Honkai: Star Rail leads Google Play's Best of 2023 awards

The end of the year means "best of" time, and Google has unveiled its list of the best Google Play games and apps for 2023. For the former category, the top spot goes to Honkai: Star Rail from Genshin Impact developer MiHoYo. 

In its write-up of the role-playing game, Google Play VP Sam Bright commended the game for its "excellent depth of content, stunning visuals and thoughtful design." At launch day on PC and mobile in late April, the game locked in 20 million downloads, a small bump from the 17 million start for Genshin Impact.

Along with the "Best Overall Game" award, Honkai took awards for "Best Story" and "Best Tablet Game." Taking the award for "Best Multi-Device Game" was Smilegate's Outerplane - Strategy Anime. 

Like with Honkai, Bright noted Outerplane's visuals and technical achievements, along with being able to work across multiple devices. That ease makes it distinct from other turn-based games on Google Play, continued Bright, and the fact that it's "just plain fun."

In other categories, Vampire Survivors took the "Best Indie" award, joined by Farlight 84 and Stumble Guys winning respective prizes for "Best Multiplayer" and "Best Ongoing." Outside of games, Google granted the Character AI app the "Best with AI" award. 

The full list of Google Play's Best of 2023 winners can be seen here.