This year. Has been. PACKED.
Baldur’s Gate 3.
Dead Space Remake.
Resident Evil 4 Remake.
Hogwarts Legacy.
Star Wars: Jedi Survivor.
Diablo IV.
Amnesia: The Bunker.
Final Fantasy XVI.
Lords of the Fallen.
Alan Wake 2.
Avatar: Frontier of Pandora.
Armored Core 6.
Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
And those were just the ones that I bought. You also had stellar releases like Pikman 4, Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Persona 5 Tactica, and oh so much more! Dare I say it was almost too overwhelming to dedicate time to each! And while each deserves a full deep-dive review, lets just focus on the brush-stroke for the recap of such a banger of a year for games.
BALDUR’S GATE 3 takes the Game of the Year, bar none. Not only did it win GOTY in nearly every award ceremony, but it holds to it’s own as a wave changer just like Elden Ring was. The game release as a storm of interest. Everyone talked about it. Even if it wasn’t your forte, you’d at least heard about it or maybe even tried it. It pushed the limits in world, setting, characters, narrative–it brought it’s genre to the forefront, just as Elden Ring had for its genre. Truly spectacular.
I mean, you know it’s something when you buy it as a gift to play with your dad but then he and your mom end up playing it so much you can only dream of catching up. THEY’RE ON THEIR THIRD PLAYTHROUGH. I think my mom has a new addiction and my dad just has to go with it xD haha
If I were to sum this year with my top seven, even though all the games deserve a visit, I’d list them as thus:
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Resident Evil 4 Remake
- Dead Space Remake
- Lords of the Fallen
- Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
- Star Wars: Jedi Survivor
- Hogwarts: Legacy
Yes, it was supposed to be just my top 5…. but I can’t get over how often I keep returning to and enjoying Hogwarts and Survivor.
7. Hogwarts not only is a blast of Harry Potter setting, but it also does just about everything right for a chill RPG to keep coming back to. You have exploration, crafting, collecting, wand combat, broom riding, customization, and stats! It’s PACKED full of RPG elements and you don’t have to know a lick about Harry Potter’s world to enjoy, it will immerse you regardless from it’s god-like intro. So much mystery and potential. Game is a win if you’re looking for a relaxed RPG filled with exploring and addictive wand combat.
6. Jedi Survivor also sets the bar high. If you enjoyed Fallen Order, this one not only amplifies it, but man alive is the amount of content cranked up to eleven! Cal Kestis is one of my new all-time fav Star Wars characters and the game has become a staple for me and one of my kids. If you like exploring, light saber combat, with a dab of force, an amazing cast, and the Star Wars setting in the palm of your force-sensing hands–this game is a must. Truly amazed that Star Wars can be THIS good! If only the quality carried over to the films…. I digress…
5. Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora came out of nowhere for me. I’d heard about it, yes, but felt the marketing for it was practically non-existent. I took a risk diving in, but I have not played nor seen a more beautiful looking game this generation of consoles yet. THIS GAME IS GORGEOUS. As an individual raised in the jungle, when I say you can get lost in this world–this world is dense! I love how rich the terrain is and how packed full of life it feels. Terrain traversal is a blast and being able to climb the roots of trees and mountains with more roots leading to higher mountain rocks–ah! It’s awesome. And that first-flight moment was bae. This game has been blowing me away. Just enough RPG in the gear, weapons, crafting, and leveling that I truly feel immersed and absolutely recommend this game for peak graphics. Amen.
4. Lords of the Fallen was much needed. I had no issues with bugs during this game so I can only speak to a good, pleasurable experience. The game is just enough Elden Ring that I felt familiar and at home, but also did things just enough its own way where I felt refreshed and even, at times, more enjoyed. I LOVE umbral. Bouncing between the realms is a mechanic I absolutely will tip my hat too! The game is hard, but I feel like the combat timings are actually achievable. And I actually appreciate it NOT being a massively, overly vast open-world. Having linear levels hasn’t ruined any of the immersion and being able to travel back through them is a nice add. The boss fights are fun, challenging, but still winnable. Very impressed with balance of this game and didn’t think I’d come to love it as much as I have.
3. Dead Space Remake is bae. The game is everything I could hope for in a remake. Quite literally took the first game, fixed the bad, mega-amplified the graphics from ground up, added new, and only changed what needed change. It’s raw, horror, space-alien blasting fun. If you’re into horror, bruh, this game awesome. Motive absolutely NAILED it for a remake, and I can’t wait to see what they do next! If it’s a reboot of the series in their hands, I’m all for it! The sounds, the atmosphere, the graphics, the combat and weapons–the game felt every bit Dead Space that it should have and looked every bit this-gen in quality.
2. Resident Evil 4 Remake is probably one of the greatest remakes of history thus far. The original was one of my first steps into the franchise and man alive did it get me hooked on RE games. The remake not only brought it up to today’s standard of quality and graphics, but the game is an absolute feat. Leon was perfectly done. Ashley is still annoying. Luis is now top-tier, and Ada is just as mysterious as she is intriguing. When I say this-gen, I mean it–the graphics are amazing. They rebuild from the ground up into something that will hold true for decades to come. Can’t wait to replay this gem every year. The perfect balance of intrigue, looting, upgrading, and surviving the onslaught!
And of course Baldur’s Gate 3 is number one, and I started with that so no need to repeat myself. This year has been amazing. As a horror-genre fanatic, Dead Space and Resident Evil have me in gaming-heaven alone. As an RPG fan, Hogwarts and Avatar have me beyond satisfied with worlds of beauty to explore. As a atmosphere-junky, Lords of the Fallen and Survivor have keep me immersed and enthralled, and as a gamer-enthusiast, Baldur’s Gate 3 has touched on practically every interest in gaming I’ve been able to experience in a single game: RPG, tactical, narrative, character creation, party creation, customization, strategy, exploration, looting–truly the GOTY and a GOAT of a year for gaming as a whole.
Cheers to next year and the inevitable forthcoming releases of Banishers, Fable 3, The Outer Worlds 2, Avowed, Metaphor: ReFantazio, Dragon’s Dogma 2, Black Myth: Wukong, and oh so much more!
G3ntl3man's Review 