Game of the Year 2023

Few things in life are as subjective as trying to say something is the best. There are some objective things you can use as data points, such as graphical prowess, quality music and voice acting, responsive controls and more. Like our readers, the members of this team have different preferences and that fascinating variety of opinions and experiences means different things to each of us. Now that the year has ended, we want to share with everyone else what game meant the most to us overall and became our Game of the Year

NICK

Baldur’s Gate 3

I’ve been a tremendous fan of these Dungeons & Dragons games for a very long time now, having played the original Baldur’s Gate and its various ‘sibling titles’ many years ago. To say I was excited for Baldur’s Gate 3 would be an understatement – and somehow it still managed to exceed my already high expectations. Add to it that my youngest kid and several of her friends are hooked on it now as well, it is a title that is spanning generations and in our case, bringing family just a bit closer together. It’s hands-down my Game of the Year for 2023.

SUSAN N.

Talos Principle 2

Before I get hate mail for denying Baldur’s Gate 3 the top slot, let me just say that I debated for WEEKS on which game was going to make my game of the year. Is it the graphics? Replayability? Voice Acting? Dialogue? What makes a game of the year what it is? I debated the same concept last year with God of War versus Elden Ring. IMO, God of War should have won. They took EVERY OTHER CATEGORY but somehow Elden Ring took it? A debate for another time… Anyways, what makes a game of the year for me is not just the things I listed above, and it’s not an incorporeal concept like ‘it’s just fun’ (which is subjective and not helpful in rating a game), it is in fact the overall message or story. The Talos Principle isn’t just a puzzle game that you solve until there is no more. It’s a philosophical game. It asks questions that you may not be able to answer. The game makes you think about what makes us human, especially as you are playing a robot that exemplifies many of the same thoughts and fears as we do. It’s wild. It’s captivating. It’s BEAUTIFUL. And it made me cry and laugh and scratch my head at so many points. ‘Fun’ is not even on the radar for rating the game. The Talos Principle 2 scratches an itch that not many games seem to. And I wish I could do this explanation justice as I can barely get into words how and why it takes GOTY 2023. It’s almost unfair that I had to pick between The Talos Principle 2 and Baldur’s Gate 3, because if it wasn’t for Talos, the amazing Baldur’s Gate 3 would take it all. What is 2023, even? Seriously.

RICHARD

Legend of Nayuta

Here we are, the title I'd proclaim as my Game of the Year. Before you go saying anything, I'd like to point out that all the items in my lists are all titles I've reviewed. Even so, Legend of Nayuta still makes an extrememly good showing. I absolutely loved playing through Nayuta, from the gameplay, the characters, the boss fights, the music, I loved everything. A great action-adventure title from the great people at Falcom, Legend of Nayuta should be of instant interest if you like any sort of action-adventure type titles. If the game makes me want to beat it on the hardest difficulty not just for completion sake, but for the enjoyment as well as the bonus content from new game plus? Yes please, I'm all over that.

PIERRE-YVES

Sea of Stars

With all the AAA titles that I've played this year, new and backlog alike, there's an indie that stood among the rest and I've quiet literally only recently sat down to it. Ten minutes in I knew, this was what I've been looking for to wear this year's crown.

Sea of Stars is something that once I saw the original trailer years back I knew, this would be amazing, and it is. Great dialog, smooth exploration gameplay, awesome combat and loads of accessibility options for players of any skill to enjoy. It has it all on top of a great soundtrack to make an incredible experience.

While nodding to the greats like Chrono Trigger and Super Mario RPG where the influences are clear to see yet made their own, Sea of Stars easily stands alongside the last few years worth of greats such as Chained Echoes and Rise of the Third Power.

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Glam Up in One of the Best Games of this Year, Baldur's Gate 3

DUBLIN, September 22, 2023 - Mac users and chronic character re-creators rejoice! Today’s Baldur’s Gate 3 update brings the full release of the critically acclaimed RPG to Mac, and finally allows players to change their characters’ appearance in-game via the Magic Mirror.

Patch 3 also contains many pages of bug fixes, tweaks and improvements. Does your dog begin to float away when he senses the postman is near? Patch 3’s got a fix for that. Read the full patch notes on Steam. 

Magic Mirror

The Magic Mirror lives in the party’s camp and allows players to change up their appearance whenever they’d like. There are some restrictions: your appearance, voice, pronouns and nether region can be changed, but race/subrace and body type cannot. Origin characters, hirelings, and full illithids cannot use the Magic Mirror, and any cosmetic modifications that are a consequence of gameplay choices will persist – hag got your eye? swallow any interesting tadpoles lately? There’s no Magic Mirroring those big life decisions away.

Mac Support

Where previously Mac support was limited to Early Access, the full release of Baldur’s Gate 3 is now available to Mac players via Steam.

As with BG3’s launch on PC earlier this year, Early Access saves on Mac will not be compatible with the full version of the game. To minimise potential compatibility issues, Early Access players are encouraged to fully uninstall the Early Access version of Baldur’s Gate 3 and ensure all mods are removed before reinstalling the latest version of Baldur’s Gate 3. Players can follow this pre-launch guide for best results: Baldur’s Gate 3 - Preparing for Launch

 

Baldur’s Gate 3 is out now on PC, Mac and PS5, and is coming to Xbox later this year.

More information on Baldur’s Gate 3 is available here on the official website. You can stay up to date with the latest Larian Studios news via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or the official Discord Server. 

 

About Larian Studios

Larian Studios is an independent RPG developer founded in 1996 in Ghent, Belgium. Over 400 people work between worldwide studios in Ghent, Quebec, Dublin, Guildford, Malaysia and Barcelona. Larian is best known for the Divinity universe, which they introduced to the world with Divine Divinity in 2002.

In 2014, Larian launched Divinity: Original Sin, a classic CRPG that won over 150 awards and nominations. The company released its critically acclaimed sequel Divinity: Original Sin 2 on September 14, 2017, followed by the Definitive Edition in August 2018 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One to a 93 Metacritic rating. The Nintendo Switch version released in September 2019 featuring cross-save progression between Nintendo Switch and Steam. Divinity: Original Sin 2 won a BAFTA for Best Multiplayer Game. On August 3, 2023, Larian Studios released Baldur’s Gate 3 on PC. On September 6, 2023, Baldur’s Gate 3 was released on PS5.

Article by: Susan N.

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Take a Look at Baldur's Gate III by Larian Studios!

DUBLIN, June 11, 2023 - Hot on the heels of last week's Summer Game Fest – which revealed award-winning actor Jason Isaacs in the role of Baldur’s Gate 3’s second major villain – at today’s PC Gaming Show, Larian Studios provided players their first look at the iconic Forgotten Realms city of Baldur’s Gate in decades.

Larian revisits Baldur's Gate after 20 years!

Opening on an image of the sprawling waters of the Chionthar River, in-game footage reveals a fully next-gen reimagining of this iconic fantasy setting while the development team discusses the daunting undertaking of recreating Baldur’s Gate for a modern RPG. The city of Baldur’s Gate is a metropolis of labyrinthine streets, with alleys, temples, and crowded public houses teeming with life, and stories woven into the lives of every local you encounter.

Baldur’s Gate is back and bigger than ever “We can put lots more of the city on screen than we could in 1998,” narrative design expert Lawrence Schick explains, “We can do something that is more immersive, richer, has more texture to it." The city itself is also bigger than any iteration of this setting that’s come before it. The streets - which span the menacing roads of the Outer City, the opulent estates of the Upper City, and the dark alleys of the Lower City - are populated with a rich cast of characters, each possessing their own untold stories, well-kept secrets, and personal reactions. “You have crowds that are walking around everywhere. You can talk to pretty much anybody, and they react to every single thing,” says Swen Vincke, creative director at Larian Studios. “It’s very alive in that sense.” “One of the things that’s done is it’s added this level of believability and immersion and also complexity that wouldn’t have been there otherwise,'' adds associate writing lead Chrystal Ding. “It feels like you are walking around a place where there are lots and lots of people living their actual lives.”

Larian originally prototyped Baldur’s Gate as a series of smaller contained regions connected by teleports, but mid-way into developing the city, decided to make some major changes. "[Swen] said, like, can't we just connect everything?" reminisces world building director Farhang Namdar. "And that was an interesting day." Come launch, players will be stepping foot in a Baldur's Gate made up of three seamless open world districts. No matter if you’re investigating underground crypts, wandering the chambers of a towering citadel, or descending into hidden cellars, there will be no visible loading screens to interrupt your experience.  “We spent I think three times, four times more effort on the city than we originally planned to, but the result, the feeling of walking in there, is just fantastic,” says Vincke. “So, the thing that I was the most afraid of when we started making this game turned out to be the thing that I’m the most proud of.”

Players can experience the city for themselves when Baldur’s Gate 3 releases on PC & PS5 on August 31, 2023.   More information on Baldur’s Gate 3 is available here on the official website. You can stay up to date with the latest Larian Studios news via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or the official Discord Server.

About Larian Studios Larian Studios is an independent RPG developer founded in 1996 in Ghent, Belgium. Over 400 people work between worldwide studios in Ghent, Quebec, Dublin, Guildford, Malaysia and Barcelona. Larian is best known for the Divinity universe, which they introduced to the world with Divine Divinity in 2002. In 2014, Larian launched Divinity: Original Sin, a classic CRPG that won over 150 awards and nominations. The company released its critically acclaimed sequel Divinity: Original Sin 2 on September 14, 2017, followed by the Definitive Edition in August 2018 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One to a 93 Metacritic rating. The Nintendo Switch version released in September 2019 featuring cross-save progression between Nintendo Switch and Steam. Divinity: Original Sin 2 won a BAFTA for Best Multiplayer Game. In October 2020, Larian Studios released the Early Access version of Baldur’s Gate 3.

Article by: Susan N.

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