In 2009, our game of the year was Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor [99� / HD], a title that perfectly embodied what we loved about iPhone gaming. After weeks of deliberation, lists, email chains, and IM conversations we've settled on the official TouchArcade iPhone game of the year for 2010: Venan Entertainment's Space Miner: Space Ore Bust [$1.99 / Lite / HD].

In our review we called it "one of the best games [we've] played since the App Store went live over a year and a half ago." Looking back on the game releases of 2010 trying to pick what we thought was the best lead to us continually coming back to Space Miner. We loved the classic Asteroids-style gameplay, the clever storytelling, and the degree of customization that kept us coming back for more through multiple play throughs. Depending on how you load your ship out, the game plays much differently. For instance, you can be a glass cannon prioritizing asteroid-pulverizing guns, or take a more slow and steady approach prioritizing shields and cargo space for huge hauls of ore.

Space Miner HD is great on the iPad, and we also really enjoyed Space Miner Blast [Free], a game based on Space Miner with much of the depth of the original game stripped out to instead focus on quick arcade-style gameplay. Also, the original Space Miner has been updated to include some really great looking Retina Display graphics. If you played through the game when it was originally released earlier this year, we hope this serves as a good reminder to reinstall this game and enjoy it again. If this is the first you've heard of Space Miner, it is a game that simply must be part of your game library.

Runner Up: Carcassonne

The Coding Monkeys have two Apple Design Awards under their belt for their two Mac programs, SubEthaEdit and BoinxTV. Taking this in to account, it's no surprise at all that the overall design and presentation of Carcassonne [$9.99] could not possibly be better. Based on the classic board game of the same name, Carcassonne is without a doubt the best adaptation of any board game that we've seen on the App Store. Instead of implementing unnecessary 3D graphics like EA has with their Hasbro classics, The Coding Monkeys focused on how the game plays.

Carcassonne starts with a fantastic completely voiced over tutorial to guide new players in to the game, and game modes that allow you to either play in massive single player games with many types of AI players or a number of different multiplayer modes. These modes include single device hot seat multiplayer, local Bluetooth or WiFi, and even online asynchronous play utilizing push alerts. Honestly, the only thing we could even ask for is that they eventually implement the various Carcassonne expansions as in-app purchase. We've be all over that.

If you've had Carcassonne on your device since it was released, be sure to swing by the thread where people are still looking for others to play with. Otherwise, it recently saw an update which added universal compatibility, making this game a must-have for both iPhone and iPad owners.

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While our iPhone game of the year took tons of deliberation, the iPad game was far more clear cut. Since the device's release, we've yet to really see much in the way of killer iPad-exclusive content. Most developers instead have somewhat understandably have chosen to use the iPhone and iPod touch as their target platforms, then either eventually release a universal update or a completely separate "HD" version of the game. 2D Boy really knocked it out of the park in releasing an iPad-exclusive version of their hit indie PC/Mac/Wii game World of Goo [$9.99]

We really couldn't say enough good things about it in our review, as adding a multitouch interface to the game enhanced overall gameplay more than I could ever have imagined. On the PC/Mac, you built up huge towers of goo balls utilizing the mouse pointer, which seems to be impossible to go back to after being able to hold a single goo ball with each finger while panning the camera around with the other hand.

If you own an iPad, this is a game you need to have. If you've played World of Goo on another platform, it's still worth playing through again just because of how much better of an experience it is on the iPad.

Runner Up: Plants vs. Zombies

We had a great time with Popcap's Plants vs. Zombies [$2.99] for the iPhone, but we thought the game was substantially better when played on the iPad with Plants vs. Zombies HD [$6.99]. Very similar to World of Goo, we enjoyed Plants vs. Zombies a ton playing on our computers, but with the multitouch screen of the iPad, the game turns in to something else entirely.

Plants vs. Zombies is an incredibly casual tower defense game that's easy enough for people who have never played a tower defense style game to get in to with any more explanation than the tutorial offers, yet deep enough for even hardcore players to get in to. Progressing further in to the game unlocks additional seeds to use to plant your defenses, and the seeds you choose offer a surprising amount of variation to the game and it's balanced well enough that you can generally focus on using the seeds you like instead of using the seeds that are the "best".

This is a game that everyone with an iPad needs to own, and it's available on so many platforms, if you haven't yet you really need to try Plants vs. Zombies on something.

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With nearly 200 free and paid titles available for download on the App Store, Gameloft is quite possibly the most prolific iOS game developer around. Their aim for the majority of their titles is bringing console-like experiences to iOS devices. For better or for worse, the formula that they have arrived at to accomplish this task is to ape the ideas of established console franchises and create their own versions of them. Opinions on this tactic are mostly divided into two different camps, those who like it and those who don't.

Personally, I'm somewhere in the middle. On the one hand, Gameloft provides me the kinds of games that would otherwise not make it onto my preferred mobile gaming platform. But on the other hand it can be hard to swallow just how blatant some of their "inspiration" from other games is, and it's always nicer to see a developer coming up with original ideas for games. Here's a quick rundown of some of Gameloft's most prominent titles from 2010:

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Modern Combat 2: Black Pegasus, $6.99 - [Lite / iPad] � Gamelofts' take on Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is actually one of the best first-person shooters available. A fun (if cliché) campaign is just icing on the cake for one of the most impressive online suites ever seen in a mobile game.

N.O.V.A. 2 - Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance, $6.99 - [iPad] � This homage to Bungie's Halo is also one of the most competent FPS games in the App Store, with a lengthy campaign and a meaty online component. The environments, enemies, and weapons will seem all-to-familiar to fans of the legendary Xbox series, but it's pretty neat to have it all in your pocket.

Shadow Guardian, $6.99 - [iPad] � Fans of Nathan Drake can say hello to Jason Call as Shadow Guardian does its best impression of the Uncharted series. This third-person cover-focused shooter is technically competent, but is missing the unforgettable story and characters that made the original Uncharted games so successful.

Eternal Legacy, $6.99 - [iPad] � Overly dramatic storylines, turn-based battling, and bad haircuts can only mean one thing. No, not the latest Final Fantasy game, but rather Gameloft's version of it. Eternal Legacy borrows heavily from the Final Fantasy series, and is a competent gameplay experience but lacks in quality of story and character development which makes it feel a bit lifeless.

Zombie Infection, $2.99 - [Lite / iPad] � Zombie Infection is the Gameloft equivalent of Resident Evil 5 on consoles. It gets almost all of the gameplay elements right, and is actually a really fun title to play, but again a lack of quality in story and characters makes the overall experience feel hollow.

Gangstar: Miami Vindication, $6.99 - [Lite / iPad] � Clearly a take on GTA: Vice City, Gangstar: Miami Vindication puts you in a gigantic crime-filled sandbox world and lets you do pretty much whatever you want. Unlike the official GTA game on iOS, Miami Vindication emulates the fully 3D third-person perspective of the console titles, but the visuals suffer somewhat because of it.

Let's Golf!® 2, $2.99 - [Lite / iPad] � This is an arcade-style golf game with wacky characters and over-the-top moves just like Sony's Hot Shots Golf series. The unrealistic style of Let's Golf 2 is complemented with an excellent golfing engine, and this sequel to last year's edition is an improvement in just about every way.

Real Golf 2011, $4.99 - [Lite / iPad] � If Let's Golf is Gameloft's take on the Hot Shots series, then Real Golf 2011 is their version of the Tiger Woods PGA Tour franchise. Strangely, there is already a Tiger Woods game on the App Store, but the newest edition hasn't yet seen the light of day. In lieu of this, Real Golf 2011 offers a solid round of realistic golf when the cartoony nature of Let's Golf 2 won't do.

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It's not all copycat games, as Gameloft does do some pretty solid work with licensed IP's like Spider Man Total Mayhem [99�/Lite/HD], Splinter Cell Conviction [99�/Lite/HD], Prince of Persia Warrior Within [99�/Lite/HD], and Brothers in Arms 2 [$4.99/Lite/HD]. Regardless of how you feel about their methods, there's no denying that Gameloft has contributed a ton towards pushing the iOS platform into a more serious gaming direction. For the most part their games are pretty fun and feature a lot of content for under ten dollars (not to mention the frequent sales they have).

It would be nice to see Gameloft invest in more of their own original ideas, since they are obviously a very capable studio. At the same time, if it wasn't for them I wouldn't have a facsimile of Halo that I can tote around in my pocket at all times. It will definitely be interesting to see what avenues Gameloft explores in 2011 after such a productive 2010.

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There have been a number of fun and free advergames on the App Store. Firemint did a great job with Real Racing GTI [Free], which was little more than a cleverly disguised lite version of Real Racing [$4.99] with some very heavy Volkswagon branding. VW has also worked with Fish Labs to bring us Volkswagen Think Blue. Challenge [Free], an odd "racing" game of sorts where you're put to the task of driving fuel efficiently instead of as fast as possible.

Today's interesting advergame is CP3K [Free] courtesy of Nike, Chris Paul, and his new set of Jordan shoes which, like every year, look even sillier than last year's iteration. How do you mix shoes and a basketball player from the New Orleans Hornets in to a video game? Well, it has something to do with some kind of futuristic training simulator where Chris Paul himself (apparently equipped with his shoes) runs, jumps, and of course, executes wicked backboard-shattering dunks. This all is accomplished by tapping when you're running over pads that boost your speed, allow you to jump higher, or dunk. Otherwise, tapping just makes you jump.

Like most of these advergames, there's limited depth in the gameplay as the goal of CP3K is to sell you shoes. Still, you can replay the levels to beat your ghost, and there's a 3 star rating system depending on how quickly you're able to run and dunk your way through the 9 included levels. It's surprisingly fun for what it is, and the game is even universal. Virtual Chris Paul is animated quite well, and the soundtrack is this cool post-8-bit electronica with an R&B backbeat that's pretty catchy. It's under 25MB too, so iPhone owners can download it via 3G without issue.

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