It’s hard to believe it, but we’re on to the roaring 2020’s. Games that felt like they released just yesterday, are five or even 10 years old now almost at this point. Trying to sort out the best games of the last ten years and pick a “Game of the Decade” feels like an impossible and thankless task, but we’re going to do it anyway.
It’s so hard because gaming is so subjective, so personal, especially when we’re talking about the best of the best over such a long period of time. Still, an opportunity to look back like this only comes once every ten years so we’re not going to skip out on it.
After some debate, discussion, and lots of vote counting from the Twinfinite staff and contributors, let’s reveal our best games of the past decade.
Best Games of the Decade
15: BioShock Infinite (2010)
Deputy Guides Editor Tom Hopkins: The original BioShock was one of the stars of the previous generation, introducing 2K’s fascinating universe. 2013 was the perfect time for the series to go in a different direction, and Infinite certainly couldn’t be called playing it safe.
Heading into the skies instead of the undersea city of Rapture, Columbia is an incredible setting that comfortably matches the creepy atmosphere of the series’ original setting with a colorful facade that’s hiding a dark and brutal world.
For some, the focus on all-out action bogged down the middle of the game, even though it’s fun throughout, but there’s no denying that BioShock Infinite’s story is one of the best of the decade.
Playing as Booker Dewitt, you gradually learn about Columbia’s secrets as you try to protect Elizabeth from the establishment that kept her captive. The story twists and turns towards the end, but Infinite is also the best example of the importance of an opening.
From the moment you begin in the little rowing boat, to the first time you descend into the beautiful city, and the first time you throw an enemy up in the air, it’s stunning.
It moves at an insane pace, throwing spectacle at you every few minutes until you’re fully invested in the world and the story.
It opts for amazement rather than the original’s slow burn and mystery, but it doesn’t sacrifice the atmosphere and surprise factor that make BioShock special.
Infinite proved that the series can be special without mysterious underwater labyrinths and it’s exciting to see where the recently announced fourth game will go as we enter a new decade.
