Sometimes a game comes out, and nothing is ever the same afterward. We were fortunate enough to have a ton of incredible games come out in the last decade, but being a great game isn’t necessarily the stipulation for being on this list; games on this list need to have had a marked impact on the industry for years to come. These are the games that you think about long after playing them. These are the games that other developers talk about when they’re describing their own games. These are the games that leave the world’s biggest entertainment industry a different place after release.
These are the games that changed the world in the last decade:
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10MINECRAFT
The first game on this list has to beMinecraftand it is undoubtedly one of the most influential games of all time.Minecrafthas had such an impact on how we interact with and think about games that it’s difficult to go back and recall how it was beforeMinecraft.Crafting was rarely a component of games beforeMinecraft.Procedural generation was hardly a buzzword beforeMinecraft.
None of this is mentioning the craze of open-world survival games thatMinecraftandDayZhelped popularize. Would we have games likeArk: Survival Evolved, Rust, The Forest,orConan ExileswithoutMinecraft?Probably not. It shifted the landscape in such a huge way, and it did so without a triple-A budget.
9THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM
Near and dear to this writer’s heart,Skyrimis as much a world to immerse yourself in as it is a game. Sure, it has become a meme for a variety of different reasons, but no one would even understand the meme if the game wasn’t familiar to just about everybody who’s ever played a video game. Argue all you want aboutSkyrimnot being the best RPG in theElder Scrollsseries, but it is undoubtedly the game that popularized theElder Scrollsname outside of the usual RPG circles and has utterly cemented Bethesda as one of the premier RPG developers, despite recent missteps.
8THE LAST OF US
One of the most well-crafted and beautiful single-player experiences ever made isThe Last of Us.BeforeThe Last of Us, there were certainly games that attempted, and occasionally even succeeded, in bringing players high-quality gameplay and cinematic experience with a great story and memorable characters.
However, none of those games areThe Last of Us. Anyone who’s ever played the game will never forget Joel or Ellie. The bond the game creates between Joel, Ellie, and the player is something that is nigh-on impossible to experience in any other form of storytelling and is pivotal in making sure that gut-punch of an ending arrives with so much emotional weight.
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7DARK SOULS
Sure,Demon Souls released beforeDark Soulsand is a great game in its own right, butDark Soulsis the game that put From Software on the map in a big way and popularized the Souls-like genre that we see today.Dark Soulsis a game that others are compared to so much that it’s almost become a meme, but it’s because From Software created a melee-action game that feels so smooth and rewarding to play that gamers cannot help but compare others to it. Games likeNioh,Lords of the Fallen, heck, evenJedi: Fallen Orderlikely wouldn’t exist, or would exist in an entirely different form, if not for the trail blazed by this.
6STARDEW VALLEY
A game with heavy influence fromHarvest Moon,Stardew Valleytook the gaming scene by storm upon release back in 2016 and has remained a popular game to pass the time and relax with since. An incredible feat of developing and artistic talent from a single developer, Eric Barone,Stardew Valleyhas spawned several poorly conceived clones and is so successful simply because of the effort and care put into it by Barone. The care is evident everywhere you look, including the characters, the art, and the music (which is so freaking good). Logging intoStardew Valleyfeels like logging in to see some old friends.
5FORTNITE
A game even non-gamers have become at least vaguely familiar with,Fortnitehas utterly conquered online gaming with it’s cute, cartoony graphics and unique building system. ComparingFortniteto other battle-royale games is always a surefire way to start a bloodbath, but that just goes to show the hold that this genre has over gaming.Fortnitehas remained the most popular of them all, knocking others off in the rare case that it’s dethroned for a short time. Its momentum doesn’t seem to be slowing down at all, and it will be interesting to see how this game grows from simply being a battle-royale to something more in the coming years.
4POKEMON GO
A game rarely holds the entire world in an iron grip likePokemon Godid upon release. Despite numerous problems and the limited content,Pokemon Gohad huge success for banking on both the success of thePokemonbrand and creating some interesting AR ideas. Never has a game sparked discussion across so many generational divides as this one, and it had a real impact on getting people to go out and see some cool things, all in the interest of catching anotherPokemon.
3OUTLAST
While it wasn’t the first game of its kind,Outlastwas certainly one of the most well-crafted and can be credited with the rise of 1st-person horror games that have flooded the market since, for better or worse.Outlasthas this ability to create a real, visceral kind of horror that can be rare in the simple jump-scare titles that have come since, and few horror games seem to understand how to create a true sense of dread like Red Barrel Studio.
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2THE WITCHER 3
If you read or listen to just about any developer interview,The Witcher 3inspired and left an indelible mark on the industry. With its incredible combination of cinematic storytelling, RPG progression, a detailed and varied open-world, and unforgettable characters,The Witcher 3is a staggering feat that is almost overwhelming to behold. It’s a game that RPG’s are going to be compared to for years to come, and a game that these new ones are going to have a hard time matching.
1DISHONORED
Arkane Studios’Dishonoredtook a formula familiar to theThiefgames and did so much more with it than anyone expected.Dishonored’slevel design is a masterclass in player choice and creative problem solving that even Valve could be jealous of, and it has set a new standard for crafting interesting worlds and compelling decision making. There are so many facets that makeDishonoreda unique and interesting change of pace from any other game of its kind, and it has changed the expectations that players have from the genre.
