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[NightmareFarm]

IMO:

2020 > 2022 > 2021 > 2023

2020 is extremely underrated and had some GOAT action games(DOOM Eternal, Ghostrunner, Streets of Rage 4, Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition). The build up towards the PS5 launch was pretty exciting too.

2022 had a string of solid indie titles like Shadow Warrior 3, Rogue Legacy 2, Sifu and Neon White. It was a very low profile year but indies are usually better than AAA nowadays anyway. If you only play AAA western games you're going to hate it however.

2021 was very average. Deathloop, Guilty Gear Strive and Rift Apart stood out as excellent games but the rest weren't anything to sleep over. People say it was a great year for JRPGs but I couldn't disagree more. Shin Megami Tensei V was pure tedium, Tales of Arise completely sucked the soul out of the series whilst simultaneously downgrading every aspect of it and Scarlet Nexus was pure weeb cringe. But still overall an average year it also had some nice releases like the one I mentioned plus Splitgate release on consoles.

2023 was extremely dissapointing despite it being such a high profile year. Almost every game turned out to be a dissapointment or straight up weak from Fire Emblem Engage to Star Wars Jedi Survivor to Final Fantasy 16 to Street Fighter VI. Im a roguelike fan and the roguelikes that came out this year are by FAR the worst i've played in the genre(Astral Ascent and Have a Nice Death). All around dissapointing and overrated. Forspoken and Ghostrunner 2 are the only games that didn't let me down this year.

 

[Laieon]

2023 > > > > > 2020 > 2022 > 2021.

2023 is one of the best years for gaming period, much less this decade.

This year I've been into Metroid Prime, Xenoblade 3's expansion, Resident Evil 4, Diablo IV, I've enjoyed the patches WoW has put out, Baldurs Gate 3 has been great (I'm not too far into it and I'm awful at it, but I'm having fun with it), I loved both Hogwarts Legacy and Spider-Man 2, and I've been really into indies like Against the Storm, Halls of Torment, and Death Must Die. Age of Empire IV's first expansion has been quite fun. I still want to play Dave the Diver, try Phantom Liberty, Super Mario Bros Wonder, Slay the Princess, and World of Horror. The releases of 2023 are going to keep me busy for a very long time.

The only big disappointment for me this year is that Tears of the Kingdom still hasn't quite clicked for me (and neither did BOTW), subjectively that style of Zelda just isn't what I want out the series, but objectively I still recognize it to be a great game and it's been a lot of fun to see some of the cool things people have created within it.

I disagree and think it's overrated. It's just a high profile year but not neccessarily a good year. A lot of the high profile games turned out to be dissapointing as well.

Looking at your initial comment we're into almost entirely different genres, so I'm not surprised you had a different experience.

 

[FinalBossWithTheMostPower]

2023 > 2020 > 2022> 2021

 

[NightmareFarm]

2023 > > > > > 2020 > 2022 > 2021.

2023 is one of the best years for gaming period, much less this decade.

I disagree and think it's overrated. It's just a high profile year but not neccessarily a good year. A lot of the high profile games turned out to be dissapointing as well.

 

[Topher]

2020
2023
2022
2021

 

[Hudo]

2020
2023
2022
2021

 

[ReBurn]

2020
2023
2022
2021

Agree. 2020 was an excellent send-off for last gen with some really great games. 2023 has been excellent. I've purchased more day 1 games this year than I have in many years.

 

[kittoo]

Yeah I am gonna go with 2023 winning it my man. Amazing back-to-back single player games (and I completely disagree with most high profile games being disappointing) and that's when I am not into all genres (e.g., couldn't get into Baldurs Gate 3 due to it being turn-based, but it was an excellent game for most people).

I've completed 30 games this year (not all released in 2023 though) and the second closest for me was 2008. How can a year not be stellar when it had-

Resident evil 4
Hogwarts legacy
Alan wake 2
Spiderman 2
Final fantasy 13
Tears of the kingdom
Lies of P
Lords of the fallen
Starfield
Baldurs gate 3
Hi-fi rush
Dead space
Horizon expansion
Dead island 2
Robocop
Remnant 2
Phantom liberty
Assassins creed mirage

And so many great AA and indie titles!

2023>2020>2022>2021

 

[Heimdall_Xtreme]

2022 was awesome because I join to the next generation of consoles.

 

[NightmareFarm]

Yeah I am gonna go with 2023 winning it my man. Amazing back-to-back single player games (and I completely disagree with most high profile games being disappointing) and that's when I am not into all genres (e.g., couldn't get into Baldurs Gate 3 due to it being turn-based, but it was an excellent game for most people).

I've completed 30 games this year (not all released in 2023 though) and the second closest for me was 2008. How can a year not be stellar when it had-

Resident evil 4
Hogwarts legacy
Alan wake 2
Spiderman 2
Final fantasy 13
Tears of the kingdom
Lies of P
Lords of the fallen
Starfield
Baldurs gate 3
Hi-fi rush
Dead space
Horizon expansion
Dead island 2
Robocop
Remnant 2
Phantom liberty
Assassins creed mirage

And so many great AA and indie titles!

2023>2020>2022>2021

It definitely had a lot of big names but some of them didn't live up to the hype at all. Take Final Fantasy 16(I assume you meant that, not 13) from that list for instance. It was a memorable expeirence for sure but had glaring flaws like the training dummy enemy AI and how barebones the RPG elements are.

 

[Aion002]

2020 was the best, it had TLU2, Ghost of Tsushima, Nioh 2, Genshin Impact, FFVII Remake, Demon's Souls Remake, Flight Simulator, Resident Evil 3 Remake and more.



2022 had Elden Ring, one my favorite games ever, and God of War Ragnarok and Vampire Survivors, made 2022 great.

2023 with FFXVI, Exo Primal, Age of Empires 4, RER4, Lies of P and other's was also a good year for me.


2021 was kinda bad for me... Capcom did good with MH Rise and RE8, but that was it.

So, for me: 2020>2022>2023>>>>>>>2021.

 

[kittoo]

It definitely had a lot of big names but some of them didn't live up to the hype at all. Take Final Fantasy 16(I assume you meant that, not 13) from that list for instance. It was a memorable expeirence for sure but had glaring flaws like the training dummy enemy AI and how barebones the RPG elements are.

While I agree that depending on expectations some games might not've lived up to everyone's expectations, there were just too many good games overall so it equates.
I mean sure FF16 didn't live up to hype for you and I understand that, but it still wasn't a bad game? I personally enjoyed it immensely. And then there were so many other good games to cover disappointments.
I do see that you are into very different genres than me though, so that could be a reason for your disappointment

 

[S0ULZB0URNE]

1.2022
2.2023
3.2020

 

[Doom85]

2023 > 2020 > 2022> 2021

 

[Efren is G.O.A.T.]

Zelda Tears of the Kingdom, Resident Evil 4, Diablo 4, Mario Wonder, Lies of P....there isn't even a debate

 

[ChuckeRearmed]

2023 was impressive. Other years - not so much.

Still nothing beats 2007.

 

[Kings Field]

2022 just for Elden Ring alone. This year has been really good too. I felt like 2020 and 2021 was a blur due to working constantly during Covid. The main thing I remember from 2020 was the new consoles and the madness of preordering.

 

[Phase]

2020-2023:

 

[March Climber]

It definitely had a lot of big names but some of them didn't live up to the hype at all.

I disagree and think it's overrated. It's just a high profile year but not neccessarily a good year. A lot of the high profile games turned out to be dissapointing as well.

2023 was extremely dissapointing despite it being such a high profile year.

In all seriousness though, I agree with them about 2023 being in the top 2. I'd like to offer a helpful suggestion to you to check out some of the best AA and indie games of 2023 to see why it was an even better year than some are suggesting.