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Ask HN: Which videogames are worth playing in 2023?

33 points by simonebrunozzi ↗ HN
I've seen in another thread that someone's 2023 resolution is to play more video games. I don't see anything bad about it, as long as it doesn't become an obsession in your life.

What are some videogames that are absolutely worth playing in 2023? Old or new.

I might find a little time to do it, perhaps. I love strategy games.

57 comments

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pettycashstash2
Find a classic to enjoy. I highly recommend the text based Zork. I found it calming and actually quite fun.
throwaway743
Already available: Sekiro Yakuza: Like a Dragon Death Stranding Elden Ring

Coming out 2023: Armored Core 6 Street Fighter 6

lonelycompiler
Play what you’re interested in. Like I really liked the second HITMAN, so I bought the third one a few days ago and it has been super fun.
ss108
I second this.

I am also playing through the 3 modern Hitman games rn. Not many comedy games out there, it's a niche genre, and I want moar

tra3
I played hitman on the iPad, how is it comedy?
ss108
Well it's a game where you run around doing things like throwing apples at peoples' heads to knock them out, or do things like lure people into bathrooms by running the tap so that you can knock them out or kill them and steal their clothes--and then walk right past their coworker who doesn't know the difference. Not to mention all the weird dialogue that only uses like 4 voice actors total lol.

The sense of humor can be a little awkward, and sometimes it doesn't deliver, but it seems clear that the game really facilitates not being taken seriously and just completing the missions in the most lolz way possible.

How was playing it on the iPad btw? Seems...impossible lol

tra3
I still play FTL: Faster than Light [0]. It's a rogue like, so if you die, you die. You command a starship that you get to upgrade, crew and fight with. It's one of those "easy to pick up, hard to master" games. Released in 2012, still fun to play. You can play for a minute or for hours, the sound track is good. Wikipedia says game play is realtime [1], but you can pause the game, queue up a set of actions and watch them play out. So this is definitely not a reaction based game and therefore it's low stress/adrenaline...that is until you get a boarder teleporting in, and your oxygen levels are falling precipitously because you had to vent a bunch of compartments to stop a fire, and the oxygen generator has been down since the last fight.

Anyway, one of my favourite games. Recommended.

0: https://subsetgames.com/ftl.html

1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FTL:_Faster_Than_Light

pandigital
Second this. I’m 40 and have been gaming since the Atari 2600. FTL is among the greatest games ever created. Other suggestions for HN audience include Factorio (of course) and Civ games (Civ 5 with all the DLC is my favorite). Terrance Tao apparently enjoys Civ as well FWIW.
abrookewood
Yep, just adding my agreement. It's amazing that I still want to fire it up and play a few runs even years later. Incredibly well balanced and just enough variation to keep it interesting .
orbz
To completely subvert genre and expectations: Frog Fractions 2. Trust me on this.
butz
What are your thoughts on Alligator Mix?
orbz
That looks like a game actually about math that I would have played as a kid. Frog Fractions 2, despite seemingly like it might be about math, is a unique experience.
mempko
Dwarf Fortress!
vanrysss
Steam dorf is so accessible. It's really breathing new life into the game.
smoldesu
Elden Ring, of course. Jusy too good to not buy, especially now that its $40.
JoyfulTurkey
Still hitting up Quake Live on Stream.

There’s a small but regular community still playing. I prefer Freeze Tag mode, usually the Pill Chicago server. Clan Arena mode is too rough for a casual player, in my experience. FFA is OK.

For strategy games, my go to is original StarCraft. Blizzard released a remastered version a few years back. I think it’s usually around ten dollars?

mattl
Been playing a ton of RTS games on Steam Deck this last week. StarCraft 2 is great and cheap right now.
pentagrama
Glad to see a Quaker here! I'm on Quake Champions and it rules.
andrei_says_
Braid is a classic and so satisfying. But you may need an old Mac for it.

Chess :)

mostlysimilar
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. Same developer as Dark Souls and Elden Ring.

Challenging combat that is very rewarding to master. Impeccable environments and setting in the Sengoku period of Japan. Masterful storytelling.

It's the perfect video game.

frompdx
My Steam Deck arrives tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to it as I think it will be a game changer for some of my favorite games. At a certain point I stopped enjoying playing games at my computer. Since then I've mostly stuck to playing games on my Switch. Here is what I plan to play.

* Fallout New Vegas - Explore the post-apocalyptic wasteland of the Mojave. Many ways to play the game. Worth playing and re-playing.

* Keberal Space Program - Build your own rockets and try to get them into space. There is so much you can do with this game via mods. Mechjeb is a must as it makes it much easier to get your ship where you want to go.

* Sim City 4 - There's really no substitute for the classic. Cities Skylines is ok and I might try it again on the Deck. It seems to be broken on the switch (gameplay falls apart at 30k pop).

cultofmetatron
> Sim City 4

try cities skylines. Its way more fun in my opinion and getting active expansions

acomjean
On the steam deck I’ve played and enjoyed

Stray: you are a cat exploring

Portal: classic that works well

Baba is you: a weird little fun puzzler that you change the rules so you can win. I haven’t gotten to far with it.

We play a lot of board games but the decks screen is a little small..: lords of water deep and terriforming Mars with 4 of us playing over zoom/steam. In fact according to steam which watches what you play and summarizes I spent the most time in those (though a lot of that is waiting for others)

haunter
Some games I'm looking for in 2023:

Dead Space remake, Hogwarts Legacy, The Last of Us Part I PC release, Resident Evil 4 remake, Final Fantasy XVI, Baldur's Gate III

Game I'll keep playing in 2023:

Final Fantasy XIV, Fortnite

fsociety
If you like strategy games take a look at: Factorio, Civ6, Stellaris, X-COM 2, Anno 1800, Europa Universalis IV, Crusader Kings 3, FTL, Into the Breach, and Rimworld.

My favs from above are Civ 6, Stellaris, X-COM 2, and FTL.

Semaphor
I'll add Civ V which I find superior to 6 mainly due to the Vox Populi mod which has been in development almost done the release of V. Caveat: Windows only.
yumraj
Inside

It’s one game in years that I actually completed. It is awesome. I played on PS5, but I think it’s available on numerous platforms.

hairofadog
Seconded. This is one of those games that really sticks with me. So haunting.
Semaphor
For someone mainly into turn based RPGs, here's an unordered list:

Pathfinder: Kingmaker & Wrath of the Righteous (my favorite games of all time)

Warhammer 40k: Rogue Trader (same devs as the preceding games, currently in Alpha but looking great)

Vagrus: Text heavy (extremely) grimdark trading sim / RPG

Age of Decadence: The apocalypse was 1000s of years on our future, but far in the past of the game, I call this post-post-apocalyptic and love the genre. Pretty hard as you are not a hero, for once.

Fallout: New Vegas. The last fallout that felt like it was more on the RPG side than shooter, with the great VATS system that optionally makes an action game feel almost turn based.

Solasta: Crown of the Magister. Light in story, but an extremely faithful D&D5 adaption and includes a dungeon builder and there are already cool custom campaigns.

Deus Ex, from the original with all the options (make sure to get the mods) to the newer games that are more stealth shooters.

The Shadowrun trilogy. All of them are great, but for the first I'd play the vox Populi mod that recreated the original campaign in the later games.

Sateeshm
Team Fortress 2 is still just as fun. The only game I play for the last 5 years.
crtified
There are many reasons why the MARIOs and the ZELDAs have been so popular with mainstream gamers across the decades.

My wife discovered (with my help!) the Mario games - of which there are many, and varied - a couple of years ago, and a few hours play per week has been both fun and mentally helpful for her. Taking her brain in directions it wouldn't normally go.

Be aware that strategy games tend to be time suckers, by their very nature of gradual patient persistence. This is where shallower more arcade-y styles of gaming can be better, to dip in and out without getting obsessed. They can still be surprisingly deep and tactical.

drvdevd
I’m a big fan of playing FPS with mouse and keyboard to unwind and right now Ultrakill has supplanted Doom Eternal for me. One major reason is that not only am I enjoying the gameplay more, but I can play it on almost any hardware I own (including in Parallels on an M1 Mac on arm64 windows).

I just got back into it and can’t recommend it enough.

tra3
Windows gaming on m1 is doable then? Tempting for some of the older games.
drvdevd
Yeah it certainly seems to be for less demanding games with parallels anyway. YMMV with other emulators, etc. I have heard crossover is pretty good for some games as well but haven’t tried it myself.
the__alchemist
Some of my favorites of all time:

  - The Witness (puzzles/exploration)
  - The Outer Wilds (puzzles/exploration/narrative)
  - Prey (creative gameplay opportunities in a cool setting; top-tier example of the combined stealth/action FPS RPG)
  - Return of the Obra Dinn: Unique gameplay where you assemble a story from parts
  - Age of Empires 2: Definitive edition: A RTS game with emphasis on multiplayer, that's been a 22-year labor of love; still has an active competitive community + tournaments.
throwawayfdjeb
Gran Turismo 7, even if you're not into sim racing atm, can definitely recommend it if you're looking to branch out into a new hobby within gaming. It's a slow grind but really have been quite happy with it to the point where I've gone from 0 interest in driving or racing last year to being fully captivated by the genre, and have in general become much more interested in driving and learning to drive better. Lots of fun to find a car you really like and learn different circuits with it. Entry level setups run a few hundred dollars but has been definitely worth it to me.