Most Surprisingly Good Game of 2009

What was the game you played in 2009 that's quality surprised you the most? 
 
It seems like, in terms of general quality, the answers would have to be Batman: Arkham Asylum, UFC Undisputed 2009, or Shadow Complex: Games that came from developers without a sterling pedigree. Rocksteady's previous game was an above average(but totally ridiculous) FPS, Yukes has been churning out dumb wrestling games for a while now, and Shadow Complex came from the guys who made Advent Rising and Undertow. The deck was stacked against these guys big time. 

Or maybe it was a solid franchise entry in a long forgotten franchise. Red Faction Guerrilla seems to have single-handedly resurrected a PS2 franchise no one really cared about. Street Fighter 4 had to live up to the quintessential fighting game AND make up for Street Fighter 3, which it did with style. 
 
Or maybe it's a game out of nowhere, a game that didn't have any kind of precedent for it's success. 1 Vs 100 seemed like a dumb trivia game, but, in practice, turned out to be one of the most interesting, engrossing uses of Xbox Live, and proved the viability of low impact trivia games.  Noby Noby Boy was just as ridiculous as Katamari Damacy in a completely different way, and it's success was by no means assured. But it's fascinating exploratory game play and weird "Everyone in the world in playing together to  unlock new areas" made for a game that was, if nothing else, worth revisiting every 2 to 3 months. 

Or maybe it was a game that had no business being even competent, let alone okay, like 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand.
 
What do you guys think? What was the most surprisingly good game you played in 2009?

Probably Osmos since, at least for me, it came out of nowhere and seemed like a stupid idea at first, but turned out to be a great game with lots of depth.

Batman: Arkham Asylum, no doubt. I remember when people were in an uproar about that one review being a month or so out before the game even came out. Saying the reviewer was bought out and all. Look what happened a month later. I was questioning the game myself, since there hadn't been a successful Batman game in awhile (if ever). I'm glad I took the plunge, it ended up being a very, very good game.

Also, XBLA game Panzer General: Allied Assault. You guys probably hadn't heard of it, but I actually reviewed it for a website (which I won't link, cause i don't want self promotion), and it ended up being a pretty good game. If you're into that war stuff (you know, guns and stuff) and turn based cards, you might enjoy it.

For a lot of people im guessing its going to be Borderlands because it seemed no one really cared/heard about it til a week or 2 before release (except for me, been waiting for it since gameinformer had it as their front page). 
 
The most surprising game for me this year was probably Call of Juarez Bound in Blood which i bought about a week or 2 after release and it was a pretty alright game.

  Guerrilla put their money where their mouth was and delivered a better than expected title with Killzone 2, It might not be as popular as Halo or Call of Duty but the muttiplayer in my opinion is leagues above those two titles.

Batman: Arkham Asylum foushoooo!

I'm going to go with RFG. I expected nothing out of it and then when the reviews came around I took a second look at it.

Oh and Demons souls was awesome as well

I'm going to say Blood On The Sand, because seriously, who expected that game to be okay? 
 
 
...where my skull?

Left 4 Dead 2. 
 
At least according to the boycotters...

" Batman: Arkham Asylum, no doubt. I remember when people were in an uproar about that one review being a month or so out before the game even came out. Saying the reviewer was bought out and all. Look what happened a month later. I was questioning the game myself, since there hadn't been a successful Batman game in awhile (if ever). I'm glad I took the plunge, it ended up being a very, very good game. "

Hate to be predictable but I have to say Arkham Asylum. It was a licensed game from an unknown developer. The review controversy with GamesMaster made me suspicious (why would you need to control reviews like that unless it sucked?) and I'm always critical of games that get huge marketing pushes. Seems like they're trying to hard to sell the game.
 
I expected a pretty crappy game but what I got was a serious contender for GOTY. "Surprising" is an understatement.

I actually enjoyed Red Faction on PS2, so I wasn't exactly shocked that I'd like RFG as well. Still it surprised me at just how unbelievably fun it was. That GeoMod engine is pure bliss. Easily one of the most addictive games I've played in the decade, simply because you can lose hours just destroying random shit in the most hilarious ways.
 
Borderlands is another game that ended up to be a huge time sink. I was pretty wary going in, and test drove my friend's copy first. It wasn't even love at first sight...I had to play a couple hours before becoming completely addicted. And from there, I offered up my soul to the glory of The Vault. Easily my pick for "Most Surprisingly Good Game of the Year".
 
Batman: Arkham Asylum should probably find a spot on the list as well. I mean, it looked fantastic from all the gameplay vids and previews I saw and read, but that lingering doubt in the back of my head kept repeating "Comic book videogame, damnit!". Luckily, the game lived up to the promise.

Torchlight.

Batman for sure.

Batman takes the cake. Shadow Complex would be the other.

Batman: Arkham Asylum fo sho. I didn't really get the art style, controls, or the hype for the first two hours or so of the game, but then after the Bane sequence, everything really started to click. 

Batman, I had really no interest in the game but it turned out awesome.

50 Cent: Blood on the Sand. It's actually a competent shooter.

-I've played copious amounts of 1 vs. 100, so that's quite high on my list.
-Borderlands. Completely off my radar until I saw the quick look which both introduced it, and sold me on the game. :P

When I saw the 'Splosion man quick look I thought it was going to be a forgettable novelty game, but it's the best XBLA game I've played in 2009 hands down.

What about Asssassin's creed two i thought it was going to be all the same like the first one . I was wrong.

Well I'm going to come from the far left and say South Park Let's Go Tower Defense Play! Because I expected nothing from that game, especially seeing how I played that terrible South Park Nintendo 64 cart racing game, and ended up playing a more than competent tower defense game.

Being pretty aware of what Shadow Complex was, I was still shocked by the results. Having a quality, re-playable title give you old-school gaming flashbacks for that price is not a common occurrence.

I knew Shatter was gonna be good, but not that good.

Blazblue was great, I don't even remember hearing about it until it came out, but it was great fun with a fight-stick.

Majesty 2, thought the quicklook seemed alright, picked it up for £5 off Steam and I can't stop playing it. It has its issues but reminds me of a long forgotten game called Beasts & Bumpkins, along with a mix of AoE, Nations and Settlers.
 
Also got into some jrpgs this year which have suprised me, Persona 4 for example.

Torchlight. I never really cared for Fate and going in I thought Torchlight would be fun, but not this much fun. The game is great and getting it for $20 feels like I stole it.

For me it was Street Fighter 4, to be honest I went into it with the normal im hyped about this game mentality (due to listening to bombcast etc.) and it blew me away.

Batman-When I heard it was good (around 2-3 months before it's release) I dismissed it. A good Batman game? No! I was wrong. 
 
AC2-This game is fucking amazing. The first one was pretty bad so it surprised me. 

Batman: Arkham Asylum.. Surprisingly excellent game :).

Definitely Arkham Asylum, though I started thinking it could be pretty good a couple months before it came out.

Red Faction: Guerilla for sure I love that. It is everything anyone wants in a game is you think about it; Explosions, jet packs, cool car things, and a wasteland. 

Batman AA !!!