Phaseknox’s Top 10 Games of 2023

[Phaseknox]

The following are my top 10 games of 2023:

10. Shady Part of Me
This is a clever 2.5D side scrolling platform puzzle game with a nice visual style. The story is a bit vague and meant for the player to interpret which I didn’t care for, but the level designs, platforming and puzzles are all well done. It’s a good length for the game that it is, and the challenge is just right.

9. The Liar Princess and the Blind Prince
This is a cute side scrolling platform puzzle game with a fairy tale story and charming art style. It offers some challenging platforming segments, and clever puzzles throughout. It’s a little on the short side and the ending isn’t quite what I was hoping for, but it’s still an enjoyable experience for its entire duration.

8. The Cruel King and the Great Hero
This is a cute 2.5D side scrolling turn-based RPG with a fairy tale story and charming art style. It’s a bit repetitive having you retread the same handful of areas over and over again and most of the side quests (which there are a lot of) are a bit uninspired fetch quests, but the story and characters keep things interesting and the combat is fun. The ending is satisfying as well.

7. A Juggler’s Tale
This is a charming and cute 2.5D side scrolling platform puzzle game with clever gameplay elements and gorgeous graphics. It’s continuously entertaining from start to finish, and there’s never a dull moment. The ending is satisfying as well. Unfortunately it’s really short which is its only shortcoming, but it’s a delightful experience while it lasts.

6. Fran Bow
This is a dark and disturbing point-and-click adventure game with an appealing art style. The story and characters are really strange, but the weirdness of it all is a big part of its overall charm. The puzzles are clever and logical a lot of the time, but can be a bit obtuse at times as well. I had to look up the solutions to them a little more often than I would have liked. I feel that the game starts off really strong, but becomes a little less interesting later on. However, it’s a good length for what it is and it’s a fairly memorable experience.

5. BloodRayne ReVamped
This is a third person action game where you play as a half human half vampire chick that kicks ass. She goes up against monsters and nazis using her arm blades and guns. The action is really fast paced, and there’s some exploration, platforming and puzzle solving as well. The graphics are a bit blocky with low res textures and the controls can be a little clunky, but the gameplay is really fun and Rayne is an enjoyable character to play as. It’s nonstop action the entire time, and it’s a good length too.

4. Persona 4 Golden
This is a third person high school/life sim turn-based dungeon crawling JRPG hybrid. It’s more of an interactive story and sim than it is a game, the majority of time spent during its 70 hour runtime is going to high school and hanging out with your friends in a small rural town. The cast of characters are really likable, and a lot of entertaining and humorous story events happen throughout. But gameplay is limited to going through flat maze-like dungeons every so often engaging in turn-based combat. The dungeon crawling is a small part of the overall experience. The main story itself is kind of dumb, it’s the character side stories that are enjoyable. It’s repetitive for the most part with you doing the same things within the same few areas, but there’s a certain charm to everything especially the characters that keep it interesting throughout.

3. Disaster Report 4: Summer Memories
This is a third person adventure game with you trying to escape a city experiencing earthquakes and aftershocks. You make your way through a lot of different areas throughout the city meeting and helping characters along the way, and all sorts of craziness ensues during your journey. The earthquake/aftershock effects are cool, and you go to a lot of different places. It looks a little dated and plays a bit clunky, but the fun factor makes up for its technical shortcomings. It’s a unique experience that’s constantly entertaining.

2. Deliver Us Mars
This is a third person adventure platform puzzle game with a compelling sci-fi story, and interesting cast of characters. The writing and voice acting for the characters are topnotch, and elevate the overall experience. The story is intriguing, and kept me wanting to see what would happen next. The levels are well designed offering varied locations, and good climbing, platforming and puzzle elements in them. I found the game to be an enjoyable experience throughout, and one of the better indies that I’ve played.

1. King’s Bounty II
This is a third person fantasy RPG with strategic/tactical turn-based combat. It has a good story and cast of characters. You can choose to play as three different characters, but Katherine is easily the standout one. She has a sarcastic wit that makes almost every conversation humorous, and there’s a lot of character interaction in the game. This is a big adventure with you going to a lot of different areas, and meeting a lot of different characters. There’s a plethora of quests, and the majority of them are entertaining with their own little stories. The combat is strategic and tactical with you controlling a squad, and is a lot of fun. I enjoyed the game immensely as it offers just about everything that I like in this type of RPG. The only downside to it is that it doesn’t offer a satisfying conclusion as it ends somewhat abruptly, and to be continued.

[canedaddy]

Very interesting list. I'm surprised you finished 10 games.

The only one I've played is P4. It's been a while, but I feel like I spent as much time in dungeons as I did with the other stuff. Maybe I went through them more than I needed to for grinding or collecting/merging monsters?

[jfissel]

Nice list and write-ups! I'll have to look into a few of these some more as I haven't heard of most of them...like cane, I have only played Persona 4 from your list. I have wanted to check out a Disaster Report game before, so that might be the top one I research.

[isthatallyougot]

Nice reviews phase. Now we just need crim 2.0 , j., cane, argyle and myself. (or whoever is participating)

Nice to see Fran Bow on your list. I thought the puzzles were perfect though, and the game in general is just brilliant. Easily one of my all-time favorite P&C games, and in terms of mood and narrative, it's super high on my all-time list.

I've got to play a BloodRayne game one day. I've had the PS2 entries forever. I think I'd enjoy the series.

I've also never played a Persona game outside of booting up 4 *very* briefly. I love SMT Nocturne so much, and while I know Persona is very different in many ways, I still think I'd end up enjoying that series too.

I have several KB games in my backlog too and always thought they looked really fun.

[Phaseknox]

Very interesting list.

Yeah, there’s not one big AAA game in the bunch. I plan on playing some bigger games this year like God of War: Ragnarok, Hogwarts Legacy and Horizon Forbidden West.

I'm surprised you finished 10 games.

Me too. The only other game that I finished in 2023 that wasn’t on my list was Little Misfortune.

The only one I've played is P4. It's been a while, but I feel like I spent as much time in dungeons as I did with the other stuff. Maybe I went through them more than I needed to for grinding or collecting/merging monsters?

I played the game on easy and didn’t need to grind, so I only went through each of the dungeons one time. The side quests require you to go back to previously completed dungeons to obtain requested items, but I had no interest in doing that. One time through each of the dungeons was enough for me.

Nice list and write-ups!

Thanks.

I have wanted to check out a Disaster Report game before, so that might be the top one I research.

Since you like quirky Japanese games you should like Disaster Report 4.

Nice reviews phase.

Thanks.

Nice to see Fran Bow on your list. I thought the puzzles were perfect though, and the game in general is just brilliant. Easily one of my all-time favorite P&C games, and in terms of mood and narrative, it's super high on my all-time list.

I liked it but didn’t love it like you did. It just didn’t click with me the same way that it did with you. We’re all different, and things tend to appeal to us differently a lot of the time.

I've got to play a BloodRayne game one day. I've had the PS2 entries forever. I think I'd enjoy the series.

I’m not sure what you would think of them, but I think that they’re pretty good. The first and second games are quite a bit different despite both being third person action games. The first one is more of a fast paced hack ‘n slash/shooter hybrid while the second one is a slower paced hack ‘n slasher with a lot of platforming.

I've also never played a Persona game outside of booting up 4 *very* briefly. I love SMT Nocturne so much, and while I know Persona is very different in many ways, I still think I'd end up enjoying that series too.

Persona 3 is my personal favorite, I don’t like Persona 4 quite as much. I played a lot of Persona 5 and I like it more than 4, but I still think that I like 3 a little more. I’m really looking forward to the remake of 3 this year.

[crimson_tide]

King's Bounty 2 huh? I kept thinking about that one. I might grab it for Steam Deck when it inevitably goes on sale this summer. Thanks Phase, and I will make sure to go with Katherine. I think you and I dug Kassandra from Odyssey for similar reasons so it could be fun!

Kinda surprised P4 landed so high on your list, I got the impression form your posts you didn't particularly care for it.

[Phaseknox]

King's Bounty 2 huh? I kept thinking about that one. I might grab it for Steam Deck when it inevitably goes on sale this summer. Thanks Phase, and I will make sure to go with Katherine. I think you and I dug Kassandra from Odyssey for similar reasons so it could be fun!

It’s often on sale at the PS Store for cheap, so you might want to get it for PS4 since you would probably enjoy it more on a bigger screen. I think that you will like it especially if you play as Katharine, because you will probably dig her sarcastic wit. Playing as Elisa almost makes the game a comedy since she’s such a goofball, you will want to play some of the game as her as well because she’s adorably dorky.

Kinda surprised P4 landed so high on your list, I got the impression form your posts you didn't particularly care for it.

I didn’t like it as much as Persona 3, but I still liked it quite a bit. It’s quirky, and a lot of entertaining and humorous stuff happens throughout it.