I am not a professional reviewer, just a run of the mill gamer but since this blog is about the things I love and one of those is gaming, I figured I'd have some fun and share what games made my year. To give a little background on what I like, I have every system out there (PS3, Xbox, Wii, PSP, DS) but I have limited time to actually play any of them due to the demands of job, kids and a wife who doesn't feel like watching me play video games is an entertaining evening.

Thus, I don't tend to pick up any and all games, and commit my time to only those games I truly enjoy (and I shy away from the survival horror and RPG genres...so no Dragon Age or Left 4 Dead type games typically - I also notably missed Ratchet and Clank's latest and Borderlands, both of which I hope to pick up soon). Nonetheless, it was a great year of games in my mind with some real standouts. In no particular order, here are my favorite games of 2009 along with some honorable mentions and disappointments.

I caught some flak on my critical review of Star Wars Trench Run the other week. Apparently I am in the minority thinking that the gameplay was somewhat shallow and repetitive for the $4.99 price tag. This week, I want to give a prime example of why I stand by that belief by showing a game that is, in my opinion, amazingly fun and addictive with countless hours ofgameplay for the current price of only $2.99. Defender Chronicles mixes some RPG elements into a classic Castle/Tower defense type game to create a game that is often hard to put down but doesn't require hours of dedication (a la Civilization Revolution).

Castle of Magic is a platformer in the style some readers may remember in the days of Sega Genesis. As with some of those classic Genesis games, the fact that it is designed with bright colors cartoonish graphics does not mean that this game is made for children. It's both clever and fun but succumbs frequently to the fatal flaw of all platformers I have tried on the iPhone/iPod, and that is a mistake-prone on-screen control scheme.

Recent news has announced that not only is Nintendo's Wii still dominating hardware sales but has recently surpassed the Xbox 360's install base. I have owned both since shortly after each of their respective launch dates, so over one and a half years for my 360 and about about 9 months for the Wii. At this point, having purchased quite a good number of games for both systems, I consider my Wii purchase a source of continuing disappointment despite my initial excitement. In fact, I am continually astounded at how the Wii can maintain its dominance, but my feeling at the moment is that it will become the ubiquitous device in people's living rooms that no one uses unless some issues are sorted out. Let me explain my feelings on this topic.

One thing to keep in mind while you read my opinion, however, is that my Wii was primarily purchased for my five year old son (who has played video games since he was three) and my wife, who rarely plays any video games. However, I think this is actually closer to Nintendo's intended audience for the Wii than myself, who leans more towards the "hardcore gamer" label (if I had more time to actually play). This means that I have not purchased the more "gamer" oriented games like Zelda and Metroid, though I have a number of the "casual" games. At this point, neither my son nor my wife, nore I use the Wii with much frequency.