Now that 2022 is in the rear-view mirror, we are entering 2023 with anticipation for the games to come. That doesn't mean however, that we don't want to take a little time to appreciate those titles that meant the most to us over the prior year as well. We have several categories in mind that will be rolled out each day, starting with our biggest surprises. As the name implies: which game managed to not only meet expectations, but blow them away?
Pierre-Yves - Elden Ring
I don't know what I expected to be honest. Years in development, little teasers here and there, what was it? When would we get it? And then we had it.
Dark Souls 4.
That's what Elden Ring is. Does it do anything new? Not particularly, but it's a combination of all of the Soulslikes experiences that From Software have done over the years into one awesome package. Is it perfect? No. Could the multiplayer use some enhancement like that epic mod that was created? Yes. But it was so hard to put down and it continued to impress me with its design approach.
The biggest question now is, where does From Software go from here? Do they try to one up this? Return to Armored Core? Or make something brand new.
Note: This was originally written before the announcement of Armored Core 6. Yay for a new Armored Core!
Richard - Tiny Creatures
I'll admit, this isn't something I was expecting, and boy did it blow me away. A sort of novelized storytelling combined with puzzles and...action bullet-hell? It's an incredibly weird combination that just plain works. A weird and amazing take on Frankenstein told in a unique way, this is definitely the biggest surprise for me.
Nick - Roguebook
When this title was first announced, I really had no idea what to expect from it. As someone who enjoyed Faeria when it released, Roguebook was a welcome return to the characters and world that I hope to see in more games in the future. Like Faeria, Roguebook mashes up some aspects from similar but different genres and the end result was highly addictive and challenging game that I found myself picking up repeatedly throughout the year after its release.
