Hello and welcome to the list of my favorite video games I completed in 2023. I played a lot of games this year, and now is the fun time to look back and rank all of them. 2023 was overall a good year for games. For most it was an incredible year, but for me it was.....fine. I must admit, I wouldn't put any game I played this year above my 3 favorite games I played last year (Outer Wilds, Triangle Strategy, and Origami King), so I can't help but feel a little disappointed overall. Nonetheless, it was a fun year with lots of great games to talk about, so without further ado, here are my 11 favorite games of 2023.
But before I get into that, here's a quick overview of the rules. These are games I played and completed this year, not games that released in 2023. So while many of these games did release this year, many of them did not. This is a personal list of all the games I played, and an excuse to reflect on the games I played.
Second, here's a quick overview of the rules, with a couple changes I'll be making:
- I cannot have played this game extensively in a previous year*
- I must be finished with the game**
- My final play time for the game must be 5 hours or more
- *The following can be overridden if the game has new content added, and my playtime with the game is focused on this new content
- *The following can be overridden if the game is a remake and I deem it worthy of being in my ranking. My list, my rules.
- **The following can be overridden if the game has future content coming that I intend to play
With those rules out of the way, let me start by listing one honourable mention, a game I replayed this year:
The Legend of Zelda: Majoras Mask - I don't remember why I replayed this. I think it was in the lead up to the release of Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. My girlfriend also didn't know much about Zelda, and it is one of my favorite video games, so I wanted to show her this beautiful game. And well, Majoras Mask is still one of my favorites. Its unique mechanics involving masks and time loops still creates an experience unique from most video games. Its characters and world still touch me and feel real, and it's still a game I love to death. Not much more to say than that.
With that out of the way, let's get to the list of the 11 games I played this year:
Coming in at number 11 is Pokemon Scarlet, which barely made the list as my play time in it was 5 hours. Scarlet was one of the first games I played this year. I have had a bumpy ride with Pokemon this generation: I completed both Sword & Shield and Legends Arceus, but I was not a fan of either. When comparing them to previous mainline games, I'd call them my two least favorite games in the series. I hoped Scarlet would be different but well....nothing in those first 5 hours really grabbed me, and unfortunately I ended up dropping the game as I was on my way to the first gym leader. I might come back to it at some point, as I hear it's got some positives. But I don't know, I found the gameplay loop of an open world Pokemon game quite boring. It was catching, battling, catching, battling, rinse and repeat... Perhaps it gets more interesting as you progress, but for now, I remain disappointed with this game and the Pokemon series in general. I used to be such a big fan...
And well if being number 10 is any indication, I had a nice time with Xenoblade Chronicles, but like Pokemon Scarlet, nothing in those initial hours grabbed me. The gameplay loop was pretty fun and the battle system seemed neat. There was even some good songs too! None of it really grabbed me though, and the story put me off. It was your typical JRPG story, and while I likely would have loved it when I was in my teenage years, in my old age these sorts of stories can come off as predictable and boring, and well...that's how I found the beginning of Xenoblade Chronicles, with none of its characters jumping out at me. Maybe I'll come back to it at some point like Pokemon, but for now, I'm leaving these games behind. Sorry to my friend!
That being said, I agree with most in saying that the back half of the DLC tracks weren't as fun as those of the first half, and overall the tracks weren't as fun as those of the base game. I've come to understand the dislike for the Mario Kart Tour tracks after playing them more, since they often don't do a great job at telling you which way to go. Still, it was fun to return to the game from time to time and remember the joy it can bring. Here's to the next Mario Kart!
At number 8 is the first of the comfy games: Kirby's Return to Dreamland Deluxe. These were familiar games that I'd already played, but games I had loved in the past, so returning to them felt like going back home. In this case it was Kirby's Return to Dreamland, one of my favorite Kirby games. Returning to it reminded me why I hold it in high regard, so much so that it motivated me to want to try more Kirby games rather than give up on the series (see my write up on it). The new Magolor mode was awesome, the new mini games were nice, but most of all it was fun to return to this lovely game and remember why it left such an impression on me during the Wii era.
For number 7 I am...going to cheat. I have already played Pikmin 1, 2, and 3 multiple times. The remasters of 1 and 2 don't add any new content, and while 3 Deluxe does it's...not a lot. Never the less, I'm putting all of these on the list as one big game that is the Pikmin series, because I went ahead and replayed them all, and it was wonderful! Like Kirby, these were cozy games I played before bed throughout the year in the lead up to Pikmin 4, and it was a blast to return to one of my favorite video game series. It reminded me why I love them, how short and easy they are to get through, and how many different ways you can play them. It was so lovely to revisit these games, and I'm disappointed in myself for still not finishing my planned write ups on these games. But I love this series, and it made 2023a special year.
We're down to the Top 6, and these next 3 games make up what I call the sequel trilogy. In 2023 my three most played games were sequels to games I'd already put a lot of time into. These three games share a lot in common, and I'll elaborate on how while discussing these games.
For now, number 6 is Honkai Star Rail, the spiritual successor to the highly successful gacha game: Genshin Impact. Honkai Star Rail was a complete and total surprise to me. As I said in my write up for Genshin Impact last year, I was feeling burnt out from the game and wanted to stop playing it. I had planned to, thinking it would be the last gacha game I play for a while.
Yet somehow, in some way, despite not paying any attention to it pre release, when Honkai Star Rail launched in April of 2023, it was massive. It made a bigger splash than I think even the developers expected, catching on within the Genshin community like fire and grabbing many that had moved on from the game, myself included.
Honkai Star Rail plays very similar to Genshin. It has the same UI, the same gacha system, the same progression systems, even its storytelling is very similar to Genshin's. The two main differences it has is that it has a sci fi setting, rather than fantasy, and is a turn based game, rather than action.
However, there is a third and far more important differentiation, and it's the main reason why I've stuck with the game for so long and consider it a big improvement over Genshin, putting over 400 hours into it in 2023: Star Rail respects your time way more than Genshin ever did. Dailies are way easier to complete and less time consuming, you can use auto battle to have the game grind your resources for you, and the story quests and environments take way less time to complete and explore than they do in Genshin. This makes the game much more manageable to keep up with, especially for someone with a busy life like myself. The game is so easy to play that I installed it on my phone, making Honkai Star Rail my first truly mobile game. I play it on the bus home from work each day, if I have a couple spare minutes I'll quickly boot it up, and I now finally understand mobile games and why so many people play them.
Yet, for all the ways Star Rail improves on Genshin, there is a reason I am placing it at number 6. As much as I have come to understand the appeal of gacha games, I cannot for the life of me stand their predatory systems. The fomo baked into everything keeping you chained to playing the game daily, the constant introduction of new characters and content to keep up with, the need for money poking you at every corner. I hate gacha games....but I also can't deny that I've had a lovely time with Star Rail and despite all my complaints, I'm not sure I'll be putting this game down for a while. It's just so easy to pick up and play....and I both love and hate that. I'm not sure where this game is going with me, but one thing is for certain: Hoyoverse has kept me in their ecosystem, and I will continue to be a consumer of theirs for at least another year.
Coming in at number 5 is the second of the sequel trilog: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. The long awaited sequel to Breath of the Wild, which is one of my favorite Switch games, I was very excited and put tons of hours into this, 117 to be exact.
Tears of the Kingdom was fun. It was nice to get sucked into another open world Zelda and explore the many fun secrets that awaited. The new runes that allowed you to build and customize your weapons allowed for some fun puzzles, and the new sky and underground areas were a delight, the depths in particular was my favorite new addition to the game. I spent way too much time roaming around it.
Yet as much fun as I had, I can't help but feel some disappointment with it. I didn't have any large issue with the game, but like Honkai Star Rail and the next game, Tears of the Kingdom was too similar to its predecessor for my liking. The combat was the same, weapon durability was the same, the world map was the same, the important story locations were the same, the way you learn the backstory through memories worked the same, etc. Rather than feel like a new game, I felt like I was playing a better version of Breath of the Wild.
And that's disappointing to me. Because I want my sequels to feel new and different, really have their own identity separate from what came before. Majoras Mask was able to do that with only one year of development. It's why I love Nintendo sequels so much, as they tend to be excellent at changing a series completely to make it feel new again. Tears of the Kingdom was not this, and I hope the next Zelda goes in a different direction.
That's not to sell this game short though, I am putting it at number 5 on the list after all and did put over 100 hours into it for a reason. It was fun, and if anything reminded me why I loved Breath of the Wild so much and its systems. It still makes for an excellent game, and traversing the same world was still fun.I have faith the next Zelda will be an excellent time, my only hope is that it doesn't take over 5 years to play it.
The final of the sequel trilogy, coming in at number 4, is Octopath Traveler II. Ah, what a strange and emotionally charged game for me. Critically it was a massive success, with many listing it as one of their favorite games in 2023. Yet for me, I am still unsure of my true feelings towards this game. Being among the sequel trilogy, it shares everything I loved and disliked about their predecessors, with Octopath taking these to their most extreme.
Octopath Traveler II has some great improvements that make for an overall better experience than its predecessor. But my god are all of its changes minimal, and all of my main issues with the first game are still a problem here. I still think the game is too big and does not have enough variety in its story and world design to warrant eight full character stories and a massive world, and my god do these games need new classes. Like Star Rail and Tears of the Kingdom, Octopath 2 is too similar to its predecessor for my liking, making all the time I put into it feel a little boring due to how familiar it feels. I like sequels that really feel new, and none of these three games really did that for me.
And yet...Octopath II also had everything I loved about the first game and more. It still has one of my favorite art styles of any Switch game, and just moving through its world can't help but evoke warm feelings inside me. The sprites look gorgeous and the backgrounds make the whole world look like a painting. The battle system is still incredible, maybe my favorite battle system of any JRPG I've played, and it made boss battles so so exciting. And my god the music. The first Octopath had my favorite soundtrack of any Switch game, and the sequel somehow topped it and went even farther. Just listening to its music right now, I can't help but feel like I've returned home. It's beautiful, enchanting, and makes the entire world feel like a magical land where all your problems can melt away and you can just get lost in it. I think, of the sequel trilogy games, Octopath 2 was the one I was the most invested in, the most obsessed with at some point, because my god was it nice to return to the world of Octopath. I had forgotten how much these worlds mean to me.
I said at the end of my review for this that should there be a third game, I won't pick it up at launch. But damn, I will still pick it up the first chance I can find it on sale, because these games mean a lot to me and remind me why turn based JRPGs is still, and will always be my favorite genre of video games.
The final game I completed in 2023, Dredge comes in at Number 3. There are a lot of great indie games these days, it feels like in 2023 we had more great indie games than ever. Yet the one that caught my attention most was Dredge, a small exploration game centered on fishing, managing resources, and well, dredging. Dredge is a fun open world esque game like the number 4-6 games, but unlike those, Dredge doesn't overstay its welcome. By the time you've started to figure out the mechanics of one area, helped its inhabitants, and learned how to avoid its underwater monsters, you've done all that needs to be done and can move on to the next one, with new mechanics to learn and understand. It's great, and I had a blast with it. While it didn't leave as strong an impression as other indie games like Celeste, Cuphead, and Undertale, I still had an excellent time with Dredge, and look forward to seeing whatever the team behind it develops next.
If there's one thing I will remember 2023 for, it was the year of Pikmin. After 10 years of waiting, a new mainline Pikmin title finally released, but more than that, the first two games received updated remasters, kicking off a Pikmin renaissance in which tons of newcomers were giving the series a shot, old fans were coming together to once again replay and discuss this wonderful series, and we could all enjoy what would be a rare and special moment in Pikmin history: the release of Pikmin 4.
I've been a Pikmin fan since I first played the two Gamecube games, and it has been such a delight to see the series blossom and gather so many new fans and discussions this year. If only the year could be capped off by having the newest game in the series actually be amazing and worthy of growing the series so much....
Except it absolutely is! Pikmin 4 is far and away the best the Pikmin series has ever been, being a celebration of sorts. It incorporates everything that made the previous games great without losing anything in the process, and creates a Pikmin game that feels like a truly epic journey, one that can stand toe to toe with Nintendo's other greats. Pikmin 4 somehow created the ultimate Pikmin game: one that utilizes every Pikmin type in the series while also having the most interesting caves and areas the series has ever seen. It is a crowning achievement in design that will go down as one of my favorite Switch games.
The only thing preventing it from being my game of the year is that, as much as I loved it, there were a couple areas it could have been stronger. The music for one is not great, probably my least favorite soundtrack of a Pikmin game. The story is also, strangely, very present and constant, despite not having much substance to it. More customization to the controls also would have helped players of many different backgrounds enjoy this masterpiece.
Yet I would call all these minor issues, ones that can easily be fixed. Pikmin 4 is Pikmin at its best, it reminded me why this series means so much to me and still feels so special, and why I'll always enjoy returning to these games.
When I was debating what would be my game of the year this time, I had spent much time on it before I realized I had forgotten Omori. That's because it was the very first game I completed last year, I had started it last year. In my previous write up I said I was about halfway through it at the time. I didn't put it on the list, but said if I did it would be around #3. And well after finishing it I would say that is still true, which just so happens to put Omori above every other game I played this year.
Omori is a really cool game. It has much of what I loved about another game on this list: Octopath Traveler 2. The art style is gorgeous, the characters look so charming it's hard not to fall for them. The music is such a joy, it easily has my second favorite soundtrack of all the games I played this year. The battle system is also wonderful, the perfect mixture of strategy and depth that makes boss battles long and satisfying to complete.
But where Omori excels, where every other game I played this year doesn't even hold a candle to it: is its story. Omori has a beautiful personal story about guilt, trauma, and love. It is a touching story that you cannot help but get engrossed in, and the story heavy moments of this game were my favorite gaming sessions this year. They were simply incredible to play through.
And while I did have one big issue with the ending of the story, it wasn't enough to detract from all the positive memories this game gave me and all the ways it stuck with me. I recently watched a let's play of it, and it reminded me how much I loved this game. The art, the music, the battle system, and the story and characters my god. I loved them, and I will continue to think about them for a long time, as any special game does. It's why in the end, I can't think of any other game to be my Game of the Year than Omori. Maybe I should take this as a sign to play more indie games.....
And that's a wrap! Thank you so much to anyone who read this. I'll admit I'm pessimistic if I'll be able to play this many games by this time next year as my life gets busier. But we'll see, here's to another great year of video games!
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