An Embarrassment of Riches: The Year of Gaming 2023

This is not a tale of two cities, although it does start in an oddly parallel way. The year of 2023 was one of feasts and one of famines. The year of 2023 is characterized by customers being spoiled for choice and developers having their choices stricken from them. The year of 2023 is defined by consumption, massive consumption, a year of records and wonder. The year of 2023 is defined by those consumed, an industry that thrives off of dreams cutting them short due to impossible financial benchmarks. The phrase “there is no ethical consumption under capitalism” is prescient in that way. The phrase “an embarrassment of riches” is also pertinent. As with many things, the start of the pandemic signaled a dramatic shift in the industry. With people confined to their homes, this led to two natural consequences. 

People were looking for something to do and turned to things like Netflix’s The Tiger King and Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Work on multimedia had to be adjusted substantially to accommodate the new world order. This meant transition to work from home, this meant delay after delay after delay, this meant scope reduction.

Villagers in Animal Crossing celebrating a new spike pit. I mean staircase.

In 2020, we were surviving off the strength of prior years. In 2021, we were hoping for tiny vestiges and in 2022, there were signs of a new equilibrium. But all of them came to a head in 2023. The year started out strong with Hi-Fi Rush alongside a remaster of Dead Spac…