2010 didn’t seem that far away until I started looking at how many games have been released since then. Hundreds of games from teams across the world, spanning a myriad of platforms and genres. Some of which I devoured, others I merely scratched the surface of and many that had never even made it on my radar.
While I haven’t even put a dent in all the games that have come out since 2010, narrowing down 10 years of games to one favorite game per year still wasn’t an easy task (especially when there are so many left unplayed in my backlog), but here are my picks and their runner-ups.
Fallout: New Vegas (2010)
Runner-ups of 2010: Alan Wake, Fable III and Halo: Reach.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011)
Runner-ups of 2011: Bastion, Star Wars: The Old Republic and Minecraft.
The Walking Dead (2012)
Runner-ups of 2012: Legend of Grimrock, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning and Guild Wars 2.
Animal Crossing: New Leaf (2013)
Runner-ups of 2013: Runescape 3, State of Decay and The Wolf Among Us.
Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014)
Runner-ups of 2014: Murdered: Soul Suspect, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter and Child of Light.
Fallout 4 (2015)
Runner-ups of 2015: Life is Strange, Halo 5: Guardians and Ori and the Blind Forest.
Oxenfree (2016)
Runner-ups of 2016: Firewatch, Stardew Valley and Quantum Break.
What Remains of Edith Finch (2017)
Runner-ups of 2017: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Narcosis and Night in the Woods.
Octopath Traveler (2018)
Runner-ups of 2018: Fallout 76, Subnautica and Forza Horizon 4.
Untitled Goose Game (2019)
Runner-ups of 2019: Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, Dragon Quest Builders 2 and The Outer Worlds.
And so ends a decade of digital adventures, stories, and characters that we have played, enjoyed and loved. Looking back at 10 years of games played and unplayed was not only daunting but made me realize how diverse my gaming interests are and how much my video game consumption has changed.
While we know some of what 2020 and beyond has in store for us in terms of releases, there is a whole ‘nother decade of amazing gaming experiences yet to come. I can’t wait!
EightBitBlonde 
Oh my gosh, I forgot about Alan Wake but what an awesome game! Love your top picks too. I hadn’t heard of Oxenfree but it looks gorgeous so I’ll have to check it out. Did you get a chance to play Red Dead Redemption 2? One of my faves games of the decade for sure.
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If you liked Alan Wake I definitely recommend Murdered: Soul Suspect (if you haven’t already checked it out)! I didn’t get around to Red Dead Redemption 2, but I plan to one day. It looks fantastic!
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I love your picks. Video games have changed a lot over the years I went from playing a lot of FPS to more story driven games. And I’ve fallen in love with a lot of character along the way. I can’t wait to see what 2020 has in store.
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Yess with the Walking Dead and Animal Crossing New Leaf.
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I’m so excited for Animal Crossing: New Horizons! I sunk in around 450 hours into New Leaf.
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Clearly Oxenfree is something I’ve missed out on given what you put it over and above that same year!
I am on a bit of a story-game kick as well presently, so I’ll add it to the list. :D
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It was tough decision to make (and in all honesty, it was more like a 4-way tie 😋) but it is a fantastic experience I definitely recommend.
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Oxenfree was fantastic, it’s dialogue system, which includes remaining silent by not responding was fantastic
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Agreed. Choosing not to say anything had such an impact during certain moments in the game.
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Great posts, I forgot about some of these gems
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Thank you! I uncovered so many great games I had forgotten about when going through each year’s release list.
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With the Walking Dead game, I’m actually not a huge Walking Dead fan, but this game was so fun and addicting
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Elder Scrolls and The Walking Dead are definitely up there for me. In fact, nearly all the Telltale Games series have been pretty enjoyable. I’m also obsessed with Elder Scrolls Online at the moment and the Arkham games, even though they’ve been out for ages now.
Emma | https://geekytourist.com/
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How is it that I’ve only heard of Minecraft and Skyrim?? I’ve gotta broaden my horizons!
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I’m not the biggest gamer – more of a platform / fighting games person myself, but you have reminded me that I need to get the untitled goose game on the switch!
x
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Haha that goose gets everywhere! Great list.
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