In a press release issued today, Capcom announced their first quarter 2009 plans for North America and Europe and it’s going to be a big year for the Japanese publisher. The document confirmed that Resident Evil, Bionic Commando, Street Fighter IV and Dead Rising for the Wii will be made available in stores by the first half of this year…in fact most will be on sale by March.

Not a bad lineup, but what does Capcom have in store for the Holidays? It seems they are trying to release their big gun before everyone else. Unless they have some huge plans at E3, their Christmas lineup could be stale. We think it probably would have been a better idea to span out the games over the course of the year.

North American dates:

Early 2009 – Flock (XBLA/PSN)
February 17 – Street Fighter IV (X360/PS3)
February 27 – Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop (Wii)
March 13 – Resident Evil 5 (X360/PS3)
Mid-March – MotoGP (Wii)
Mid-2009 – Bionic Commando (X360/PS3)

European Dates:

February TBA – Flock (XBLA/PSN)
February 20 – Street Fighter IV (X360/PS3)
February 27- Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop (Wii)
February 27- Neopets Puzzle Adventure (Wii/DS/PC)
March 13 – Resident Evil 5 (X360/PS3)
March TBA – MotoGP (Wii)
March TBA – Bionic Commando (X360/PS3)