Because what I clearly need is more games.

Mass Effect 3 (360)

I know. SO SHOCKINGLY ORIGINAL.

This goes one of two ways: ME3 delivers and Mass Effect goes down as one of the greatest gaming trilogies ever. OR, it disappoints, and is used (alongside Dragon Age 2) as proof that BioWare has lost it and the developer gets demoted from AAA status, and has to cling to their Old Republic revenue. There is NO middle ground. BioWare's fan feeds have always been brimming with entitled rage - no fanbase is more spoiled or demanding - but it's at nuclear levels now. Hopefully the long delay is a sign that BioWare is righting the ship and polishing every last pixel.

As for the game itself, I can't wait. Transferring your character from episode to episode is one of those little treats that means so much - it was the heart of the old Quest For Glory adventures, for example. It's one thing to be told it's the same hero; it's another for it to be it coded truth. ME3 will take place in a universe I helped shape with my own decisions and deeds, and that's a unique asset no other game can offer. (And please spare me the 'all your decisions are artificial' retort - BioWare can only do so much with current technology and a freakin' X-Box, especially when the final game will have over 100 flags to juggle. Mind-reading sensors are at least 5 years away!)

And they redesigned my main love interest Ashley Williams to look like a brunette Samus Aran - how can I pass that up? I'm comin' for you, Reapers - no species with a name that corny deserves to live.

Kid Icarus: Uprising (3DS)

I've always been a sucker for Kid Icarus. It got waylaid by Metroid in its infancy (which took much of the core design, and admittedly did it much better) but I think it can go a different route and still be a solid secondary I.P. for the Big N. The trick will be avoiding becoming a retread of Nintendo's other properties: an elfin hero with a bow, for example, is already taken. An exploration-based adventure with flight, ranged combat, and angel-themed environments? That could work. And you know you love the Eggplant Wizard, so don't even try to pretend you don't.

SSX (PS3)

Whatever, I love this series. Don't judge me.

Max Payne (Various)

Ditto. And I like how they've aged Max and changed the setting; the game feels like it will be a continuation, rather than a "hey, you bought this once, now buy it again!" retread that runs on nostalgia. I'm a fan of Remedy's work and look forward to this one.

STUFF I'M DREADING:

X-Com

I won't bore you with my love for the original. Yet. (ItWILL be a Nostalgia Filter blog when the new game is closer to launch.) Suffice to say, the original X-Com: UFO Defense is SERIOUS BUSINESS to PC gaming fans. It was, however, a turn-based strategy game with RPG and simulation elements, while this will be - surprise surprise! - a shooter. Fan protests have already gone up, ensuring that the game's built-in audience is in full rebellion. Add in a crowded shooter market and none of the original design team, and this has disaster written all over it.

Syndicate

See above. Seriously, another PC strategy classic reborn as another gorramn shooter. Flooding the market with floating hand games is bad enough, but do you have to pillage my teenage memories, too?

DLC On The 3DS

Because Nintendo has to recoup those four-figure Fire Emblem budgets!

Happy New Year!