Harris59's Blog (9 followers)

Mar12
Top 10 Games of the DecadePermalink
Oh boy, so I'm a little late on this one but I was inspired by a blog post by Slayer1189 of the same topic and if you haven't read that please go check it out too (once you're done with mine that is, don't abandon me that quick). I want to try and make this list as personal to me as possible with how these game have impacted me and the experiences I had with them rather than just the objective quality, though, that will still be a factor at play as a more objectively well made game is a total plus too. These kind of lists for me are hard to make and probably change around in my head on a daily basis but I will give it my best shot.


1 - The Last of Us

It has to be, this game isn't overrated and there's good reason it's always topping lists elsewhere. I'm no sheep, I'm not bandwagoner, it truly does deserve the right to be considered the best game of the decade. The story alone is so great that it's really what fully sparked that surge to care more about crafting good stories in gaming. The world building is fantastic and there's so much you can see on subsequent playthroughs you may have missed before, all the small touches in the environment that tell full stories of their own. The gameplay is just right, it has some intentional clunk which works thematically but it's not overdone to the point where it impacts the actual GAME element of the game *cough* RDR2 *cough*. On higher difficulties the limited resources and ammo makes the game more tense as every potential encounter seems like a big deal and you can't just blast away at everything that moves, but it does this without feeling like they're completely restricting you. Through the combination of great gameplay, level design and structure with the world building and storytelling this game deserves the recognition, I expect no less from Naughty Dog, here's to TLOU2. Oh, and the multiplayer is pretty good too, not tacked on like many of the games of its era, it retains much the scavenging vibe and also encourages strategy and teamwork.

2 - Digimon World Next Order

Probably as personal as an entry can get, no one saw this coming unless you know me quite well personally. Growing up one of my favourite games on PS1 (and an entirely unique kind of game that truly hasn't seen the light of day since) was the original Digimon World game. There have been plenty of Digimon games, even in the 'Digimon World' series but they're always different... some are action games, some are turn based RPGs etc. There hasn't truly been another game in the vein of the original since the original. Then this game came along, not just a successor but the official sequel, it carries on from (and references) the original game but massively expands on it. The game is an interesting mix of a virtual pet where you need to care for all its needs whilst simultaneously training it up to be powerful enough to meet evolution requirements and take on the story/side missions the game offers. All Digimon eventually die of age, so there's a fun cycle of rebirth where the newly hatched baby inherits some of the power of the previous generation, as well as the progress you make both in levelling up your tamer rank and placing skill points in various fields to progressing in the world recruiting Digimon to your city to improve your facilities which helps create even more potential to make your next generation stronger. There's so many Digimon you can acquire based on your training and care routines and which starting egg you choose each generation. Requirements for each one are now easier to understand compared to the original as over time you can unlock the requirement information whereas in the original is was blind guesswork or a wiki. This game has gone on sale quite a lot, and I'd highly recommend people give it a try, even if you don't end up liking it, it's probably like nothing you've played before so at least it's something new and fresh to try.

3 - Binding of Isaac Rebirth/Afterbirth

Not a multiplayer game, yet it still made my top 3 most played games on PS4 thing PlayStation put out, that's a good sign. This is often a go-to game to relax and play a few runs of or just boot up and crank out the daily. There have been many rogue-likes since Isaac and some with objectively tighter mechanics and even more depth but none has really got that same feel as Isaac. It's hard to put into words but I would always choose to play Isaac over those, there's something soothing about a run. There's dozens of items, and as with any rogue-like no run is the same which totally speaks to me as a variety gamer type of guy.

4 - Furi

You know this has the make my list when it inspired my first ever tattoo. Furi is absolutely my kind of game in every way possible, from the gameplay to the aesthetic to the boss rush concept. Every part of this game is something that I look for in other games so to combine all those parts under one game is naturally going to result in something almost perfect for me. I've been seeking games similar to Furi but really there just isn't one, it's uniquely Furi. The smooth close combat mixed with twin stick style long ranged combat, the bullet hell and the sword duels. Amazing soundtrack, visually gorgeous, great boss design. This game nails so much.

5 - Rainbow Six Siege

How could I not list my single most played game of this decade? Yes, it may be a multiplayer only game and I know some people have this attitude that such games don't belong on game of the decade lists (or even game of the year lists) but I don't understand the bias against multiplayer games, they absolutely still have their place. Of all the multiplayer games I've played none have hooked me this much since the first Call of Duty Black Ops and there's a good chance I've played Siege longer than I played that! It helps that this game is constantly supported and updated and probably has the best developer to community interaction of any multiplayer game out there right now. As far as FPS games go the mechanics are on point, the aiming is so smooth and precise and the fact it emphasises teamwork and strategy rather than going full Rambo makes it that extra bit interesting for me. The diversity of the operators roles and playstyles as well as additional ones to keep the game fresh keep me playing more as I can get bored in shooters with lack of variety but this game always feels different enough game to game. Just typing this makes me want to reinstall it again but I need to resist because I just don't have the hard drive space to spare yet.

6 - God of War

Here's a game I was actually slightly hesitant on initially when it was first announced to be moving to Norse mythology and with the change in camera perspective. I loved the gameplay of the original trilogy and I've always been a massive Greek mythology fan since I was little. When this finally hit though the story and world were executed so well and I've begun to become slightly invested more into Norse mythology as a result. The gameplay still feels traditional God of War even with the camera shift but it adds that extra weight and meatiness which helps make Kratos seem that little extra badass. My only criticism was was having the story specifically feel like the entry point and that there's much further it needs to go, but for that to still make this list as high as it is just makes you wonder how much more exciting the sequel will end up being, especially considering some of the hints through the game and in the ending and bonus ending, and having swatted up on Norse mythology a bit more I now know of some potential exciting boss fights could be in store for us in the next game. Maybe at the end of the new decade one of the follow ups will make the cut too.

7 - Metal Gear Rising: Revengance

There had to be a PlatinumGames game on this list here somewhere, it wouldn't truly be my best games of the decade without one. I have never disliked or even found one of their games just 'okay', these are the games that I consistently enjoy playing and can rarely ever pick any faults in them. Out of all of them I decided to go with Metal Gear Rising because it was probably the most intense to me and the bosses and levels were so much more memorable than the others. The gameplay, as to be expected with PlatinumGames is absolutely top notch and the soundtrack is on another level. It's a real shame that we will probably never see a Metal Gear Rising 2 because I'm itching for more of this, though more games PlatinumGames are welcome regardless what they are.

8 - Bloodborne

Now this is one the surprised me when I finally played it. I've seen plenty of Dark Souls before and I've played Demons Souls and while I enjoy them and I like their aesthetic I've never seen them quite on the same level as others see them. So when a game comes along that's supposedly 'like Dark Souls' but without the aesthetic that was half the reason I enjoyed it, I wasn't exactly hyped or interested in playing it. It finally rolls around to PS+ and I give it a crack and wish I had done it much sooner. The faster combat makes it more fun to me than the slower methodical Dark Souls combat and whilst it took some time to get used to the aesthetic I eventually fell in love with the design of the characters and world. I documented my playthrough (well, the bosses) in a blog on this very site for people in a community I'm a part of and sadly failed a blind no death run of the bosses, but I enjoyed every part of it. I even enjoyed going through the chalice dungeons and that's probably the most boring and tedious part of the game since they're very disconnected from the main game and don't offer much that's new.

9 - Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled

Yes, this counts. I also debated having either the Spyro or Crash trilogy remakes instead but maybe those would be pushing it a bit. CTR on the other hand does so much more than just remake the original as it offers a plethora of brand new content to the game. I've always been a big fan of both the Crash and Spyro series' growing up and CTR was absolutely the best kart racer around (yes, better than Mario Kart, bite me). Whilst Activi$ion decided to almost kill this game with their greed in microtransactions it still held onto the right to make this list. The gameplay is even more buttery smooth and visually it's gorgeous, the tracks are amazing and as well as including the tracks from Crash Nitro Kart they've also added a bunch of entirely new tracks as part of their post launch support for the game. It's crazy to remember that this is a remake of a 90s game where the fundamentals remain mostly unchanged all these years later because somehow even today this trumps the NEW Mario Kart games in my opinion, just goes to show what gold they had at the time.

10 - Darkest Dungeon

Out of all the games on this list this is the one I played super recently so for it to make its way here on a top 10 is quite something. I knew it was a pretty cool game before I even decided to buy it yet I was not expecting to be as hooked by the game as I ended up being. It's not my usual kind of game and something most people wouldn't expect me to have even played judging by my other games but I love the strategy and management this game offers both during the quest with both stress/health and precious inventory space and outside of the quest with recruitment, where to spend your gold on building upgrades and resting heroes to recover stress. What I love most is how it keeps you on your toes because even when things are going well you're just one poor move or one bad bout of RNG away from creating a domino effect leading to your party barely limping through to the end of their quest stressed out and at deaths door or even just wiping the entire party. It was all thanks to a sale, and the idea of racing against WelshSkipper88 to complete the game which sparked me to impulse buy it and I don't regret it. And as a final note, the narrator is just the absolute best.



Honourable Mentions:

Apex Legends - The only Battle-Royale game that has ever grabbed my attention at all, closing in on becoming my 3rd most played game on PS4 and is my current go-to multiplayer game.

South Park Stick of Truth/Fracture but Whole - Stick of Truth was one of the first times I bought something on release, they were both just generally really fun I couldn't not mention them somewhere.

Dead Star - No way in hell I could actually put this in the top 10 considering how quickly they shut the game down and the total lack of support. However, it was one of my most treasured multiplayer experiences of all time so I should at least mention it for that.

Nier/Nier Automata - Automata being another PlatinumGames game, but narrowly missed out making the list. I adored the original Nier as well and the moment they announced a new Nier game with PlatinumGames at the helm I was sold, great games.

Shovel Knight - I almost completely forgot to include this to be honest but it totally deserves recognition for being s truly great platformer.
Posted by Harris59 on 12 March 20 at 17:35 | Last edited on 14 March 20 at 00:47

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Funderballs_007 Having only played a few from your list I can confirm TLoU and GoW would also be in my list of favourite games for the last decade.
I also agree with you in regards to Apex legends, being a person who rather dislikes PvP multiplayer and battle Royale games, I can say I loved Apex Legends and put in hundreds of hours into it, it took a little while to break the hold it had on me.
The South Park games were also excellent, fun games that felt basically like you were a character in a South Park episode.
I did enjoy MGR:R but MGS 2 Snake eater will always be my favourite snake game.
Great read toast
Posted by Funderballs_007 on 12 Mar 20 at 21:52
Slayer1189 Nice personal list and great read Harris! Glad I inspired you to do it aswell even if we did wait until March laugh

The Last of Us is one that I wanna try since I got it free on PS+. On the one hand, I like Crash and Jak so I know Naughty Dog make good games... but on the other hand, they also make Uncharted which I don't think much of. Need to play The Last of Us so I can see where it falls!

I liked the original Digimon World on PS1 and the Dusk/Dawn games on DS, but not played any of the recent entries.

Nice to see we both hold Binding of Isaac, Nier and Nier Automata in such high regard! toast. I am also a fan of platinum games so smoosh that together with Yoko Taro's eccentricity is such a good match.

Apex is also the BR that grabbed my attention and I still play it 2-3 hours a week even a year later. I have played other BR games but none have held my attention nearly aswell as Apex.

I never played all that much of Dead Star but nice to see some love for it here. I really don't know why they shut the servers so quickly as it was a unique and well made idea and there always seemed to be plenty of people playing when I did play. I loved the Vindicator but it seemed a bit OP at times laugh

Haven't played the others on here but definitely some interesting choices and points of view. Furi is on my radar and I have never played a soulsborne game so I need to get round to them one day. Shovel Knight I always said I would get once all the content was out... but all the content is now out and I still haven't picked it up redface
Posted by Slayer1189 on 14 Mar 20 at 13:19
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