The Beatles: Rock Band Release Date: September 9 Watch the Beatles Trailer >>

What It Is: In lieu of a numbered "Rock Band 3" sequel, this year's update to the Guitar Hero franchise's main competitor focuses exclusively on one of the biggest rock bands of all time -- The Beatles.

Why It's Hot: The songbook of The Beatles is notoriously well-protected, so a video game project of this magnitude is an enormous achievement. The core gameplay is still firmly rooted in what we saw in Rock Band 1 and 2, but getting to progress through the lives and careers of John, George, Paul and Ringo should be a sensational good time.

Cursed Mountain Release Date: August 25 Watch the Cursed Mountain Trailer >>

What It Is: The solution for survival horror fans on Wii this Summer. Cursed Mountain casts you as a climber searching for your lost brother on an abandoned frozen peak. Abandoned, that is, except for the spirits of the dead who still dwell there.

Why It's Hot: Developer Deep Silver has taken great care to craft this unique, atmospheric experience exclusively for Wii owners. And after having some hands-on time with the game ourselves at this year's E3, we're believers -- from the haunted souls you'll face throughout your ascent to the feeling of desolation you'll find in the game's snow-covered environments, this mountain is ready to chill you to the bone.

Dead Space: Extraction Release Date: September 29 Watch the Dead Space Trailer >>

What It Is: A prequel to incredibly popular original Dead Space, which came to competing consoles last year. Extraction is a Wii-exclusive project, though, and takes incredible advantage of what Nintendo's machine has to offer in both visuals and gameplay.

Why It's Hot: The "on-rails shooter" descriptor is a turn-off for many, but Extraction has proved to be much more than that. You'll get to fully immerse yourself in the events that led up to Isaac Clarke's mission on the USG Ishimura, and even bring a friend along for the ride with a full-on co-op mode.

Guitar Hero 5 Release Date: September 1 Find out more about Guitar Hero 5 >>

What It Is: The latest numbered, core sequel to the series that made music gaming mainstream. Guitar Hero 5 aims to make the series more accessible than ever before, ensuring that no one who's missed the bandwagon has any reason to not jump on now.

Why It's Hot: A number of new features make Guitar Hero 5 hotter than ever. There's drop-in/drop-out gameplay that allows new musicians to join songs already in progress. There's on-the-fly difficulty adjustment, eliminating the need for tedious stopping and starting of songs. There's Party Play mode, and there's a ton of new tracks.

Guitar Hero: Van Halen Release Date: August 4 Read more about Guitar Hero: Van Halen >>

What It Is: In the tradition of band-specific past Guitar Hero projects like Guitar Hero: Aerosmith and Guitar Hero: Metallica, Van Halen becomes the latest headlining act for their own GH video game.

Why It's Hot: The final release of the World Tour era in the Hero franchise will feature 25 different songs from Van Halen's history, and full support for the full suite of peripheral controllers -- including guitar, bass, drums and microphone. You'll also get guest acts like Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age and The Offspring. Should be an excellent appetizer for the full-on Guitar Hero 5, which will ship later in the Summer.

Little King's Story Release Date: July 21 Watch the Little King's Story Trailer >>

What It Is: A simulation/strategy/RPG that's been blazing up the review charts around the world since its international debuts, and will finally, hopefully, stop getting delayed and make it out in America this Summer.

Why It's Hot: We can't wait to get our hands on the final American edition of Little King's Story, the strongest contender for sleeper hit of the season we have in this list. IGN AU's Patrick Kolan awarded it an Outstanding 9.1 in his review this past April -- being king must be all it's cracked up to be.

Metroid Prime Trilogy Release Date: August 24 Watch the Trilogy Trailer >>

What It Is: Rather than release the "New Play Control" versions of Metroid Prime 1 and 2 separately here (as in Japan), Nintendo of America and Retro Studios have put together this three-in-one Collector's Edition package that offers Wii owners the entire Prime trilogy for the price of one game.

Why It's Hot: If you played and enjoyed Metroid Prime 3: Corruption two years ago, you'll now have the chance to go back and re-experience its two predecessors with the same Wii Remote control upgrades that made the third installment so accessible. New widescreen modes and Achievement-like medals are added to Prime 1 and 2 as well, and the whole thing will only set you back $49.99. An incredible value.

Muramasa: The Demon Blade Release Date: September 8 Watch the Muramasa Trailer >>

What It Is: An intricately detailed, artistic 2D action game developed by the same team responsible for such past 2D hits as Odin Sphere and GrimGrimoire. Muramasa tells the tale of a cursed set of swords, and the two heroes attempting to break that curse. By killing lots and lots of bad guys.

Why It's Hot: Muramasa has been one of our most highly anticipated games for a long time, as its combination of intense, invigorating ninja combat and wonderfully rendered characters and backgrounds make it feel like you're playing a living piece of art. Fans of the action, fighting and beat-'em-up genres need to have this one pre-ordered already.

Real Heroes: Firefighter Release Date: August 4 Watch the Real Heroes: Firefighter Trailer >>

What It Is: A first-person shooter with a twist -- you're armed with a hose and an axe instead of a gun, and your enemies are building-engulfing walls of flame.

Why It's Hot: Real Heroes: Firefighter is an unexpected surprise for Wii owners. It's developed by Epicenter Games, a team made up of former Call of Duty alums from years back. It's got a voice-over cast of well-known Hollywood names. And a portion of sales from the game (priced at just 30 bucks) will be donated to the Firefighter Cancer Support Network. That's real heroism.

Resident Evil Archives: Resident Evil Release Date: June 23 Watch the Resident Evil Archives Trailer >>

What It Is: The Wii port of the GameCube remake of the PlayStation original. Resident Evil is the game that defined the survival horror genre over a decade ago, and Capcom's now bringing its own "New Play Control" version of it to the current Nintendo generation.

Why It's Hot: Though Resident Evil has been played and enjoyed by millions over the years, there are still thousands of gamers out there who've never experienced this original chapter in the saga. With updated motion controls and a budget-friendly pricetag, we can't think of a better time to right that wrong than with the release of Archives.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars -- Republic Heroes Release Date: September 2009 Watch the Republic Heroes Trailer >>

What It Is: The latest way to wield a lightsaber on Wii. Star Wars: The Clone Wars -- Republic Heroes will put you in command of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker and their faithful clone troopers in an action design that bridges the gap between the first and second seasons of the animated series.

Why It's Hot: A number of new features will set this adventure apart from the not-so-great Lightsaber Duels game from last year, including an all-new villain named Kul Teska, more intense use of the Force and the ability to "droid jack" -- taking command of enemy droids by leaping onto their backs and driving your lightsaber into their heads. That's pretty hot.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Release Date: June 23 Watch the Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Trailer >>

What It Is: An action movie tie-in designed to put you in the driver's seat of the Autobots. Revenge of the Fallen is built from the ground up for the Wii, taking specific advantage of the features of Nintendo's machine.

Why It's Hot: Transformers was hot with the release of the first live-action movie two Summers ago, but this year it's primed to be even bigger. Developer Krome Studios has had the extra time necessary to craft a superior experience for Wii owners, and the co-op and multiplayer modes included here should facilitate you and all your bot-obsessed friends rather nicely.