Top 50 Games Of The Last Decade: 50 to 41

Top 50 Games Of The Last Decade: 50 to 41

Feature

Welcome to the first part of our week long countdown of the top 50 games of the last decade, as voted by the staff! Many arguments have ensued and the dust is far from settled, but please read on for entries 50-41.

The last decade in gaming, 2001-2010, has sprouted a whole bunch of fantastic titles. Some have been celebrated time and time again, whereas others may have slipped past a good majority. Gaming itself has seen some huge changes as you would expect over a 10 year period, and this is why we find it necessary to remember the games in our list as they were and not how they may look today. That being said, we are confident that the titles in our list are all as good now as they were back when they were released. Therefore, the important factors being measured of each game are elements such as the impact they had on us, how fun they were to play, and whether they changed gaming in any particular way.

It was no easy task, let that be said, but we have managed to compile a list of 50, yet today we bring you only those ranking from 50-41. Let this be no definitive order though, all of the titles that made it into this list are what we consider to be outstanding titles. Let's drop the serious stuff though and have some fun; that's what this is all about really. We hope you enjoy reading our feature as much as we did compiling it. The list will be updated with the next batch of ten everyday until Friday, so please stick with us all week and feel free to comment below on whether you agree or disagree. So without further ado, let the games begin!

50. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (NDS, 2005)


Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom
Top 50 Games Of The Last Decade: 50 to 41

The fact that some people hate to read means that they missed out on one of the best games to be released on the DS, and that truly is a shame. Ace Attorney brought the entire genre of text adventures back to the forefront of gamers’ minds with great localization, hilarious writing and unique and memorable characters. In a decade of tough space marines, the story of a defence attorney trying to prove his clients’ innocence provided some of the most memorable moments in gaming.

49. Gears of War (X360, 2006)


Developer: Epic Games
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Top 50 Games Of The Last Decade: 50 to 41

Gears of War might be this list's dark horse, many would deem it to fall just outside a top 50 but Gears has a spot here because of its importance to the “next-gen”. Besides the fact that at the time, Gears of War was the 360’s best looking game. This title brought strategy and awesome co-op to the more linear shooting games and delivered an intense multiplayer that didn’t need 64-players and infinite respawns to be enjoyable. It stands as one of the highest selling Microsoft exclusives ever and for 2 years stood atop the most-played games on Xbox Live.

48. F.E.A.R. (PC, 2005)


Developer: Monolith Productions
Publisher: Vivendi Universal
Top 50 Games Of The Last Decade: 50 to 41

Monolith started the bestselling series with one simple goal - combine the ass-kicking slow-motion shoot-and-fightery of John Woo, and the terrifying psychological terror of Japanese horror movies. Okay, maybe that was more crazy than simple, but they pulled it off. F.E.A.R. showcases exciting combat with superb still-not-beaten AI, martial arts moves and some of the most satisfying weapons around. Then there's Alma, who manages to be scary by simply being surprising, something both sequels failed to do. We'd rather play the first game over and over again than touch those, and you know what? We'd never be happier...or more terrified.

47. Dead Space (X360, 2008)


Developer: EA Redwood Shores (now Visceral Games)
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Top 50 Games Of The Last Decade: 50 to 41

Resident Evil 4 revitalized the flagging survival horror genre, and Dead Space took it to the next level. Tight, refined controls are not usually the hallmarks of a great game, but when Resident Evil 5 came out we realized that after Dead Space we just couldn't go back. The tale of the Marker and the Ishimura's downfall is simple but interesting, but while the Necromorphs are fearsome adversaries it's the recognisable human elements that creep us out most. Those Unitologists are just a little bit too believable...

46. Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (PC, 2007)


Developer: EA Los Angeles
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Top 50 Games Of The Last Decade: 50 to 41

The Command & Conquer series isn't for everyone, with a more arcade style of strategy than the measured tactics of Total War or the variety of Blizzard's 'Crafts. Nevertheless, Command & Conquer was to Strategy what Doom was to the FPS, and continues to be popular years later for one simple reason: they are immense amounts of fun. C&C3 is arguably the pinnacle of the series. The GDI and NOD forces are perfectly matched, but the new Scrin turn the conflict into something a lot more epic. And frankly, we can't get enough of Kane. Shame C&C4 buggered things up a bit.