While the show is a big draw every year, this year will be particularly important as both Sony and Microsoft have new hardware technology to show off. Add to that we’ve got some top games being showcased this year, some of which will not hit store shelves until mid next year or later.

We also have it on good authority that this year is going to be thrice as big as last year with exclusive zones for Kinect and Move; Racing games and 18+ games. Spread over multiple parts of Dubai Festival City, this year’s event is going to have lots more to offer than last year. If you haven’t signed up for the event already, you should register on the GAMES 10 website or join the GAMES 10 Facebook group for more information.

Here are 18 reasons why you shouldn’t miss out on GAMES 10 this year (skip to page 2).

Press release:
Codemasters®, in alliance with Nissan, PlayStation, and Pluto Games, today revealed the details of the DiRT 2 virtual racing challenge that will leave one lucky winner driving home in a 2010 Nissan 370Z sports car with NISMO racing accessories. The challenge will see gaming fans compete on the recently launched Codemasters’ Colin McRae™: DiRT®2 featuring rally racing champion Mohammed Ben Sulayem and other top drivers from around the globe.

The tournament, which will be played on PlayStation®3 consoles, will start on October 1, 2009 at the Gamers Alliance Middle East Show 2009 (GAMES09) Dubai Festival City, and will run for 3 days. The tournament will then travel to Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Manama, and Doha to be held in Virgin Megastore showrooms. In Saudi Arabia the competition will be held at Tokyo Games showrooms in Riyadh, Dammam, and Jeddah. The finals will gather 1 person from each city across the GCC to battle it out in the last round in Dubai in Virgin Mega Store.

During the races, players will be tutored by a virtual representation of legendary racer Mohammed Ben Sulayem, and will have to race on a pre-selected track driving the Nissan Z sports car to record their best lap time. Every 10 minutes, the best lap time recorded will see a winner instantly granted with a gift. More information on the competition, dates and venues can be found at www.dirt2arabia.com.

Colin McRae: DiRT 2 Middle East Competition will be held during GAMES 09.

“Critics and video game fans across the globe agree that Colin McRae: Dirt 2 is THE must-have offroad racing title of the year,” said Hal Bame, Director Distributor Territories and Emerging Markets, Codemasters. “We’re extremely excited to have a rally legend like Mohammed Ben Sulayem in the game and the involvement of Nissan, PlayStation and our retail partners in this fantastic regional competition, makes this one of the largest competitions to ever hit the Middle East, with a 2010 Nissan 370z and other great prizes up for grabs.”

“We are really excited to launch this competition and give all the gamers in the region a chance to win a fabulous prize,” said Tim Stokes, Sales & Marketing Director, PlayStation division, Sony Gulf FZE. “We are expecting a huge turnout at GAMES09, where Dubai players can be the first among the region to begin recording their best lap times on DiRT 2 and increase their chances in winning the sports car.”

“The 2010 Nissan 370Z is the latest generation of one of the most recognized sports cars in the world and we are delighted that the Nissan Z is featured as a hero car in the Dirt 2 game. Dirt 2 utilizes some of the most advanced gaming technology to simulate actual driving while the Nissan 370Z offers drivers world first technology such as the SynchroRev match manual transmission,” confirmed Monal Zeidan, General Manager Marketing and Corporate Communications, Nissan Middle East.

Colin McRae: Dirt 2 is available and distributed regionally by Sony PlayStation on PlayStation 3, and PSP® (PlayStation® Portable) system, and by Pluto Games, on the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft®, Games For Windows® LIVE, Wii™, and, Nintendo DS™.

The Games Alliance Middle East Show 09

The alliance, comprising of Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation, Pluto and RED, announced that the three day event will see keenly anticipated upcoming games being showcased for the very first time in the Middle East. Pre-register now for a chance to win prizes and be the first in the region to play hugely anticipated titles including Pro Evolution Soccer 2010, Modern Warfare 2, FIFA 10 and Assassin’s Creed 2.

The press conference, held at Emirates Towers to announce the event, was headed by Tim Stokes, Sales & Marketing Director, PlayStation Division, Sony Gulf FZE, Aman Sangar, Product Marketing Manager – Interactive Entertainment Business | Entertainment & Devices Division, Microsoft Middle East, Michael Wombwell, CEO of Red Entertainment Distribution and Rami El Hussein, Managing Director of Pluto.

‘The idea behind the GAMES show is to bring the same level of excitement to the region compared to E3 and the Games Convention shows held in the US and Germany,’ commented Aman Sangar.

‘With the introduction of PS3 and popularity of games like Singstar and Buzz, the demographics of gamers has expanded greatly to include girls as well as parents,’ added Tim Stokes,

Game distributors Michael Wombwell and Rami Elhussein agreed that even during times of recession, gaming is one sector that has continued to grow.

Following the success of GAMES 08 this year’s show is set to be twice times the size of last years which was held in the Grand Hyatt. With each year’s show growing bigger and better, GAMES 09 is the only arena in the region that allows gamers the chance to try out new releases before anyone else.