Top 40 BEST Games of 2023 

Imagine someone telling you a few years ago that when Starfield comes out, it’s quality is going to be somewhere in between Corn Kidz 64 and Sonic Superstars.

This video needs to blow up; Reviewing 40 games with good and engaging descriptions for each is crazy. Your video game knowledge and experience is amazing and the content itself is very entertaining. Keep it up Totally Tubular Jonathan!

Hey Jonathan, As much as I appreciate the effort you put into the list, and I can tell, I have to say the section about game devs in 2023 hit me the hardest. My heart goes to you for what you went through. I wish you a wonderful 2024 and hope maybe our paths will cross one day. All the best

lowkey been anticipating this vid, prolly my fav channel rn i love hearing someone nerd out abt the video games i love while i clean 😅

The thing I love about these lists is that you can talk about SpongeBob and the Cosmic Shake and then just say “alright next up we have Amnesia the Bunker” as if they’re like part of the same series or something.

Great list. Was hoping to see Lies of P and Hogwarts Legacy here, those games were great. Other than that, I thought you made some great picks. Excited to try a few on here I had not heard of so thanks!

Here are my personal ranking games of 2023: 1. Armored Core 6 2. Bomb Rush Cyberfunk 3. Gravity Circuit 4. Pizza Tower 5. Hi-Fi Rush 6. Super Mario Bros: Wonder 7. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 8. SpongeBob: The Cosmic Shake 9. Pikmin 4 10. Sonic Superstars 11. Remnant 2 12. Viewfinder 13. Warhammer 40K: Boltgun

aye lets go! been looking forward to this video since you mentioned it in one of your other videos

I have been enjoying your videos for a couple of weeks now. Love them :), keep it up!!

i’d heavily recommend checking out sea of stars. it’s one of those games where you can just tell that a lot of love went into it. i haven’t played that many games from this year but it’s right there with armored core as my goty.

Nice List! This really was such a great year for video games that I had 15 standouts. they would go something like this 15. Spider-Man 2 14. Octopath Traveler 2 13. Star Wars Jedi Survivor 12. Super Mario Wonder 11. Armored Core 6 10. Persona 5 Tactica 9. Like a Dragon Ishin 8. Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Future Redeemed 7. Final Fantasy 16 6. Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty 5. Hi-Fi Rush 4. Lies of P 3. Resident Evil 4 Remake 2. Like a Dragon Gaiden 1. Alan Wake 2

2023 was an amazing year, up there wit 98, 01, 11, 95, 04 etc. can't believe i didn't know about your channel until now, it's been a while since i discovered a channel i liked...maybe last one was about a yr ago. im subscribing, good content.

I haven’t really played many games released this year other than Mario Wonder, Pikmin 4, and Dead Space remake. This year has been the year I have worked on my backlog, and I found some amazing older games! I finally played BOTW, I adored Omori, and I loved finally playing the first Kingdom Hearts game! This was a great list, love your channel!

Sharks! Here’s my list for 2023: 1. Resident Evil 4 Remake 2. Armored Core VI 3. Final Fantasy 16 (2/3’s of the way through) 4. Lies of P 5. Dead Space Remake I only played these five games from 2023 since my backlog was completing all the souls games this year.

i commented asking for a top 20 or 30 for the year 2023 and you come back with a top 40. great lol

My top 5 5. Street fighter 6 4. Hi fi rush 3. FF16 2. Alan wake 2 1 Spider-Man 2

Bro your channel snaps! Your videos are fkin amazing man cant wait to see this video

My list 1. Octopath Traveler 2 2. Street Fighter 6 3. Final Fantasy XVI 4. Mario Wonder 5. Zelda totk 6. Diablo 4 7. Theatrhythm Final Bar Line 8. Mortal Kombat 1 9. Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak 10. Hogwarts Legacy Need to play Lies of P and Fire Emblem Engage

Hey, I NEVER leave a comment on RU-vid videos. And I watch RU-vid every day. I just wanna say, this is an outstanding video. For a few reasons. 1. You pick games that aren’t the same one’s that everyone has already heard about and 2. You describe them in interesting and engaging ways that make me want to play them. You earned yourself a sub and a like 👍🏼, thanks for making great content!

Glad to see Street Fighter 6 so high. Glad to see other games I played high up as well. RE 4 Remake Final Fantasy XVI Tears of the Kingdom Super Mario Wonder Baldur’s Gate 3

I’m gonna be honest dredge at not even 40 is wild, it’s one of my favorite indies that came out this year. I obviously played a lot less new games than you but dredge was like top 9 or 10

I did not expect to love Mario rpg as much as I did, one of my favorites now.

i think the best thing about re4 remake is that its different enough that it doesnt replace the original. Like the remake is amazing but the differences between the remake and original make the original still worth going back to. They compliment each other

Sharks, also your pronunciation of Ganondorf threw me so hard lmao

Jesus fuck imagine playing all these goddamned games

FF16 made me feel like a digital god. I have not felt like that since asuras wrath and god of war 3! Game of the generation for me!

What a goated channel frl. I hope you blow up in 2024.

Great video

My 2023 list of games I like 1. Spider-Man 2 2. Final Fantasy XVI 3. Resident Evil 4 4. Armored Core VI 5. Hogwarts Legacy Currently going through Alan Wake 2 and have not finished Zelda yet. Those two are strong contender for my top 5. Also shout out to dlc/exapansion like Phantom Liberty, Burning Shores and especially God of War Valhalla.

I'm glad to see Amnesia: The Bunker on this list and placed so highly at that. It's a huge return to form for the Amnesia franchise, as well as being one of the best horror games in years.

I didn’t even know Bomb Rush Cyberfunk existed until this video!I’m gonna buy it immediately!!! I absolutely loved Jet Set Radio growing up!!

I only played 5 games that came out in 2023, so I'll give a list of games I played for the first time in 2023. 1. Elden Ring: 9.5/10, what can I say that hasn't been said. 2. God of War 2: 9/10, This game takes almost everything from GOW 1 and makes it better. 3. Spider-Man 2: 9/10, Does the same thing as GOW 2 did, this game could have used a couple more hours with Venom though. 4. Arkham City: 8.75/10, I have grown up with Batman my whole life. I remember watching the original Adam West series on our little TV that only had 6 channels. So finally playing a game on par with the animated series was great. Also the Mr. Freeze boss fight is one of the best fights I've ever done. 5. Armored Core 6: 8.5/10, I love how Fromsoft took a risk and didn't make a souls game. While I don't think it is as good as the best souls games it is really fun to blow things up in a giant mech. 6. Arkham Asylum: 8.25/10, not as good as city, but still very fun. I loved the Scarecrow and Killer Croc sections. 7. God of War 1: 8/10, Fuck the Hades level. 8. Jedi Survivor: 7.5/10, The biggest issues, the glitches. On my third playthough I found an instant crash zone that soft locked me. Another issue with the game to me is it is good at everything, but never excels at anything. Combat is good, but Sekiro is better. Traversal is good, but both Spider-Man 2's are better. World design is good, but Arkham Asylum and BOTW are better. The bosses are good, but Dark souls 3 and Elden Ring are better. You get my point by now. I just don't think it has any real identity. I do think it advanced on Fallen Order pretty well though 9. Jedi Fallen Order: 7.5/10, Basically the same as Survivor but with less glitches. 10. Assassin's Creed Mirage: 7/10, Better than I thought it would be. A good step in the right direction for the series. 11. Kingdom Hearts 3: 6.5/10, I love KH1 and KH2, very disappointed about this game. 12. Assassin's Creed Odyssey: 6/10, The world is too big and not interesting enough to warrant its size. 13. Rise of Kong: 1/10, Bought as a joke, played for 30 minutes and then refunded it. So that's my list. To make it clear I like all these games but the bottom three. This list made me think for a good while, but I think this is my final list now.

How does this dude not have a million subs?

I never played Battle for Bikini Bottom...but just yesterday looked it up on various app stores and game stores.... bought it for $1.29 😮 on apple app store. now playing on an iPad with a controller 😊 cant believe it was that cheap!

2 games should definitely be considered for this list if you are into visual novels or games that are mostly story-based: The Case of the Golden Idol is a great game that recreates a lot of the magic that made The Return of the Obra Dinn so enjoyable. It’s a very old school art style and the gameplay is essentially click on something for information and then fill-in-the-blanks but it must be played to understand why it’s so special. Paranormasight is just a fantastic visual novel in more of the horror genre. A fair amount of exposition is needed at the beginning but once you get going it is a pretty flawless story.

Now I am interested to hear about your week routine. I cant imagine to not burnout. I imagine how big your backlog.

Wish I could’ve played 40 games this year but from what I did finish this is my list 1. Re4 remake 2. Cyberpunk/phantom liberty 3. Lies of p 4. Totk 5. Sf 6 6. Dead space 7. Hifi rush 8. Sea of stars 9. Wo long 10. Cocoon 11. Starfield Games I want to play that I didn’t get around to playing are bg3, Lotf, blasphemous 2, ac6, Jedi survivor, pizza tower, aw2, Spiderman 2, ff16, hellboy, dredge, and last faith

Love the list and all the content. Keep up the great work!

The only game released in 2023 that I've played so far is System Shock Remake. While I actually prefer the original 1994 game for a number of reasons (the OST, faster combat, lack of clutter, etc.), Night Dive did a great job with the Remake, and it would be cool to see them remake other Looking Glass games in the future. Looking Glass Studios might very well be my all-time favorite game developer, and it still pains me that they closed down at the height of their creativity.

sharks Based on your picks, I feel like you would really like Ghostrunner 2. A great action game, a great 3d platformer, cool cyberpunk story and world, emphasis on feel-good gameplay, and while it's not a rhythm game, the music is awesome and the way the game plays *feels* like you're syncing to the music

Thanks bro

Listen, brother, i know you really hate ps portal but i just wanted to say that once you got it up and going with the connection and if you have a superb internet connection sometimes it plays almost flawlesly and it looks beautiful. Anyway thats not what the comment is about though, basically i took your recommendation and bought horizon chase 2 and i really liked it. Also i am seeing that your channel is doing good and i am happy for you. Last i want to say i had some financial difficultie with christmas expenses and shit but i will be back with bigger donations soon. 2 channels i trully love on youtube and one is yours and i just feel good giving back to the 2 channels i spend that much time listening to. I really shouldnt get into details about my condition, so i just really want to say really keep at it. I think the new aproach you taken talking about your own favourites in general and i always loved your super long videos. Anyway again i really wish you the success i know you are after and i believe you are gettin there fast. Peace

Banger video again

My favorite games of 2023 were: 1. Baldur’s Gate 3 - 10/10 2. Lies of P - 9/10 3. Tears of the Kingdom - 8/10 4. Super Mario Bros Wonder - 8/10 5. Pikmin 4 - 8/10 6. Street Fighter 6 - 8/10 7. Armored Core VI - 7/10 8. Alan Wake II - 7/10 9. Pizza Tower - 7/10 10. Hi Fi Rush - 7/10 This was definitely the best year of the 2020s so far, and probably the best year for gaming since 2018. Unlike previous years that didn’t release any classics(2020 and 2021) or were dominated by one game (2022), this year had plenty of great games, a classic Soulslike rivaling FromSoft, and the greatest turn based rpg ever.

great list, enjoyed the whole thing and glad you highlighted more than just 10 games. i guess i also need to say sharks for getting to the end. 😅Sorry you lost your job. I figured I'd match your energy and post a full top 40 of my own. the one caveat to mention that appeared on your list would be horizon chase 2, as i don't consider that eligible since it came out in 2022 on apple arcade (and i thought it was a big drop from turbo, so wouldn't have made my top 40 - i played on switch). 40. Sea of Stars 39. Spiderman 2 38. Saltsea Chronicles 37. Vlad Circus: Descend into Madness 36. Theatrhythm Final Bar Line 35. The Mageseeker 34. Hogwarts Legacy 33. El Paso, Elsewhere 32. Dead Space Remake 31. This Bed We Made 30. Super Mario RPG Remake 29. The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood 28. Backfirewall_ 27. Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo 26. Dordogne 25. Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon 24. Doomsday Hunters 23. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom 22. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty 21. Alan Wake 2 20. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor 19. Season: A Letter to the Future 18. Resident Evil 4 Remake 17. Bomb Rush Cyberfunk 16. Viewfinder 15. Street Fighter 6 14. Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew 13. Super Mario Wonder 12. Pikmin 4 11. Mediterranea Inferno 10. Dave the Diver 9. Blasphemous 2 8. Cocoon 7. Hi-Fi Rush 6. Final Fantasy XVI 5. Jusant 4. Lies of P 3. Bramble: The Mountain King 2. Baldur's Gate 3 1. Octopath Traveler 2

This guy played a lot of new games last year. I think I myself only played 5 new games. So I'll go ahead and rank them! 1. Baldur's Gate 3 2. Hogwarts Legacy 3. Final Fantasy Theatrhythm Final Bar Line 4. King of the Castle 5. Diablo IV I wonder if he played Hogwarts and Diablo and just saw them as less than the other 40 games. I hadn't even heard of a good chunk of these games, but gives me motivation to check some of them out. Especially Pikmin!

great video - my 2023 GOTY was Robocop

As a fighting game player I can say we now have the best SF and MK games ever, can’t wait to play Tekken 8!

Mine: 1. The Talos Principle 2 2. Mario Wonder 3. Pizza Tower

good list

Nice video, but I’ve become convinced that Remnant 2 is the most underrated game of the year. So many people just ignoring it. Not even an honourable mention!

The top 40 is finally here! Sharks :)

lol i want a video explaining how dredge was an honorable mention on a list of 40

Baldur's Gate 3 and Tears of the Kingdom are honestly in my top 3 of all time

I recommend to play Hrot. It's a really good shooter from last year, which unfortunately isn't talked about that much

Putting Starfield a game you call "the biggest disappointment of the year" on this list, but not putting Dredge actually on the list is crazy

Only took five days 😅 but SHARKS!

You could make a ranking of the best games you ever played!

1. BG3 2. Spider-Man 2 3. Final Fantasy XVI 4. Jedi Survivor 5. Hogwarts Legacy

No clue where you would put Pizza Tower if you had played and beaten it. You don't tend to 100% or grind games (I think?) So PT would only take you a few hours to complete. Ive gotten 101% in PT more than once and oh man, I think it might very well be the best platformer I have ever played, or at least the one Ive enjoyed the most.

Well, since you asked, let me give you my list for what I have played this year even though I barely played anything that actually came out in 2023 1. So Hades easily, what it became in my top ten ever. 2. Quake 2 on the switch absolutely love it 3. Hotshot Racing, superb arcade Racer 4. Dying Light 2, Even though I was expecting better 5. Dead Light 2, just okay 6. Void Bastards, Repetitive but cool enough 7. Dust & Neon, very grindy and repetitive but still fine enough 8. Airheart, really love shmups 9. Rise Race the Future, really unknown racing game 10. 9 parchments, decent game for me 11. Flatout 4, better than expected 12. Contra Rogue Corps, shitty but somewhat fun 13. JYDGE, nobody knows exist 14. Redeemer, run at 5 fps on switch 15. Cosmo Player Z, I think 5-10 people played this game 16. Stellaum, nobody knows exist 17. A IA, nobody knows exist 18. Astro Flame Starfighter, nobody knows exist 19. Robot revenge squad, Trainreck 20. Super Street Racer, Trainreck 21. Big Drunken Satanic Massacre, hellish trainreck 22. Timothy v Aliens : Abysmal trainreck 23. X Force Under Attack : trainreck shmup 24. RWBY Grimm Eclipse, bottom of the barrel filth for me

Have you played Remnant 2 and/or Lies of P?

Restricting to just 2023 games, my ranking would be: Baldur's Gate 3 > Street Fighter 6 > Sea of Stars > Like A Dragon Gaiden > Lies Of P > Theatrhythm Final Bar Line > HFW: Burning Shores > FFXVI. Fairly big into D&D and CRPGs so BG3 was already on my radar for a long time. SF6's World Tour mode is exactly the kind of thing I've wished for SF for a long time, as someone who likes fighting games but isn't very competitive. I liked Chained Echoes (2022) a little better than Sea of Stars but it's still very good. Lies Of P was very formulaic but solid. FFXVI was my biggest disappointment (and I could write a full essay as to all the reasons why), but it's probably still a fine game for some.

Sharks good vid

No Lies of P is crazy

If only this video came out before the steam winter sale ended :(

Hoping too see FF16 high!

- sonic dies - i love how goofy this game is 😂

my ranking (I haven't played anything else from 2023 so far lol): 1.Dead Space Remake 2. RE 4 Remake 3. Hogwarts Legacy 4. Jedi Survivor 5. Baldurs Gate 3 6. Alan Wake II

Final Fantasy XVI Resident Evil IV Remake Lies of P Star Wars Jedi Survivor Baldur's Gate III Zelda Tears of the Kingdom Spiderman II

GNNANDORF

FF games are the best

So excited your top 40 is here!! Sure there will be a lot of overlap. I haven’t played any AC6 or much BG3 but my top 12 is 1. Tears of the Kingdom 2. Pikmin 4 3. Resident Evil 4 4. Super Mario Bros. Wonder 5. Sea of Stars 6. Lies of P 7. Blasphemous 2 8. Alan Wake II 9. Spider-Man 2 10. Cocoon 11. Gravity Circuit 12. 30XX

Still playing bg3 and it has the potential to overtake it but I really do think ff16 is my game of the year. I know a lot of people hate on it but I really loved everything about it, combat, story, spectacle, visuals and characters was all top notch. Also loved lies of p is a great refinement of souls games which I am a massive fan of. It had a great story too and a more traditional take on game structure compared to other souls games which was nice. Side note how the fuck do you guys play bg3 combat it’s ridiculous hard I feel like fights go on for ages and I’m constantly just scraping by its ridiculous, and the lack of auto saves kills me.

Shocked dredge was left out vs some of these titles

Lords of the Fallen was a great soulslike. Don’t understand the hate from so many outlets. The developers have supported the shit out of that game since day one and continue to with free updates

Lmao why does the time stamp for Baldurs Gate say “Baldurs Taint” 😂

What about Dave the Diver? That game is better than half of these u said.

My goodness, brother, I just got the PS portal today, and it sucks hard, I wish I had listened to you earlier. Peace

Outside Starfield too high on the list, it’s actually a solid ranking

sharks.sorry to hear ab ur job man

Where would you put cyberpunk 2.1 if it was released this year?

Awesome Top 40 list! So glad to see RE4 remake make your #2 spot since it ended up being my #1 favorite game of the year!

this is a very based list, I love it

FE engage is at least top 10 for me

Sharks!

Bro you accidentally wrote Baldurs Taint 3 instead of gate. In the subtitles and timestamp

Hard disagree ToTK is better than BoTW. BoTW had a way better introduction section, map layout and sense of discovery, it didn't really feel like a new game. It was great of course, but BoTW was kind of revolutionary, this was just a really amazingly good game.

This guy really just left Dredge out Of top 40 and I can’t even be mad 😭

Like with all things, some I agree with, some I disagree with.

Octopath traveller 2? Trails into reverie?

Sharks ❤

He teally said ganandorf instead of ganondorf😂

You worked for insomniac?

Prince of Persia was the best Ubisoft game this year not crewfest

Wait how did he pronounce ganondorf??

Surprised remnant 2, lies of P, and hogwarts isn’t on here.

Where the fkkkkk is hogwarts legacyyyyyyy thought this was good until I didn’t see it in the top 10

Did you play Octopath 2

Sharks