PC Gamer UK has picked out its hottest games of 2008, the list totalling an impressive 110 titles. The carnage finally finishes in this part nine. Should you have missed previous parts of the feature, you can find links to them below.
Vampyre Story (ETA: Spring) We're still not entirely sure why a vampire would want to bite an opera singer: unless it's to make a great joke about the fat lady exsanguinating. In this beautifully hand-drawn animated adventure (created by ex-LucasArts staffers) you are that lady. Um, except you're not fat. Mona is (un)dead lovely, and desperate to sing at the Paris opera.
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning (ETA: Winter) Had enough of World of Warcraft yet? Then this might be the next obvious step: Warhammer Online, a combat-focused fantasy MMO blending Blizzard's model with Games Workshop's world.
The difference? Warhammer has a far more brutal fantasy landscape, and the quests you'll receive and the tone of the zones have been made to match. Quests cheerfully demand you massacre innocent dwarves, towns are disease-filled pits, and players are encouraged into the all-pervading player-versus-player objectives.
Want to take the XP-boosting quests in the towns toward the centre of a zone? They'll only be available to the faction that currently holds the village in question: meaning that at some point, you're going to have to fight. For your right. In parties (of five or more).
Warhammer: Mark of Chaos - Battle March (ETA: Spring) Warhammer: Mark of Chaos was a clever, if not entirely successful, attempt to bring Warhammer's fantasy battles to the PC real-time strategy genre. It ditched base building in favour of straight-up battles between armies purchased beforehand, and in-depth hero development. This expansion-cum-sequel adds two new factions: Dark Elves, and Orcs-and-Goblins. It also introduces a new multiplayer mode designed for Hero Duels, where players can battle one-on-one with their chosen characters. Like Pokemon.
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King (ETA: Winter) Yes, Blizzard are checking all the boxes for this second World of Warcraft expansion. There are new zones to explore, in the shape of chilly continent Northrend. The level cap gets raised to 80, allowing players another hit of XP progression.
There's a new class to try, too: the Death Knight, available only to those who hit level 80. He's a big hulking menace, able to hit hard, carry massive swords, and cast magic (cue whines of "it's not fair!").
There's a sense that Blizzard want even their less dedicated players to feel involved in a wider storyline. In previous WoW expansions, only the most experienced would face epic bosses like Illidan or Onyxia, in huge raid dungeons that required up to 40 players to defeat.
But in Wrath of the Lich King, the developers promise that Arthas, the prince turned uber-baddie from Warcraft III, will be a constant presence in every zone - you'll fight him and his undead armies at every turn. And they're adding epic barbershops. Win.
Warhound (ETA: 208) Hitman meets Call of Duty. You're a freelance mercenary offered contracts in war zones all over the world. The map of locations includes the Middle East, Amazonian jungles, African savannah and more.
The Wheelman (ETA: Winter) Created by Vin Diesel's game development company, plans are already in the works for the movie. The story is about a wheelman - that's a driver, by the way - who comes out of retirement to protect a woman from his past.
Word of Darkness (ETA: Winter) A MMO based on World of Darkness, the pen-and-paper roleplaying game series that includes, among other titles, Vampire the Masquerade. Werewolves, ghosts and other monsters also feature.
Worldshift (ETA: Summer) Forget technology trees. Worldshift, a rapid fire strategy game in the mould of Starcraft, is about scavenging powers and upgrades from the environment, rather than investing in research at a laboratory back at base.
XIII Century: Death or Glory (ETA: Spring) The plan is to authentically depict 13th century military combat. You're put in control of armies of horse-mounted lancers and the like, in battles where the terrain and weather actually impact on the battle.
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