2007: The Year in Games

Join us as we take a look back at all the big stories that made 2007 one of the most exciting yet for games.

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By Alex Wollenschlaeger

As we inch closer to the end of the first decade of the 21st century, things just keep getting more interesting in the world of games. We called 2006 one of the best years yet for the industry and this year has surpassed even that, giving us better games, bigger surprises and more scandalous stories.

Today we look back at the year that was, recounting the major events from throughout the year. And don't forget to read our feature on the year's best games.

January

There was a distinct hardware tinge to news in the opening month of the year. The PlayStation 3 had made a somewhat disastrous entry into Japan and America in last 2006 and Sony was preparing to belatedly introduce the console in Europe too. The company was dogged by production problems and somehow stories still came out that Sony was struggling to sell the few units it did manage to get into stores.

In Europe, where Sony is among the strongest brand names, confusion reigned over exactly what the launch plans were for the console, but that was soon cleared up when the official word came at the end of the month that Sony had picked its March date.

For Nintendo, the picture was a lot prettier. Not only did the firm release the Wii in all three major territories on time, but the system was proving to be even more popular than Nintendo dared hope. Just as the new year broke, word came that Nintendo was already sitting on top of receipts for more than 3 million units, which were sold in just over a month.

The Xbox 360, not to be forgotten, was still king of the next-generation hill, and in January Microsoft confirmed that the 14-month-old console had racked up sales of more than 10.4 million.

Gears of War, which had been released for the Xbox 360 in November, was still selling well, and Capcom was experiencing success again, following on from million-seller Dead Rising with snowy shooter Lost Planet: Extreme Conditions.

Of course, the PlayStation 2 was still raging in Europe in early 2007 and one of the biggest games on the system, God of War II, was confirmed to be just about done. Americans were told to expect a demo, something gamers here would miss out on.

Another big game for the PS2 was Okami, Capcom's beautiful action game. The company also had harsh words for the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, which refused to consider the game for its AIAS Awards. Capcom suggested that the well-reviewed game had been overlooked because it refused to pay for it to be considered.

One of the surprises in January was the news that Guitar Hero creators Harmonix had parted ways from Activision. Harmonix would later end up with MTV, where it would work on Rock Band, while Activision handed the Guitar Hero series to Neversoft, the studio behind the Tony Hawk games.

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