It’s no secret that 2009 was a big year in gaming all-around, but 2010 appears to be the year that many long-awaited titles finally arrive.

Last year saw the likes of New Super Mario Bros., Ultimate Shooting Collection, Onechanbara Bikini Zombie Slayers, House of the Dead Overkill, A Boy and His Blob, MadWorld, Muramasa: The Demon Blade, and Little King’s Story. While many of these games aren’t AAA titles, they were at least devoid of that shovelware mentality.

One frequent complaint amongst many gamers is that the Wii doesn’t boast very many games for the niche hardcore markets. Last year certainly seemed nullified those sorts of arguments. The coming year continues that same trend.

Since we here at BFM consider ourselves to be apart of that lonely niche market, most of the games in our top five are not shovelware, or games for the casually-inclined. Not to say that those are bad games, but one does not usually anticipate those sorts of titles enough to place in them in any respectable list.

Moving onwards! Here are the top five games I’m looking forward to in 2010 coming out for the Nintendo Wii. (WiiWare not included)

#5 – Sakura Wars: So Long My Love

I’ll be honest, I have yet to actually play any of the Sakura Wars titles. This one gets in the top five based on the premise that I actually enjoyed the anime it was based off of, and that there have been a number of Sakura Wars games released before this one. I mean, if it has a ton of sequels, it has to be cool right?! Perhaps this is some unwarranted anticipation, but strategy and action-RPGs are my thing.

#4 – Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon

While this game looks like more JRPG nonsense, I have been delighted by all of the trailers I’ve seen. This game is created in part by tri-Crescendo, the team that also created Eternal Sonata. While I cringe at the thought of ever playing something like Eternal Sonata again, Fragile seems like it steers away from cutesy and veers more towards the more mature.

More specifically, the game seems to have a much darker atmosphere, and the gameplay features a few survival horror elements.

#3 – Sin and Punishment 2

I like shooting things. I enjoy the games Treasure makes where I get to shoot things. If it’s from the creators of games like Mischief Makers, Ikaruga, Radiant Silvergun, Gunstar Heroes, and Bangai-O then how can I I really say no? Their track record makes it sort of difficult to ignore this one.

#2 – No More Heroes 2

The original was one of my favorite games from 2008. If I had my way, Travis Touchdown would be the Wii’s mascot. He’s cool, and at least he has a personality. The first game was far from perfect, but I have high hopes after watching trailers for the sequel. They’ve taken what I liked about the first, and put extra in the second.

So far, I know they’ve added extra characters and extra mini-games. Not sure yet if the hub world and the graphics are still as blocky as in the original.

#1 – Super Mario Galaxy 2

Does Mario really need to be explained? I rather enjoyed the first Super Mario Galaxy, and I’m hoping that I’ll enjoy the sequel even more. Considering the title is alleged to focus less on story, and more on gameplay I hope this is worth the wait. If New Super Mario Bros. is any indication, Nintendo still has what it takes to make an amazing game.  That being said, hopefully Yoshi will be used on more than a couple of levels!

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love The List

These are also known as honorable mentions: Tatsunoku vs Capcom, Epic Mickey, and  Metroid. Let’s face it, most lists are terrible. The reader is always hoping for his number one game to make it to the list. There was nothing inherently wrong with these games, I’m just not that interested. Tatsunoku vs Capcom might have been cool earlier on. I was spoiled by last year’s onslaught of top-tier fighting games. Tatsunoku vs Capcom just seems like too little too late.