The Best of 2023
This year has been a big and busy year for myself; with many new situations, lots of harder challenges, and very rewarding experiences. Those sentiments also apply to the games I played in 2023, with the shifts in the games that I played greatly reflecting the shifts in my own life. Over all however, it was a great year for games, with five standout stars (in no particular order).
5 Games
Tears of the Kingdom: I got this game on my last day of School, and the first day of a small school trip to film an airshow. The game, to me, marks the end of an era in my life; similar to how Breath of the Wild started one. I didn't play the game at all during the trip, although I had intended to, there was just to much to do. However I think that for the best. And it made arriving home on that Sunday night, after finishing everything, so much more special. Being able to say "I did it" before returning to the land of Hyrule where my path began.
Fallout 3: My father used to play this game when I was growing up. He was the parent to stay at home with my siblings and myself. Occasionally, I remember seeing him play a weird looking game in his office. At the time I was too young to appreciate what Fallout 3 was; a world that seems to breathe and pulse with life, little details, charm. A world so full I couldn't help but explore everything. It's a bit ironic that my father played this game all those years ago. Now I can't help but see my own relationship with him mirrored in the Lone Wander's relationship with James. I wonder if at the time, he saw the reverse, in his relationship with me.
Flower, Sun, and Rain: This is not a game I think about often now that I've finished it. That said, in the moment I played it, it was just what I needed. I picked it back up during a very weird time in my life; I was basically done with schooling yet I was helping lead classes, I had my whole life ahead of me yet very little planned, I had found myself yet I was less confident then ever. I think this game helped calm the weirdness a little, just by showing me a window into an even weirder world.
Red Dead Redemption: I received this game through unfortunate circumstances. A funeral is never fun, and especially not a week into your new job. However, playing through John Marston's journey made things better. It gave me something to wake up to every morning, and provided me some fun before a long closing shift. Ironically it's also responsible for my 'customer service voice' having a notable western accent.
Halo 2: This game did not have as much of an effect on me as the others on this list did. It's just something I replay often because of how fun it is. The first half especially is always awesome to play though.
