1. Persona 5 : It's been a long wait for this. Endless Tuesdays on PersonaGAF waiting for the reveal in Famitsu, and in the end Atlus decided to announce it on a troll webstream. I want to see more, obviously, but after Persona 3, Persona 4 and Catherine, I will buy pretty much anything Hashino, Meguro and Soejima are collaborating on.
2. Danganronpa Trigger Happy Havoc : I've been itching for a visual novel for a while, and Danganronpa looks to scratch that itch. People who have played the Japanese version or the fan translation all say it's good, so I'm prepared to take their word on that and pre-order this.
3. X : I haven't really liked my Wii U much. Despite the games that have been released to critical acclaim, I've either not been even remotely interested in them (Pikmin 3, The Wonderful 101) or actually didn't like them when I finally got around to playing them (Super Mario 3D World), but I am legitimately excited for X. Depending on how Nintendo reacts to continually disappointing sales, Wii U may not have a good future for owners of the system, but at least it goes out with a bang if X lives up to what's been shown off so far.
4. Bayonetta 2 : Pretty much the only reason I bought a Wii U at first. Bayonetta was brilliant, so I'm obviously excited for its sequel.
5. inFamous: Second Son : The first two inFamous games were a bit janky, but I think Sucker Punch puts a lot of love into everything they make, and that goes a long way with me. One thing the inFamous games were not was bland, and I think Second Son will carry on that trend. It's pretty much the perfect first year of a console's life exclusive, and I expect the series will finally get the attention it deserves because of it.
6. The Witness : Jonathan Blow has me as a customer for life after Braid. I love this man's devotion to making a great game, and from what he's shown us of The Witness it will be just as brilliant as Braid when all's said and done.
7. Guilty Gear Xrd : I couldn't believe this was a fucking 3D game after seeing the trailer. Mindbending stuff. I haven't played a game in this series before, but I do like Arc System Works so I'm going to give this series a shot.
8. Transistor : I loved everything about Bastion. Its narrative was unique in its telling, its art style was distinctive and its gameplay was meatier than some AAA games on its release year. Transistor looks like they're taking everything I liked about Bastion, and putting it into a genre and with an aesthetic that I am bananas about. This is a no-brainer instabuy for me.
9. Volume : I liked Thomas Was Alone. It was a sweet little game that made me feel attached to different shaped and coloured blocks, which is a testament to its strong writing. Volume looked cool, but it wasn't until I met its creator, Mike Bithell, at Eurogamer and we talked for a good 10 minutes about how awesome the old Metal Gear Solid games were that I knew this man knew what he was doing by making a stealth game. I love stealth, so this could easily be a GOTY contender if Persona 5 doesn't make it into English in 2014.
10. Broken Age : Tim Schafer and Ron Gilbert's games defined my childhood. They shaped my sense of humour, made me appreciate good writing better than any book could, and fostered a love affair with games that has lasted until I turned 26 back in October, and doesn't show any signs of stopping. So of course, when Tim Schafer said he wanted to drag me kicking and screaming back to my childhood with a 2D point & click adventure game, I jumped on the opportunity to back this project. Fortunately, it got more money than they could ever imagine, and now we're looking at a high budget 2D adventure game that dwarfs pretty much any 2D adventure game anyone has made in the last 10 years, as far as production values go. I am super fucking excited for this one.
Honestly, with the exception of Persona 5 at the top, 2-10 are all interchangeable as far as hype goes. 2014 is looking to be an incredible year; I can't wait!