I don’t have a lot of good to say about 2023 from a personal standpoint. It’s been full of trials, change and difficulty. I am very lucky to be surrounded by good people that makes it more bearable, but at least I had a ton of fun with my show and the fact that 2023 was truly a banger year for video games. It was hard to even make this list, much less order it because of just the sheer quantity of quality from this year, but I think I managed to put a good list together for your reading pleasure!
Honorable Mention goes to Sea Of Stars, you almost made it, and I really did enjoy you.
10. Dave the Diver
Dave the Diver, famed indie game, came at a perfect time for me! I had just grabbed a Steam Deck thanks to credit card rewards, and this was the first game I really dove into on this new platform. What I found was a charming as anything game with varied gameplay and a very satisfying loop of hunting down fish, selling sushi and everything in between! A big highlight are the pixelicious cutscenes included in the game, it genuinely looks great!
9. Star Ocean The Second Story R
Star Ocean The Second Story is one of my favorite JRPGS on one of my favorite JRPG platforms, the Sony Playstation 1. As a huge fan of the original release, and not the biggest of the PSP version, I couldn’t contain my growing excitement as more and more footage for this came out because it looks so superb. New beautiful graphics as well as a refined battle system are some big draws to the game, as well as tons of nice QoL changes to let you REALLY appreciate how varied and huge this game is!
8. Super Mario Wonder
I have always preferred 2D Mario to 3D overall, so I’ve certainly had some burnout with the “New Super Mario Bros” style that Nintendo has been running with since the DS, so Mario Wonder was a HUGE breath of fresh air! This is the best Mario has looked visually in a long time, and the cast + world follow suit. New animations, fantastic sound design and the Wonder Seed primary gimmick has every level feel fresh and original. It is a joy to track down the Wonder Seed, and find out what crazy effect it will have on the level!
7. Final Fantasy XVI
A divisive entry for sure, Final Fantasy 16 fully embraces being an action RPG. This game champions a lot of series tropes in a different light, and in my opinion it manages to pull it off! I found the story enthralling, the set pieces exciting and all of it in motion was just beautiful. I enjoy a character action game here and there, so the combat was quickly figured out by myself. I wish there was a bit more variety in combat, but as a whole package I loved FF16 a massive amount, some of the wildest story moments in the series so far!
6. Lethal Company
We all remember how much I loved Phasmophobia, and Lethal Company shows how strong a social game can be with stronger legs to stand on. This game has taken many hours from my friends and I, yelling into the night as we endlessly explore sprawling areas desperately searching for scrap to turn into the eponymous “Company”, lest we don’t meet the quote and get ejected into space. Fantastic and unique enemy design mixed with a laser focused gameplay loop combine into a game that took the internet by storm, and occupies some of the most memorable gameplay moments of the year for me!
5. Pikmin 4
If Pikmin 3 was a love letter to the first game, Pikmin 4 is a love letter to PIkmin 2. Pikman 4 is my favorite entry in the franchise, and I think it really is the culmination of everything learned from the previous games. The gameplay is tighter than ever, the new camera angle feels more immersive, scaling back the number of captains to just your character and the dog was a very smart idea and returning to underground areas is a JOY! The gameplay had some fun new innovations with new game modes that kept me coming back.
4. Armored Core 6
If you told me we would ever get another Armored Core game, I probably would have laughed, and then cried a little. I adore giant robots, and I adore this franchise since its first entry. From Software managed to come back to the franchise SWINGING, churning out an iconic series entry. You can feel the influence from their experience trailblazing the souls genre, but it still FEELS like Armored Core, that series identity does not suffer at all. I have occasional qualms about the series having a stagger mechanic now, but overall this left me THIRSTING for more because I had so much fun.
3. The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom
I liked Breath Of The Wild a whole lot, but it never FULLY clicked with me there it drew me in and never let go. Maybe it was the tools available to me or something, but I never dropped what I was doing to put 8 hours into the game. Tears of the Kingdom however, completely enthralled like many games can only dream of. The Godhand mechanic was SO fun to play with, I loved combining weapons and the added dimensions of the sky islands and the depths was a very welcomed surprise. Some people think this should have been released as some kind of expansion pack but I disagree, there is so much amazing new content to be found, interacted with and more. Also, good god that ending segment, just WOW!
2. Baldur’s Gate 3
I feel like there isn’t a whole lot I can add to the conversation about this game, but good lord I will try. I have had a lot of fun playing CRPGs back in the day, but it has been over a decade since I’ve touched one before Baldur’s Gate III. I never managed to get around to playing Divinity, despite hearing great time but it all feels like it was leading up to this. My good friend Vyser gifted me this game when it was still in early access, a couple months before the full release of the game and I was hooked since then. The world, the characters, the mechanics all blend into something that borders on irresistible. I think anyone with even a passing interest in RPGS, be it tabletop or video game, is doing themselves a disservice if they skip out on this one. This game will test you, but it will also most assuredly touch you.
1. Alan Wake 2
I remember being excited for the original Alan Wake, and bouncing off it HARD! The combat was too numerous and mostly unfun. Since then, I’ve heard a lot about the game’s story, as well as the expanded story beyond that first game. I did not touch another Remedy game until Control which absolutely HIT with me in all the right ways. I was sold on Remedy once again, and eagerly awaiting their next project Alan Wake 2. Got a recap video for the story before it under my belt and dived right in. THIS is what Remedy has been cooking all these years, I’d venture to call it a masterpiece. Probably the best example of mixed media in all of gaming mixed with a compelling story, fun gameplay more tuned towards Survival Horror and just the overwhelming feeling that Remedy is at the top of their game. If I wasn’t already excited for Control 2, Alan Wake 2 made sure I would be feverishly awaiting an announcement for that game. I can’t wait to see Sam Lake yet again… somewhere, as someone. Who knows.
I’m still humming Herald of Darkness this much time later, good lord is that a bop.
2024 is also shaping up to be a crazy year as well for gaming, with the start of the year hitting us with Like a Dragon 8 and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. I suspect Nintendo will be launching a new console this year as well, so who KNOWS what is on the horizon! See you in the rearview mirror 2024, same place next year!
