In a year full of blockbuster releases, Sarah Thwaites found some of their favourite experiences in smaller games.
These are some of the best bite-sized experiences from 2023.
All tagged GOTY 2023
Some Games Squidge Rugby Played In 2023 | Winter Spectacular 2023
It’s been a year full of some of the best rugby ever played, but we wanted to check in with Robbie “Squidge Rugby” Owen to see what some of the best video games he played this year were.
And look, he didn’t even make a joke about Johnhalo Sexgames retiring!
Kate Robinson Hightlights Some Of The Best Sleeper Hits Of 2023 | Winter Spectacular 2023
In a year full of triple-A bangers there is no doubt you missed some truly special smaller games.
That’s why Kate Robinson has rounded up some of the sleeper hits of 2023.
Jordan Oloman Just Realised... This Is Not My Beautiful House | Winter Spectacular 2023
The games industry is moving and changing all of a sudden Jordan Oloman has realised this is not his beautiful house….
RL Crz On The Strange Existential Serenity of Bomb Rush Cyberfunk | Winter Spectacular 2023
The next Jet Set game might still be a long way out but, until then, RL Crz has found an exisential serenity in Bomb Rush Cyberfunk that makes it quite special.
Aric Leighton Needs You To Know Just How Good Pikmin 4 Was | Winter Spectacular 2023
Y’all here about these lil Pikmin dudes?
Because Aric Leighton REAAAALLY needs you to know just how good these lil dudes are.
Lex Luddy's Self-Indulgent 2023 GOTY List | Winter Spectacular 2023
Lexi has spent the last two months editing Winter Spectacular pieces where the state of the industry has been lamented by countless talented people.
It’s left her a little jaded come the end of 2023, but they still think it might be worth highlighting the games that got them through 2023.
Louise Chase Celebrates The Books That Make Our Games Feel Alive | Winter Spectacular 2023
We tend to think of literary works and digital art as two vastly different and somewhat incompatible art forms but Louise Chase has returned to the site to highlight how books can make video games feel more alive.
Harry Mitchell Explains How Lethal Company Blends Horror With Laughter | Winter Spectacular 2023
Lethal Company is the hottest game on Twitch and Steam, and everyone has their theories as to why.
Harry Mitchell has been thinking a lot about it and thinks its success might just be down to the fact we’ve all had to find comedy in a crummy job at some point in our lives.
The startmenu Awards 2023 | Winter Spectacular 2023
What a season. What a season.
2023 is almost over so the whole startmenu community came together to decide the honourable winners and, ummm, less honourable things worth talking about for the 3rd Annual startmenu Awards!
Mike Minotti Wants To Remind You That You're Doing Great | Winter Spectacular 2023
What a weird, fun, wild year.
Mike Minotti has proven himself to be the one man able to baffle Dan Ryckert, played a lot of Resident Evil 4, and dressed up like RoboCop… Like… A lot…
But he wants you to know that you’re doing great.
Shawn McDowell Wants You To Know Fighting Games Are for Everyone, Including You | Winter Spectacular 2023
It’s been a big year for Giant Bomb’s resident young person. But Shawn McDowell is just happy that fighting games are in the best place they’ve been in decades.
So he can’t help but wonder… Why are they still not getting the recognition they deserve?
Games Are For Children... And Jeff Grubb | Winter Spectacular 2023
As game budgets balloon in never-ending hunt for realism Jeff Grubb wants everyone to remember this holiday… Video Games are for children.
Tears of the Kingdom Saved Me - Jan Ochoa On His Second Favourite Game Of 2023 | Winter Spectacular 2023
It’s been a big year for Giant Bomb. From live shows to podcasts, and whatever the hell you call playing The Quiet Man for charity, Jan Ochoa has been there for all of it.
Now he joins us to explain how Tears of The Kingdom save him.
So You've Broken Into Games Journalism... What Next, Ask Jess Reyes | Winter Spectacular 2023
So you’ve broken into video game journalism… What now?
Jess Reyes might have some ideas for you.
James Law's Game Of The Year Was... Crosswords | Winter Spectacular 2023
Sometimes gaming is at its best when you take the video out of video games.
startmenu co-founder James Law returns to the site to talk about the joy they found in crosswords this year.
Alex Green Posits 2023 Is The Last Great Year For Games | Winter Spectacular 2023
For the last three years, Alex Green has been writing a monthly news column for startmenu so you should listen closely when they warn of impending doom.
He looks back at 2023 and why it may well be the last great year for video games.
Best Games Madeline Blondeau Played On A 2010 ThinkPad In 2023 | Winter Spectacular 2023
2023 has been full of huge blockbusters and plenty of new indie games. But what if you wanted to play things from a different era?
Madeline Blondeau joins us to walk through the best games they played in 2023… on a 2010 ThinkPad.
Anni Valkama Examines How the Games Industry Failed Its People In 2023 | Winter Spectacular 2023
2023 was full of great games but it hardly matters how good the games were when we have failed the people making them.
Anni Valkama tries to make sense of just what happened in this historically tumultuous year for workers in the game industry.
Jess Thomas' 2023 Game Of The Year? Skyrim | Winter Spectacular 2023
It’s been a year of phenomenal, groundbreaking, genre-redefining games. So what has Jess Thomas been playing?
Skyrim… Obviously.