2023 has been one of, if not the best, years for gaming ever. At least when it comes to releases and not the horrendous number of lay-offs that took place. There has been an abundance of great games, and just not enough time to play them all. Every corner of the industry came out firing; AAA titles, nailed it, indie games, brilliant remakes and remasters, you guessed it, fantastic. The relative glut of games kept me well-fed throughout the year, but that only served to make the process of deciding my top ten exceedingly difficult. It also meant that I missed so many good indie games (sorry devs!).

That being said, barring something catastrophic, I think my overall game of the year was probably decided before the year kicked off. The rest of the list, however, was a challenge, and I’m not actually sure I knew my final rankings before I started typing everything up, so without further ado, here are my ten favourite games of 2023.

10 Super Mario Bros. Wonder

The Best 2D Mario In Decades

I am a huge, huge 3D Mario fan. I typically do not like the 2D Mario games, at least those released after the year 2000. I found the NEW Super Mario series to be the opposite of what I want from a Mario adventure. The games are boring, ugly and just a chore to play. Super Mario Bros. Wonder changed that.

The game has an incredible level of charm that kept me gripped from start to finish.

I can’t pretend I was as engrossed by the game as much as I would have been if it was an Odyssey sequel, but Wonder is a damn good time. Both the worlds and levels are far more creative than any of the recent 2D iterations, and the game has an incredible level of charm that kept me gripped from start to finish.

9 Dead Space Remake

Terrifying Return To USG Ishimura

If you’ve been a reader of my stuff over the last few years, you’ll know that only recently have I become a lover of survival horror. I’ve lapped up as much of the genre as I can over recent times. However, it has meant I have huge gaps when it comes to games released over three or four years ago. Dead Space was one of those games.

Dead Space’s 2023 glow-up is special. It looks stunning, sounds gross and is genuinely terrifying.

It became the last game that I scrambled to fit in before writing my Game of the Year list, and I’m glad I did. Dead Space’s 2023 Remake glow-up is special. It looks stunning, sounds gross, and is genuinely terrifying. I think the Leviathan sucks, though.

8 Starfield

A Fun, If Flawed, Space Exploration Adventure

Starfield is a game that had an immeasurable amount of hype surrounding it, especially given the number of delays the game faced, and while I, like many others, don’t think it quite lived up to its billing, I still had a blast playing it.

While I, like many others, don’t think it quite lived up to its billing, I still had a blast playing it.

I’ve always been a lover of Bethesda titles, platinuming their two previous mainline games, Skyrim and Fallout 4, and Starfield is certainly that, which could be either a good or a bad thing, depending on which side of the fence you sit. For me, it was great; I loved flying around space, scanning planets, and destroying pirates — even if things did start to wear a little thin by the end.

7 Alan Wake 2

A Huge Leap Forward For Remedy Entertainment

Alan Wake Remastered was the last game that I reviewed during my first spell at DualShockers. I gave it a 7/10 and called it “a little dated.” It left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth, and, before the reviews, I had no major interest in checking out Alan Wake 2.

That quickly changed as the reviews started to drop and the FOMO set in. I have some complex thoughts about the game, but overall it’s very, very good. I will say, Saga’s scenes are better than Alan’s, and that chapter is categorically the best gaming moment of 2023.

6 Final Fantasy 16

A Whole Lot Of Heart

Confession time. Final Fantasy VII Remake was the first Final Fantasy game I’d ever played through, and boy, did I love it. Following VII, I tried to play Final Fantasy XV, but it didn’t grip me in the same way, and I ended up bouncing off.

The bombastic set pieces, gripping story, and, most importantly, fantastic characters had me glued to my screen from start to finish.

So, with my lukewarm feelings towards XV and with Final Fantasy XVI coming out when it did, so close to the likes of Tears of the Kingdom, I wasn’t sure if I’d get around to it this year. Thankfully, I did, and it was great. While the game isn’t without its faults, the bombastic set pieces, gripping story, and, most importantly, fantastic characters had me glued to my screen from start to finish.

5 Resident Evil 4 Remake

An Addicting Horror Classic Renewed

Like Dead Space, I missed Resident Evil 4 when it first came out, but I’d heard nothing but good things, with some declaring it as one of the best games ever made.

Resident Evil 4 is the first game I’ve ever completed multiple playthroughs back to back.

After my first completion of this year’s Resident Evil 4 Remake, I immediately ran through the game twice more in quick succession, making it the first game I’ve ever completed multiple playthroughs back to back like that. If that doesn’t tell you how good it is, nothing will.

4 Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name

Kiryu Is Back, Baby!

After previewing the game at Gamescom, I knew Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name was going to be a banger. Suffice to say, it did not disappoint.

The Man Who Erased His Name features a much more concise story than the mainline Like a Dragon/Yakuza games, but that’s to its credit. Despite only being around 15 to 20 hours long, the game still features some genuine tear-jerking moments, alongside some of the series’ best characters, without compromising on the trademark silliness the franchise is known for. Plus, the brawling-style combat is back, which is a huge win for me.

3 Lies Of P

Clockwork Soulslike Masterpiece

Lies of P is, undoubtedly, my biggest surprise of 2023 and in any other given year, it could have conceivably taken my top spot. I spoke to the game’s director, Choi Ji-won, back at Gamescom this year, and it was clear how passionate he was about this project, which stemmed from his deep love of the Soulsborne and Soulslike games.

I cannot stress this enough; if you skipped Lies of P this year, you need to make time to play it.

Ji-won’s passion, and his exemplary understanding of what makes a Souls game great, really shines through in Lies of P. It’s punishing without being unfair, it looks beautiful, the characters, world building, and story are fantastic, and, most importantly, it is an absolutely great time. I cannot stress this enough; if you skipped Lies of P this year, you need to make time to play it.

2 Persona 4 Golden

One Of My All-Time Favorite Games

Okay, putting Persona 4 Golden on my Game of the Year list is a bit of a cheat — the game was originally released over ten years ago, after all. However, the game was released on modern platforms at the start of this year, and that’s all I need to game the system.

I’ve been a big, big Persona fan since the fifth game — Persona 5 Royal, before this year, was a top three all-timer for me — but I think Persona 4 Golden might beat it. I’ll need the recency bias to wear off a little bit before making my judgment call. Let it be said though; the longer I go without playing it, the more I keep thinking about it. The music, the story, the characters… *chefs kiss*

1 The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom

It was almost a foregone conclusion that The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was going to be my Game of the Year. Breath of the Wild is my favorite game of all time, I adore the Zelda series and everything leading into Tears of the Kingdom looked near-perfect. It’s safe to say that it didn’t disappoint.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is truly a phenomenal game and is deservedly my Game of the Year.

The game builds on its already near-perfect predecessor, while telling a gripping story, throwing in some terrifying new enemies and some truly mind-blowing new physics mechanics. Although I’m not sure it tops Breath of the Wild, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is truly a phenomenal game and is deservedly my Game of the Year.