The 12 best video games of 2023 (so far)
Indie darlings, big-budget remakes, and, of course, Zelda all dot our list of the best games of the first half of the year
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If there’s a theme to our favorite video games of 2023 to date, it comes down to two conflicting ideas. On the one hand, refinement: As the steady tide of video game remakes continues, apparently unabated, we can at least take some solace in the fact that developers seem to be getting better at the form. Two of the best games of the last few months have been remakes of old classics that manage to preserve what was good, while making room for what was new, both managing to justify their existences both new and old.
Meanwhile, a streak of wild creativity continues to bubble up from both the margins and, unexpectedly, smack dab in the center of the industry. This is, after all, the year when Nintendo released one of the most creatively ambitious titles in its entire history, while other developers bent the power (and trap goblin mentalities) of their own players to the dark aims of pushing the medium to its creative limits.
Here, then, in a spirit of, let’s call it, refined creativity, are the 12 best games of the first half of 2023, listed in alphabetical order, as chosen by A.V. Club staffers.
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Even though I’m a total scrub, I’m having a blast with
Oh, lol. Not sure if I screwed up or got Kinja’d.I’m having a blast with Street Fighter 6’s World Tour mode. Even though I suck at fighting games, I’m learning moves at a baby’s pace and running through Yakuza wackiness.
So happy to see Midnight Sons make the cut for this list. I’m committed to getting my first Platinum trophy on PS5 (or PS4 for that matter) for this game, such that I’m gradually grinding out the last 70 or so dark level on a New Game+ playthrough. Raising the difficulty makes it a LOT harder, but I still love the game’s mechanics.
As someone who only plays on Switch, I am crushed that the Switch version got cancelled. I had it circled for purchase for a year.
Glad to see Hi-Fi Rush on here. I’m looking forward to playing it again once the new DLC drops.
I like that this is a personal list that doesn’t try to cover every genre.
One of my favorites is Pizza Tower, a tribute to the Wario Land games with some very funny animations.
I’m just kinda done with Meet Your Maker for the time being. it’s a hell of a ride for a while, but the damnable outpost subscription model and the ever-steeper progression curve is just sucking all the fun out of it right now. Maybe I’ll duck back in at some point in the future to see if they add, subtract, or rebalance anything compelling or if I can convince one of my friends to co-op with me (“So how would you like to play a game where you frequently die to unseen traps?”).But I can’t say that the community on there isn’t bristling with creativity. I’ve been raided by coop players who spent that first few minutes of their raid “dueling” in the starting area (thanks for the free resources, guys!). Another player used one of my guards to do some “batting practice” (context: the melee weapons are able to parry projectiles if you time your swing right). One outpost I raided had nothing blocking my access to the GenMat (context: the stuff I was stealing), though there was one obvious trap elsewhere in the outpost surrounded by a wall with the word “Tips” (needlessly to say, I tipped the creator several deaths). Another revealed a secondary exit upon grabbing the GenMat while turning the much-shorter path that I had taken on the way in very dangerous, thus forcing me to take a route out that was unfamiliar to me.Next up for me: Probably RE4 Remake. Maybe I play a bit of the original first, for a bit of compare-and-contrast action.
Doing another play through of The Game That Must Not Be Named.It certainly wasn’t revolutionary, but it’s such a satisfying world to explore and fly around. I know it’ll be pretty high up on a lot of peoples lists for this year too.
I feel like I’m the only person who didn’t really care for Hi-Fi Rush. It’s fine, but I got bored of it pretty quickly and don’t really have a desire to pick it back up. The rhythm gimmick wears thin after an hour or so and the gameplay loop gets super repetitive as a result. Solve a platform puzzle, kill a room of identical robots, repeat. Plus I found the cutscenes painfully cringy. It’s just not my sense of humor at all. And the main character’s voice was so hard to listen to.
As the year progresses, I eagerly anticipate what other gaming gems will be released. The 12 best video games of 2023 (so far) have set the bar high, and it’s an exciting time to be a gamer. You can also check other games here https://apkocta.com/
Midnight Suns came out last year. We know why Hogwarts Legacy was ignored, but it really shouldn’t be. The combat is fun, it’s filled with crazy details, neat Easter eggs, and loads of potential moving forward. The Potter world is brought to life a lot better than expected.