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[Drizzlehell]

Or "double-A" as some people like to call it.

With all the talk about GOTY awards for all the big budget mainstream games and indie critical darlings, I wanted to pour one out for those mid-budget titles that usually bridge the periods in between bigger releases, and often tend to be better than many triple-A releases.

Probably the most notable 2023 game in this category was Robocop Rogue City, but what else was there? For me personally, I enjoyed Wanted: Dead and Scars Above quite a bit.

 

[acm2000]

Hogwarts, AA developer given a AAA budget and they did an ok job

 

[Drizzlehell]

Hogwarts, AA developer given a AAA budget and they did an ok job

That's definitely not a AA game. It was a major studio release.

 

[Field]

Lies of P and Remnant 2

 

[BennyBlanco]

Super Mega Baseball 4

 

[Danjin44]

For me this year Armored Core VI was my GOTY which I think is considered AA game......The gameplay loops for ACVI was super fun and addicting, I still play it time to time even after platinum the game.

 

[TexMex]

Lies of P. Not even close.

 

[killatopak]

Robocop?

edit: oh mentioned already

 

[LakeOf9]

Octopath Traveler II if that counts?

 

[NewYork214]

Agree with robocop. Game would be million times better with a AAA budget tho.

 

[bender]

Remnant 2 was one of the bigger disappointments for me this year. I have a lot of complaints about Jusant but that's mostly due to wasted potential and I think it's well worth experiencing especially with its' budget price.

 

[Arsic]

Lies of P. Thought it was gonna be doo doo. Tried it on gamepass and insta bought to support.

Otherwise a game that came out of nowhere that was great this year that likely wasn’t on anyone’s radar is Dredge. Fun little game.

 

[Punished Miku]

A lot already listed so I'll add Exoprimal.

 

[phant0m]

Robocop absolutely banged and was a classic AA game.

Battlebit and sons of the forest were good fun too.

 

[EverydayBeast]

Callisto Protocol Dec 2022) but it’s simply AA structured like a AAA game.

 

[Warablo]

Wo Long maybe?

 

[ADiTAR]

Pikmin 4 really didn't get the love it needs. There's a reason why Japanese are still buying it, it's really great.

 

[Kupfer]

Is Dead Island 2 a contender for that title?
I don't know about its' total budget but I know devs did a great job considering the clusterfuck all around the games past.
To me it even is my GOTY. I had so much fun with it and played from start to platinum in a couple of days which doesn't happen often these days.

 

[Mossybrew]

Yeah enjoying Dead Island 2 right now, kinda in that category.

 

[SmokedMeat]

Yeah enjoying Dead Island 2 right now, kinda in that category.

Came to say I’m hyped to play Dead Island 2. Just got it yesterday, but haven’t had the chance to play it yet.

 

[TheUsual]

Yeah enjoying Dead Island 2 right now, kinda in that category.

Currently playing as well. Pretty solid for what it is.

I would also throw in Immortals of Aveum into this.

 

[PixelatedBeast]

Callisto Protocol Dec 2022) but it’s simply AA structured like a AAA game.

It cost that studio at least 100 million to make that game. What you saw or played was supposed to be AAA.

 

[Kings Field]

Remnant 2 and Octopath Traveler 2

 

[Billbofet]

Hi-Fi Rush

 

[geary]

Atomic Heart

 

[MiguelItUp]

Definitely Lies of P for me. That and Robocop were my favorites. Hi-fi Rush is great too, though I didn't finish it. Also curious about Remnant 2.

 

[NeoIkaruGAF]

Hi-Fi Rush.

 

[kittoo]

Atlas fallen.
Many might disagree and it flew under the radar, but I truly enjoyed it very much. Fun combat, good graphics, reasonable voice acting and production values.
Definition of AA too.
Others like Lies of P, Lords of the fallen etc have already been mentioned.

 

[HerjansEagleFeeder]

This thread makes me think we should have a poll for best game in this category going forward. Too much attention being drawn from the big flashy juggernauts of the industry.

 

[acm2000]

That's definitely not a AA game. It was a major studio release.

Avalanche are not a major studio, they make licensed trash only now they get a bigger amount of money so they're output hopefully won't be so much trash anymore.

 

[Hudo]

As of recently, "Pioneers of Pagonia". And to the surprise of no one, it absolutely fucking curb stomps Ubisoft's "The Settlers: New Alliances".

Edit: Also shoutout to Advance Wars 1+2 on Switch.

 

[Robb]

Hi-Fi Rush, if that counts.

 

[MarkMe2525]

"We Are One" is stunning, mechanically sound, clever, and overall just punches way above its weight. Sadly, only a few dozen thousand will ever play this as it's a VR game. If you have the hardware, it's worth checking out.

P.s. PM me if you want to check it out and want a referral discount.

 

[Camreezie]

Pikmin 4 really didn't get the love it needs. There's a reason why Japanese are still buying it, it's really great.

Pikmin 4 absolutely slaps

 

[Hypereides]

This thread makes me think we should have a poll for best game in this category going forward. Too much attention being drawn from the big flashy juggernauts of the industry.

Agreed and good idea. Time to highlight, celebrate and applaud the AA games of the industry that get little to no word of mouth.

 

[Drizzlehell]

A lot already listed so I'll add Exoprimal.

I dunno about this one tbh. I don't know how well it did commercially but it seemed like a pretty big new game for Capcom this year. Feels kinda on the same level as Lost Planet 1 and 2 was back in the day.

Agreed and good idea. Time to highlight, celebrate and applaud the AA games of the industry that get little to no word of mouth.

Yeah, that's actually a good point. I didn't wanna generalise in the OP, but it kinda does feel like most conversations are focused on triple-A or indie studios, and those mid-shelf releases usually get their own OT but then the conversation about them mostly fades away.

 

[Hypereides]

Atlas fallen.
Many might disagree and it flew under the radar, but I truly enjoyed it very much. Fun combat, good graphics, reasonable voice acting and production values.
Definition of AA too.
Others like Lies of P, Lords of the fallen etc have already been mentioned.

Looked at some footage of this. Doesn't look half-bad. Will add it to my consideration list. Have to do some additional research. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[FalsettoVibe]

Lies of P and Remnant 2

This is the right answer.

 

[Topher]

Octopath Traveler 2 for me. Great game

 

[kittoo]

Looked at some footage of this. Doesn't look half-bad. Will add it to my consideration list. Have to some additional research. Thanks for the heads up.

Just one more thing. The opening of this game is pretty bad. Stick with it for an hour or so and it will click.

 

[Fbh]

I really enjoyed my time with Fire Emblem Engage.

Don't know if it's considered AA but it's definitely a significant step below stuff like FFXVI or Tears of The Kingdom in terms of production values.
While I still don't like the art direction (the character design in particular) , in every other way it's the Fire Emblem I wanted since the launch of the Switch, bringing the focus back to the combat instead of the relationship stuff. I thought the "engage" mechanic with the rings and heroes from previous games was pretty cool, the weapon breaking/disarming mechanic also added a new strategic layer which I enjoyed.

Sadly it reportedly didn't sell as well as three houses so with the next one it's probably back to highschool simulator, relationships and bonds.

 

[S0ULZB0URNE]

Lords of the fallen
Remnant 2

 

[FeralEcho]

Lies of P by far, It's better than 90% of AAA releases nowadays. It's incredible how amazing and polished it turned out.

Had it on my radar,played on Gamepass for 2 hours,then bought on PS5,and it became my current Game of the Generation,even though I think BG3 is a better game,but I still prefer Lies of P in terms of the impact it had on me.It is the Bloodborne of this generation for me.