2023! What a year for game releases. There was tons of great stuff this year, and I feel like, no matter what genre(s) you're into, there was something for everybody this year. I could just make a nice, lengthy and ordered list of My Top Twenty-Seven Or So Games for 2023, but I want to revive an idea I had back in 2021: The ArCadey Awards.
With these awards, my goal is to highlight my favorite moments, aspects, bits, and pieces from my favorite games that I played during the year. Plus, it's fun to make my own fun categories and pretend like the little JPEGs of the wonderful ArCadey Award that my wife drew is being presented to game studios even though they'll likely never know that they won. Which is a shame, because it's my opinion that matters most of all, but meh. What can you do?
In order for any game to be considered for a 2023 ArCadey, it has to be one that I completed between the beginning and end of 2023. This means that a game could even have been released before 2023 and be in the running if I completed it for the first time in 2023. So, BEFORE you write me angry letters about why Baldur's Gate 3 isn't listed below, keep in mind that at the time of writing I've only played roughly two hours of Larian Studio's latest. Come back next year, and we'll see if I've finished it by then.
Without further ado, let's get into the nominees and look at the fantastic games that I played in 2023!
Byte-Sized Award
A special ArCadey Award given to the greatest "small" game of the year.
Radical Moment Award
(BEWARE! This category has potential SPOILERS!)
A special ArCadey Award given to a game that had a particularly memorable, unique, and/or exciting moment.
The Cafeteria — Hi-Fi Rush
Inarius and Lilith go to war — Diablo IV
Rusty's "I Won't Miss" — Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon
"Piranha Plants on Parade" — Super Mario Bros. Wonder
Shooting down asteroids — Dead Space (2023)
The title intro — The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Best Multiplayer
This award goes to the game that is not only best played with friends, but that offers a highly replayable experience.
Best UI/UX
This award goes to the game that created a superb user experience through intuitive and creative user interface design.
Best Boss Fight
(BEWARE! This category has potential SPOILERS!)
This award goes to the boss fight that managed to keep me on the edge of my seat while providing plenty of challenge and spectacle.
Balteus — Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon
Annihilation — Remnant II
Roquefort — Hi-Fi Rush
Lilith — Diablo IV
Ramón Salazar — Resident Evil 4 (2023)
Demon King Ganondorf — The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Best Song
This award goes to the individual, original song that was my personal favorite for the year.
"NOT ON THE SIDELINES" — Street Fighter 6
"Disposal Unit (Imperium Mix)" — Warhammer 40,000: Darktide
"Coastal Vivarium" — Hogwarts Legacy
"Pseudo's Theme" — Clash: Artifacts of Chaos
"Steel Haze (Rusted Pride)" — Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon
"Shades of the Root (Cancer)" — Remnant II
Best Soundtrack
This award goes to the game that had the greatest overall original soundtrack that elevated the gaming experience with consistently high-quality music.
Best Environmental/Level Design
This award goes to the game with level design that was a pleasure to explore while also presenting a unique environment.
Best Puzzles
This award goes to the game that offered the most unique and satisfying puzzle-solving moments.
Best Combat System
This award goes to the game that introduced the most engaging and satisfying combat system.
Best Sound Design
This award goes to the game that created a superb audio experience in both menu navigation and gameplay.
Best Animation
This award goes to the game that brought its world and characters to life through finely tuned and expressive animation.
Best Art Style
This award goes to the game that displayed the most enthralling, atmospheric, and unique visual style in all aspects of art design.
Best Storytelling
This award goes to the game that took full advantage of the medium to present a unique and compelling story.
Game of the Year
This award goes to the. . . well, the Game of the Year! The game that I consider to be the best that I played during 2023.
SO! Who will win? Stay tuned! Hopefully, it won't take me too long to pick the winners, but, as you've seen, I have some incredibly hard decisions to make. . . I mean, come on this year has been fantastic!
While I ache over the selection of who shall win my ArCadey JPEGs, go ahead and leave a comment below to tell me who you think should win, and what games released this year that you believe I've snubbed. Or just lemme know what your personal Game of the Year for 2023 is. Ta-ta for now!