2023 has been a bit of a ridiculous year for games, hasn’t it? But with the like of Baldur’s Gate 3 and Tears of the Kingdom gobbling up hundreds of our hours – and in welcome fashion, no less – it’s only natural that other deserving games may have snuck by without notice. So if you’ve wrapped up the year’s major adventures, don’t miss out on these brilliant games from 2023 that you might have missed.
Backpack Hero
© Jaspel
Available on: PC, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox
If the mere thought of Resident Evil 4’s inventory organization triggers a physical gag reflex, you should probably skip ahead now. This one’s for the certified inventory-planning freaks. Backpack Hero is a dungeon-delving roguelike in which how you store your equipment matters just as much as what you’re storing. Align your items, venture forth into dangerous locales, then funnel the loot you’ve secured into conducting research and upgrading your adventurer’s town.
Cocoon
Available on: PC, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox
This layered puzzle game from the designer behind Limbo and Inside sees you finding solutions within nested worlds that you literally carry in orbs on your back. Use the powers of one world to help you progress in another, or dive inside the orb to progress further and tackles the dangerous creatures lurking in each core. Cocoon is up for several end-of-year awards, so at the bare minimum you’ll want to play it to sound all cultured and knowledgeable when they take place.
Cobalt Core
© Rocket Rat Games
Available on: PC, Switch
For fans of deck builders like Slay the Spire, Cobalt Core is an unmissable new entry in the genre. Attempting to free a spaceship crew from a time loop, you’ll build up a powerful engine of cards based on the crew members of your vessel. Combat sees you face off against other ships and introduces several novel mechanics like evasion and a center lane of missiles/drones. For spire-slaying experts, these new systems will spark an immediate card-comboing rush. Cobalt Core’s colorful pixel-art visuals, humorous writing, and gorgeous soundtrack only add to the appeal.
Slay the Princess
© Black Tabby Games
Available on: PC
A princess lies chained to the wall of a dark cellar. You’re here to kill her, but should you? That’s the sole dilemma at the heart of this hand-penciled visual novel. Do you choose to believe the insistent narrator in your head, your character’s inner thoughts, or the manipulative words of the princess herself? With splintering paths and numerous outcomes, there’s a fascinating amount to discover. Provided, of course, that you don’t die in the process.
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Chants of Sennaar
© Rundisc
Available on: PC, Switch, PS4, Xbox One
Inspired by the myth of Babel, Chants of Senaar is an engrossing linguistic puzzle game in which you must scale a tower and piece together an unknown language. Reconnect the uncommunicative peoples of the tower as you speculate and slowly develop your understanding, using your newfound knowledge to climb ever higher.
Viewfinder
© Sad Owl Studios
Available on: PC, PS5
If the puzzle-solving sector of your brain is yet to be sated, Viewfinder will help you seek solutions from a new perspective. Several, in fact. Using a camera, you can literally reshape reality. After taking photos, you can then hold them up to transfer 2D images into 3D landscapes. Position them well and you can create new pathways, duplicate items, and even change the visual style of the level. Viewfinder is clever, creative fun that feels glorious right as a solution clicks.
Bread & Fred
Available on: PC, Switch
How strong is your relationship? We only ask because Bread & Fred will test it to the limit. Don’t let the cutesy penguins fool you, this co-operative 2D platformer demands precisely paired actions to succeed. Tied together by rope, you’ll need to use combined momentum and anchored swings to scale your way to the top of the game’s snowy mountain. Each success is shared, but so too are the frustrations. A single slip by one player could send you both tumbling down and cost serious progress. So, think your partnership is up to the challenge?
We're in the dying days of 2023 now. Before we jump into the gaming year ahead, take a look back and a break with the games that soothed our souls in 2023. And when you are ready to move on? Make sure you're geared up in style with HyperX gaming gear!
