2023's Game of The Year is now out on Xbox

(Image credit: Canva)

published 9 December 2023

The Game Awards have just finished and saw a host of new announcements to delight gaming fans, but the real winners on the night were the team behind the newly crowned Game of The Year, who were lucky enough to meet Timothee Chalamet himself.

That game is Baldur's Gate 3. Previously only available on PlayStation 5 and PC, it has now launched on Xbox Series X and unbelievably, on Xbox Series S. Microsoft's entry-level console is supposed to offer parity with the Series X for all titles, but an exception has been made for Baldur's Gate 3.

The Series S version of the game will not support split-screen multiplayer, but aside from that one of the biggest games of all time is unchanged for the baby Xbox. Want an idea of its scale? A recent patch added no fewer than 3500 new lines of dialogue. It's safe to say it has earned its Metacritic rating of 96. So what do Xbox gamers have to look forward to? What's it about?

Baldur's Gate 3 is a Dungeons & Dragons inspired fantasy RPG that you can easily pour hundreds of hours into. If you're after something high-octane, this isn't for you but if you want a seemingly endless adventure with tense tactical battles and a story with more branches than an orchard, this is your dream game. With four-player online and local co-op (not on Series S) it's time to put your party together and embark on an epic quest.

The future looks promising for Xbox right now. Microsoft's strategy of buying leading developers has started producing results with the acquisition of Bethesda for instance seeing arguably the year's most anticipated game Starfield, launching on Game Pass. 2024 should see the recent Microsoft/Blizzard merger pay off as well.

If you're a PlayStation owner then you will always be delighted by The Game Awards. It was announced that free God of War: Ragnarok DLC will be arriving next week.

Andy was T3's Tech Staff Writer, covering all things technology, including his biggest passions such as gaming. If he had to save one possession from a fire it would be his PlayStation 5. He previously worked for Tom’s Guide – where he got paid to play with ChatGPT everyday. When it comes to streaming, Andy will have his headphones glued in whilst watching something that will make him laugh. He studied Creative Writing at university, but also enjoys supporting his favourite football team (Liverpool), watching F1, teaching himself guitar, and spending time with his dog.