What’s up, gamers! Abby, here! Your former Giant Bomb Content Producer turned current comedy and marketing writer at Jackbox games! You may have also seen my work at G4TV’s Xplay, my web series Abby Dearest, or on my Twitch page.
2023 was a year of high highs and low lows, and like many people, it all went by in a blur. What this year did offer me was a reinvigorated love of video games. After many years of working in games media and having to play every game as it came out, I was burnt out and turned off. As it turns out, turning your hobby into work simply makes it work.
Some time away from that work, and a series of excellent choice-based narratives made it an easy transition getting back to my roots and identifying as a proud Gamer, once again.
MY GAME OF THE YEAR
There’s not much more I can say about Baldur’s Gate 3 that hasn’t already been said, but this is a game I have consistently played since I first picked it up. Nothing else has ever come close to the kind of breadth of choice and customization that are offered here. I loved it and it made many other games seem dull and rote in comparison.
GAMES I LOVED
(in random order)
Steam Deck OLED Limited Edition
Wow! The Steam Deck rocks!! I have always been more of a console player as I find it much easier to relax on the couch rather than at my desk. I WORK from my desk and I FART from my couch! See the difference?
When the Steam Deck was first announced, it seemed like an amazing solution to my Couch/Desk Dilemma, if things actually worked as promised. I held out on getting it as it was difficult to justify the price, but when they announced a fancy OLED version with a transparent casing, I was sold.
Not only have I been able to play Baldur’s Gate 3 from anywhere, but (after a little setup and studying some YouTube videos) I can also use my Deck to play games remotely from my PS5, stream games via Game Pass, and emulate retro titles to my heart’s desire. Things I didn’t even realize I wanted until they were at my fingertips! I am genuinely shocked at how versatile and powerful that little machine is. I have played it every single day since buying it and I do not regret it for a single second.
Pentiment
In the process of looking into all of the games I played this year, I discovered that I didn’t actually play Pentiment in 2023. I played it in 2022. But, you know what? Years no longer matter in a post-COVID society so it’s staying! And don’t yell at me for saying we’re in a post-COVID society! I know that COVID still exists! You know what I mean!!!
In Pentiment, you play as an artist starting your apprenticeship at the Abbey of a small Germanic town in the Middle Ages. Outside of preparing your masterpiece, you share meals and exchange stories with the locals, becoming enmeshed in the community and eventually finding yourself responsible for unraveling the mysteries of a series of murders.
Despite being a murder mystery, Pentiment proved to be gentle and really heartwarming. All of the characters feel like real people, full of their own flaws, humor, and wisdom. And the protagonist, Andreas, spends much of the game confronting–and often avoiding–his own personal demons and the choices he’s made in his life.
Although I didn’t find the final resolution to be wholly satisfying, I absolutely loved the journey getting there. Slowly learning about the ins and outs of the village, the local lore, and town gossip, I really felt like I was watching the lives unfold with real people. People who live in a time and place very different from my own, but who all are dealing with the same personal struggles and triumphs that we all must face–or avoid–over the course of our own lives.
The Case of the Golden Idol
I love a mystery, I love weird art, and I love murder! The Case of the Golden Idol has all three! I replayed Return of the Obra Dinn earlier in the year and Golden Idol was recommended to me by my Twitch audience. And those sweeties have good taste so I immediately bought it and streamed the whole thing.
Golden Idol presents you with a tableau of a scene that has just unfolded. It’s up to you to deduce who everyone is and what happened between them. The story is exciting, funny, fantastical, and kept me engaged as each mystery built upon the last.
By the time I got to some of the later scenes in the game, I found myself confused and frustrated with what exactly the game wanted me to deduce. Eventually, I would grow impatient and I would often resort to brute forcing the puzzles to get them over with. But, despite that, I happily bought all of the DLC and I cannot wait for the recently announced sequel!
Disco Elysium
I originally played Disco Elysium when it first came out, but bounced off of it quickly after being turned off of its abrasive writing style and too many options for my character to be racist and sexist at the start of the game. I was then harassed about it for months for saying this is why the game wasn’t for me. After really enjoying the narrative choices in Baldur’s Gate 3 and craving more games like it, I decided to give Disco Elysium another go.