Due to a villain's inherent role in a story, please note this article contains spoilers.While many players regard 2023 as one of the best years ever in terms of quality game releases, part of what has made this year's releases so great were the villains they had to face. This year boasted some all-around top-notch stories in games, which brought with them equally complex and intimidating villains to act as foils for the heroes of these titles. It can be hard to create a villain as iconic as Mario's Bowser, as terrifying as Silent Hill's Pyramid Head, or as sympathetic as Metal Gear's Big Boss, but this year's best villains ranged from maliciously evil to misunderstood and tortured.