Summer is cooling off, and the big holiday game releases are right around the corner. While we won’t be seeing Starcraft 2 or Heavy Rain this year, and Beyond Good and Evil 2 has been shelved until further notice, there are still plenty of fantastic games coming out this year.

Drawn to Life: the Next Chapter (Nintendo DS/Nintendo Wii) – October 16th
While Drawn to Life seems a perfect property for the Nintendo DS, I can only hope that the on-screen drawing in the Wii version is better than that of the Wii remake of Okami, as drawing with the Wii remote can easily get wonky at times. If it works well, drawing your own character, and then drawing tools and weapons for him to use sounds like a lot of fun. You can see the Drawn to Life trailer here.

Grand Theft Auto IV: Ballad of Gay Tony (XBox 360) – October 29th
While I’ll admit to never having played a Grand Theft Auto game, Brandon suggested that I include this bit of DLC wherein you play as Luis Fernando Lopez, Gay Tony’s personal bodyguard. I can only imagine that hilarity (and perhaps some disco dancing) ensues. Here’s the trailer.

Alpha Protocol (XBox 360) – October 27th
After reading about Alpha Protocol, I’m sad that it’s an XBox 360 exclusive. There are a number of game mechanics that I’d really enjoy playing with.

The game focuses on Michael Thornton, a Jason Bourne clone who’s betrayed by the U.S. Government and ends up being hunted. Similar to Dark Messiah of Might and Magic, you can advance specific skill trees to make Michael more adept at gunplay, at hand-to-hand Kenpo fighting, or at stealth. Personally, I’d max out the stealth as soon as I could.

Conversations seem to be handled similarly to those in Indigo Prophecy, taking place in real time and allowing the player limited time to respond. The game’s developers have cited “The three J.B.’s” in determining attitudes during conversations, Jason Bourne being professional, James Bond being suave, and Jack Bauer being agressive.

Perhaps they’ll consider putting together a PC version a few months after the 360 version is released. I can always hope. In the meantime, you can watch the Alpha Protocol trailer here.

Dead Space: Extraction (Nintendo Wii) – September 29th
It’s tough to play a game where you know the story’s outcome before you begin. I’ve played through Dead Space, which takes place after Dead Space: Extraction, and I’ve seen the animated short “Dead Space: Downfall”. I know. EVERYONE DIES.

Dead Space: Extraction is an on-rails shooter, which is generally a minus, but Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles showed me that on-rail shooters aren’t necessarily all bad. Dead Space: Extraction promises branching pathways and puzzles. Puzzles? Interesting.

Another plus is that rotation of the plasma cutter in Dead Space: Extraction is done by actually rotating the Wiimote rather than hitting a button. Nice and intuitive. Hope it actually works well, because this trailer looks great.

Left 4 Dead 2 (PC) – November 17th
Aside from new campaign levels, Left 4 Dead 2 gives us two new special zombies, some “uncommon common” zombies like the hazmat suited zombies and mudmen, and also adrenaline shots and melee weapons for the humans. These are some nice add-ons, but I’m surprised that Valve is selling these as a new game rather than as add-ons for Left 4 Dead.

There’s been some contraversy over whether Left 4 Dead 2 is a true sequel or simply an add-on to the original game. There’s even a boycott out there, which complains about the release of Left 4 Dead 2 before the free add-on content Valve promised is released for the original Left 4 Dead. Personally, I can understand people being upset about the release of a “sequel” which seems more like add-on content, but a boycott seems like a bit much.

Personally, the reason I’ve never tried Left 4 Dead isn’t because I’m upset about anything – it’s because while I do enjoy shooters, I’ve learned that I’m absolutely horrible at them. This is a lesson I learned the hard way when playing Team Fortress 2. In any event, if you’d like to see the L4D2 trailer, here it is.

Assassin’s Creed 2 (PC, Playstation 3, XBox 360) – November 17th
I enjoyed the first Assassin’s Creed, but never finished it. I suppose my chief complaint was monotony. After completing the first four or five missions, the game didn’t seem to be going anywhere. This is the main thing that I hope the sequel fixes. This trailer looks cool, but one of the things that bugs me about Assassin’s Creed is that you remain hidden until your kill, and then are always seen. What about games like Tenchu, Thief, or Splinter Cell, where you can remain unseen despite dozens of kills? I like those better.

Bioshock 2: Sea of Dreams (PC, Xbox 360, Playstation 3) – November 3rd
I was never the hugest fan of the original Bioshock. Maybe that’s why I’m not more excited for the sequel. And after watching the trailer, it doesn’t seem like Bioshock 2 has much that Bioshock 1 didn’t. Although it seems not to be a prequel, you play the first ever Big Daddy, who’s still alive. Being the Prototype, you’re better than all the other Big Daddies, although the Big Sister is now your main threat. There’s no real clue as to why the original Big Daddy is only now getting his first plasmids – I can only hope that the game explains this well rather than just leaving it as a giant loophole.

Demon’s Souls (Playstation 3) – October 6th
Demon’s Souls sounds damn cool. It’s a fantasy action RPG in which you battle dragons, demons, and all kinds of other nasties. Enemies in the game can be absolutely massive, such as giants or dragons, and gameplay differs depending on what kind of weaponry (or magic) you use. You gain experience by collecting the souls of the demons you defeat. Here’s a link to the trailer.

Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles (Nintendo Wii) – November 17th
While I enjoyed Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles, I was a bit disappointed in that it covered the events of Resident Evil 0, Resident Evil 1, and Resident Evil 3 – the games in the series in which I’m least interested. Darkside Chronicles covers my beloved Resident Evil 2, as well as Code Veronica. Basically, the good ones. Seems like they’ve also stepped up the graphics, which should be a nice change. I’m really looking forward to revisiting Raccoon City and the complex beneath RCPD. Take a look here.

Muramasa: The Demon Blade (Nintendo Wii) – September 8th
Muramasa is a beautifully hand-drawn sidescroller, and you don’t see many 2D sidescrolling games anymore. To me, that’s the primary appeal. When you add in the RPG elements, it starts to sound like what Castlevania did beginning with Symphony of the Night. I’m in. If you haven’t seen the trailer I posted recently, here it is.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Playstation 3) – October 13th
Although I played the first Uncharted game start to finish, I think I really didn’t appreciate it enough – it was a great game, and the use of the Sixaxis to control the angle of thrown grenades is probably the best use for it I’ve ever seen. This sequel is adding parkour-like wall-climbing and stealth sequences. Yay! It also proportedly has no loading screens, which is very nice. And the graphics look fantastic. I’ll definitely be picking this one up.

In the first game, Nathan Drake follows the trail of Sir Francis Drake in an attempt to find El Dorado. In this sequel, he follows the trail of Marco Polo in an attempt to find Shangri-La. My first impression of the series was that of an Indiana Jones ripoff, but whether or not that’s true, they seem to be making an excellent series out of the Nathan Drake IP.

As a longtime Farscape fan, I also love the fact that Claudia Black is voicing one of the game’s main characters. But if they’re going to have a villain in the game named Zorin, couldn’t they get Christopher Walken to do the voice? Here’s the trailer.

Borderlands (PC, Xbox 360, Playstation 3) – October 20th
Of all the games on this list, Borderlands was the one I’d heard least about. Once I read up on the game for purposes of putting this article together, I started to get excited for it. An RPG inspired by Mad Max? Awesome. Beyond that, the randomization of weapons, environments, and enemies is like nothing I’ve ever seen. The estimates I’ve seen for how many weapons exist in the game run the range from a half million to over three million.

The premise for the game is a futuristic gold rush on an alien planet. Settlers move there and find that the planet actually has little to offer. The wealthy leave, and the remaining colonists find themselves in a wild west type of scenario. After seven Earth years, spring arrives and horrible creatures emerge from hibernation. The colonists’ only hope: alien technology. This chick says it doesn’t exist. Pretty, isn’t she? Oh wait – here’s a trailer that’s even better. Love that art style.

Scribblenauts (Nintendo DS) – September 15th
Scribblenauts is looking to be this year’s Portal – the game that everyone is talking about. It’s got a brilliantly innovative new mechanic, and the possibilities for creative play seem limitless. In Scribblenauts, you’re presented with a challenge, and you can write words – anything you can think to write down appears. A mongoose, a polo shirt, a station wagon, or a robot dinosaur – they’ll all appear and behave how you might expect them to. I’m gonna have fun with this one. My wife probably will as well. This trailer should give you a fair idea of exactly how kickass the game is.

Brutal Legend (Xbox 360, Playstation 3) – October 13th
A game created by the same guy that did Psychonauts, featuring Jack Black with a guitar battling demons with heavy metal music in the style of Tribute? Could this be the greatest and best video game in the world? It just might be. Too bad there’s no PC version.

This trailer shows Jack Black rocking some demons to death. I am so going to try to play as Limozeen in this game.

There’s no way I’ll be missing this one, although I’m not yet sure whether I’ll be able to get it on day one. To add to the winningness, Tim Curry does some voice acting in the game. Rock on!

Dragon Age: Origins (PC, XBox 360, Playstation 3) – November 3rd
Finally, the game I’m looking forward to most: Dragon Age: Origins. I’ll certainly be getting the PC version, as I’m looking forward to some amazing commmunity mods. Personally, I think it’s excellent that the game will be released on so many different platforms, since games like this had previously been PC only.

To me, the biggest thing that Dragon Age has going for it is its comparison to the original Baldur’s Gate series. I’ve been trying hard to avoid previews and trailers, and trying not to let my expectations get too high, since I’ve found that overly high expectations can ruin an experience. But the ability to control your entire party and to pause the game to issue commands has me pretty excited. Who will be the 21st Century’s Minsc? I know that Tim Curry is playing some kind of “calculating villain” in this game, perhaps he’ll be the new kickass character. Is Tim Curry in every 2009 game or what?

So which games will I be buying on day one? It’s a tough call given that I really want to finish Prototype, get some more achievements on Street Fighter 4 and Pixeljunk Monsters, and I’m dying to play Trine with my wife. I’d wanted to try Punch-Out, House of the Dead: Overkill, and The Conduit for the Wii, Henry Hatsworth and the new Professor Layton game on the DS, and The Chronicles of Ridick: Assault on Dark Athena on the PC, but given the imminent rush of new games, they may have to wait.

I pre-purchased Dragon Age: Origins many months ago, so I’ll be playing that as soon as it’s out. Likewise, I’ll be getting my hands on Scribblenauts as soon as humanly possible. Depending on the piggybank, I may get Muramasa when it drops, since it’s the first one out. As far as Uncharted, Brutal Legend, and Borderlands, I’ll check out the Metacritic ratings and probably pick one of the three that has the best ratings and reviews. Bioshock 2 sounds promising, but I likely won’t be buying it until 2010, when I can get a used copy on the cheap through EBay.