Our favorite games at GDC 2023

Our team at mudstack had the privilege of attending the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco, and we were absolutely blown away by the dazzling display of sight, sound, and creativity that developers from around the world had to offer. In this article, we'll cover a few of our favorite games that we had the chance to see and play at the conference. From narrative cooking games to mind-bending first-person adventures, and hero-based soccer-ish future-sports, there's a little something for everyone. So, let's dive in and see what these games have to offer!

Venba by Visai Games

Visai Games' upcoming cooking game, Venba, has made a strong impression at GDC 2023. The game follows the story of Venba, an Indian immigrant who has moved to Canada with her husband. The demo showcased a short cooking session, where the player learned to make a traditional Tamil dish.

What makes Venba stand out is its focus on history, family, and home (in both the literal and abstract sense), offering players a chance to connect with their roots in a new and unfamiliar environment. The game's emphasis on the tactile experience of cooking adds to the emotional attachment players will have to the food they prepare. The full game will also feature players piecing together recipes from a damaged cookbook, providing an extra layer of sentimentality in the gameplay.

In summary, Venba seems like a beautiful concept for a game, and the gameplay experience of learning new recipes while restoring a slice of home will be delightful. It is certainly a game to watch out for in the future.

Escape Academy: Tournament of Puzzles by Coin Crew Games

Escape Academy is a popular puzzle game where players are locked in escape rooms and must solve puzzles to escape, a familiar enough pretense that lends itself to the approachability of the game franchise. The new Tournament of Puzzles DLC adds a competitive twist to the game, allowing players to race against each other to solve puzzles and escape the room first. The mode creates an engaging comeback system and includes procedurally generated puzzles to keep the game fresh and challenging.

Credit must be given to the game's developers, Coin Crew Games, for delivering a strong DLC that adds to the already fun and engaging gameplay of Escape Academy. With the Tournament of Puzzles and two-story DLCs, the game has more content and replayability, making it a more complete and weighty puzzler. Puzzle fans and those looking for a fun, competitive experience will enjoy the new mode and should check out the game if they haven't already.

Viewfinder by Sad Owl Studios

Viewfinder, the mind-bending first-person adventure game developed by Sad Owl Studios, challenges players to reshape reality by bringing photographs, paintings, sketches, screenshots, and postcards to life in the game world. Using a polaroid camera, players solve level-based puzzles by taking still photographs and placing them in the environment, instantly transforming them into fully explorable 3D spaces.

Viewfinder offers players hours of interesting and fun experiences while uncovering the mysteries left behind. It allows for a player-driven narrative experience that is approachable for those who want to simply solve puzzles, and rich for those who want to dive deeper into the world. With the potential for once-in-a-generation, genre-defining puzzle gaming, Viewfinder has already stunned players with its clever and inventive solutions to complex puzzles, leaving them excited for what's to come when the game launches.

Omega Strikers by Odyssey Interactive

Odyssey Interactive's debut game, Omega Strikers, is a hero-based, three-versus-three soccer-ish future-sport with platform-fighter combat and a League of Legends-style tray of abilities. Say that three times, fast! The game is built on simple rules and a high-skill cap, with the aim of scoring more goals than your opponent. The game is easy enough to understand but takes countless hours to master, making it perfect for both casual and competitive players. Featuring an eclectic selection of heroes, each with their own bespoke kit and roles to fill, Omega Strikers has a stripped-down feel with the same basic control systems used for the singular purpose of scoring goals, augmented by each hero's unique abilities. The game gets more complex the deeper players sink into the meta, with various flavors and strategies available.

Omega Strikers has a serious bid for esports notoriety, with social media integrations and a season-long tournament where communities can compete against each other. Odyssey Interactive's experience and polished gameplay make Omega Strikers a game to watch in the future.

Naiad by HiWarp

This game is immersed in a sea of simplicity, so I’ll be brief and let the gorgeous art and tranquil mechanics speak for themselves. Naiad captures you in a current and makes it too easy to drift away in the episodic, lite-puzzle adventure from solo developer HiWarp.

Turtles! by Twisted BrainZ

Turtles! is an upcoming action-puzzle game where players control Bonnie the turtle and other cute turtles on a dangerous journey to the sea. Inspired by classic arcade games like Frogger and Choplifter, Turtles! offers an exciting and engaging gameplay experience. Despite still being in the prototype stage, the game has already won Best in Play at GDC 2023, and the developers from Twisted BrainZ we spoke to were delightfully confident that they can deliver. It's important not to judge a game before playing it, and Turtles! is seriously a ton of fun.

The Wandering Village by Stray Fawn Studio

The Wandering Village is an upcoming post-apocalyptic sim where players lead a group of survivors seeking shelter on the back of a giant creature called 'Onbu.' The game, which won Best in Play at GDC 2023, challenges players to build and expand their settlement on Onbu's back while forming a symbiotic relationship with the creature to overcome a variety of environmental challenges such as toxic spores and weather conditions. With different biomes to explore and technologies to research, The Wandering Village promises an immersive gameplay experience. We’re confident that Stray Fawn Studio has pulled more than its own weight with this one.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Game Developer's Conference is a fantastic event that showcases the best and brightest games from around the world. Our team at mudstack was blown away by the variety of games, each with its own unique gameplay mechanics, art style, and story. From narrative cooking games like Venba to competitive escape room puzzlers like Escape Academy: Tournament of Puzzles, and mind-bending first-person adventure games like Viewfinder, there was something for everyone at the conference. We also saw the potential for esports notoriety with games like Omega Strikers and the charm of games like Turtles! Despite still being in the prototype stage, it won Best in Play at GDC 2023. More than anything, we were seriously impressed with the developers and artists who make all of this possible. It's an exciting time for gaming, and we're thrilled to see what the future holds for the industry.