Welcome to 2009 (although we are a bit late, 15 days to be exact). Yes, it is 2009. Which means a new year of news, previews, contests, and all around 360 goodness. 2008 was a great first year for us, with our Unlock The Achievement charity / scavenger hunt event,  and most of all, our awesome community, which continues to grow! We made sure to end the year right with our Xbox.com Community Playdate and with the new New Gear’s contest.

Which brings us to where we are now… or does it?

We have some big goals in store for 2009, from better hands-on coverage for upcoming games, to other events that are still under wraps. Stay sync’d with us this year, and it will be sure to be a great year. Oh, and check out the contest that we just posted, where you can win some cool prizes ranging from 4000 MS points to a bunch of 360 games and accessories.

But what do you all want to see? In terms of the site, or in terms of the year, what are you all looking forward to? 2009 gives us many chances to get some new interviews, reveal some new games, and who knows.

Only in 2009 will we see the true result of the Holiday massacre season. What games really were the best, and can continue to hold a dominant spot on Xbox Live? Gears of War 2 and Call of Duty: World at War will continue to battle for the top spot, along with Rock Band 2 battling Guitar Hero: World Tour on the music scene.

Yet, Fallout 3 still remains my personal Game of the Year. The story, the gameplay, the game hooked me from the beginning and never let go. Yet Dead Space was also a great game with a very thought out “graphic” system and storyline. Sadly for Gears of War 2, I had put too much time in its predecessor to get hooked into this one. However, the game still had a great Co-Op and multiplayer experience, with the new Horde mode being my favorite. Left 4 Dead was enjoyable as well, with the unique story director and heavy focus on multiplayer teamwork.

This was no easy year to pick the best games of the year. Too many games were great. Simply from the sports perspective, FIFA 09 was far superior than any FIFA game that I have played as of late. The only negative aspect I could pull from the game were the billboards on the side of the field. That should not happen! However, NHL 09 was also a much deeper game, (and thus far, all the glitches seem to finally be gone from NHL 08). Tiger Woods 09 continues to be a great game as well, which is a shame that I will probably never be able to say its the Game of the Year, simply because, how much more realistic can you make this game?

My point? Game of the Years are great for those on the run (see, we provided ours as well), but if you really want to get the most out of your games, simply ask us! We read our articles, we check your comments, and we are always on Twitter, reading, learning and responding. Also, if you want a more in depth discussion with us, you can also catch us on the forums! So if you want to see which game would suit you best, simply ask us, and we’d love to help!