film. Set in a post apocalyptic future where Humanity is extinct, N9ne follows a band of sentient robots as they struggle to survive and complete the mission left to them by their now-dead creator. It’s a moving story, with a gloomy art style and atmosphere, and some cool monster designs to boot.


4. Left 4 Dead 2: The best way to make a game just might be to hand the player a gun and say “OMG ZOMBIES.” This year we fought Nazi zombies, Dr. Ned’s zombies, and top-down indie zombies (I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MBIES 1N IT!!!!). But Left 4 Dead 2 doesn’t complicate things, by doing what its predecessor did so well and adding new gameplay modes and elements to keep the idea fresh. With three other players, either human or computer controlled, you are placed in a massive level and told, “OMG ZOMBIES.” Then you kill them. That’s about all there is to it, but the formula never seems to get old. The addition of new weapons such as chainsaws, guitars, a variety of new guns and modifiers such as laser sights and incendiary ammo all ensure that players will be surviving this apocalypse for a long time to come.


3.Mini Ninjas: perhaps the sleeper hit of the year, Mini Ninjas is a deep, rich adventure game disguised as a kiddie title. You are placed in control of Hiro, a ninja sent by his master to rescue his ninja buddies and defeat the evil samurai warlord. As you defeat the warlord’s minions, they transform back into cute forest animals. Then you platform for awhile and fight some more minions. Simple as it sounds, there’s much more to it. As you progress you gain access to Hiro’s friends’ unique powers and abilities as they are rescued. You also unlock Kuji magic spells and items to aid you in your quest. The interesting part is that any and all of the items and spells are rarely, if ever necessary, allowing the player to tackle the game’s individual challenges in whatever way best suits their playing style. The ability to switch ninjas on the fly can make for some interesting combat scenarios. Intriguing elements like a hat that deflects arrows AND can be used as a boat, and the ability to create healing potions and other items using “alchemy” mean that Mini Ninjas has a lot to offer anyone who’s not put off by it’s cutsie art style and presentation. And if we’re being honest, the game is just so darn cute.


2. Halo Wars: Halo, the first person shooter than practically made the Xbox was originally intended to be an RTS. While the formula has never really worked on a console before, the late Ensemble Studios proved that it can, providing that players are willing to sacrifice some of the resource management that has so long been a staple of the RTS genre. Ensemble Studios brought us the Age titles (Age of Empires and Age of Mythology), and know what they’re doing when it comes to RTS gaming. The Halo universe translates well into a top-down battlefield, giving players a new look at the weapons, characters and settings that make up the Halo mythology. The Master Chief is nowhere to be seen, but I doubt you'll miss him.


1. Borderlands: In terms of graphical stylishness, solid gameplay mechanics, originality, approach to multiplayer, sheer fun and myriad other concerns that are tried and weighed by reviewers and players alike, Borderlands stood apart from the crowd in 2009. Seamlessly merging RPG leveling and looting with the frantic instant-satisfaction of first person shooters, Borderlands is a title that offers a lot – a LOT – to anyone willing to put the time into its campaign. New-game-plus functions and the most player-friendly co-op I've ever seen, as well as four character classes with unique abilities and playstyles ensure that you'll be returning to the wastes of Pandora for years to come. Also, who doesn't love Claptrap?


HONORABLE MENTIONS (Almost, but not quite): A Day To Remember – Homesick (Yes, If It Means A Lot to you is great, but the rest of the album runs together), Watchmen (So close, yet so far. I want my Brain Monster back.), Resident Evil 5 (RE4 should have just been moved to Africa. You didn't need to change anything, Capcom), Lost Planet 2 Demo (LP2 would probably be on this list if it hadn't been delayed. Twice.)

Halo 3: ODST

WARNING: I am a shameless, unabashed Halo nerd. I love the universe, the characters, the plot, everything. I love it. I will make no attempt to conceal that for the duration of this review, but I will try to be as objective as possible. Then again, this is HA, and we do what we want.

Halo 3: ODST - My Xbox 360 refused to function last Monday. It displayed 'System Error: E 74. Contact Support.' I've been without it ever since, but fortunately was granted almost a week with ODST and it's accompanying Mythic disk before I shipped the console off to the repair center.



ODST is the fifth installment in the Halo game series, chronologically (in-universe) taking place in between Halo 2 and Halo 3. The series' preceding entry, Halo Wars (reviewed previously on HA), was a departure from the formula of the first three games. Replacing first person shooting with real time strategy, and the Master Chief with an entire stable of other characters, it was met with mixed reactions from the Halo fanbase. That aside, it was a solid game with good mechanics, and did take steps toward furthering the mythos of the Halo universe. Introducing new locations, scenarios and plot points, Halo Wars filled in a few blanks and gave players a look at another side of the Halo saga.

ODST continues this trend, but also returns to the series' roots. There is no resource management or population cap to be found here, but instead the classic, polished FPS formula which has made the series so famous.

The Master Chief is neither seen nor mentioned. Neither are any of the other Spartans, for that matter. Instead of the genetically and cybernetically enhanced super soldiers, we step into the boots of a team of Orbital Drop Shock Troopers. ODSTs have been a part of the Halo universe for quite some time, but this is the first opportunity we've been given to play as them (unless you count the ODST armor variants in Halo 3's multiplayer, but I digress).

To summarize the protagonist, you play as an unnamed ODST known only as "The Rookie". As the Rookie investigates the ruined streets of New Mombasa, you play through flashback sequences wherein you discover what happened to the rest of The Rookie's ODST squad, and play as each member respectively.

It should be noted that ODST can almost certainly be considered the greatest example of storytelling within the Halo universe, at least as far as the games are concerned. The dialogue is well written, and delivered to the player via such voice talent as Nathan Filion (!!!). The plot is more subtle, and less straight forward than previous entries. Instead of the standard, "Shoot the aliens because they are bad so save the humans okay?" formula, ODST raises questions at almost every turn. From the start we know only one thing - something has gone horribly wrong in New Mombasa, and the player can hope only to salvage what remains of The Rookie's squad and make it out alive. The art style of the game will remind players of some of Halo 2's early sequences, wherein The Master Chief did battle through New Mombasa, but this is a setting far more polished, and far more human that it's predecessor. It is also far darker, as New Mombasa is no longer the sprawling metropolis it once was, but rather a ruined, burning city. Audio diaries found throughout the map help to flesh out the realism of the story, as well as graffiti scrawled on the walls of derelict buildings, and the bodies of dead UNSC soldiers. This is a gritter, less space-operatic look at the Halo universe. Empathy for the characters is an easier thing to harbor than it was for the faceless Spartan 117, and the wise cracking marines which never made it to the end of a level in the first three games.



This is not, of course, to say that the teeth-gritting action of the early games is not present. Not all of the player's time is spent skulking around in alleyways and side streets. The flashback scenes in particular have the player mowing down wave after wave of Covenant enemies, piloting vehicles, throwing grenades and circle-strafing just like we're used to. If you like Halo's gameplay formula, or ever have, ODST is worth trying out. If you're one of those you simply can't stand it, then you're better off playing something else.

I could probably go on and on about everything I love about this game. As stated, I am a shameless fanboy, and it's unlikely that anything with the Halo moniker on it will fail to impress me. ODST in particular however takes serious steps, and makes a visible attempt at innovating within a series that has followed roughly the same formula for the past eight years. Make no mistake - This is Halo, but it's also something new.

The game's new multiplayer mode, Firefight, will appeal to fans of Gears of War 2's Horde Mode, or to anyone with a taste for co-operative gameplay. Firefight pits up to four players against endless waves of Covenant enemies in a closed off arena, with increasing difficulty at the end of every wave. Difficulty multipliers are activated automatically as you progress, adding a layer of challenge and breaking up some of the monotony. The arcade like point-scoring system encourages competitiveness between players, as well as creativity in how the player scores kills (different weapons yield different points values). It's a nice addition to the Halo universe, and one that Bungie will hopefully expand upon in the future.

All in all ODST is a worthy addition to the library of any fan of first person shooters, and an essential for any Halo fan. I count myself among both groups, and enjoyed nearly every minute I spent with ODST's 6-8 hour campaign. A bonus disk including every Halo 3 map to date, as well as three new ones, and Halo 3's matchmaking system is included. It's also worth noting that with the launch of Halo Waypoint on November 5th 2009, ODST will be one of only three games which (as of that date) supports Avatar awards on the Xbox 360.