Friday Night Gamecast: Nick's Top 5 Games of 2023
Nick and Will are co-hosts of a variety video game podcast focused on providing their audiences with game reviews, impressions, industry news coverage and the occasional hot take. Between the latest AAA titles, indies and even cozy games or dating sims, Nick and Will cover it all and seek to provide you with meaningful and thoughtful discourse on all things Video Game!
1. Resident Evil 4 Remake / Separate Ways
I’ve fallen in love with Resident Evil over the past 2-3 years. Since playing 5 as my first experience in middle school, I never really understood what the love for this franchise was all about (besides watching Milla Jojovich play Alice on the silver screen). That is, until I picked up a copy of Resident Evil 2 Remake. That game changed everything for me and my adoration for the survival horror genre. Resident Evil 4 is an iconic action shooter staple with a smattering of intense horror moments, and the Remake honors its predecessor in every way possible.
Similar to the discourse surrounding Tears of the Kingdom, many people in the podcasting space push down RE4 because of the remarkably strong framework of the original. They argue that this game is simply a Remake at its core – it doesn’t innovate anything. While this is a subjective perspective, I would argue that a game’s lineage doesn’t invalidate the level of excellence that Resident Evil 4 executes on all fronts. Brilliant and cutting edge art direction, brutal moment-to-moment combat and the ever present feeling of being on the verge of panic sit in the core of the classic RE4 experience and is elevated to a level of prestige never before seen in a Resident Evil remake, let alone any of the original titles. The upgrade in character design, narrative direction and integrative combat left me gasping in awe at every mission and I needed more! They delivered more in the best way with Separate Ways.
I think saying RE4 Remake can’t be Game of the Year is silly and limiting. This idea doesn’t really hold up when examined under a consistent methodological lens. I loved this game, I beat BOTH narratives, it came out in 2023 and it’s best in class. There’s not more Leon, Ashley and Ada need to secure their place in my number one spot for 2023!
2. Disco Elysium
It’s not often you get to say you played one of your favorite games of all time. But I can, without any reservations, say that for Disco Elysium. I have a 3 hour long dissertation that Dave Jackson – host of Tales from the Backlog – joined me for in February 2023 so I’d push anyone reading this to jump into that episode if they have a long commute or time on their hands. In the meantime, I’ll keep my discussion here brief.
The city of Revechol is cold and unforgiving. The city is a mere reflection of the protagonist who wakes up to pain and no recollection of who he ever was. Disco Elysium tells the story of an amnesiac detective who’s tasked with solving the murder. But the investigation has far-reaching implications to the city and the people within it. It also becomes an inquiry into the meaning of the “self” and how immutable that idea is to the human experience. In Disco Elysium, the self that is constructed is always burdened by the mistakes of the past. Our beguiled protagonist, Harry, is fleeing his past, his trauma and his wrongdoing. Despite his fractured sense of self, Harry has a job to do. So he presses on while I press on explaining to you why this 2019 masterpiece is #2 on my list for 2023.
This game is lightning in a bottle and studio ZA/UM facing its legal disputes with Robert Kurvitz and Aleksander Rostov (writer, designer and artist) following the Disco Elysium’s release will likely never produce anything similar to this game again. Needless to say, this game is and will remain one of a kind. Intellectual character writing, intensely tragic storytelling and an air of magical realism make Disco Elysium as philosophical as it is enjoyable to play. I was left pondering my sense of self and the world around me after it’s conclusion and I resonated so deeply with the protagonist, it was startling…I need to stop writing this and go start a second save file right now.
3. Baldur's Gate 3
I’m not entirely sure I can contribute more than what’s already been said in the discourse surrounding Baldur’s Gate 3, but I will say just a few things. I have never played a CRPG to this depth before…and after relishing BG3 I don’t know if I ever will again. Meaning I’ve been spoiled to such a degree that it’ll be hard for any experience to compare. This game should be the overall GOTY for the industry as well as my personal GOTY, however, I’m not finished with it yet! (This speaks more to me as a tired, 30-year-old gamer, not quite the game length)
Breathtaking score, visuals on par with any AAA title in the industry today and a story with unparalleled character writing leaves Baldur’s Gate 3 players with nothing but a profound need to live in this world just a few minutes more. The core cast and voice direction has a heartfelt impact on the player experience and, even further, the innovative and intensive motion capture work displayed in this game bring the world of Faerûn fully to life. Gameplay that allows an insane level of emergent experience leaves BG3 unchallenged by any modern first-party experiences today. I will continue to play this for quite some time, but until then, do yourself a favor and grab a copy of Baldur’s Gate 3.
4. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Since its release in early May, there has been a ton of coverage discussing TOTK and it’s place among the upper echelon of AAA titles in 2023. The most notable “hot-take” I’ve seen come out of these discussions is that Tears simply improved upon what Breath of the Wild established in a way that changed open world games forever. I mean to refute this notion.
Tears of the Kingdom is not $70 DLC for Breath of the Wild. It’s an experience that transcends most open world games, much like its predecessor. However, so much has changed within this iteration of Hyrule between 2017 and 2023, that it doesn’t feel quite right to qualify this as a simple “improvement.” Yes it keeps the same map, but it adds multiple layers that are just as large and expansive on top of that. With an unparalleled crafting system, mechanics that simply shouldn’t work on 6 year old Switch hardware, revolutionary abilities and autonomous AI systems that integrate seamlessly within the world, it’s nothing less than incredible – and from my perspective, Tears is the best Zelda game ever made. The narrative delivery, while disjointed, gave lore fanatics like myself something serious to dig into. For all its merits, there are reasons why it won’t win and that has a lot to do with pacing and bloat. It’s difficult to consume and easy to fatigue but it remains one of the best titles released this year.
5. Signalis
Had I played Signalis in 2022 when it was originally released, it would have easily leapt to my number 1 spot, dethroning God of War Ragnarok. Signalis is the absolute perfect blend of everything you want in a survival horror video game. It directly references and pays homage to the likes of the Silent Hill and Resident Evil franchises in a variety of ways but most notably through its mind-bending puzzles and haunting imagery. While its 32-bit pixel art direction may not impress most modern gamers, I found the delivery incredibly stunning and even more immersive at times than its photorealistic counterparts in the genre. It’s haunting and demure tone paired with an unsettling aesthetic; this Eurasian cold-war, retro-tech, sci-fi blend grounded in cosmic horror left me gasping for more by the time I finished my first run.
For an indie, Signalis is remarkably strong on multiple levels. However, it’s primary strength lies in the games ability to weave a disparate thread of humanity and steadfast love in a world that tries to oppress such ideas. Subtext that grapples with philosophical concepts centered on nationalist militarism, feminism, transhumanism and nihilism merely enhance the cosmic horror that conveys desperation and fear like nothing I’ve ever played before. This is a 10/10 game that everyone who enjoys the genre must play. And this speaks volumes for the next 4 on my top 5. In the meantime, let’s Remember your Promise.