Organized Chaos

The holidays are right around the corner, and as usual, the gamer in your life is the easiest person to shop for.

In simple terms, there really aren’t any “ugly sweaters” when it comes to purchasing games. Of course, there are poor titles out there, but if you get one of the items soon to be listed, then you’ll be fine. Your favorite gamer will rejoice when discarding all the wrapping paper on Christmas morning. Heck, they may even say “thank you.”

Here’s a rundown of easy choices, broken down by each gaming system.

PlayStation 3

The list begins with Resistance 2. Get this game and your gamers will lock themselves away for hours and hours and hours.

The next must-have is Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. The sweeping saga of Solid Snake comes to an end, or at least an end for a year or two. The story and immense cut scenes are worth the price tag alone, but the action will blow you away.

Other titles that can bring a smile to a gamer’s face include MotorStorm: Pacific Rift, Little Big Planet, Fallout 3, Grand Theft Auto IV (if they have been under a rock and haven’t played it yet), Call of Duty: World at War and any sports game centered around football or basketball.

Some accessories worth getting include the wireless Blu-ray remote control, any Bluetooth headset and the wireless keyboard, which will be especially important once PlayStation Home is released.

Finally, since the PS3 also plays Bluray discs there’s no excuse not to buy The Dark Knight. While not a video game, it is the best movie of the year and will look even more spectacular in crystal-clear high definition.

Xbox 360

Jealousy of those 360 owners starts with Left 4 Dead. This zombie thriller takes survival horror to new levels. It’s great to play alone, but more fun with a buddy or two.

Xbox also has the exclusive Gears of War 2. This is a superb follow-up to the original. There’s lots of action, lots of explosions and lots of noise, which are hallmarks of a good experience.

Other titles sure to please include Fable II, Saints Row 2, Prince of Persia, Mass Effect (like GTA IV, if they didn’t catch it the first time), Call of Duty: World at War and, again, any sports game.

The most important accessory for the 360 is a hard drive. The 360 Arcade model doesn’t have much memory, and you need many gigabytes to save progress in games. Microsoft is offering a 20-gigabyte hard drive and three month’s worth of Xbox Live Gold for only $29.99 for a limited time on its Web site.

Nintendo Wii

Supplies of the console are more plentiful, but you may have trouble finding some top games such as Wii Fit. However, there are some slightly older titles still worth a look.

You can start with Mario Kart Wii, which has all the bells and whistles of the old games. It comes with the nifty steering wheel peripheral and provides hours of fun for you and your friends.

First-time Wii buyers should pick up Wii Sports. This continues to be a top seller and comes with an extra Wiimote, which is always nice.

Other games for Wii owners include Animal Crossing: City Folk, Wii Music, Star Wars The Clone Wars, and WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2009.

Nintendo was at the forefront in putting out new peripherals and accessories pretty much right after launch. The newest toy is Wii Speak, which is a microphone that sits atop your television and allows for voice chat with friends using the Internet. Wii Speak is only $29.99 and comes bundled with Animal Crossing for $69.99.

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