Annual Summary 2023

Another year, another bunch of RPGs under my belt.  Although calling them a “bunch” might be overselling it a bit, because after last year’s showing of 13 completed RPGs, which I called, at the time, “pathetic”, with full-on italics, I’ve somehow managed to drop the number even further to an outright disgraceful 10.  Look at this embarrassing display:



Fire Emblem 15
Gamedec
Hades 1
Hololive CouncilRyS RPG
Omori
Octopath Traveler 1
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
Septerra Core
Shin Megami Tensei 5
Steven Universe: Save the Light



Ouch.  Can I even call myself The RPGenius at this point?  That’s fewer than 1 RPG a month.

In fairness, there’s at least some cause for this.  First of all, whereas last year my job was severely understaffed for half the year, this year it was severely understaffed for 5/6ths of the year, which just cuts into my ability to do pretty much anything enjoyable, both from the extra time involved in being at work, and the fact that I’m so drained afterwards that I can’t bring myself to even play a damned game half the time.  Also, Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous is freakin’ huge; time-wise it should count as like 2 and a half RPGs, really.  Also, I’ve spent a lot of the last few months playing SMT Persona 5, which is also very long, and I just haven’t quite gotten to the end of it yet, so while it’s not counted here, it’s taken up a lot of my RPG focus.  Finally, I did also play a full-sized RPG called A Dragon’s ReQuest that I haven’t included in this year’s list because it’s not officially released yet--it’s essentially complete, but its creator hasn’t actually put it up on a major platform for regular audience consumption, so that’ll be another RPG that’s gonna be on next year’s list rather than this one.  So you could view those paltry 10 RPGs as, like, 14 or 15, really.

Which is still too damn few anyway.  Oh, well.  At least it was a high-quality bunch of RPGs I played this year that were a lot of fun; very few flops in the mix to be found.  Hell, it’s probably better that A Dragon’s ReQuest and Persona 5 will be heading up next year’s list, because with them AND Pathfinder, Omori, Hades, and Octopath, it’d almost be too much high-quality stuff from which to choose winners for this year’s categories.

But before that, let’s indulge my need to show off all the other stuff I’ve done this year like an attention-starved 6-year-old demanding constant, unbroken focus and applause from a parent as he performs some menial act.  Or alternately, like your average Tiktok creator.  Here’s what I’ve been up to this year besides RPGs:


Anime: I recently watched the Megumin spin-off to Konosuba, which was pretty fun and amusing.  As expected, I suppose, given that Konosuba is already a funny anime, and this is basically just more Konosuba but with only the best 2 characters.  I also saw the second season of Pui Pui Molcar, which is a return to the absurdly, endearingly cute and silly form of the first season, if perhaps not quite as fun.  Lastly, I rewatched Steins;Gate as I showed it to my sister, because Steins;Gate is awesome.

Books: Less free time at work means less time to sneak in a few pages on the sly, sadly, so my readership lessened this year, too.  Still, the important thing is, I read (and quite enjoyed) Into the Black, by Brian Work.  Even if you haven’t read so much as a recipe or game developer apology all the rest of the year, so long as you’ve read Into the Black, you can call it a successful literary year.

Although, I mean, I DID actually read some other stuff, too.  While Joseph Heller’s Catch 22 was a big pile of Meh, William Pene du Bois’s Squirrel Hotel was a cute and enjoyable little story (even if I was dissatisfied with its conclusion).  Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens was pretty good, too.  I guess.  Mostly.  It’s honestly not really my kind of story, but that’s more just personal taste.  Lastly, I read the Gold collection of Isaac Asimov’s writings, and really enjoyed it as a true finale to the works of the greatest science fiction writer yet to put ink to paper.

...But for real, Into the Black is cool and you should read it.  That the author is an old friend of mine is only somewhat relevant to this recommendation, I swear!

Non-RPG Video Games: I played A Street Cat’s Tale this year because I’d been misled into believing it was an RPG, but I don’t regret the gaff--it’s cute, and sweet, and incredibly depressing, which of course is right up my alley (cat).  Also, at a friend’s recommendation, I experienced the visual novel Slay the Princess, and it is a marvelously thoughtful, compelling work of interactive art that I can’t recommend enough.  Unless you are averse to Psychological Horror, and also some goddamn disturbing violent imagery.  But, uh, if you find Psychological Horror repellent, then you’re probably not gonna be thrilled with my favorite RPG of this year, either...

Streaming and the Like: I watched quite a lot of stuff this year, actually.  I found Amphibia to be alright, although, much like its distant cousin predecessor Gravity Falls, quite overrated (also, Amphibia’s ending flopped hard).  In fact, of the modern Disney cartoon semi-same-universe trifecta, only The Owl House really lived up to its hype.  Speaking of which, I also watched TOH’s final season, and in spite of being noticeably and tragically rushed due to the fucktards making decisions at Disney, Season 3 was great.  Really, that they managed to close out the series as well as they did in such an unreasonably brief period of episodes is a testament to the talent of the show’s creators.

Other cartoons I watched this year included Hilda’s first 2 seasons and movie, which are a nice, creative, endearing, and wholesome experience that I’m looking forward to continuing when Season 3 releases, and Cuphead, which is a marvelously fun and authentic homage to the old-timey classic cartoons of a century ago that significantly stands out as more than just an adaptation riding on the coattails of the game’s success, as I wrongly assumed it would be.  Speaking of old-timey cartoons, I also watched the full run of the 2013 Mickey Mouse shorts, and by God are they hilarious!  The series is a perfect translation of the best qualities of the classic Disney shorts of yesteryear to a modern perspective, with great visual and written gags, incredible energy, perfect pacing, an art style that is almost uncomfortably perfect for depicting the bizarre and occasionally amusingly gross ideas, catchy songs, and even a dedication to displaying and enjoying different cultures across the world, much as the original shorts did.  2013 Mickey Mouse is honestly a triumph and sits shoulder-to-shoulder with its classic Disney short and Looney Tune peers.

It’s still not as fantastic as Netflix’s Carmen Sandiego adaptation, of course, which I watched for a fourth time this year as I showed it to my sister.  But really, what can compete with the modern Carmen Sandiego?

Oh, yes, I also watched some live action shows, too.  This year finally marked the end of The Flash, and let’s be honest: it’s an end that was overdue, because at this point, I’d have to be at least a prolific arsonist for The Flash not to be the guiltiest pleasure in my life.  Still, it was a fun ride, and I had fun watching it.

But as you all know from the fact that I chose to play Project X-Zone 2 in spite of having inflicted the first game on myself, I never learn my goddamn lesson, ever.  So immediately after The Flash ended, I replaced it with DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, of which I’ve already finished the first season, and damn it all, I’m enjoying that one, too.  It’s like the dumber version of both Doctor Who and DC Comics, and considering that both DC Comics and Doctor Who are already the dumb versions of themselves, I’m gonna be guilting up my watching pleasure for seasons to come.

Less guilty a pleasure?  Galavant.  Hilarious and fun through and through.  It’s like The Princess Bride, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Robin Hood: Men in Tights, and the songwriters for Animaniacs all got mushed together into 1 amazing show.  Seriously, I hate musicals, but Galavant had me grinning like an idiot from start to finish.

Lastly, I watched The G Word, which is as great and interesting as I’ve come to expect from television made by my second favorite member of Olde English, and the entirety of the show Superstore, which was really funny and a good time overall.  I’ll grant you, some of my enjoyment of Superstore may have some basis in working retail myself, but I’m pretty sure it’s still objectively a fun show.

Except for Mateo.  Mateo is the fucking worst.

Other Crap: As mentioned, I work a full time job.  I also have gotten a little more social in recent years?  Not much, but sometimes I go to people’s places for dinner now, and I’ve continued catching my friend Angel Adonis up on various bits and pieces of culture from before his time and/or outside his country of origin, like The Twilight Zone, A Quiet Place, Electric Dreams, The Animatrix, and other stuff.  Also took him through Chrono Trigger, and now we’re doing Grandia 2, because Go Best or Go Home.

Oh, and I’ve been doing a lot of cooking in the last few years?  Like, learning how to do it decently and trying different recipes out.  That’s fairly time-consuming.  But I’m not bad at it, sometimes!


Alright, enough of that crap.  Let’s get to the stuff you’re here for, if you’re here at all, which according my viewership metrics you mostly aren’t.  It’s RPG time!



RPG Moments of Interest in 2023

1. Y’know, Omori, of all the potential things for a surreal psychological drama about repression, loss, and guilt with significant horror elements and themes of suicide to reference, Kenan and Kel was probably one of the ones I’d have least expected.

2. Every RPG protagonist has more than their share of lucky vehicular near-misses and Curative Falls, but Septerra Core’s Maya finds and walks away from crash landings like she’s trying to beat some world record held by Launchpad McQuack.

3. So a major component of Amphibia’s finale is the introduction of a completely spontaneous, unnecessary cosmic entity, voiced by a child, who is an absolute worthless shithead and whose gross incompetence at his job is responsible for untold death and destruction.  This self-satisfied stupid lazy fuck then decides to shove an untold and utterly bizarre, ill-matched responsibility onto the protagonist in a scene which in no way meshes with the feel, style, or world of the entire rest of the series, and frankly cheapens the lore substantially.  And I’m watching this travesty, and all I can think is,

“Well, I guess now I know what the writers behind Mass Effect 3’s ending have been up to.”

4. Question for the Disco Elysium and Omori fans out there.  Which is the greater sin: refusing to high-five Kim, or Kel?

5. Dude the true final boss of Octopath Traveler 1 is fucking bullshit.  I know an unreasonably powerful final boss is the cherry on your SaGa sundae, but Jesus Christ.

6. Alright, so, I gotta go steal a giant bug monster’s egg, drill a hole in it, and stuff it full of knock-out drops.  Next, I need to walk a few counties over, find some giant leeches hanging out in a swamp, and throw a piece of meat at them.  That way, they’ll be distracted so that I can grab these three leeches the size and thickness of a child’s arm with my bare hands, and bring them a little ways over to the pond inhabited by a monster that appears to have a sun-roof built into its skull.  I toss the drugged egg at the monster, let it eat, and when it conks out, I drop my collective dozen pounds of leeches directly onto the monster’s exposed brain and hope they’ve got a taste for French cuisine.  Once the maggots have devoured so much of the monster’s brain that their item description literally changes to “Bloated”, I gather them up, and the monster awakens, 4 pounds of gray matter lighter and suddenly eager to follow Elon Musk on Twitter.  Now that I have a bundle of bugs bloated on brain blood, I can bring them to the local tattoo parlor, because I want the lady there to squeeze that guck out of the leeches, so she can inject this partially-digested swamp monster cranial blood goo directly into my body.  These sicknasty tats, you see, will allow me to get close to the local pirate warlord, because his idea of economic exchange has less to do with currency than it does slave girls, but his fetish is historical figures, specifically a tattooed angel from like a thousand years ago.

Is it just me, or are the things that happen in RPGs a bit odd, sometimes?

7. So it would seem that, if the legal resolution of the matter is accurate, the allegations made against Chris Avellone a couple years ago had all the authenticity of an official statement from Bethesda.  That is to say, it seems that the accusations of his being a sexual predator were a lie.

Which is good!  I mean, it’s really extremely shitty that Mr. Avellone had to go through it, costing him respect, credibility, and work, not to mention money with legal fees; it’s absolutely rotten that this was done to him.  But I suppose that if the choice is between Chris Avellone going through a lousy situation while being innocent, and Chris Avellone actually honestly being the creep he was accused to be, I’d much rather the former scenario.

At the same time, though, my feelings are complicated.  I feel guilty that I didn’t have better loyalty to a creator who I so respected.  Consequently, I almost feel like I’m not really worthy of speaking positively about the guy’s works any more, as though it’s pretending that the back I’m clapping isn’t also the one I sank a knife into.  Which in turn makes me feel absurdly pretentious; as if Chris Avellone has any idea of who I am or what my stance was on the issue!  Besides which, what am I torturing myself over?  I said 1 negative thing about him based on the only information known at the time, on a blog so obscure that most of my own family don’t pay it the slightest mind.  But when it’s a man’s reputation that’s at stake, doesn’t that mean that the belief and perspective of all others, whether prominent or unknown, is at the very heart of the matter?  My reaction was part of the collective whole; I don’t get to just dismiss having a share in having done him wrong.  Yet I don’t want to let that negative feeling change my instincts too much, because being willing to listen to and believe the claims of a victim without immediately and aggressively demanding receipts is also important--it’s an unfortunate reality that 1 of the biggest obstacles for victims, particularly abused/mistreated women, is that they are, even now, so frequently dismissed out of hand or even vilified for coming forward because the one who preyed on them can leverage far more resources and/or reputation.  Evidence is quite obviously vitally important, but the instinct to take a supposed victim’s claims seriously, especially when they’re against someone you personally view positively, is also very important.

So basically I’m extremely frustrated by the whole thing (and feeling annoyed with myself that I have the gall to feel this frustration because obviously this isn’t about me, RPGenius, you pretentious twat) and I think it would just be so super great if people could maybe stop undermining the process of real victims seeking justice by throwing around false accusations.

8. Speaking of complete and total lies, Pete Hines retired this year!  I guess that after all these years of hard work fabricating untruths on Bethesda’s behalf, Mr. Hines wants to kick back, relax, and spend some quality time lying to the people he loves.  I’m surprised Bethesda let him go, really; dishonesty is about the only part of the business that Bethesda remains competitive in these days, so losing their top liar is gonna be quite a blow to them.  Then again, knowing Ol’ Petey, Bethesda may not have known until he was out the door--guy probably told Todd Howard that he was just going out for cigarettes.

9. The sound effects used for doors opening and closing in Septerra Core are the exact same ones that AOL Instant Messenger used in the early 2000s for people coming online and going offline, and this fact is incredibly distracting to me.


Quote of the Year
Runners-Up
"Mrgrgr!"
  --Tressa, Octopath Traveler 1

"Thank you for the dung, my friend!"
  --Kindly Farmer NPC, Octopath Traveler 1

Winner
"Damn it, she’s right!  I’m a shitty excuse for a cultist!"
  --Random Henchman NPC, Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous



Best Prequel/Sequel of 2023
Winner: Hololive CouncilRyS RPG
Okay.  So it’s an indulgent, silly fan creation full of in-jokes and references to a specific group of VTubers and their rabidly dedicated fanbase.  Be that as it may, the Hololive CouncilRyS RPG was clearly made with a lot of love for its subject matter and dedicated understanding of the idols’ lore, personalities, and followers.  It’s using the pre-existing material in a thoroughly knowledgeable manner, building a fun new story from that material which satisfies and entertains those who have enjoyed that which preceded it.  And really, isn’t that just what a great sequel’s supposed to do?  Extremely niche it may be, but Hololive CouncilRyS RPG has the heart and care in its making that I so wish more sequels and prequels could display.

Runners-Up: Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous; Steven Universe: Save the Light
PWotR is really more its own adventure than anything, but it does have some light but pleasing ties to Pathfinder: Kingmaker that arise now and then.  It is, of course, also a game based around a major tabletop Pathfinder campaign’s material and premise, and in that regard, the game strikes a pleasing and elegant balance between the existing content, and the ideas and interpretations that Owlcat Games has for it.  It’s definitely a great adaptation and extension of the tabletop campaign, and really, it’s only the fact that an adaptation is slightly less like a “sequel” than whatever you’d call Hololive CouncilRyS RPG that keeps PWotR from top spot here.

Steven Universe: Save the Light is an adequate sequel to the first SU RPG.  Expands a bit on the nemesis from the first game, introduces new elements, utilizes the characters and events of the show itself well.  There’s nothing about it as a continuation that strongly stands out, but at the same time, it does a good job as such.


Biggest Disappointment of 2023
Loser: Shin Megami Tensei 5
I understand that not every SMT is a marvelous gem.  Sometimes an If or a Devil Survivor 2 happens.  Hell, I wasn’t even especially impressed with SMT4-1, and that’s one of the mainline titles of the series!  But all the same, Shin Megami Tensei’s long history has been one dominated by solid, thoughtful titles, interspersed with some of the best RPGs I’ve had the pleasure to experience...so the utter, amateur, slipshod disinterest with which Atlus conducted SMT5’s story and cast was outright shocking to me.  This is a title whose only priorities were gameplay and visuals, and that doesn’t cut it for an RPG, and it especially doesn’t cut it for a Shin Megami Tensei.  Conception 2 is unquestionably the far worse title objectively, but I daresay that Shin Megami Tensei 5 is nonetheless the darkest stain on Atlus’s record to me for the shame it brings to a respectable name.

Almost as Bad: Fire Emblem 15; Septerra Core; Steven Universe: Save the Light
Look, there’s nothing wrong with Steven Universe’s second RPG.  There’s just nothing that especially stands out.  I mean, SU is 1 of the most thoughtful, emotionally charged, well-constructed, poignant cartoons ever created, and it didn’t take a very long grace period for it to start getting real.  I guess I just thought that after the pretty basic and serviceable Steven Universe: Attack the Light had laid out the groundwork, the next game in the trilogy would have the space to start getting into the heavy stuff that the show was known and celebrated for, so another reasonably straightforward adventure that only very slightly touches on ideas of self-autonomy and unhealthy relationships is just less than I’d hoped for.  Well, with any luck, the third title will go harder.

While I do like Fire Emblem okay as a whole, I never do find myself holding high expectations for it.  All the same, people generally harbor positive sentiments for FE15, and it made a decent splash in the FE fanbase when it came out a few years ago, so I did kind of expect it to be...I dunno...good?  At least a little?  Better than Just Barely Okay By The Slimmest Margin, at least.  Also, it’s a bit disappointing in that it promotes itself as some joined story of dual protagonists, but really, all it turns out to be is the story of a single protagonist which also simply happens to point the camera at his supporting love interest a lot of the time.

Lastly, Septerra Core was the second game I ever bought on GOG, and its premise and style interested me.  Turns out, though, that it’s less a classic of its day, and more just a sample of why gaming moved on from that day to begin with.


Best Finale of 2023
Winner: Omori (but only the Good Ending)
It’s hope, it’s acceptance, it’s the courageous first step to finally living again and mending the terrible hurt that tore so many lives apart.  There’s no guarantee that all will be well...but at its worst it will still be better than what it’s been.  What a game and what a way to end it.

Runners-Up: Gamedec; Hades 1; Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
Gamedec starts to get really compelling in the last leg of its journey, and the existential, philosophical weight of its final moments is easily what I respect most about the game.  Hades 1’s ending (the final one, with the big get-together) is satisfying and feels like the perfect way to complete the game’s tale of the confusing nature of family.  And as for PWotR, as with the first game, the creators know exactly how to craft a hyped-up, epic finale to a long, grand campaign, and while it’s easily the most tricky and precise ending in RPG history to achieve, the true, secret Ascension ending to the game is extremely cool and rewarding, as well as a perfect realization of the game’s theme of overcoming your boundaries and becoming more than the sum of your parts.  To be frank, while I understand objectively why Omori has to be the winner for the beautiful artistry of its conclusion, I definitely best enjoyed and felt the most personal satisfaction from the conclusion to the tale of the Commander, her comrades, and Areelu Vorlesh.


Worst RPG of 2023
Loser: Shin Megami Tensei 5
Oh gee what do you know the game for which I’ve spent the whole year loudly expressing my passionate disdain turns out to be the worst game I played, what a fucking twist.  Moving on.

Almost as Bad: Fire Emblem 15; Septerra Core
Honestly, the category title of “almost as bad” really isn’t accurate, because neither FE15 nor SC are even in the same league of lazy awfulness as SMT5.  Septerra Core is barely even bad, really.  Clunky as hell and a perfect representation of the Awkward Age of PC RPGs, sure, but if they’d just done a better job pacing out the characters’ interactions and the events that occur therein, and developed half their cast a little better, and made Maya seem more competent, and stopped relying on crash landings as the only means of moving the plot forward...actually, I’m reading all this as I write it, and yeah, maybe I’m right and Septerra Core really isn’t so hot.  Still nowhere near as poor a product as SMT5, though, of course.

As for Fire Emblem 15, it’s got some glaring fundamental flaws with the way it approaches telling its story, and all things considered, even fixing those major problems would still only leave you with a kinda forgettable plot overall, driven by a cast that doesn’t have a lot to them, for the purpose of a cliched and underdeveloped moral about unity and self-reliance.  Also--and I’m not joking here, this is an earnest speculation--I suspect some person(s) on the writing staff of FE15 has/have some serious and unhealthy issues with women.  It’s just not a good RPG.  While still being leaps and bounds better than SMT5, of course.

Okay look I promise that SMT5 will stop being the red flag being waved in my eyes come 2024.  Just bear with me as I finish working it out of my system here.


Most Creative of 2023
Winner: Omori
The subject matter, the purpose, the method and pace, the nature of the big revelations as they come...there’s few titles that can boast any strong resemblance to Omori; while it has peers in games like Undertale, Grimm’s Hollow, Mother 3, and, weirdly, Whisper of a Rose, Omori primarily stands out as a unique work.  And hell, even the simple matter of the dreamworld’s events and details represent an interesting example of thoughtful innovation--to pin such significant story beats to the idea that Sunny is a very creative individual, the game’s developers have to themselves be equal to the creativity they want to impress on the audience.

Runners-Up: Gamedec; Hades 1; Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
Admittedly, a lot of the creative qualities of PWotR were already set in place for the developers by the original campaign materials, but the ways in which they worked with the existing characters, the interesting qualities and stories of the ones they created, and the thematic purpose they weaved into this Pathfinder story are all more than enough to earn it recognition.  Hades is a wonderfully inventive use of Ancient Greece’s pantheon and canon of heroes and villains to tell a story about family that possesses as much fundamental relevance to the nature and condition of humanity as those classic myths do.  Supergiant Games’s scope of knowledge of these myths and legends is matched only by their innovative ways of adapting them to this tale of mending a feuding and dysfunctional family.  As for Gamedec, it’s an RPG that uses the nature and mechanics of video games as an example of layered reality to propose and explore existential questions.  And while that’s been done before in varying ways and to varying degrees with games like Undertale, Slay the Princess, Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga, Doki Doki Literature Club, Star Ocean 3, and especially Nier: Automata, there’s still plenty of room in the field for new and interesting takes on the idea and directions to bring it, and Gamedec does a good job in serving us the eternal existential plight of the self-aware--and the solutions we’ve found to it--in a fresh and interesting form.


Best Romance of 2023
Winner: Arueshalae x Commander (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous)
Arueshalae’s journey to change her nature for the better, and to finally determine what she dreams of, is a wonderful and natural companion to the sweet, authentic deepening of her feelings for the protagonist into tender love.  It’s a genuinely lovely romance that makes you feel warm and content to witness that’s so right for who Arueshalae is and wants to be that her character arc actually feels incomplete without it; Arueshale and the Commander are simply meant to be together.

Runners-Up: Anevia x Irabeth (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous); Commander x Daeran (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous); Thanatos x Zagreus (Hades 1)
Thanatos and Zagreus are such moody precious loverboys and they absolutely fit one another like gloves.  I mean, I like the dynamic that Zagreus and Megaera have, too, and I really like the fact that Hades proudly embraces the potential for Zagreus, Thanatos, and Megaera to form a polyamorous relationship--you remember how pleased I was by Pathfinder: Kingmaker’s taking such a romantic situation seriously.  And they definitely do work as a thruple!  But all the same, I definitely feel that the connection between Thanatos and Zagreus stands out significantly more strongly.  Again, I like what Megaera and Zagreus have got, but it’s not equal to Than and Zag’s romance to me, and the latter is great whether or not you choose to also involve Megaera.  The boys’ve got the best love in Hades.

Now, if Dusa were legitimately interested, it’d be a whole other story.

PWotR is no slouch when it comes to romances, and even if Arueshalae stands head and shoulders over her competition, there’s no denying that the story of selfish party animal Daeran falling in love with the Commander and letting down some of his walls is a sweet and touching tale.  The game even does a really nice job with the love story of side characters, too.  The trust, devotion, understanding, and deep and abiding affection between Irabeth and Anevia as a couple is far more convincing and emotive than most RPGs’ plot-centric love stories; they’re definitely a case of wholesome relationship goals if ever an RPG had one.


Best Voice Acting of 2023
Winner: Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
All the vocal work in Wrath of the Righteous is good or better, and a lot of these characters are portrayed with a skill and flare that’s exemplary.  Hell, even actors for relatively small roles often provide shockingly great performances in this game--Minagho, for example, is a villainess that seems like a big deal at first but quickly becomes small potatoes as she’s outpaced by both the protagonist and the scope of the story, and yet she delivers her lines in what I have to assume is the greatest performance of Lindsay Sheppard’s career.  From Daeran to Regill to Arueshalae to Areelu to Nocticula to Nenio and so many more, the talents in PWotR bring their characters to life with impeccable flair.

Runners-Up: Hades 1; Octopath Traveler 1; Steven Universe: Save the Light
Whether it’s Cyrus’s scholarly affectations, the dramatically distant pain in Primrose’s tone, or H’aanit’s taciturn calm, OT1 is not too terribly far behind Pathfinder in its wealth of appealing performances that quickly become a signature element of their characters.  Likewise, Hades showcases Supergiant Games’s commitment to the high quality voice acting that’s become 1 of the company’s many defining features.  Lastly, SUStL...well, the amount of spoken lines are limited, but they’re done well by the actors that so strongly defined the personalities of these characters, and enjoyable to hear.  I mean, honestly, objectivity be damned, I’m a sucker for Peridot’s vocal antics; she’d score the game a place here even if all the rest weren’t up to par.


Funniest of 2023
Winner: Hololive CouncilRyS RPG
I mean, okay, a lot of the humor is of the inside-joke variety, but if you’re playing this game, it’s a pretty good bet that you’re part of the VTuber fanbase and more than familiar with the friendly, clever, tongue-in-cheek comical leanings of CouncilRyS and their audiences.

Runners-Up: NA
I really did want to get to Shadows of Loathing this year.  Ah, well, expect to see it absolutely dominate this category come 2024!


Best Villain of 2023
Winner: Sweetheart (Omori)
Sweetheart’s a great nemesis on multiple levels, and the true sinister nature of her role is very interesting.  But even if her true purpose as an obstacle is on a meta-level, she is also, in and of herself, a rather interesting and well-conceived villain, as I recently observed.  Detestable on her surface, layered and complex beneath, and thematically fascinating at her core, Sweetheart’s the best of the worst this year, for sure.

Runners-Up: Areelu Vorlesh (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous); Simeon (Octopath Traveler 1); Staunton Vayne (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous)
He may be over-the-top and a bit simplistic, but damn it all, you have to respect the dramatic wickedness of Simeon; the guy’s basically what you’d get if the Joker was an overachieving theater kid.  PWotR offers a whole bunch of appealing and interesting villains, but its primary antagonist Areelu is 1 of the best, a complicated, tragic, unrepentant yet somehow not irredeemable figure whose grandiose villainous actions are interestingly caught somewhere between sincere and selfless love for her child, and existential self-serving ambition.  She’s very much akin to a far craftier, less pathetic version of the Changing God from Torment: Tides of Numenera.*  Lastly, although his significance to the story is short (at least, in the relative sense; even a single chapter of PWotR takes a while to get through), Staunton makes for a solid tragic figure, guilty and accountable for his mistakes and choices, yet sympathetic for the circumstances in which he makes them.  Reminds me in some ways of MacBeth, too--weak and easy to tempt, yet once he’s committed to his selfish path, his determination to see that journey to its end far surpasses that of even she who manipulated him onto it.  Good stuff!


Best Character of 2023
Winner: Aivu (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous)
I love this candy-obsessed adorable little dragon with all my heart and you can’t make me give this award to anyone else.  YOU CAN’T MAKE M--

Actual Winner: Dusa (Hades 1)
Nice try, assholes, but objectivity can go suck it this year!  You won’t let me pick the cutest sweetest most fun dragon buddy of all time as the best?  Then I’m going with an equally precious cinnamon roll instead!  Dusa is the most charming, lovable little maid girl you’ll ever meet and this could not possibly be more accurate.  So there, I’m not backing dow--

Real, Actual Winner: Sunny (Omori)
...Oh fine whatever.  Have it your way.  Sunny is a masterfully crafted character whose psychological depths fabricate 1 of the most intelligent and emotional RPGs in history.  I basically can’t say a word more without the risk of spoiling stuff, but yeah, Sunny is a character written at the absolute highest level.

He’s still not a mischievous dragon with an out-of-control sweet tooth, though, so booooo, boring!  AIVU FOREVER!

Runners-Up: Arueshalae (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous; Daeran (Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous); Primrose (Octopath Traveler 1)
While I have a great fondness for both Cyrus and H’aanit, and certainly they, Albert, Therion, and especially Olberic are all good characters, there’s really no question which of Octopath Traveler 1’s protagonists is the best written and most interesting.  Primrose’s tale of revenge and managing to avoid losing herself to her hatred is the defining story of OT1 to me.  As mentioned earlier, Arueshalae is a great character whose journey from evil to good is lovely to watch and aid, and she has interesting perspectives to share on the process that aren’t just your average bad-guy-being-redeemed material.  And while Arueshalae is definitely the best-written character in the game, Daeran’s not too far behind her, with his chaotic wit and candor that covers up but doesn’t exactly try to hide the depths of his mind and heart.  Hell, most of the PWotR cast are notably great, really, but if I have to narrow them down, the ones that shine most are Daeran and Arueshalae.

Still, none of them are a cute, easily-flustered floating gorgon head with a feather duster with boundless affection and enthusiasm, though, so bah, humbug, who cares about the lot of’em!  DUSA FOREVER!


Best RPG of 2023
Winner: Omori
Omori is an immensely moving, psychologically fascinating, lovingly-forged RPG that everyone should play.  And that is all I want to say about the damn thing because I don’t want even the barest of chances at spoiling anything, and hoo boy, is it easy to spoil.  All that really needs to be said, though, is that it’s truly awesome.

Runners-Up: Hades 1; Octopath Traveler 1; Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
Hades is 1 of the best RPGs I’ve encountered to tackle the nature of family and the complexity therein, and the decision to do so through the lens of Greek mythology--and it does magnificently--is just inspired.  I mean, Pyre is still way better, and I might even argue that Transistor edges ahead, but Hades is definitely well worthy and then some of its honorable pedigree as a Supergiant Games creation.  Octopath Traveler 1, meanwhile, is a classy, artful game that takes a lighter but no less worthy stab at the SaGa formula (sort of like how Persona is a lighter but no less excellent iteration of Shin Megami Tensei).  I definitely understand why it made a stir in the RPG community--particularly considering what a rare accident it is when SquareEnix actually does something right.

As for Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous, it’s an awesome translation of an epic tabletop campaign that manages to refine the already excellent methods of its predecessor into something even better, with a cool and pervasive theme, a strong cast that’s well-developed through character arcs and then perfectly fine-tuned through hundreds of little comments and interactions, and an entertaining plot that flows well and takes on new dimensions with its every passing chapter.  Omori is Omori and it’s meaningful, high-level art, but on a personal level, I absolutely loved playing Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous the most of all the games I experienced this year.


List Changes
Greatest Deaths: I’ve updated this one with [REDACTED] from Omori, because I can’t possibly avoid doing so, but I’m planning to do a minor overhaul of this list in the coming year, anyway, because there’s definitely a need to rethink its order and expand its number.  I mean, I never put anyone from Rakuen on there because I’d intended to do this a few years ago and forgot!  Definitely needs to be rectified soon.
Greatest Examples of Battle Systems: Hades 1 has been added as Greatest Action RPG; Kingdom Hearts 2 has been removed.  Sorry, you combat containing creatively choreographed cutscene commands.
Greatest RPGs: Omori has been added; Grandia 1 has been removed.  Sorry, you excellent experience about explorer’s enthusiasm.
Worst Endings: Fire Emblem 15 and Shin Megami Tensei 5 have been added; Fallout 3 and Final Fantasy 7 have been removed.  Congrats, you games whose endings were previously puzzlingly, poor, and adversely, anticlimactically ambiguous, respectively.
Worst Romances: Berkut x Rinea (Fire Emblem 15) have been added; Arnaud x Racquel (Wild Arms 4) have been removed.  Congrats, you duo who didn’t deliver the dame from death despite the dipshit dude’s determined declarations to do so.


Music Additions

Them’s Fightin’ Chords
Ara Fell Final Boss Battle
Hololive CouncilRyS RPG Cursed BaeRyS Battle
Hololive CouncilRyS RPG Cursed Mumei Battle
Hololive CouncilRyS RPG Cursed Fauna Battle
Omori Pluto Battle
Omori Pyrefly Forest Battle
Omori Space Ex-Boyfriend Battle
Shin Megami Tensei 5 Fionn Battle
Steven Universe: Save the Light Final Boss Battle

Hither, Thither, and Song
Ara Fell Cave
Ara Fell Hidden Ruins
Hololive CouncilRyS RPG Time and Space
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous Enigma

Chime Really Feeling It!
Ara Fell Determination
Ara Fell Sad
Fire Emblem 15 Mila
Hololive CouncilRyS RPG Mystic

See You Bass Cowboy
Omori Mari
Shin Megami Tensei 5 Tao

All That and a Bag of Chiptunes
Hololive CouncilRyS RPG Battle Against Cursed Fauna Remix
Omori By Your Side Orchestral Remix



And that’s it for 2023.  Hoping for a more productive RPG year come 2024, but by this point, I’m resigned to the likelihood that it won’t happen.  We’ll see, though.  At least there was a lot of great quality with what I played this year, and given that I’m almost finished with SMT Persona 5, I’ll be starting next year off considerably better than I did this past one (as it began with SMT Just Normal 5).

As ever, I’d like to close us out with a heartfelt round of gratitude both to my sister, and to my friend Ecclesiastes, each of whom are vital for these rants’ existence as they patiently allow me to bounce ideas off them, proofread my rants (particularly my sister, who listens to every single one and helps make sure it’s to the highest standards possible of my low quality), and provide helpful suggestions.  They’re the only human beings on Earth whose time I waste more than my own, and I deeply thank them each for indulging me.

Additionally, thank you to my Patrons Ecclesiastes and Toasterdog.  As ever, your generosity is abundantly encouraging and it’s a pleasant shock that anyone likes my idiotic ravings enough to trade a portion of their hard-earned livelihood for them.

And of course, as ever, a thank you to all my readers.  I like to joke that no one reads my blog, and to be sure, I hold no delusions about the small scope of my audience, but I also know that I do have readers, even dedicated ones, and all joking aside, I am enormously thankful for you.  Whether 1 person or 1 billion, it’s a remarkable thing to know that there are those who hear and even care about my thoughts and opinions.  Thank you all, and happy holidays!













* Which may make it seem very odd that the Changing God is still on my Greatest Villains list while Areelu is not.  Well, while she’s definitely a great villain, her essentially being a personally better, smarter, and truer version may make Areelu more awesome, but it does make her a little less of a villainous figure than him, because a lot of what is so intriguing and evil about the Changing God isn’t his grand acts, but rather the petty and pitiful failings within him, his carelessness of what his legacy has done to the world and his having lost the nobility of his original goal to his Ra’s al Ghul fear of mortality.  Even as she pursues a way to cheat the boundaries of existence and ascend beyond death, Areelu doggedly remains dedicated to trying to resurrect her daughter, and in the end, when push comes to shove, her devotion to that cause is still her greatest priority.  And that makes Areelu a terrific character and a very cool villain!  Yet it nonetheless makes the scope and nature of her villainy a little less than that of the Changing God’s delusional hypocrisy, at least to me.

Shin Megami Tensei 5 Stray Thoughts

Even after picking apart this game off and on throughout 2023, somehow, I still have opinions to share on Shin Megami Tensei 5, and spoiler alert, they’re still not complimentary ones.  But I’ve made enough meals of my hate-boner for SMT5--more than enough, I’m sure you’ll agree.  At this point, it’s time for some hate-boner after-dinner mints.



- You gotta love how Atsuta’s dying words to the protagonist (on the Chaos route, where he’s your ally) are just that the responsibility of protecting Tokyo is yours now.  Nothing to the tune of, oh, I dunno, “Please protect my sister Miyazu.”  No “Tell Miyazu I love her,” or “Pass on my apologies for leaving my sister.”  Not even a “Remind Miyazu that the trash goes out on Wednesdays, a-and make sure she...hurrgh, cough cough...separates any fluorescent light bulbs from the rest of it, they count as hazardous waste and the town--oh shit my kidneys, oh fuck it hurts--the town won’t accept them, those have to be, HACKAKC COUGH HURRRKKKK, turned in separately during specific community recycling events that she’ll...oh fuck is that my blood how did I have so much blood everything’s going dark...that she’ll need to call ahead to secure an...appoint...ment...forrrrr......”

Nothing about Miyazu at all.  Just...this all-encompassing and undefined drive to protect Tokyo that is Atsuta’s 1 and only character trait is supposed to have originated from a desire to protect his sister, and yet 90% of the time it’s like the writers didn’t even remember the 2 were related to begin with.


- So, on the matter of Tao...what was the point in taking her goddess form away and resetting any levels, stat raises, etc., every time the game is restarted?  I mean, okay, she’s a story-central character whose resurrection as the goddess of Tokyo only happens in the last quarter of the game, but...Amanozako is a similarly important and unique story figure who you travel with, and the game never has any problem with you hauling the Amanozako you’ve developed in previous games along for the next run, even though the new one’s also hovering around as your guide.  And even with the insistence on having only 1 Tao at a time, it still wouldn’t have been that hard for the game to just store her party member data and give you the option to resume that Tao when she joins you on later runs of this game that expects at least 4 playthroughs.  But resetting her completely every time means that after the first playthrough, Tao falls completely behind all other demons in your stable, and you won’t even want to try to develop her as a fighter, because all your work will be undone the moment you choose to continue the game for the next run.  It’s a baffling decision on the part of the developers; they’ve basically guaranteed that the ONLY one of literal dozens of potential party members that you’ll never, ever want to seriously use is the one who’s the most plot-important, a potential love interest if you squint real hard, portrayed as very powerful, and literally the goddess that the franchise is named for!


- Look, I know this may not be rational, but I hate the fact that I’m supposed to believe that the ultimate, final, true god that takes the celestial throne and dictates what the philosophy of existence shall be, is someone who gets from 1 place to another by Naruto-running.


- Unexpected though it may be, I do want to take a moment and get in a rare word of praise for the game.  The scene during Chapter 2 in the classroom, where Sahori is confronting her bullies, is one that I genuinely think is well-done, at least for the brief period when it’s just Sahori and them, before Lahmu shows up.  The quiet, disgusted disbelief of Sahori as they beg for mercy from her is both well-written and well-acted here:

“Are you serious?  You’re really trying that with me, after it never worked when I said it to you?  While you were punching me, kicking me, destroying my stuff?  NOW you understand, “please don’t hurt me?””

That is a fucking great set of lines, and the quietly growing fury in her voice is surely the best moment of acting in the game.


- Look, I know this may not be rational, but I hate the fact that I’m supposed to believe that the ultimate, final, true god that takes the celestial throne and dictates what the philosophy of existence shall be, is someone who walks around in his civilian identity with what amounts to a sloppy version of the Moe Howard bowl-cut.


- Oh goody.  A sidequest wherein you look for creatures scattered throughout the landscape of the game.  200 of them.  Usually hidden, frequently annoying to reach.  My favorite.

I’m a pretty simple guy and I don’t ask for too many unreasonable things in my life, but I really, really hope that when the person(s) responsible for Gold Skulltulas die, I’m there to witness it.  And possibly instigate it.


- Is it just me, or are the set designs of this game really generic?  I’ve already talked about how little of Tokyo you see and how at odds that is with it being the citymon roll that everyone and their grandmother wants to protect at all costs, and that’s an out-of-character problem for the SMT series, which usually seems to delight in the streets, underground walkways, and general urban decor of Japan.  But just in a general sense, very little of this game’s scenery feels like it comes from a Shin Megami Tensei title.  The boring postapocalyptic expanses of the first 3 major chapters all feel generic, like they could have served in just about any given game of appropriate setting.  The demon castle and Empyrean only barely feel more authentic, still seeming like they’d have served equally well in just about any other RPG, and and the Temple of Eternity is so indistinct that it wouldn’t surprise me to be told that Atlus sourced its design out to Kemco.  The only major area in the game that really feels like it has any SMT flavor is Chapter 4’s Taito setting, and even then, something about it feels more like someone imitating the character of the franchise than a legitimate representation of it.


- I complained previously about how negative the endings of Shin Megami Tensei 5 are across the board and how they make the player feel dissatisfied because of it.  But y’know, I just recently played another RPG called Gamedec, and it’s remarkable how much of a difference presentation and thematic expectation can make in whether an idea works or doesn’t.  Because Gamedec, too, is an RPG that concludes with several ending choices, all of which are flawed, all of which are less about a happy, fulfilling ending than they are about coming to terms with the philosophical difficulties (and even horrors) of existence, and whatever choice you make will result in a higher being chiding you for it...and yet I respect Gamedec’s ending.  Gamedec actually does some set-up to frame the imperfection of the options and situation it presents, and is essentially grasping with the heavier issues of existence, mortality, and self-awareness that our species has always struggled and likely always will struggle with--questions which ultimately have no perfect resolutions, at least none that we’ve yet reasoned out.  If there perhaps isn’t satisfaction to be found in any of Gamedec’s endings, there is at least peace to be made with them, and the game did the legwork through its course to establish the mood and expectations within the player for the way it concludes.  

SMT5, on the other hand, won’t tell its own story, doesn’t want to actually tackle the complex issues it presents, pins itself to a hand-waving magic plot device that sets an expectation for a more satisfying conclusion than it can deliver, and can’t even be bothered, in 3 out of its 4 endings, to take the less-than-5 minutes Gamedec does to SHOW the player the limitations of his/her decision, instead only having the narrator TELL you why what you’ve decided is wrong and stupid and everyone hates you.  Oh, and on that note, Gamedec also has the courtesy not to let the nay-saying narrator have the last word--the protagonist of Gamedec is given the opportunity to respond to the sneering criticism levied at her/his final choice, and that retort is usually decisive, biting, and the stronger argument.  Being able to tell off the jerk who undercuts your decision goes a long way to making Gamedec’s ending far more palatable and worthwhile than Shin Megami Tensei 5’s, and highlighting what makes the latter's so shitty.



Christ this game sucks so much.  You know this is the tenth rant I’ve made about it?  Considering that I take June off, that’s almost 1 rant for every damn month of the year.  That’s basically a third of a year that I spent hating this turd.  10 is the number of rants I made which featured Xenosaga 3, easily 1 of the biggest out-of-control trashfires I’ve come across in my decades of RPG experience.  But even that meandering shitshow possessed far more laudable qualities than this lazy farce!

Seriously, just...shame on Atlus for Shin Megami Tensei 5.  Shame on it.  Real, actual shame.  Everyone involved in the decision-making process for this game, and the writers, should sincerely feel bad about what a flopping pile of nothing they created here.