Much like your favorite movies and shows, your favorite video games are also deserving of awards at the end of the year. Though a lot of organizations give out awards throughout the season, the biggest event is the annual Game Awards hosted by Geoff Keighley. If you missed the event, here’s a rundown of the winners this year.

Game of the Year

• Alan Wake 2
• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
• Resident Evil 4 Remake
• Super Mario Bros. Wonder
• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Best Game Direction

• Alan Wake 2
• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
• Super Mario Bros. Wonder
• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Best Narrative

• Alan Wake 2
• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
• Final Fantasy 16
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

Best Art Direction

• Alan Wake 2
• Hi-Fi Rush
• Lies of P
• Super Mario Bros. Wonder
• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Best Score and Music

• Alan Wake 2
• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Final Fantasy 16
• Hi-Fi Rush
• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Best Audio Design

• Alan Wake 2
• Dead Space Remake
• Hi-Fi Rush
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
• Resident Evil 4 Remake

Best Performance

• Ben Starr, Final Fantasy XVI
• Cameron Monaghan, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
• Idris Elba, Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
• Melanie Liburd, Alan Wake 2
• Neil Newbon, Baldur’s Gate 3
• Yuri Lowenthal, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

Innovation in Accessibility

• Diablo IV
• Forza Motorsport
• Hi-Fi Rush
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
• Mortal Kombat 1
• Street Fighter 6

Games for Impact

• A Space for the Unbound
• Chants of Sennaar
• Goodbye Volcano High
• Tchia
• Terra Nil
• Venba

Best Ongoing Game

• Apex Legends
• Cyberpunk 2077
• Final Fantasy 14
• Fortnite
• Genshin Impact

Best Indie Game

• Cocoon
• Dave the Diver
• Dredge
• Sea of Stars
• Viewfinder

Best Debut Indie Game

• Cocoon
• Dredge
• Pizza Tower
• Venba
• Viewfinder

Best Mobile Game

• Final Fantasy 7: Ever Crisis
• Honkai: Star Rail
• Hello Kitty Island Adventure
• Monster Hunter Now
• Terra Nil

Best Community Support

• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
• Destiny 2
• Final Fantasy 16
• No Man’s Sky

Best VR/AR Game

• Gran Turismo 7
• Humanity
• Horizon: Call of the Mountain
• Resident Evil Village
• Synapse

Best Action Game

• Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon
• Dead Island 2
• Ghostrunner 2
• Hi-Fi Rush
• Remnant 2

Best Action/Adventure Game

• Alan Wake 2
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
• Resident Evil 4
• Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Best RPG

• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Final Fantasy 16
• Lies of P
• Sea of Stars
• Starfield

Best Fighting Game

• God of Rock
• Mortal Kombat 1
• Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2
• Pocket Bravery
• Street Fighter 6

Best Family Game

• Disney Illusion Island
• Party Animals
• Pikmin 4
• Sonic Superstars
• Super Mario Bros. Wonder

Best Sports/Racing Game

• EA Sports FC 24
• F1 23
• Forza Motorsport
• Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged
• The Crew Motorfest

Best Sim/Strategy Game

• Advanced Wars 1+” Re-Boot Camp
• Cities: Skylines 2
• Company of Heroes 3
• Fire Emblem Engage
• Pikmin 4

Best Multiplayer Game

• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Diablo 4
• Party Animals
• Street Fighter 6
• Super Mario Bros. Wonder

Content Creator of the Year

• IronMouse
• PeopleMakeGames
• Quackity
• Spreen
• SypherPK

Best Esports Athlete

• Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok
• Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut
• Max “Demon1” Mazanov
• Paco “HyDra” Rusiewiez
• Park “Ruler” Jae-hyuk
• Phillip “ImperialHal” Dosen

Best Esports Coach

• Christine “potter” Chi
• Danny “zonic” Sorensen
• Jordan “Gunba” Graham
• Remy “XTQZZZ” Quoniam
• Yoon “Homme” Sung-young

Best Esports Event

• 2023 League of Legends World Championship
• Blast.tv Paris Major 2023
• EVO 2023
• The International Dota 2 Championships 2023
• VALORANT Champions 2023

Best Esports Game

• Counter-Strike 2
• Dota 2
• Leage of Legends
• PUBG Mobile
• Valorant

Best Esports Team

• Evil Geniuses
• Fnatic
• Gaimin Gladiators
• JD Gaming
• Team Vitality

Most Anticipated Game

• Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth
• Hades 2
• Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
• Star Wars Outlaws
• Tekken 8

Best Adaptation

• Castlevania: Nocturne
• Gran Turismo
• The Last of Us
• The Super Mario Bros. Movie
• Twisted Metal

Player’s Voice

• Baldur’s Gate 3
• Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
• Genshin Impact
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

The Game Awards is the pinnacle of gaming events these days. During the annual ceremony, the best games of the year are recognized and awarded. However, it also reveals trailers for highly anticipated titles coming within An enduring franchise for a lot of gamers,

Monster Hunter Wilds

Monster Hunter is ready to take it to the next generation. Kicking off the sixth generation, Monster Hunter Wilds takes advantage of next-gen graphics. Newer and grander monsters are coming. While there’s still a lot of mystery surrounding the upcoming game, the trailer reveals a desert-themed map and flying mounts.

OD

Once again, Hideo Kojima is the master of mystery in the gaming industry. We have no way to describe this game accurately. It’s a Kojima project for Xbox. It will also have acclaimed director Jordan Peele, Sophia Lillis, Hunter Schafer, and Udo Kier attached. That’s enough of a reason to check it out.

Marvel’s Blade

Hot off the heels of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, Marvel has a new gaming project: Marvel’s Blade. However, rather than Insomniac Games, this project will be helmed by Bethesda and Arkane Lyon, the minds behind the Dishonored series and Deathloop.

God of War Ragnarok Valhalla

One of the craziest drops this Game Awards, one of last year’s best game, God of War Ragnarok, is getting a free DLC in a few days’ time. While it’s not exactly a new game, it will meld the fluid combat of the original game with the dynamic gameplay of the roguelite genre.

Final Fantasy XVI: Echoes of the Fallen and The Rising Tide

Both announced this event, Final Fantasy XVI will get a pair of DLCs. The first one, Echoes of the Fallen, is already available with new chapters. Meanwhile, The Rising Tide will come out next spring.

Zenless Zone Zero

Hoyoverse is back with its next title. Inspired by the ARPG genre, Zenless Zone Zero takes the studio’s iconic style to a new universe with all-new gameplay.

Skull and Bones

Inspired by the success of Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag, Skull and Bones was announced a long time ago without a release date. Now, Ubisoft has revealed when the pirate-themed RPG is coming: February 16, 2024.

World of Goo 2

World of Goo was such an indie hit back in the day that gamers are still playing the physics-based puzzler today. Now, the title is finally getting a sequel. Featuring the same mechanics as the original, World of Goo 2 will experiment with more ways to connect goo blobs. It’s coming next year.

DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO

A BUDOKAI TENKACHI game in everything but name. And Bandai Namco has confirmed as much saying this game retains the all the battle and action elements of the aforementioned game. This includes follow-up attacks and timing-based counters, while adding all-new actions. They’re calling this one the ultimate 3D Dragon Ball action battle game.

There’s no denying that 2023 is an amazing year to be a gamer. Besides a refreshing deluge of must-play games that came every month, one particular segment in the gaming industry has been instrumental in this year’s gaming boom — handheld consoles. Whether you’re a Switch stalwart or a Legion Go lover, there is so much to love about handheld gaming in 2023. As the year winds down, let’s look back at the handheld console boom of 2023.

In the beginning…

Flashback! Before we tackle 2023 for real, let’s rewind back to the start of the year. Back in January, a lot of gamers were playing with the new Steam Decks they got for Christmas. At the time, those who wanted to try handheld gaming were limited to only a few options: the classic Nintendo Switch, the Logitech G Cloud, the Razer Kishi, and the Steam Deck.

Make no mistake, though. While there are a lot of options (including niche ones not included above), it was still Nintendo’s world. The Steam Deck was still on the rise.

Now, the landscape looks different. Though the Switch is still a reliable option for handheld gamers, the rise of PC-based handheld consoles makes for an exciting playground for those who want to play through less than conventional methods.

The rise of pocket-sized PCs

Though a product of 2022, the Steam Deck paved the way for PC-based handheld consoles to break into the scene this year. Further bolstered by the new AMD Ryzen Z1 series of processors, it’s about time for smaller PCs to share the spotlight.

If, like us, you were waiting for a more powerful option before buying into the handheld gaming segment, 2023 is your year. Besides the Steam Deck, players now have two additional options: the Lenovo Legion Go and the ASUS ROG Ally.

All three consoles have achieved a dream that was practically impossible a few years ago: a decently specced PC in a lithe body of a handheld device. Today’s technology allows players to launch modern games while on the go, albeit at lesser graphics settings.

Plus, unlike the Steam Deck, the Legion Go and the ROG Ally both ran on Windows. Both are, quite literally, PCs in smaller bodies. Besides offering an easy way to play, it’s easy to use either device for other purposes. If you want to, say, emulate older titles that most gaming platforms don’t have, it’s easy to install the relevant software and play them on the consoles.

Oh, and that doesn’t even begin to touch the different quirks that each console has. For example, the Legion Go, besides being a powerhouse already, has a unique take on the form factor: detachable controllers and an FPS mode.

Don’t count the Steam Deck out either. Soon after the two consoles launched, Valve suddenly dropped an OLED version of its console, pushing the envelope even further.

Up in the clouds

Understandably, PCs might not be your cup of tea. While the above consoles represent the cream of the crop in the segment now, non-PC-based consoles also made their presence felt this year. The biggest of which is the new PlayStation Portal.

Unfortunately, the PlayStation Portal isn’t the PlayStation Portable revival that a lot of people were clamoring for. Instead, the new console uses PS Remote Play to stream your PlayStation 5 games. Naturally, it doesn’t offer the same amount of variety as its counterparts. It’s just a way for you to play your PS5 games on the go.

If you’re content with just mobile gaming, the segment also got a touch of magic this year. Now, gamers already have a plethora of options for mobile games. However, Razer is packing more juice with the Razer Edge, an advanced way to play Android-based titles.

Image source: Playdate

A Game Boy in 2023?

Finally, there’s a slew of niche consoles you can get for a healthy dose of nostalgia. If you miss playing older titles, newer devices are bringing them back. The Analogue Pocket, for example, can play over 2,700 cartridges from the Game Boy era. Though built with a modern screen and protected by Gorilla Glass, the Pocket is a veritable blast from the past.

Want something more esoteric? The Playdate is one of the weirdest consoles we’ve ever seen, but that’s just part of the charm. Shaped like a tiny Game Boy, the console features its own series of small games to whittle down the time. It also has a tiny crank that, while it looks odd, makes for unique gaming experiences. For example, Root Bear (get it?) has you pouring drinks using the crank for a particularly picky bear.

Image source: Analogue

The future of handheld gaming

Seeing all these consoles thriving is exciting to see as a gamer. However, the Switch being silent this year is admittedly scary. While the console saw a lot of notable games coming to the platform, Nintendo revealed almost nothing about a potential Switch sequel. Minus the odd comment sprinkled throughout the year, it feels like the calm before the storm. While the original Switch series is still capable in its own right, it’s possible that the near future (maybe even next year) will see the arrival of the next Switch.

Speaking of the future, it’ll be interesting to see how the industry responds to the latest consoles that came out this year. It’s just the nature of the industry to keep improving performance. While the current slate of consoles can handle modern games at lower settings, the future might be able to handle games on ultra settings with ray tracing.

Either way, 2023 has been a great year for the handheld gaming segment. If you’ve been waiting to dip your toes into the world of handheld gaming, there is no better time to try things out. Even if more advanced consoles come out in the near future, a handheld console is a huge boon for the gaming industry.