The Pocket Gamer Awards 2023 are celebrating the best of the best in the past year of mobile gaming

By , on December 14, 2023
Last modified 11 months, 2 weeks ago

The Game Awards 2023 has been and gone, and let's be fair to them, they did a good job, but it is time for them to stand aside because the Pocket Gamer Awards 2023 is where the real deal is. 350,000 readers voted across 20 categories, and now we have the definitive award list in mobile gaming.

No one likes a paywall, but there is no doubt that there are some stellar games on the Apple Arcade, with the James Bond licensed Cypher 007 and collectable card game meets tower defence Junkworld duking it out for first place. In the end, though, Hill Climb Racing+ was crowned the Best Apple Arcade Game, and that is some fantastic confirmation that simple games can still rise to the top.

For those who crave the simple time of gathering around the table to roll dice, the Best Digital Board Game award is for you. There were some song titles up for debate, but there was only ever going to be one winner wasn’t there? The grandfather of all cardboard rollers, Monopoly Go.

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Of course, it is not just the games themselves, but the publishers who deserve the plaudits. There were some tough candidates in this one. Hoyoverse, NetEase, and Netmarble are some of the biggest names in mobile gaming, they are everywhere, however, you all decided this year that Gameloft took the title, no doubt spurred by the return of Dungeon Hunter.

We couldn’t do any roundup without the biggest award in gaming, and I am including the BAFTAs in that; the Pocket Gamer Mobile Game of the Year, and there were some massive names. Monster Hunter Now roared onto devices, Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis was no doubt everyone front runner, but they all fell to Tencent's Arena Breakout, and it is hard to argue with that.

To catch up on all the other worthy winners and laugh at the losers, visit the PG Awards 2023 section on Pocket Gamer.