My Favorite Games: 2023

Oh boy, 2023. This year was an exceptional year for all kinds of media and absolutely abysmal year for me personally. I have to constantly remind myself not to be a Debbie Downer here because we must focus on the positive! I haven't been able to get to every game I wanted to nor every game I think most would expect from a list like this. I never got to explore the darkness of Alan Wake II. I never got to burn in the Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon. I never even got to cry in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. Some indie darlings like Pizza Tower and Slay the Princess also had to fall to the way side. This just shows how damn good of a year it's been. Even missing out on all mentioned I've made a ten list of my favorite games and it's a shame I had to keep some off. So without further ado: My favorite games of 2023.

Lies of P

"People Have No Idea So Many Secrets Are Buried in Krat..."

Me liking Lies of P is something I never thought I'd do even just... 2 years ago. The Souls-like genre of game was just something that I didn't understand. I had owned quite a few over the course of my life and always quit them out of frustration. After all, games should be fun and what about the constant beat downs is fun? In a strange twist of fate my journey would be jumpstarted by another franchise: Metroid. I played Metroid: Dread during the holidays the year it came out. It was one of the most difficult game experiences of my life, but by simple virtue of "I like Metroid" I pushed through. I recall the constant failures of the final boss. Upon reflection it confounds me how I just didn't give up. Eventually I would push through, perfectly memorizing the patterns and being rewarded not just with the satisfaction of beating the game, but the feeling of overcoming a true challenge. The ability to adapt and overcome was on full display and I finally understood. I would eventually start streaming Dark Souls III and find the same joy with this new mind set. Lies of P is merely another stop on the Souls-like journey but it's amazing that another studio put out this kind of game with on par quality. The puppet string mechanic is fantastic, allowing you to choose many different armaments' to fit the playstyle of your choice. The slow unraveling of the story took me to some really neat places! In the spirit of Bloodborne it chronicles the downfall of a once thriving society. Most of all, in Souls-like tradition, it has some of my favorite boss fights of the year, specifically the Puppet King. As of writing this, Lies of P is on Xbox game pass so if Souls games are your steez this is a more than worthy stop on that journey.

Against the Storm

Brace Yourselves!

If y'all have read my past couple entries for favorite games year to year you'd know that I absolutely LOVE roguelikes. This game is a strange one to place because it had been in early access for a number of years and I had been playing it in that time. Since it's release into the early access sphere the game had already been talked about as a big game with a lot going on. It's foundation was already rock solid, so how does it improve over time? Following it through it's early access was an absolute treat. The delicate balancing, inclusion of new races, and expanded goals make this a city builder that just had me coming back again and again. It kept me on my toes constantly and I just couldn't get enough. If you want a lot of heft in your game and a nice steady progression as a city builder look no further.

Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising

Deathbound Love

Granblue Fantasy Versus was my favorite fighting game to play. So much so it even had a little slot when I did a 24 hour stream. Seeing Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising take flight after the unfortunate timing of it's predecessor is a sight to behold. Certainly some still have gripes with it (the hot topics are 66L and "neutral skip" *barf*) but it's hard to deny what they've done since the original and how they handled the betas leading up to this game. At the end of the day, as far as fighting games are concerned, people should play what they like. I love this game, it's training mode is fantastic. It has really neat beginner guides. It's has GRAN BRUISE. You can try it out for free if you're unsure. I can random every match and find fun in this game. Above all, I'd say I enjoy seeing the progress I make as a fighting game player over time. Nier needs buffs.

Venba

"I thought moving here would be a chance to start over."

Oof, what a feeling this game evokes. Everyone who is a first generation immigrant in America is likely to experience something like this and it's amazing how it puts you in the shoes of the tale it has to tell here. The game acts as a well-constructed snapshot of frustration and desperation when it comes to clinging to who you are. The moments found in this game are a vivid reflection of similar things I've experienced in my life. Just this past weekend as of this write up I've taken the time to learn a little about making sio pao. Shortly after this game's completion I called my mother and we bonded over a life that we're simply trying to do our best to handle.

Octopath Traveler II

"If you're going to pray... Pray for the ones fighting for their lives,
 not those already in the dirt."

This is a simple one. The game is just better than the first one, in every way. The first game was already pretty good. I wouldn't call it great, but it was well worth it's time. This game though, this is great. Day and night mechanics, better stories, more interesting characters, fine-tuned combat, ship sailing, everything here is just taken up a notch. Also, while I didn't start with her, the game has Ochette, and that alone warrants a play through in and of itself.

Dredge

"I am as human as you are."

If there's one thing I love it's a good mystery. Not necessarily a full on mystery story like Agatha Christie or something (although I do love those), but rather just... something to keep me going via the emotion of anticipation and uncertainty. Dredge does this on top of being a game not quite like anything I've played before. It's a fishing/salvaging simulation yet you're constantly faced with what can only be described as creeping otherworldly horror. What is happening? Why are some of the fish rotting? Why are the denizens of the nearby fishing town behaving this way? What am I doing here? The mysteries are pieced at a steady pace and evokes a classic at sea tragedy. I cannot recommend a game more for the fan of looming terror.

Dave the Diver

The gaming world is vast as the ocean.

Very seldom is the sentence "It tries so many things" used in a positive way. Allow me to introduce you to the miracle concoction that is Dave the Diver. It somehow manages to be a diving sim, farming sim, restaurant sim, card collecting sim, and adventure game with a flair for ancient Atlantean history. Somehow the game manages to have it's cake an eat it too by making each slice just the delectable necessities. Sure, it's not a full blow sim in any category, yet it manages to capture just enough to make it all worthwhile and fun. Combine that with arguably the most lovable cast in all of games this year and you have a truly wholesome and fun adventure that anyone can enjoy. Oh, also, they're doing a collaboration with the previously mentioned Dredge. Just a little cosmic horror seasoning for something already special.

Hi-Fi Rush

Hope no one noticed.

The cues taken from other games are so clean in Hi-Fi Rush that it's astonishing how much it lies in the shadow of it's own originality. This out-of-left field game and the absolute best game Bethesda put out this year (hehe) felt like the king of shadow drops. It's rhythm mechanics feel so natural in the midst of the bombastic combat. It's fascinating that a classic MP3 player is what ends up becoming the heart of our main character: Chai, because just as it beats within him this game beat with the heart of a lovely coming of age tale. Intimate reconciliations, newly developed and already established feelings, all of it is displayed among some of the characters I've come to care about the most this year and the music, oh the music! The hits just kept coming with this one! In order for a game like this to really come together the music needed to be as peak as it could be; a shot taken piercing the absolute bullseye.

Baldur's Gate 3

"Not what will happen - what will you do.
Your past is not yet lost.
Your future is not yet fixed."

This was probably obviously inevitable if you read this far along. I mean, it's Baldur's Gate 3. I admit, I struggle with what to write here only because it already feels like everything that can be said about Baldur's Gate 3 has been said. That being said, not enough credit is given to how deftly handled the legacy characters are in this game. For fans of older entries of Baldur's Gate there's some fine emotional ties. Of course, everything else is great in this game for the new generation. The best voice acted cast of characters this year along with a battle system that's time tested (I mean, it's DnD). It's also a shining example of how to do a game early access right. It's up there with Hades as the best early access games of all time.

Cocoon

It's not an end, but rather a beginning.

I was wondering if I would ride the Baldur's Gate wave all the way to the finish line as my favorite game of the year. The studio behind some of my favorite games (Limbo, Inside) had something to say about that. Cocoon a short game, I finished it in 5 hours, but it's amazing how this game made me feel over the course of such a small amount of time. Using a minimalist approach the game creates the kind of "aha!" moments that will stay with me for quite awile. Simple concepts and mechanics are pushed to the absolute limit as you peel back the veneer of this universe. I'm sure Youtube essayists will have a field day with this one.

Another year in the books. It has definitely been one of the best years in gaming. While I'm upset that I wasn't able to get to everything this year had to offer, the games I did play absolutely pushed the boundary that I love to expect year after year. Thank you for reading and Happy New Year!