Game of the Year 2023 – Best Visual Design

thesixthaxis.com:

Let’s be honest here, over the decades of video game history, there’s always been an awful lot of joystick wiggling over what game, what console and what graphics card can produce the best graphics.

But visual design is more than that. Yes, you have the wow factor of being on the cutting edge, but it’s about artistry as much as it is about pixel pushing and BVH bouncing. All of that combined is what leads us to our winner for Best Visual Design this year.

Remedy Entertainment are truly the masters of their own domain. The Northlight Engine that they first created for Quantum Break has grown and evolved through Control and onward to Alan Wake 2. With the current generation of consoles and newer GPUs, Remedy has been able to pack every scene, object and character with even more detail, but one of the engine’s real strengths has been in how it handles lighting. That has absolutely carried forward and been enhanced with more advanced ray tracing, global illumination and more, all marrying perfectly with Alan Wake 2’s steps into the survival horror genre.

All of this has enabled Remedy to really lean in on their film and TV inspirations, with Bright Falls and Cauldron Lake taking on even more of the vibe and feel of the classic 90s TV show Twin Peaks on Saga Anderson’s side of the story, while there’s the pre-2000s grime of New York City in Alan Wake’s side of the tale. Blend that with moments of live action video, artful overlays and more, and Alan Wake 2 is a real tour de force of artistic and technical vision.

– Stefan L

Microsoft hasn’t had a raft of exclusive titles this year, but there’s certainly been a few highlights. Hi-Fi Rush strummed its way to the top of that small pile with surety and aplomb, bringing a raft of