2023 has been filled with a few of the biggest games in latest memory, and I’m completely fine with that. For the previous few minutes, it feels like the gaming trade has been extra excited about time-sucking stay service behemoths, video games that never end, rather than satisfying single-player titles. But this 12 months, I’m instead feasting on a delicious platter of great games I can play alone with a bunch of nice courses I haven’t even touched but.
I still haven’t explored all of Tears of the Kingdom. Image: Nintendo
But imagine me after I say I’m not complaining.
Every a type of video games has a self-contained story mode that I can end on my own time, and we should be celebrating that. If I don’t finish a number of the faction quests I’m engaged on in Starfield, they’ll be there next month. If I don’t get to those facet quests in Zelda, maybe I will when I get the itch to discover Hyrule again. If I decide Super Mario Bros. Wonder over Spider-Man 2, I’ll be able to swing via New York as Peter Parker and Miles Morales when I get round to it.
Of the games I listed, solely Diablo IV has a live service element to fret about (and that can be completely ignored if I just wish to play the bottom campaign), so I won’t need to deal with FOMO over new updates or seasonal content that I miss as a end result of I’m nonetheless meandering my method through any of 2023’s big titles. I even skipped ending Fortnite’s battle move final season; I almost all the time get to 100 on those passes, but even I started to tire of finishing yet another assortment of seemingly infinite challenges. (The new season looks great, however now that I’ve cut back a bit on Fortnite, I’m not as involved as I was once.)
Massive single-player video games present a unique kind of all-consuming problem
Yes, 2023’s massive single-player games present a different sort of all-consuming drawback. When I can normally only play video games for an hour or two a day if I’m fortunate, how will I ever finish these sprawling epics? If I add any new games to the plate, that pushes anything additional down the list. And in opposition to my better instincts, I wouldn’t be surprised if I get sucked into mastering Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s DLC programs; any time driving around Waluigi Stadium would probably be better spent exploring Faerûn in Baldur’s Gate 3.
Even if I do end up with plenty of time in Mario Kart when 2023 attracts to a close, I’m just fantastic with that. All the other games I’ve dabbled on this 12 months will still be there, waiting for me to jump back in. The games I want to play however haven’t might be round, too.
Besides, one of the best a half of video games usually isn’t beating them. The journey is what issues greater than the final vacation spot. That’s what I took from Starfield, anyway.
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