Instead of the usual enormous blog post (which I used both in 2007 and 2006) I decided to take a different tack this year. Below are embedded a pair of videos running down my thoughts on the upcoming year. Enjoy!

A year ago, at the close of 2007, I threw out some prognostications about the coming 12 months. Those months have now passed and it’s time to pay the piper. Just as with last year I’m going to grade my predictions on a straight pass/fail basis; percentages are for actuarials.
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Seeing as I actually got a lot of the presents I asked for this year, I can’t help but pitch in and ask Santa for some more goodies next year. Every year, around the world, we secularly ask ‘Saint Nick’ for loot under the Christmas tree. I’ll try not to buck the trend. As I’ve put out for the last two years, here is what I want to see under the MMO industry tree figuratively for the next twelve months. Come on, MMO industry: gimme some pretty packages!

Here’s what I want for my 2009 year in MMOs:

• Mega-quantities of awesome from SOE. Agency, Free Realms, and DC Universe Online are all very near the top of my awesomedar. I am really looking forward to the Free Realms Beta, and my hope is that Agency will go into Beta at some point near the end of the year. I don’t imagine we’ll be seeing much of DCUO publicly, but at least one more chance to play that kickass demo would be much appreciated.
• An ongoing stream of content from BioWare about The Old Republic. Not only am I personally really thrilled that we’re finally getting something, professionally I can’t get enough of that SWTOR.
• The lads at 38 have told us that we should see real news on Copernicus sometime in early summer. I want their kickoff to be a huge splash, their content to be incredibly well-received, and their design to be absolutely inspired. I’ll be straight: I think they’ve got a long haul ahead of them. The fantasy genre is going to be hell and a half to enter as a direct competitor to WoW. But if they want to give it a try, who am I to stand in their way or do anything but cheerlead from the sidelines?
• After one of my favorite interviews of the year with two gents from Red 5, I have been obsessed about getting more details on their game. I would absolutely love to know what the hell they’re doing down there. More than any other ‘dark’ company right now, Red 5 is making the game that I’m desperate to explore. Here’s hoping they give us a bit more insight on their plans thiscoming year.
• I’m greedy, I know, but I really want a look at Guild Wars 2 as well. It’s been more than a year since Arena.net put out Eye of the North, and GW2 was well along in development back in that point. While I completely understand why it’s not out yet, the tomb-like silence that we’ve seen from the company on the topic of their sequel to their groundbreaking title has been a bit unnerving. I really hope Arena will finally be able to throw back the curtain and give us a look at the goods.
• Tons of success to my fellow MMO bloggers and podcasters, be they industry paragons like Scott or enthusiast juggernauts like Tim (Van Hemlock). While I know I don’t contribute a lot from this domain much any more, I’d like to think that the MMOblogosphere is a pretty darn special place to be hanging your hat. Here’s hoping it continues in 2009.
• Continued good gaming vibes and personal connections between myself and my guilds! A year ago I was a boring-as-hell soloer, and now I have a community in all three of my primary MMOs! I hope that 2009 finds me growing even closer to the Podcasters of Bree, Revelry and Honor, and What Would Thrall Do.
• The will, intelligence, writing skill, and patience required to run Massively.com. I’ll be honest, a year ago I never in a million years would have imagined I’d be running an MMO news site. It’s exactly, precisely what I’ve been working towards for the last few years and I feel incredibly lucky to be here. It’s hard, it’s challenging, it’s stressful, and to be honest it doesn’t pay that well. But it’s Massively, and I’ve got lots and lots of love.
• The energy to recommit to doing the MMOG Nation Broadcast … a podcast that should be returning soon!
• And, of course, the dedication to keep the feed alive here at MMOG Nation.

Feel free to drop in what presents you want from the industry next year in the comments.

SWTOR is going to be microtransaction-based.

“The Star Wars online MMO [is a] mid-session game, microtransaction-based. You’ll be hearing more about those in the February [conference] call.” According to the game news site, “Mid-session” refers to the amount of time the game is typically played within a gaming session. “In this context, it seems that EA might be positioning The Old Republic as an alternative to MMOs that traditionally emphasize longer play sessions and charge users only on a monthly basis.”

My.LotRO goes into Beta.

This is the greatest/scariest/most amazing news day I’ve seen in a while. Yikes.

Earlier this week I completed the overarching goal I’ve had since I began playing again. I set out to get a character to level 70 with an Epic Flying Mount before the expansion came out. Just over 20 days before Lich King drops, I became a pauper by buying my Artisan riding skill. In my eyes, I’ve now ‘won’ The Burning Crusade. Yes, it took me almost two years to do it. Yes, I realize everyone else did this months and months ago.

But I feel pretty darn good about it. I’ve really fallen hard for WoW again in the last month - likely the result of an awesomesauce guild - and I’m looking forward to Wrath in a way I never expected I would. My collector’s edition is showing up the day of or the day after launch, and I look forward to jumping into Howling Fjord with gusto. It’s weird to think that I’m actually invested in a game after all these years of being a wandering pariah.

When SWTOR launches in two years or whatever, I’ll play the guts out of that game, no doubt about it. I get to enjoy the build-up to BioWare’s revelation until then and, until then, enjoy what I consider now to be my virtual home away from home.

I’m really … really … really glad they finally announced this fricking thing. Yay BioWare!

• Massively’s SWTOR Coverage
• IGN’s Blowout
• The GameSpot Rundown
• The GameSpot Video
• Gamasutra’s Followup
• The Giant Bomb Post
• Eurogamer’s Announcement
• TORWiki

Wanted to drop in quick to offer a few links.

• Everything we’re writing at Massively about E3 can be found at the e3-2008 tag on the site.
• I particularly like our series on the DC Universe Online title.
• World of Warcraft’s new achievements look freaking awesome. Much better than I’d expected a WotLK’s launch.
• EA’s chief exec has confirmed the KOTOR MMO. About. Freaking. Time.