1. Little Big Planet 2: Little Big Planet is the embodiment of pure creativity. The player is free to be, do, and create whatever they wish with the only limitation being the extent of the imagination. This title had an outstanding story, an iconic soundtrack, and thousands of different stages created by the community for anyone to load in and play. This title is nothing short of a timeless masterpiece with every detail being crafted perfectly to create a mini world in which the player, at all times, maintains full discretion over their experience. There’s something for everybody in this game, and its appeal to creativity, its whimsical nature, and the infinite possibilities make this game, undoubtedly, the best game of the decade. 

2. Undertale: After its debut on September 15, 2015, Toby Fox’s Undertale became a cultural icon. The game explored themes of discrimination, morality, and friendship as the player navigated through The Underground, uncovering its secrets, meeting its characters, and attempting to get home. Undertale consisted of a rich story and an unforgettable soundtrack as well as having one of the highest replay values of any game this decade, this being due to its seemingly infinite possible events under the FUN (Frequency of UNiverse) system. The game was full of interactions, battles, characters, lore, and secrets to uncover, making it one of the most talked-about games of the time. 

3. The Legend of Zelda – Breath of the Wild: Since 1986, Nintendo has produced several versions of the famous Legend of Zelda series, each with a new story, game mechanic, and unique puzzles and dungeons. However, it was Breath of the Wild the breathed an entirely new life into the series. In 2017, Breath of the Wild was an open world, visually extravagant, Zelda experience in which the player was empowered to adopt playstyles, quests, outfits, and adventures with full discretion. With a beautiful soundtrack and truly well-told story, Breath of the Wild became arguably the best installment in the Zelda series since Ocarina of Time in 1998. 

4. Skyrim: Bethesda is responsible for putting out titles such as Fallout, Dishonored, Doom, and more. However, no product from Bethesda is more iconic than the famous medieval open-world game of Skyrim. The player takes the role of the Dragonborn and travels across the realm of Skyrim, slaying dragons, learning shouts, and attempting to liberate the people from the threat of Alduin. Though Skyrim had an immersive story, unique game mechanics, dungeons, and vast freedoms for the player. However, what makes Skyrim special is the thriving modding community. There are little elements of Skyrim that haven’t been changed or modified by its community in some way and this additional ability to control the world in which you play has allowed Skyrim to stay popular and interesting. 

5. Portal 2: After having defeated GLaDOS in the first installment, Chell is thrown back into the Aperture Science Lab Facility for the sequel in order to keep her offline. The game consists of more puzzles, more characters, a cooperative experience, and the introduction of unique gels to increase the difficulty and complexity of the stages the player must navigate through. This game shines in its intent to be a game that requires logic and planning in order to progress. Considering the games never before seen mechanics, immersing storyline, and challenging logic puzzles, it is no surprise that Portal 2 was able to rise to the top of the Steam chats and become an iconic title. 

6. Call of Duty – Black Ops 2: On November 12, 2012, Treyarch released the second installment of the famed Black Ops series. This addition was unlike its predecessor and successors in that the game was able to thrive on all available play options. Generally, the Call of Duty titles consists of three gameplay experiences open for the player, a single-player story, an online multiplayer player versus player, and a survival option or player versus environment. Each installment in the series has thrived in one of the aforementioned categories while also falling short on another. However, it was Black Ops 2 that was able to truly provide the player with an unforgettable and entertaining experience in all three categories with seemingly no shortcomings.

7. Five Nights at Freddy’s: This indie horror game created by Scott Cawthon in 2014 was nothing less than a culture shock. Though the gameplay essentially consists of checking cameras and closing doors, it was able to catch the attention of many through subtle hints that something deeper might be going on. Throughout the game, and the titles that would follow, a story begins to become increasingly clearer the closer you look, inspiring theories, analysis, and attention to detail across the series in order to solve the mystery Scott Cawthon had created. With six titles, a sister game known as FNaF world, a VR game, AR game and several books, the game series continue to thrive with its popularity and support continuing throughout the years. 

8. Terraria: In 2011, Terraria is a bizarre mining and crafting game in which the player navigates the world defeating enemies ranging from simple zombies to Cthulhu himself. With the amount of customization, enemies, and general elements the game provides being so massive, the replay value is revealed by little. Terraria, currently at a 10/10 game rating on Steam, is undoubtedly worthy of making the list due to its uniqueness in style, mechanics, gameplay and design. 

9. Persona 5: Atlaus’ fifth addition to the Persona series was undoubtedly one of the most entertaining and unique games to hit the shelves in recent history. The game stars Joker and his group of friends as they navigate a location called the metaverse, the physical manifestation of the human cognition, in their attempt to rid society of cruel and corrupt adults seeking to maintain control over the weak. Accompanied by an iconic soundtrack, intriguing gameplay, and the ability to change the ending based on their actions, this game gives the player the feeling of true freedom, allowing them to shatter the chains of captivity within their lives. 

10. Grand Theft Auto 5: Grand Theft Auto 5 is an open-world game in which the player takes the role of one of three different playable characters. The player travels around the city of Las Santos, committing heists, robberies, and other crimes in order to give people the feeling of freedom within the game. Though the game released in 2013, its multiplayer and mod accessibility has allowed it to not only survive but thrive to this day and maintain its popularity.