Top 10 Windows PC Games of 2023

This year has been a milestone for PC gaming, with blockbuster titles and indie gems both equally making their mark.

2023 is expected to be remembered in gaming history as one of the greatest for games, and sometimes, keeping up with them can be challenging. While ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ brought back a 20-year-old PC franchise with a bang, smaller releases like ‘Slay the Spire’ continue to highlight the PC’s crucial role.

Given that most games these days are cross-platform, we won’t primarily focus on PC exclusives. Instead, the aim is to highlight a superb selection of games that showcase PC gaming at its best in 2023. So, titles like ‘Slay the Spire,’ available exclusively on computer platforms, alongside those that work exceptionally well with a mouse and keyboard (‘Baldur’s Gate 3’) or offer intriguing PC-specific graphic options (‘Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty’ or ‘Alan Wake 2’s ray tracing’).

Whatever your definition, if you want to add the best releases of this year to your PC library, here’s an excellent place to start with these top ten games. Whether you’re seeking games for comfortable laptop play or something that truly pushes your desktop gaming PC to its limits, you should find some joy in the list below.”

Baldur’s Gate 3

“Creating a video game revolving around the vast world of Dungeon and Dragons is no easy feat. Beloved tabletop role-playing games not only incorporate rules and lore spanning decades but also let their players imagine the boundaries of their own experiences.

Larian Studios’ ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ has succeeded not just in crafting a credible D&D experience but has come very close to providing as much freedom as a tabletop game.

In ‘Baldur’s Gate 3,’ if you can think it, you can probably do it. Want to spread a rumor in a village? Absolutely. Befriend colossal, violent spiders’ nests? You betcha. Knock down formidable enemies with the power of witty retorts and fart jokes? A resounding yes. And I haven’t even mentioned the bear scenes yet. But this isn’t just turn-based RPG that D&D enthusiasts have dreamed about for years—it’s also quite accessible to those who have never rolled a 20-sided die before.

Every inch of the game is explorable, and when you can create a fully customizable player character to determine the cost of a sword swing, you can unlock a lot more unique content by playing as one of the game’s many romantic companion characters. To fully experience everything it offers, it might take several attempts for those completing it. I’m still exploring new locations, items, characters, and mysteries with over 350 hours of gameplay, and I’m looking forward to diving into ‘Baldur’s Gate 3’ even more in the new year. If Larian ever releases DLC, I fear my family might never see me personally again. – Jess Weatherbed”

Alan Wake 2

“At its core, ‘Alan Wake 2’ is a survival horror game, but it’s a survival horror game wrapped in a police procedural so seamlessly blending live-action elements that more than once, I found myself staring at footage of a real actor and marveling at how good video game graphics have become in 2023.

If you’ve played the original game, the sequel’s essence remains the same. You signal torches towards enemies to weaken them and use more traditional weapons to finish them off. But ‘Alan Wake 2’ is built on many nuances. This time, you’re not just playing as the titular Wake; you’re also playing as FBI Agent Saga Anderson, investigating the disappearance in a Stephen King-esque narrative, tangled up in the events of the previous game. Then, when you’re playing as Wake, you’re now capable of rewriting the story, changing the fabric of the world around you.

The entire game is a visual and auditory delight on PC, where Remedy has fulfilled all stages with the support of the latest and greatest ray-tracing technologies. If it’s an option, play it with headphones or surround sound speakers—when I passed by their shadows quietly murmuring Alan’s name, it sent chills down my spine. – John Porter”

Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty

“This year, seeing ‘Cyberpunk 2077’ again had various reasons. Firstly, the three years of updates and patches have truly brought the main game to a point that it should have been at launch with its 2.0 update. At its peak, CD Projekt Red has remained notably active in bringing NVIDIA’s latest graphical feats and support to the game, be it ray tracing, DLSS, or support for frame generations.

But in my opinion, it was ‘Phantom Liberty’ that represented the best among the game’s new additions, including a significant side quest with new characters and places to explore. Idris Elba stole the show as sleeper agent Solomon Reed, maintaining a commitment and a continuously transformative backstory. However, the performances across the board are impressive, and within its runtime, there’s a fantastic spread of various mission types.

The expansion isn’t by any means small, but it feels focused and central amidst the vast ambition of the original ‘Cyberpunk 2077.’ If you’re eager to immerse your toes in the neon lights of Night City, ‘Phantom Liberty’ is a fantastic way to experience the best it has to offer. – John Porter”

Dave the Diver

“Dave the Diver is such a strange mix of different styles that it has no right to work as well as it does.

Primarily described as a roguelike spearfishing exploration game, where you hunt fish and seek treasures underwater, it’s incredibly fun on its own. But the game has a whole other layer where you utilize the items you’ve discovered in a sushi restaurant, adding a dash of Roguelike’s top-tier time management experience.

The resulting loop of diving is unbelievably enjoyable—the game’s attractive art style and character design truly assist in that regard. – J. Peters”

Chants of Sennaar

“Thinking about language and culture is somewhat like pondering whether the chicken came first or the egg. They are intricately intertwined: the way we engage in meaningful conversations hints at the concepts we can discuss or comprehend. Translation, therefore, isn’t merely about matching words 1:1 in two languages; it’s about forming cultural connections and understanding how people using different languages can succeed or fail in connecting with each other.

So, this is essentially the crux of Chants of Sennaar. You pass through a tower, meet various people who make it their home, learn their languages, and understand their cultures. Undoubtedly, it seems inspired by games that came before it, and why wouldn’t it? If you look at different pieces, you’ll see shades of Heaven’s Vault, Tunche, The Mist Series, Journey, and half a dozen others.

Granted, not all these pieces work seamlessly on their own; for instance, I could have managed some long-hidden passages and a rather disappointingly hidden door without them. Yet, when you put them all together, they create something entirely beautiful and novel—which, to be honest, is akin to how language works. We have a finite number of letters and words to use, and yet, we can create infinite new combinations for language and communication. And as Chants of Sennaar reminds you, indeed, communication is everything.” – Kate Cox”

Viewfinder

“I’m peeved that people aren’t talking about Viewfinder all the time. This trippy, forced-perspective puzzle game was one of my best short-form gaming experiences of the entire year.

When I saw a demo of it on X, my mind was spinning, and I was hooked. I immediately subscribed to the game’s X account (back in those days when it was still Twitter) so I could be notified when Viewfinder would be out. Completely—something I had never experienced before or since. The game revolves around a simple yet instantly captivating premise: snap a photo with a Polaroid camera, overlay it, and the environment behind it changes to match its content.

Throughout the game, what starts as a simple premise gradually becomes delightfully complex but never burdensome. Sometimes, the exits will be in obscure corners, requiring clever positioning of the picture to create a path. You can create copies of the pictures to mimic essential resources. Real-world objects are affected by the impact of the overlaid images. When one picture is covered, other objects break, thwarting progress or allowing access to walled-off areas. Viewfinder is almost like a portal, augmenting the complexity of the game’s puzzles through a narrative more intricate than what’s visible, making it more complex than it appears. – Ash Parrish”

Slay the Princess

“In the entire history of video games, princesses have been the ultimate reward, something to achieve and desire. But in the creators’ game of Scarlet Hollow, you’re presented with an intriguing twist: kill the princess, and don’t save her until you’re willing to face the end of the world. And though this game intends to defy one of the most sacred principles in video games, nothing can prepare you for what you’ll encounter.

Slay the Princess is a kind of visual novel where actions are about making decisions, seeing their consequences, and navigating all the different paths available to your journey. And there are plenty of paths. They open up infinitely, to the point that just when you think you’re walking down a familiar road, the game presents new options and new events for you. What I enjoyed the most was discovering all these subtle differences and unraveling the core mystery of the game. Who are you? Why are you here? And why is that voice in your head so adamant about killing this princess?

It’s a short game. I was able to complete an entire playthrough in about three hours. Because so many options are presented, each with its consequences, I doubt, like Near Automata, it’ll take a few rolls of credits to fully understand what this game is about. Thankfully, the writing, art, sound design, and most importantly, voice acting keep each new journey fresh and engaging. – Ash Parrish”

System Shock

“System Shock Remake stands as an impactful, long-awaited achievement in the history of video games. It’s a reimagining of a nearly 30-year-old survival horror classic, presenting a believable yet unique reconstruction that places you in a maze of an all-powerful god-machine. Whether you’ve played the original or not, the result is a peculiar and victorious shooter that’s far more valuable than some disappointing initial segments.

The narrative of System Shock is familiar: you find yourself on a space station where an AI entity (in this case, the artificial intelligence SHODAN) has gone rogue. The remake brings back the original SHODAN voice actress, Terri Brosius, who will delight you through the Citadel Station. It retains the intricate level design of its source material and preserves bizarre weaponry—you’ll fight your way from lift to lift using everything from a lead pipe and a pistol to laser swords and slow-moving projectiles. But it breathes new life into the disappointing keyboard controls of the ’90s and leverages modern graphics to give Citadel Station a stunning, eerie shine that’s neither entirely contemporary nor low-fi retro.

Due to a delayed console launch, it’s currently an experience available exclusively on PC.” – Adi Robertson”

World of Horror

“The most striking allure of World of Horror is its monochromatic art style, inspired by the manga artist Junji Ito. This role-playing game touches on various Japanese urban legends along with several Ito-esque themes, placing you in the shoes of a young individual in a small town going insane due to supernatural forces. But its biggest win is a clever blend of captivating world-building and semi-random gameplay elements. It can repeatedly take you on different paths within the same set of small mysteries, slowly filling its eerie setting while providing a real sense of accomplishment in your quest to discover new endings, characters, and strategies.

The small development team behind World of Horror launched it into early access three years ago, but its recent full release has added far more features and encounters than the original 2020 iteration. While available on PlayStation and Nintendo Switch, its point-and-click design feels perfectly suited for the computer, and unlike some titles on this list, it certainly won’t stress your graphics card.” – Adi Robertson

Portal 2

“Portal 2 isn’t just a puzzle game; it’s a smart, cocooning experience crafted by the minds behind Pre-Limbo and Inside, director Jeppe Carlsen’s latest release. You play as an anonymous… entity… thing, traversing through an isometric environment with a control scheme that almost entirely revolves around a button and analog stick.

Its greatest strength lies in gradually revealing the rules of its world and teaching you to converse with increasingly complex layers of intricacy. It’s ingenious in its simplicity. The game’s many puzzles revolve around a series of intricacies, not only filling you with different abilities but also introducing entirely new levels within them. Before you know it, as you traverse through these intricate puzzles, you’re developing their capabilities in constantly new and creative ways.

It may seem overwhelmingly complex, but the game measures these abilities so well that when you encounter them, they just click. You navigate through the maze-like puzzles with complete satisfaction, yet almost zero frustration.” – John Porter