My 2023 Game of the Year

Better late than never.

2023's list is an interesting one for me to write. Besides the lateness of this list's creation, the contents is a little different from past years.

2023 was a year where I didn't play that many games that came out that year (only 3 of them, to be exact). Due to some big life changes, I found myself with a bit more time for games. 2023 was the year that I decided to focus on my backlog for the most part and I've tailored my list to that decision.

Realistically, I should have been doing this from the beginning. I like writing these GOTY list because it provides me with a nice time capsule of how my year went; not just in terms of gaming, but also how my year went personally. That's what I love about these lists.

From now on, that's what I'll think about when creating them (no matter how late they are).

I actually played (and completed) a lot more games in 2023 than any other year that I can remember. I'm going to keep this list to 5 but the list of games that almost made the list isn't as short as it usually is. It includes: Hitman World of Assassination, Pokemon Violet, Super Mario 3D Land, Trine and Final Fantasy 16. These games are all great, but the list below are my true favorites that I played in 2023.

Anyways, on with the list.

List items

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  1. Xenoblade Chronicles 3

  This selection is specific to the Future Redeemed expansion.

  Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed takes everything that made the base game great and brings it to a new level in a lot of interesting ways. The combat is as fun and inventive as it was in the base game, with a lot of new additions that really elevate it.

  It's a much more structured and tight package, which I really appreciated and it doesn't overstay its welcome.

  I really enjoyed where they went with the story in this one. It provides a really interesting prequel to the events of 3, provides a great bookend for the trilogy and looks to the future. And it does all three of those things really well, in my opinion.

  Also, I really liked the new characters introduced and loved seeing Rex and Shulk again.

  Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed is a fantastic finale to the Xenoblade trilogy and I can't wait to see what comes next.

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  2. Super Mario Bros. Wonder

  Super Mario Bros. Wonder is a fantastic 2D platformer. The gameplay is pitch-perfect, the music is fantastic and it looks amazing.

  I really enjoyed the multiplayer as well. It was a joy to play with my girlfriend and I cherish the time we spent playing it.

  I really enjoyed my time with Super Mario Bros. Wonder and it's an easy selection for this list.

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  3. Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia

  I'm really late to the party with this one.

  Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia is an amazing game and may be one of my favorite Fire Emblem games overall.

  The strategy gameplay always kept me thinking and was super fun. I liked the dungeon crawling, as well.

  I also really liked the dual story between Alm and Celica. Building both teams up separately was really interesting and kept me from getting bored with the team composition. The ending to the story was really great, too.

  Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia is an amazing 3DS game that I'm happy I finally got around to playing.

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  4. Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales

  Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales takes what made the original PS4 Spider-Man great and puts it in a tighter, better-looking package.

  And I liked it quite a bit. So much so that I think that it is a bit better than the original.

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  5. Tales of Arise

  Tales of Arise was the first Tales game that I've ever beaten (I did put a little bit of time into Symphonia back in the day, but that's about it). After finishing it up in 2023, I think I might look into other games in the series because I really enjoyed this one.

  The combat is super dynamic, looks amazing and is a ton of fun. I really liked building up my party and seeing them interact in battle and in the story.

  Speaking of the story, I really liked where it went. The story of slavery and redemption was one that I haven't seen much in gaming, but overall I really enjoyed it.

  Tales of Arise is a great game, that I'm happy to have in my list of top games of 2023.