Goodbye, 2023: to celebrate the New Year we have rounded up the best New Year’s Eve in video games in our last top 5 before 2024
As inevitable as destiny itself, the New Year’s is upon us and that’s why we decided to dedicate a top 5 to the most significant celebrations of video games. After the Christmas ranking, we owed you a little “sequel”; with the revelry you will have this evening, however, we also preferred not to drag it out too long. We didn’t even impose on ourselves who knows what rules; simply only one game per series (because there is one that would have otherwise dominated the ranking), and the relevance of December 31st in the event, be it a plot point, a background element or the end-of-year countdown represented in-game. And with the Christmas NiGHTS title screen as an honorable mention for SEGA’s game, let’s get straight to it.
Issue 5: The Cold Heart of Gotham | New Year’s Eve and video games: our top 5
Let’s start immediately by saving ourselves in the corner with the last place in the top 5, because among the video games chosen this title caresses the concept of New Year’s Eve in a slightly more marginal way, allowing us to recover from the previous ranking. Many of you may have wondered why not include Rocksteady Studios’ Gotham City, especially with Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League on the horizon (yes, we were sneaky in making it up to future releases this time). The location of Batman: Arkham Origins we preferred to keep it aside for this article, given that the DLC Cold, Cold Heart puts Mr. Freeze in the spotlight for a thrilling New Year’s Eve. It really took a cold heart to exclude the prequel from the ranking!
Number 4: Fourth place and last quarter of an hour | New Year’s Eve and video games: our top 5
We apologize to any second, third or fourth generation Asian readers who are probably scratching their heads just reading the title of this section. Ironically, it is a Japanese game that wins fourth position, and with the fourth chapter to boot! Let’s talk about R4: Ridge Racer Type 4specifically the race known as Real Racing Roots ’99. We go back twenty-three years to greet the new millennium, thanks to a challenge literally set in the last quarter of an hour of the previous one. Once you reach the finish line, in fact, the display on the arch reads “Happy New Year!”, giving a double meaning to the fireworks display in the night sky. Adorable!
Number 3: Draghi is born | New Year’s Eve and video games: our top 5
We told you we would be a little sneaky, and we stand by our word. Going back to the imminent release of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, let’s go back to the origins of Ichiban Kasuga. Literally. The first chapter of Yakuza: Like a Dragon, itself the seventh episode of SEGA’s “underworld” series, deals with the birth of the character in the game world. We don’t want to tell you more so as not to spoil a very interesting backstory in Ichiban’s tormented life, but suffice it to say that for him New Year’s Eve and birthday have more than just an initial and a suffix in common: his life began with a bang… the same with which the series abandoned the title “Yakuza”, with all due respect to the publisher.
Number 2: “Ten, nine, eight, seven, six… five!” | New Year’s Eve and video games: our top 5
Speaking of the publisher itself and series that will have new titles with the arrival of the new year, you know that Persona 3 Reload is also coming, right? Because we, mulling over the series and its cultural impact, have remembered a particular moment in the history of Persona 5. The Phantom Thieves, on this particular occasion, follow the countdown itself from Shibuya station. The only ones missing are Joker and Morgana… but why? Here too, we are not allowed to give spoilers. If you want an explanation… uhh… yeah, let’s pretend that’s when they joined Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Certain! The reason is that. Absolutely. Circular!
Number 1: Happy New Year!
We thought about who else to place at the top for the New Year’s top 5, but among the video games where it is actually possible to celebrate it, only one stood out. We would have included World of Warcraft, if only it weren’t for the fact that you can get into PvP in that game. Don’t get us wrong: New Year’s Eve brawls can very well happen in the real world, especially if you raise your elbows. However, we preferred the simple candor of Animal Crossing: New Horizons and the possibility of waiting for the new year in the company of our funny fellow citizens. Exchange greetings, laugh together and, above all, cheat with the console’s internal clock to relive the magical moment later so you don’t miss it in the real world. Right?
Now it’s up to you to tell us your opinion: would you have preferred other virtual New Year’s Eve celebrations in the rankings? Let us know below, and as always don’t forget to stay on techgameworld.com for all the most important news for gamers and beyond. For your purely gaming needs, you can instead find the best discounts in digital format on Instant Gaming.