We honor our favorite PC and console games of 2013, and look forward to 2014.

The staff at ZAM has spent many hours debating which of the games we’ve played over the past year were most deserving of an award. In several cases the votes were neck-and-neck while others had an overwhelming victory. We had so much love to spread around that we expanded our voting categories from six to twelve this year.

Congratulations to the final six winners and runners up of 2013!

Winner: Diablo III by Blizzard Entertainment

The third installment in the Diablo franchise remained in the spotlight this year with its PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 release, the announcement of the auction house closing and the unveiling of its upcoming expansion, Reaper of Souls. Randomized levels and equipment are mainstays in the game but features such as Followers, Skill Runes and Artisans added more depth. In the March 25, 2014 release of Reaper of Souls players can expect an increased level cap, the introduction of the Crusader hero, loot drop tweaks, an improved leveling system and more.

Diablo III is available now on the PC, Mac, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It will be released on the PlayStation 4 in 2014. Reaper of Souls can be pre-ordered in the battle.net store now.

Honorable Mentions: Path of Exile by Grinding Gear Games and Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition by Overhaul Games

Winner: Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn by Square Enix

FFXIV: A Realm Reborn already took home our Readers’ Choice victory, and it grabs another as we dub it our MMORPG of the Year. The staff here has no shortage of love for the game, branching out into many sites such as XIVwiki, XIVDB and XIVPads. ZAM’s Project Manager, Katie Welka, shared that it is “a modern MMORPG that allows me to pick up as many classes as I want, without punishing me for my eclectic interests!”

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is available on the PC, PlayStation 3 and will be available on the PlayStation 4 in April 2014.

Honorable Mentions: Guild Wars 2 by ArenaNet and World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria by Blizzard Entertainment

Winner: StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm by Blizzard Entertainment

Heart of the Swarm expands the story set in Wings of Liberty and revolves around the Zerg race. The former zerg Queen of Blades, with her humanity restored, now yearns for revenge. Take leadership of the zerg swarm as Kerrigan and evolve them into your own vision of power. Dive into multiplayer battles with an array of units at your disposable and several terrains in the wide variety of maps.

StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm is currently available for the PC and Mac and requires the base game of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty to play.

Honorable Mentions: Civilization V: Brave New World by Firaxis and Skyrim: Dragonborn by Bethseda Softworks

Winner: PlayStation 4 by Sony Computer Entertainment

With multiple next-gen consoles launching this year, gamers around the globe locked in early pre-orders or lined up for hours (or in some instances, days) just to purchase their console of choice. When ZAM tallied up the votes for new console, the PlayStation 4 came out in the lead.

This console by SCE was released on November 15, 2013 in North America and two weeks later in the EU and Australia. Despite several launch titles, such as Watch Dogs, being delayed until 2014, the PS4 still had a respectable stable of games available such as Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Knack, Resogun and more. The console features a user-friendly and customizable interface, remote play capabilities when linked with the PlayStation Vita, a new DualShock controller with a touchpad, and social sharing via pictures and video.

The PlayStation 4’s availability is sporadic, so if you’re interested in this eighth-generation console, keep an eye on your local weekly ads and online retailers!

Honorable Mention: Xbox One by Microsoft

Continue to page 2 for more awards, including our most anticipated game of 2014!