This year has been one of discovery: new digital spaces, sports, technologies, and places have steered our interests across 2023, starting conversations, sparking trends, and helping us reconnect with one another. It’s no surprise that these apps, games, and books reflect what we’ve experienced this year, showcasing just how technology intersects with our lives. Presenting Play’s Best of 2023.

Education can empower and transform lives, but everyone learns differently. Imprint: Learn Visually makes learning more engaging and memorable, especially for those of us who are visual learners or struggle with traditional text-based instruction.

Interactive lessons in subjects like science and history to language and art are visually captivating, using a combination of illustrations, animations, and videos to bring concepts to life. They’re transforming the way we learn now.

Honkai: Star Rail took our breath away from our first action-packed moments aboard the Astral Express. This turn-based sci-fi extravaganza rose to be our best game of the year thanks to its excellent depth of content, stunning visuals, and thoughtful game design. Each new world we explored was more dazzling than the last.

You’ll be whisked away by its gorgeous anime-style visuals and stylish, memorable characters, but this game is so much more than how it looks. It builds up intrigue by sprinkling lore and character backstories as you go while easing you into its innovative combat system. The result is lasting enjoyment for RPG lovers and new fans alike. If you can only play one game, make it Honkai Star Rail.

From dangerous dragons and once-in-a-lifetime love to silly science fiction and #Booktok favorites, 2023 was one for the books. Check out our editors’ favorite stories of the year and your must-reads of 2023.