Resident Evil 4 – one of the best of the year (Picture: Capcom)

At the halfway point of the year, readers discuss their favourite new video games so far, from Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom to Dead Space.

2023 is all set to go down as a classic year for video games but for this weekend’s Inbox we wanted to know what your favourites are so far, even if there is one obvious pick that stands head and shoulders above the rest…

As you’d expect, Tears Of The Kingdom got by far the most number of mentions but there was also plenty of love for Resident Evil 4, Street Fighter 6, and other more obscure choices.

Cheats prosper
I’ve probably enjoyed Advance Wars 1+2 Re-Boot Camp most this year, but since remakes are cheating a bit, Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom is probably the brand new game I’ve had the most fun with. Octopath Traveler 2 and Hob’s Barrow would be runners-up.

There’s nothing this year, thus far, which really comes close to my favourites. But that’s not a knock on the quality of recent games, it’s just that the genres I really love haven’t much changed since the 90s, and those aren’t really in vogue anymore.

Per that, for the second half of the year, the games I’m really looking forward to are from those genres: Super Mario Bros. Wonder and the Star Ocean 2 and Super Mario RPG remakes. I’ve loved the originals of those latter two, so unless there’s some awful change to them they should be great.
Lord Darkstorm

Too late to help
I haven’t played a load of new releases but I really like Street Fighter 6 (Xbox Series X). I’ve been having so much fun on World Tour, walloping randos in the street, and the arcade mode. And the modern controls scheme option means I don’t entirely suck at Street Fighter for the first time ever!

And an honourable mention, since I think it was a 2022 release, but I just started playing Marvel’s Midnight Suns and that’s pretty special so far. The card-based combat is really easy to get into, in part because the game explains it well as you go. Such a shame it didn’t do well (even though I’m part of the problem, since I was waiting for the Switch version).
FoximusPrime81 (gamertag/NN ID)

Obvious answer
The boring answer for this topic is also the correct one, so Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom is my favourite game of the year so far. I admit, though – and I think this is reflective of GC’s review – if I hadn’t deliberately spent so long avoiding a revisit to Breath Of The Wild after getting all shrines twice (and all Korok seeds once) it might have felt a bit too familiar.

My biggest issue with the game is the amount of optional padding (is there really a need to put a collectible in each of the 400+ new caves?) but as long as you put a bit of effort into managing what content you’re moving between, it’s not much of an issue, especially with liberal use of the manual map marker system.

In terms of what it does well, the level of ambition when it comes to trying to define what interactive entertainment should be is just staggering. No hiding behind self-indulgent C-tier writing, expensive motion capture, new settings or anything else associated with bloated production values that apparently have to steer triple-A gaming.

I’ve just entered my third temple (the Water Temple) and, as expected, the game is still throwing new ideas at me. Objectively, that’s just not something that happens in other games when you’re 105 hours in (with the exception of its immediate predecessor).

The current immediate runner up is Metroid Prime Remastered. It just makes the best game of its generation that much better and any part of it that didn’t get dramatically improved in this impressive rework still holds up as it is anyway. The only issue being how many times you need to do that tiresome underwater spaceship section to return to certain areas in the most efficient way.

Funnily enough, I always regarded the second best game of that generation to be Resident Evil 4 and that comes third for me so far. I’ve only played through it once but despite being a full, ground-up remake, it feels more familiar than I was expecting. Which is probably the point, but I was maybe expecting something a bit more radical after the Resident Evil 2 treatment.

The most surprising thing to me has been that I’ve been most entertained by the shooting gallery and Mercenaries mode. I always knew I’d love those but the fact they’re my highlights suggests I was maybe expecting to be a bit more enamoured with the single-player than I ended up being.

For the rest of the year, I’ve got my eye on Baldur’s Gate 3 (although I’ve only played the first chapter of Divinity: Original Sin 2) and while I don’t have an Xbox the game I’m most keen to see reviews for is Starfield. I still think there’s a unique feeling to big Bethesda role-playing games so that’s the game I’m most curious about. Spider-Man 2 is a less interesting prospect, so while I’m sure it’ll still be good, it’s not a priority for me.

The DLC for Elden Ring would trump that lot, but it’s increasingly unlikely that’ll turn up this year. Making it seem probable that it’ll be two years or more after the original release, which is interesting. I wonder if Armored Core 6 has hindered progress or if it’s really just that much bigger in scope than we would usually expect.
Panda

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Game of sort of this year
Whilst I would/should opt for what most people will agree as the best game of the year (obviously Zelda) I have to actually disagree with it being the best experience so far. The update was released this year but not the game itself, so it might not count, but my vote is for Resident Evil Village VR. Yes, you can see that it was originally a pancake game, as sometimes the game reverts to a flat cut scene or bizarre angled view, but in terms of a thrilling and immersive experience its leagues ahead of anything I’ve played this year (Gran Turismo runs it close).

It helped that I hadn’t played the original, so everything was new, and in regards to the Beneviento House… as terrifying as gaming could possibly be, but seeing the 10ft Alcina or the oversized Duke dominating your view were equally eye-widening. Some scenes like the final village act were so atmospheric and made me feel that a tense Cally Of Duty WW2 shooter would be easily feasible.

The weight of the weapons with the haptic feedback meant every shot felt genuine and movement caused no motion sickness at all. Although I played the original Resident Evil 4 to death, I haven’t touched the remake solely because I want to play it VR. I imagine it being even better than Village.

Yet again, VR seems destined to never be fully mainstream but yet again it’s given me a next gen experience much like Astro Bot: Robot Rescue did in 2018. If GC aren’t including it, then it’s easily Zelda. I don’t see any of the upcoming titles stripping it of Game of the Year. Starfield or Spider-Man 2 really are going to have to be special to get close.
Wonk

The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom – the easy favourite for game of the year (pic: Nintendo)

Top three
Ooh, this is a tough one! Hmm, let me think… Oh right! It’s Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom! Though I’ve only played the demo of Street Fighter 6 so far, I imagine top three for the year will be Zelda, Resident Evil 4 remake, and Street Fighter 6. In that order.

I have now beaten Zelda, too! Not 100%, mind – but I got a lot. Most of the armour I wanted, full stamina, Master Sword, much of the other legendary weapons, the Sages upgraded and most big enemies conquered, including three King Gleeoks and a couple of Silver Lynels!

So, some more observations, if you’ll permit me. Diving down into a chasm reminds me of the animated Transformers movie opening where it zooms into the ‘O’ – remember? I can’t help but start singing the theme song to myself whenever I do it. I liked the twist with Zelda – though imagine how much more effective it would have been if she had been a better character.

Sure, the performance is… odd, but the casting director told Patricia Summersett to do this! Never blame an actor for poor writing – Meryl Streep couldn’t have done anything with this role! Unless they allowed her to write her own dialogue. Which they might have, it would be Meryl after all.

The Gerudo Town section of the main quest was still the best. I just really love that place. And seeing the little Gerudo vai come out to play once the sandstorm had cleared put a little lump, I’ll admit.

Sadly, the Gibdo no longer hump your neck and scream. To make up for that lack of horror, we have the Gloom Spawn. So, thanks for that, Nintendo. Like an awful mix between the Wall Masters in Ocarina, the Floor Masters of Wind Waker, and the Dead Hands in Ocarina, again. It’s just a shame that after one or two, they’re not really worth your time. I also still really miss the Dark Nuts. Loved those bad doggies.

I thought the choice of music for the last phase of the last boss didn’t quite work. They tried to bring in that sort of Japanese oboe sound that they did for, um, other similar creatures shall we say. Took some of the menace out of it. And not as good as the Ocarina Of Time final boss for me. It should have been a kaiju battle at the end there, don’t you think?
DMR

Obscure choice
I don’t like paying more than £40 for games unless I think I’ll beat it quickly and be able to sell it for near full price. I think the most recent AAA game I’ve completed this year was God Of War Ragnarök.

Games released in 2023 that I’ve completed?

Only one comes to mind: The Pale Beyond.

It’s not a particularly exciting game but it sticks in the memory as having a great story and some fun resource management.

Sons Of The Forest was fun for a weekend but the island seemed a bit empty.

It seems I am slowly switching to PC gaming. Maybe because the games are so much cheaper!
TommyFatFingers

Second chance
My favourite game so far this year is Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom but it is not just my favourite game so far this year, but of all time.

The odd thing is that I was not overly enamoured with Breath Of The Wild. I could appreciate what it achieved and can fully understand the glowing review scores, but I did not particularly like it for the majority of my time with it.

I finished the story of Breath Of The Wild in three 40 hour play periods over the course of three years but beyond solving enough shrines to acquire the Master Sword I did not really engage with it much beyond the main path, whereas I normally fully complete Zelda games.

Now enter Tears Of The Kingdom which I have yet to complete the story of but will likely have already topped 200 hours of play in by the time the weekend Hot Topic is published. As part of that I am approaching around 200 completed quests, which is surely nearly all of them, and I am close to completing all shrines and finding all roots in the depths. (All armour upgraded, photos taken, wells, bubbul gems, and koroks found is highly likely to be a step too far for me though).

It is as much a mystery to me as anyone else just how Tears of the Kingdom has clicked so well whereas its predecessor predominantly failed to. Some of it is probably that there is an element of familiarity to it which removes the feeling of being overwhelmed I had with Breath Of The Wild but as I also did not fully explore previously it still feels fresh to me.

Other elements are that the story was much easier to find, I did not find all the memories last time, and the quests do a good job of being interesting without being too obtuse. In fact, everything as a whole feels more accessible and the new powers offer far more flexibility and I find them freeing, whereas I barely used the Breath Of The Wild Powers.

Other games I have bought this year are Hogwarts Legacy, which I found to be a lovely place to explore but not a particularly good game; Storyteller, which was a nice little puzzle game; and Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp, which is still brilliant.

Everything else I have played has been older. Tears Of The Kingdom alone will make this a great year for gaming but there is also a decent breadth of games already out with Diablo 4, Street Fighter 6, Hi-Fi Rush, Final Fantasy 16, and Resident Evil 4 remake, even if Resi 4 could feasibly be the only one I actually play.

The latter half of the year also has considerable potential with Pikmin 4, Oxenfree 2, Baldur’s Gate 3, Armored Core 6, Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Spider-Man 2, Mortal Kombat 1, Starfield, and Forza Motorsport, even if, again, not all interest me personally and I would never have the time to play them all.
PazJohnMitch

More: Trending

Maybe next year
Good to see the Hot Topic is back! Alas, I can’t comment on my favourite game of the year as I have just finished Shadow Of The Tomb Raider that I started earlier this year and just started 2010’s Fallout: New Vegas. Always meant to play it first time round but never got round to it!

Ahh the joys of the never-ending backlog…
The Dude Abides

A good year
A game I experienced this year is yet another remake of one my all-time favourite sci-fi games: Dead Space.

This was an exceptional game on the PlayStation 3 and the incredible amount of nervous thrills I had playing this was exactly what I wanted from sci-fi horror. The original did an amazing job using the Alien and Event Horizon films as inspiration and I feel as though it worked a treat.

The remake just took it to the next few levels. A talking Isaac Clarke felt strange but was definitely fine with me. Silent protagonists are always a little bit unrealistic, though not game-breaking. The scenes in the remake took what were in the original game and then improve the graphics and expanded the gameplay, which was just awesome to experience.

The Zero-G areas, with the partially destroyed spacecraft interior, really does play with your mind and senses as to what is up and down. In space and zero gravity, you find it really does not matter.

The much more detailed graphics and a storyline with some differences are compelling enough to engage you through to the end battle. Shame Dead Space 2 remake may not happen, as the first remake has definitely been developed by a group of caring people passionate about the series. This title marked the start of a fantastic 2023 for gaming.
Alucard

This week’s Hot Topic
Since we’re now over the halfway point of the year this weekend’s Inbox asks what is your favourite new game so far?

You can name any game on any system, but it has to be something that was released new in the UK this year. 2023 has already seen many greats, including Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom, Street Fighter 6, Humanity, Resident Evil 4, Amnesia: The Bunker, Diablo 4, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Hi-Fi Rush, and many more.

How does your pick compare to some of your existing favourites and what do you think of the year as a whole so far, and its potential for the rest of the year?

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The small print
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At the halfway point of the year, readers discuss their favourite new video games so far, from Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom to Dead Space.