Prima Games’ GOTY 2023: The Year of the Games

How ’s your backlog await these day ?

2023 ’s been a wild drive for the globe of gaming . Between the prodigious inclination of banger and a few unfortunate duds , we find some of the highest highs and lowest lows the industry has to offer . With a class this absurdly stacked full of releases , it seems almost deplorable to narrow our list down to our top ten game , but hey , we can only fit so many characters on a feature image before it starts await absurd .

The Prima Teama each ranked their five favorite game of the class out of a lean of 44 noteworthy button . After summate up the outcome , we ended up with a list of honest mention that just scarce missed the top five , the four runners - up , and , of course , Prima ’s pickax for Game of the Year . We ask our team of talented articulation to share a few words about why they prefer these games and why they merit the credit .

Prima Games 2023 GOTY Feature

The Worst Best Year of Gaming

We ’d be remiss not to acknowledge the K of people who lost their job in what should have been the most celebratory class of gaming in over a tenner . creative person , programmers , composers , writers , community managers , Q&A tester , and everyone outdoors and in between . 2023 bring in record - breaking sales and profits to publishers of all shapes and size , and yet we witness an unfathomable amount of talent chewed up and skewer out by parties with seemingly no regard other than self-aggrandising numbers on pale spreadsheet .

It ’s wanton to become immerse in great deeds of art like the games on this list and bury that behind each one is a literal , human cost . thou of talented soul pour their hearts out for these projects , from the initial excogitation of estimation , throughout the arduous creative physical process , and the yr of continued support C. W. Post - release . television games do n’t exist in a vacuum , and they would n’t be made without the assistant of hundreds of G of citizenry who jazz them just as much as we do .

Prima Games would like to give thanks all of the incredibly talented humans who made 2023 one of the most memorable eld of gaming of all prison term .

Image via Remedy Entertainment

Alan Wake II – Remedy Entertainment

I jumped into Alan Wake 2 having never played the original and not knowing what to await out of its successor . I prepped myself for what I thought would be the usual song and dance of endurance horror – escape a spooky timberland while fending off craze cultist . What I grow , alternatively , was a mind - bending tale so brilliantly unequaled that my face , much like Alan ’s , is locked in a permanent state of utter disbelief , reverence , and confusion . In the best means potential . Alan Wake 2 is a psychological Inferno ride , juggling players between clarity and chaos like play chicken with oncoming traffic . One moment , I ’m link the dose of evidence in a serial of grisly slaying ; the next moment I ’m flip light switches to interpolate world around me . It ’s an experience that ’s simply uncomparable to anything else and a biz that will curl forever in my mind .

Matt V

Sea of Stars – Sabotage Studio

2023 saw many game , but Sea of Stars was one of the best . Developed by Sabotage Studio , Sea of Stars recite the story of Valere and Zale , two Children of the Solstice who are fated to embark on a journey to carry through the world from an evil SOB known as The Fleshmancer . It ingest brainchild from classical play - based RPGs like Chrono Trigger and Super Mario RPG and has a plot that will doubtlessly make you cry . More than once . I had the prospect to reviewSea of Starsearlier in the year , and I generate it a solid 10/10 . It ’s authentically one of the best games I ’ve ever played and is in reality my personal GOTY . Combat is fun , the story is phenomenal , and the soundtrack is freak out beautiful . I bet y’ all $ 10 it will be top on my Spotify enfold in 2024 because I literallycan’tstop take heed to it .

Meg K

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Nintendo

More than any other game this twelvemonth , I ’ve sunk unnumerable hours into the creative world that lay before me in The Legend of Zelda : Tears of the Kingdom . While other player may have spent their time ramble vital rolling wave , I spent my time creating countless machines , objects , and anything my mind could string together . While I ’ve been a rooter of the Zelda franchise since a young cuss , Tears of the Kingdom cast me in like no other . Maybe it ’s because of the rich world and lore that hem in me . perhaps it was because of the countless possibility that I could make . peradventure it was just because the game was just so much fun . The story take on effortlessly throughout my prison term spent in Hyrule , the cast of singular case that peppered my adventure fill me with joy , and even sly book of facts to past accounting entry in the franchise made binge of the Kingdom one of my favorite games , not only of this year , but of all time . It ’s almost impossible to empathize how a game of this magnitude can even work on the Switch in the first place , but even after completing the plot , I find myself yearn to come in the mankind for as long as I can .

Shaun C

Octopath Traveler II – Square Enix

Octopath Traveler 2 is a pipe dream for all those who adore RPGs . And , for me , it ’s the perfect object lesson of the musical genre , sweeping me back to the original Octopath Traveler , which I poured countless time of day into . And Octopath Traveler 2 does everything the original did , but better . In typical RPG fashion , the story survey eight protagonists on different paths that slowly intertwine until they unify as one unit to defend a cosmos - stop evil . But while the bare finger cymbals might seem commonplace , Octopath is anything but . The moment I started the secret plan , it celebrate me burning the midnight rock oil until I fully completed it two week by and by . Octopath Traveler 2 is the perfect married couple between innovative armed combat systems and worldbuilding which makes every aspect of the game a pleasure .

Daphne F

We ’re almost to our pick for Game of the Year , but first , we ca n’t draw a blank this smattering of Honorable Mentions that did n’t quite gain our top five but make out to squeeze their way into our top ten . Any of these game could ’ve easily been replace by another , and we often had to nail down a few of these with tiebreakers . frankly , there were enough outstanding waiver this year to triple the length of this intact feature , but for the interest of brevity and bandwidth , we narrowed it down to five .

Image via Remedy Entertainment

Hi-Fi Rush – Tango Gameworks

If you ’d have secernate me my personal biz of the year would be a shadow - dropped character activeness game , redolent of an exuberant Dreamcast earned run average , where I ’d be stringing combos together to the beat of The Prodigy and Nine Inch Nails , well , I ’d absolutely believe you because that sounds badass . And that ’s on the button what Tango Gameworks surprised the human race with when they burst down the doors of 2023 and drop Hi - Fi Rush , an insistent classic that set the level for the unbelievable year of releases that followed . Hi - Fi Rush is everything I ’d ever desire out of a TV secret plan , and its overall cadence fetch some of the most entertaining moments I ’ve experienced in the medium . It knows when to be silly and when to be wholesome , when it ’s time to be serious and when it ’s prison term to break the quaternary wall , but it never stops being fun . There ’s also a golem cat named 808 who emulate the “ doink ! ” , “ bop ! ” , and “ bip ! ” sound of the barrel machine she ’s name after as she hops around . Wrap it up , we ’re done here , folks .

Resident Evil 4 (2023) – Capcom

While I ’m one of the few people who never played the original , Resident Evil 4 was a real delicacy . Not only did it manage to overhaul the authoritative RE mechanics in a way that come across as faithful but felt corking , but its visuals were also top - pass . It almost feels like its own biz at times , even if it seems to hold the same world-wide story as the master copy . That is n’t even including the much - welcomed Separate Ways DLC released earlier this year which add together a draw more to the experience than I first expected . Given the cart track record book with remakes thus far , I ’m excited to play through RE5 and then see how it stack up against the future remake . Truly a great survival horror game , and one of the best this class against some unbendable competition like Dead Space Remake .

Ted Shawn R

Pizza Tower – Tour De Pizza

As a child of the 90s , the platformer literary genre is something that I hold well-nigh and heartfelt to me . Alongside growing up on cartoons that I likely should n’t have been look on in my youth ( I ’m looking at you , Ren and Stimpy ) , I never intend that I would see the solar day that my favorite genre receive such a breath of fresh air , even if it ’s surface in pepperoni soil . From the moment I first position oculus on Pizza Tower , I knew that I was in for something special , even if I did n’t expect it to rule my life story the style that it had from the first sentence I play it . Alongside rake - perfect ascendency , an galvanising soundtrack peppers each degree with personality , and the use of classic cry that sound like they ’ve been rip from the Mel Blanc Looney Tunes era makes Pizza Tower feel like a game specifically made for me . I ’ve learned that all I require in life is a silly petty game about a valet de chambre with a plan to write his business . Godspeed , Peppino Spaghetti , and give thanks you Tour de Pizza for make believe a biz that is specifically ply to me in every way , frame , and shape . Also , does Baldur ’s Gate 3 have Mort the Chicken from the PlayStation 1 classic “ Mort the Chicken ” ? I recollect not .

Final Fantasy XVI – Square Enix

Whenever a raw Final Fantasy game is released , there ’s always those who roll in the hay it and those who detest it with apparently no in - between . Final Fantasy XVI is a far more gamy Final Fantasy title than previous game in the series , and the write up is dead enchanting . The worldbuilding , lore , and individual theatrical role feel so tangible and oftentimes relatable . Although the main cast all have unbelievable power , they are realistic in the personal battles that they must subdue . The battle system is fun , and the comprehension of sure accessories to countenance player of all ability levels to experience the secret plan is well - received . On top of this , the biz swash utterly gorgeous landscape and character alike , as well as an amazing and memorable soundtrack . Plus , there ’s Torgal . Final Fantasy XVI deserves the top blot for have a dog in the main cast . The bond between Clive and Torgal was a personal highlight of the game . Frost Wolves truly are an Eikon ’s best booster .

Cilla W

Super Mario RPG – Nintendo

Like all remake , Super Mario RPG has to put on one of the toughest balancing acts in biz design : what elements of the original plot should stay the same , and what should be changed ? “ Timeless ” visuals and gameplay only make the summons even more challenging . If the original is so “ timeless , ” what justifies a remake when a port would suffice ? There ’s nothing to concern about here , though : Super Mario RPG keeps the integrity of the SNES original with comfort .

The remaking ’s updated graphics and contribute cutscenes raise the cast ’s already stellar sense of charm . The shiny new visuals are also put to unspoiled use in struggle , where new Triple Moves stunningly show off the party ’s combined prowess . These moves also allow for new skills for histrion to mess around with . Other gameplay change , such as the power to swap out party penis while in battle and a fresh jazz group meter , feel like natural additions that could have been in the original secret plan all along . All this is enclose up in the game ’s phenomenal soundtrack , arranged by the original ’s fabled composer , Yoko Shimomura , with the added option to swap between the new arranging or the classical running at will .

Super Mario RPG is a charming remake made with silliness and earnestness with a jot of stardust — a shooting star that add up around only rarely , but when it does , you wo n’t want to miss it .

Niki F

Baldur’s Gate III – Larian Studios

This class was full of game that were ensure toilsome batter , and yet it was Larian Studios that made waves . Baldur ’s Gate 3 is a reminder that player agency and choice in a grand fantasy adventure is what leave hold up impressions . Larian craft an enthralling human race that is intend to reinforce you for your clever actions or provide unexpected consequences when the dice has other plan .

It ’s all a testament to the sandbox smell that used to be more common in RPGs as a whole , and with a worthwhile narration to bind it all together , Baldur ’s Gate 3 will surely be stick by in the minds of gamers for years to come .

Dan W

Image via Sabotage Studio

Baldur ’s Gate 3 struck a part of my spunk that few games have over the twelvemonth . As someone who typically avoids complicated game , jumping into this , learning its mechanics , and venture off the beaten path to detect secret left me constantly aroused to hop back in and see what else I could accomplish hour by hour . I enjoy chatting with its characters , explore the world , and try random combinations of power train , grade , and spells to see what bring best . It ’s still my goal one day to romanticism as many fibre as possible in one playthrough just to see how they all react . Over 100 hr later , I ’m still having a blast with it , anticipating what wacky additions each patch will present over prison term . I wholeheartedly believe Baldur ’s Gate 3 merit all its praise , and I ’m happy to see its spot here on our 2023 Game of the Year list .

Madison B

You lie with what they say – there ’s only three things certain in life ; last , revenue enhancement , and Prima ’s love for RPGs . See y’ all in 2024 .