Quick Take - Game of the Year 2023 Thoughts
And the Nominees Are...
The 2023 Game of the Year nominees are now official. As we head to the 2023 Game Awards, the closest thing to gaming having their own Oscars, I will be releasing a series of articles looking at the show and discussing predictions and even how I feel about Geogg Keighley’s event being gaming’s biggest night. For today, I look at the Game of the Year’s nominees in what could go down as one of the greatest years in gaming.
The Ones that Missed Out
This year was so stacked that we knew there would be snubs, lots of them. However, I was most surprised to see Final Fantasy XVI not make the list. The game got great reviews and had a better reception from the gaming media and gamers overall than the previous entry (a game I still really loved and defended). But it seems Resident Evil 4 Remake pushed it out. Luckily for the fans of this one, it still got plenty of nominations down ballot and I think Ben Starr is the favorite for Best Performance for his role as Clive Rosfield.
Other titles that didn’t get in, but were in the bubble, are Starfield, Sea of Stars, and Dave the Diver. Starfield fell victim to the year it launched being what it was and that’s the same story with the indie titles, who missed despite there always being one that makes it to the top award. The usual suspects like Pikmin 4, Hi-Fi Rush, and Lies of P also missed because of the stacked year. In my view these games would’ve stood better chances in past years. Hi-Fi Rush did get a lot more nominations than I expected, showing that gaming media did love the game as much as players did. And last, but not least, is Hogwarts Legacy. I knew the game would suffer for coming out early (such as Star Wars Jedi: Survivor) and the controversies surrounding it. So that sets up our six nominees that made it.
The Six
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom - Was there ever a doubt? Nintendo hit another home run in the iconic franchise that has stood the test of time. Tears of the Kingdom only expanded what Breath of the Wild did, and that was a revolutionary game. For all the worries that it would just be “DLC”, Nintendo and Aonuma delivered something you rarely see, a better sequel to a revolutionary title. It is, in my opinion, the Godfather Part 2 of video games. This will be one the two heavy favorites to win it all and while it would be a “boring predictable” winner, it’s a testament to the genius of Nintendo, still gaming’s most creative artists.
Baldur’s Gate 3 - In my opinion, this is the REAL favorite to win it all. Baldur’s Gate 3 came out of nowhere and took the gaming world by storm. While I still personally consider this to be a niche game for a niche type of gamer, I acknowledge the impact it had in such an incredible year. The gaming media fell in love with it in ways I haven’t seen with a video game since Breath of the Wild. The game even forced Microsoft to relax some of its parity policies with the Xbox Series consoles so they could get it. The real story with this game is that there can always be a title you aren’t thinking about, that may take the gaming world by storm and change everything. Baldur’s Gate 3 is that story.
Alan Wake 2 - The long-awaited sequel to the cult classic delivered. After more than a decade of waiting, Alan Wake is back, and Remedy Entertainment is finally getting their due as one of the gaming world’s best studios. I myself haven’t gotten around to playing it even watching a Let’s Play of this one yet, but my interest has definitely piqued after seeing the reception. Considering the long wait the fans of the first had to endure, its great to see it rewarded this way.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 - While the MCU is having its issues, the Marvel video games are just getting started. Insomniac Games planted its flag as the MVP of PlayStation 5 with this one. While on the surface its “just as super hero game”, it delivers great gameplay, incredible moments, a story with lots of heart and even some tragedy, and reminds us why Spider-Man is one the best heroes in all of media.
Resident Evil 4 Remake - There’s a debate about remakes getting in on this list. In my view, if the game is a TRUE remake it deserves to be and this one, I consider a true remake. It adds some new things and was made from the ground up. Metroid Prime Remastered is a remaster (practically a remake in my view) of my all-time favorite game, so I would consider that game more deserving. It helps RE4 that it’s a remake to one of the greatest games of all time and Capcom is on a role with these. Now if only they can deliver us the Dino Crisis remake we all want.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder - The world’s most famous plumber had his greatest year yet with a box office hit and a game that will be part of many future gamers’ childhoods. While this wasn’t the next big 3D sandbox style entry, it was the first new 2D style game (not counting Super Mario Maker 2) since the Wii U. Nintendo showed it could shake up the formula and delivered a 2D Mario title that deserves to sit alongside legendary games such as Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World. For all the talk around Zelda games always being in these conversations, its time we acknowledge Mario as more than just a mascot.
Final Thoughts
This was never going to be an easy year. From a video games standpoint, this is possibly the greatest year in video games history. All of the nominees deserve the Game of the Year award, but as they say in sports – there can only be one. My money is on Baldur’s Gate 3, though I will be cheering for Tears of the Kingdom. No matter who wins, I think this is a solid lineup and all of these games, its fans, and developers should be honored to get a nomination in a year that will be talked about for a long time to come.