I'll go by year like others, I guess.

2010: Assassin's Creed 2. If I'm allowed to say Dragon Age origins because the Awakening dlc came out that year, then that's a no brainer. 2010 was also probably when I started playing Minecraft. I remember getting bored of LoL pretty early after that release and picking up Minecraft. Other than that, I guess there's Fallout NV but the first time I played that was like 2017, so hard to compare.

2011. Easy for me to pick Dark Souls. I said it on this forum way back then, but I think Dark Souls deserved to win GOTY over Skyrim. Second place would probably be Portal 2. Technical release date for Minecraft, but I don't think that incarnating is what I would consider a GOTY for me.

2012. Borderlands 2. Easy pick for this one as well. I guess no one remembers how shitty the ending to Mass Effect 3 was, to the point where EA essentially released a patch to retcon it. Crusader Kings 2 also came out, but I didn't really start playing it until a couple years later when there was some decent DLC.

2013. Another easy one. The Last of Us. I guess Bioshock infinite also existed, but I'd rather play TLOU 20 times than play that twice. There's also Path of Exile, but it's hard to pin that to a single year imo.

2014. Tough year. I'm a Magic guy, not a Hearthstone, so I can't pick that. I got addicted to Destiny for like a month on release, but grew to despise it. Dragon Age Inquisition was solid but hardly GOTY. I might be the only person who like Civ Beyond Earth, but I wouldn't exactly call it a great game. So I guess I'm going to go with Titanfall.

2015. Much better year than the previous one. Some people might say Undertale or Rocket league, perhaps MGS 5. For me, its 3 games. Mario Maker, Fallout 4, and Witcher 3. I honestly grew to like Fallout 4 quite a bit, and I found the replayablity to be a pretty high. Mario Maker is a game that I loved to watch much more than play. But who am I kidding, the goty is obviously Witcher 3.

2016. Not as many notable games for this year as I thought. Never really got into Stardew Valley because by that point I'd rather see tons of idle browser games by that point and didn't really see anything special with that one. I'm reluctant to say Overwatch, despite playing it nonstop for the first month of it's release, but it's one of those games that I have no idea how people are still playing in 2019. So, perhaps Dark Souls 3, which was great, or maybe, I'll just pick Stellaris, since while being flawed, it still scratches that itch and I'll still go back and play it for hours on end. There was also DOOM which was far better than my expectations

2017. Decent year. Hard to pick actually. It's definitely not Breathe of the Wild, which I found to be super overrated (though I hate to sound like a contrarian just by saying that). Divinity Original Sin 2, Horizon Zero Dawn, Mario Odyssey, Persona 5, Cuphead. If I had to pick, I'd say Horizon Zero Dawn.

2018. Couple heavy hitters here. God of War. Red Dead 2. Smash Ultimate. Fortnite, PubG, PokeGo, Spiderman, Assassins Creed Odyssey. Honestly, I've played almost no games from 2018. I watched a playthough of RDR2 and then bought it on PC last month and played 5 hours of it before hating it. Only game I've really put any time into is Through the Breach, but that game, while fun, felt extremely lazy. I think I'd rather pick Slay the Spire, but it was put on steam in 2017 and officially release 2019. Actually, looking at a list of all the games release this year, the only one that I feel like I can pick and and not feel embarrassed about would be Subnautica, because that game is great.

2019. Less choices than 2018, but still decent choices. Outer Wilds is still on my to-play list, but I cant pick it yet. Part of me wants to say Super Mario Maker 2, as it was the game I was most hyped about for release, and it is great (and the new update that just came out is a breathe of fresh air), but there's a bit too much typical Nintendo bullshit with it. Let's be real though, the pick is obviously Sekiro. It's the best souls game to date.

Alright, lots of meaningless text...

Game(s) of the Decade:
Forth Place. Dark Souls. It's not as good as Sekiro, but I think it's a far more important game.
Third Place: Witcher 3. Just a masterclass in storytelling and worldbuilding.
Second Place: The Last of Us. Gripping tale from start to finish
First Place: Has to be Minecraft. The game can be whatever you want it to be, it appeals to mega casuals and superhardcores alike. It slices, it dices, it does everything and I love it.

 

For me, Skyrim, God of War, Breath of the Wild,, Dark Souls, Terraria, Stanley Parable and Overwatch.

Objectively not going to argue some of these are the best, but for the enjoyment and value I got out of them they make my list. Also WoW I guess, haven't played it alot recently but over the course of the decade I would of still sunk a fair few hours into it.

 

2010
Mass Effect 2
Fallout: New Vegas

2011
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Deus Ex: Human Revolution

2012
Mass Effect 3
Crusader Kings II

2013
Grand Theft Auto V
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch

2014
Divinity: Original Sin
Dragon Age: Inquisition

2015
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Pillars of Eternity

2016
Stellaris
DOOM

2017
Divinity: Original Sin II
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

2018
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire

2019
The Outer Worlds
Fire Emblem: Three Houses

My favourite game of the decade...
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

It may not be the absolute best game in the list, but I've spent more time playing this game in the last ten years than any other, by a massive margin. The modding scene is probably the main cause of this, but whatever the reason, Skyrim is my pick of the decade. FUS RO DAH, bitches.

 

I narrowed it down to a top seven. No meaning to the order

Bloodborne
Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Dead Space 2 (1 came out before the 2010s and 3 is flawed at best.)
Dark Souls 3 (though the entire trilogy is fantastic)
The Evil Within
Nier Automata
No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle

(Cheat answers: Odin Sphere Leifthrasir, Muramasa Rebirth, and Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together. All of these games are remakes in the 2010s based on games that original came out in '07, '09, and '95, respectively. I played and enjoyed the original versions, and then the remakes somehow managed to be even better.)

Honorable Mentions: Games that probably will go down as some of my favorites of this decade, but I haven't finished them yet.

Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain
Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Persona 4 Golden
The Evil Within 2

 

The most impactful games to the industry:

• Pillars of Eternity resurrected crpgs.
• Hearthstone started the arms-race for cards game.
• Dark Souls proved that games don't need to be catered to the dumbest denominator.
• Minecraft, duh.
• Battlefront 2 started the loot boxes controversy.
• Fortnite and PUBG popularised Battle Royal.

Most impactful and fun games(to me):

• M&B: Warband
• WoW: Mists of Pandaria
• Stellaris
• Crusaders Kings 2
• Skyrim
• Witcher 2

 

Divinity: Original Sins 2.

It's such an amazing fucking game. Great story, great system, and a fuckton of fun to be had.

 

I'm using Shinysavage's format and listing games I've played extensively or completed. There's a number of games not listed here that might well have been a best or runner up for the year for me, but I probably haven't played it yet. Also, a number of these games I played well after their release date, but I'm listing here by order of release date.

2010

• Best: Mount and Blade: Warband
• Runner Up: Fallout New Vegas

2011

• Best: The Witcher 2
• Runner Up: Skyrim

2012

• Best: Dragon's Dogma
• Runner Up: Mass Effect 3

2013

• Best: Metro Last Light
• Runner Up: Tomb Raider

2014

• Best: Shadowrun Returns - Dragonfall
• Runner Up: Transistor

2015

• Best: Life is Strange
• Runner Up: Pillars of Eternity

2016

• Best: Hyper Light Drifter
• Runner Up: Salt and Sanctuary

2017

• An inactive year for me

2018

• Best: Cross Code
• Runner Up: Dead Cells

2019

• Best: Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
• Runner Up: MTG Arena

There's a lot of games from the decade I haven't played yet, but hopefully time permitting will allow me to eventually get to them.