Metacritic Reveals The 50 Best-Reviewed Games Of The Decade, Nintendo Takes Top Two Places

Is Celeste really that good a game? Am I missing out lol

Where is Hollow Knight? Heresy!

Also no Fire Emblem Three Houses?!

I love the Mario galaxy games both of them should be remastered for the switch oh and super Mario 3D world too the last of us is genuinely a great game as well I think ocarina of time has a 98 score on Metacritic but I know it’s too old to appear on this list

I prefer 3d World to Galaxy 2, but fair enough. Also, the fact that game dlc is on the list... Eh, not very well thought out. Some good titles on there, though.

@Swizze It's pretty great, yeah. Reasonably cheap too I think so 100% worth a look.

Red dead is super boring

@jobvd 100% agree very overrated just like GTA

People who bemoan review scoring etc need to take a look at that list and realise that it does a pretty good job of helping to identify fantastic games to play.

I can't claim to have played every game on that list, but I know well enough that I could pick any game on that list and have a great time with it.

... apart from Xenoblade Chronicles

Metacritic blows. Now, if their scores threw out the statistical outliers, we might have something. But they don't.

I'll leave it at that.

Both Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey are so overrated.

I'm amazed how many games I've played and disliked in the top 50 and even the top 10. This is why its so hard for me to buy games based off reviews, I'm always "that" guy that didn't click with a game and despite playing 10 hours of it, is bored out of his mind.
Games from this list I actually enjoyed:
Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, Ocarina of Time, Starcraft II, Skyward Sword, Rock Band 3, Super Smash Ultimate, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Bayonetta 2.
On a side note I LOVE Fallout 3, 4, and New Vegas. I was bored by Oblivion and Skyrim after giving each 10 hours of play. I recently shut Outer Worlds off after 5 hours of boredom. (Glad it was free on Xbox Game Pass)

I told you all yesterday: Super Mario Galaxy 2 is THAT game. This makes me want to play it again. If I download it on the WiiU, the image quality is better than playing it on the same console, Wii Mode, 4K TV? OR it doesn't matter?

@Swizze yes you are. Its challenging, fun has great story and music

@ShaiHulud ikr best game on the switch

@BlueOcean says the guy with a banjo icon

@daniruy Digital Wii games look the same as the discs do.

Not a bad list, but not great, either. I honestly feel like the decade before this one was better for games - with 6th gen beasts like: https://youtu.be/I9nxBJBEdzo

If it was SMG1 on top instead of the second one, this list would be perfect for me, because I think I'm settling on those two games as my favorite Nintendo games overall.

Portal 2 is probably my favourite game overall on the list. Loved it. The co-op was immensely satisfying.

Not a fan of GTA or RDR.

Couple of that's over rated comments. Reviews much like your comment are down to personal choice.

Plenty on the list I havent played but will get to. Others i wont, looking at you Smash Bros.

Both Mario Odyssey and Red Dead Redemption 2 really shouldn't be that high up.

Galaxy well deserved on the top spot, even if I think Fez should be there as the best platformer ever made, but I'd follow it with Portal 2, Skyrim or gtav as probably second placed in terms of quality in the past decade.

In terms of Nintendo, Smash Ultimate, Splatoon 2 and Mario Kart 8 are all forever classics.

@Swizze Yeah. Celeste was great. The puzzles are not too hard but getting the timing down is not easy. I was a little hesitant cause it’s a hard game. But it wasn’t punishing at all and feels really good.

The 50th spot was supposed to be Sonic Forces but everything changed when the Hero got announced for Smash.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD NINTENDO. PLEASE RELEASE HD REMAKES/PORTS OF MARIO GALAXY 1+2.

I beat Odyssey twice but it still doesn't do it for me the way Galaxy 2 did.

I would love Mario Galaxy 1&2 on the switch. A direct port or remaster would be great

Super Mario Galaxy 2 is my favorite platformer of all time (please remake the first two on Switch Nintendo)! Only passing 3D World(please port to Switch also) and A Hat In Time. So glad it's at number 1. Breath of the Wild scoring high is no surprise it's great too. A bit surprised that Skyward Sword is so high, especially with the likes of Smash Ultimate, FE Awakening, and MK8D on the list. Also glad that Xenoblade Chronicles is on there too. Looking forward to it's 2020 remaster. Also DQXIS, hoping to play that soon. Bit surprised that there's no Pokemon in the list. I thought those games reviewed well. Also surprised A Link Between Worlds isn't on here, that game was the best 2D Zelda I've ever played.

Only two games from 2019, and both are #49 and #50. Has this been a down year for video games overall? It hasn't felt like it, but this list would suggest it.

Am surprised at Galaxy 2 being at the top, it is a great game though.
So glad 3D World and Xenoblade were in there too.

Really need to give Portal 2 a go.

@PickledKong64 Oh sorry I said my opinion. I should have asked you first.

They are ranked by average (and adjusted) score and only showing whole integers presumably rounded up/down. I’d like them to show the scores to one decimal place to see how close it is at the top.

@BlueOcean Eh, if you said you personally didn’t like RDR2 or GTAV, that’s your opinion and fair enough, they aren’t for everyone. Saying they’re overrated though, it’s just a bit of a pointless statement isn’t it?

yes but its kinda cheating cause red dead and gta 5 got 97. gta 5 deserved it but a lot of people think red dead 2 is overated.

@NorrinRadd I’d prefer it they kept outliers but showed the median, that would stop reviewers trying to manipulate the average by either being unfairly harsh / praising

Super Mario Galaxy 2 done everything better than 1. Personally for me at least it deserves the top spot

@jobvd better than waifu school simulator and a little bit of strategy houses

I like seeing Galaxy 2 so high up on this list.
Freaking cool. It’s a great game. I know people have a soft spot for Rosalina’s story in Galaxy 1, but from a pure gameplay perspective Galaxy 2 outpaces it.

@LUIGITORNADO i agree three houses is pretty boring for a fire emblem game but it's waaaaaaaaaaaay better than RDR2

@jobvd I'd rather spend 4 hours exploring RDR2, than five more minutes walking around the monastery.

I was expecting to see Hollow Knight. I have played a good bunch of games this generation (ps4, switch, 3ds mainly), and its top 3 in my list. i cant see anyone giving less than a 9 to that gorgeous game.

Basically another example why multi platform is the way to go for years now.

I have played just about everything on that list (never cared for RockBand) Good memories 👍

Really happy to see so many of my favorite games up here - Celeste, Super Mario Odyssey, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate...all great games. I don't think Super Mario Galaxy 2 should be at the top - it's certainly a great game, but I've enjoyed some of the other 3D Marios over it. Yet again, I'm reminded that I need to dive into Breath of the Wild and that Dragon Quest XI S is excellent and I should probably play it - I just need more time to play games. I'm a teenager and yet I have a backlog probably rivaling the size of many of the adults on this site.

I wonder why they didn't list Minecraft, the best selling and probably most influential game of the decade? The PC version released in 2011 and had a 93 MC score.

Edit: I see on the Metacritic site they only considered the version with the most reviews, which was the X360 version that had a sub-90 score. A dumb rule, IMO, as Minecraft should absolutely be on the list.

@Agramonte
A considerable portion of that list consist of exclusives.

I'd put Ori and the Blind Forest on that list, take out Red Dead, GTA and all the Naughty Dog titles (like The Last of Us, but not one of the best games of the decade), and throw in Splatoon 2 and Monster Hunter World (after expansion, not before, otherwise I'd say Monster Hunter Generations ultimate), and you'd have a list I pretty much agree with.

Well-deserved. Both Galaxy games are masterpieces (1 isn’t included because the list only covers 2010 to 2019). Haven’t played Odyssey or BotW yet, though I look forward to it one day.

@westman98 I think his point is that one should own two or three systems to avoid missing out on all these great games.

@NorrinRadd But if they threw out the statistical outliers it's also promoting the idea that your opinion doesnt matter if it doesnt fall in line with the majority. For a lot of things that's fine, that's why outliers sometimes get removed, but for a score on entertainment? It's nice to know and useful to show that not literally everybody thinks something is a masterpiece.

Scores given that are obviously part of some review bombing trend are often discarded, as they should be, but if somebody is scoring a game differently to everybody else and has obviously put their true experiences opinion there, why should it be ignored because everybody else hates/loves it?

This is why I'm always more in favour of a far simpler like/okay/dislike system over numerical values. Numerical values are very arbitrary and somebody's numerical value on a game could change from day to day. Like or dislike though? I'm always going to like Banjo-Kazooie, I cant truthfully say that I'll still think it's a 94.51 rated game tomarrow though, I might be in a bad mood and think it's an 81.07, just like I never sure whether Tamodachi Life deserves a 0.00 or a 0.01, but I'm certain I absolutely hate it.

@LUIGITORNADO ok so you have bad taste

@westman98 multi platform as in hardware. Whatever it takes to play the best game available in a given date.

I’ve just started playing Arkham City on my iMac - it’s really really good so far. Never had a computer capable of gaming before so I’ll probably be off Nintendo for a bit as there’s loads to catch up on

@jobvd It really is... I wish I had not bought it...

If it at least had survival mode just like fallout, that would change a lot... All the eating and hunting and camping doesn't really matters...

Awesome 😎👍 well deserved!

BotW would be my personal #1, but yeah good stuff. Pretty crazy that I still see people honestly say that Nintendo doesn't make good games anymore... Well, each to their own I suppose.

Botw and red dead 2 shouldn't even be in the top 20. Xenoblade Chronicles and Ico&SotC should definitely be way higher. But overall a lot of those games are great.

@HeavyArmsSS it’s weird cuz Mario Kart 8 deluxe is a port.

@jobvd You seem salty about RDR's reception.

Xenoblade Chronicles at only #41 is a crime.

FYI. Mario Galaxy 1 isn't included because it wasn't released this decade.

so happy to see Dragon Quest 11 S in the number 50 spot well deserved for an amazing game

@Thundertron55 Pokemon are not that good games to be high 90 not a change

@nessisonett Nah, it's still an opinion like yours or anyone else's. Many people think the same on NL so it's not surprising either. At the end of the day they got 97/100 each so it's quite sensible to say that they are overrated compared to other -better- Zelda and Mario games (no need to compare to GTA).

@Dog no, I'm not. Just surprised that the game is boring after I bought it. Not salty about the purchase either since I buy plenty of games that don't offer me what I want to play. Not salty. Just surprised.

@jobvd That's you......but a lot of us bought RDR2 played it into the end and had a blast playing it. Didn't play anything else for a couple of months.....I think it is an amazing game and quite pleased with what I got, and I think all the critical praise it got is well justified.

Just because you didn't like it doesn't mean it is a bad game.

@KBuckley27 I just started this game and really enjoying it so far. If it’s this good throughout than I think it deserves a spot in the top 50.

I have to disagree with #1, I think the motion controls first-degree murdered both Galaxy games. Please understand.

@Swizze I would personally say yes! It really caught my attention once I played it, and not too many games do that for me these days. Great music, challenging platforming with infinite lives, and amazing dialogue. It's got everything I want in a platformer, and I personally haven't played anything else with its mechanics (climbing, and the boot jump thing you do).

Surprised Dragon Quest XI is on here, even if it's just barely. Makes me really wonder what I'm missing out on.

Mass Effect 1 > Mass Effect 2 .. easily
Super Mario Galaxy 1 was easily better than 2, although both were very good.

Its sort of hard to say, but I hate Celeste. Its polished, and has a nice story, and nice undertones and surprises ... but the core gameplay is tedious, boring, and really just painful. And most of the game is the gameplay ... I got fairly far, but couldn't put up with any more of the pain in exchange for the small gains.

Hollow Knight easily makes my top#10.

BotW deserves its spot - its a truly amazing game, and does bring back memories of the original Zelda. I can't wait for the sequel, and I hope they improve on some of the weak points (combat does become grindy, and eventually pointless).

@Swizze Yep, it's really that good.

@Cathousemaster You sucking at a game doesn't make the game bad, does it?

@Casco yes it's my opinion. Tell me something new.

@Swizze It is. Go play it pls

Would love to get Mario Galaxy 1 and 2 on the switch.

@cowntsikin I love hard games. I have finished Mass effect 2 on impossible, and fire emblem (awakening?) On the hardest difficulty as examples. I love hollow Knight, and got through the path of pain ... But I haven't 100% it, and I won't.

But I don't like Celeste. I spent many hours playing it, but I had to force myself ... And just stopped eventually. I have too many other games I enjoy playing. Its a 6/10 for me ... That's my opinion and my score.

RIP gamerankings.com

@Swizze I can honestly say that Celeste is a well made game, but it's not for everyone and I don't think it's at all deserving of the hype it's received. I didn't enjoy it much.

@cowntsikin I played Celeste and didn't enjoy it. I finished just out of stubbornness but never found it fun, and I thought the characters were extremely annoying. Now go ahead and insult me for having a different opinion than you and not liking a game that you love.

It's a good list of games, although it's actually only 48 games as The Last of Us and Divinity II are listed twice. I wonder what 49 and 50 would really be.

I like how my favorite Mario game takes number 1. Especially when a lot of people hate on it

#5 is a joke and Portal 2 should be waaaaaaay higher up on the list (at least #5 or maybe even #3).

Man there is a LOT of games I haven’t played, being pretty much a one console person.

The games I do play I love so shrug also it looks like a lot of the top games could be ported to switch - plenty of potential there .

@Swizze yes, it really is. The way the difficulty slowly increases as you learn, constantly challenging you to better yourself, is masterful. It really is close to perfect as far as platforming is concerned, and the story is touching too. To have a game that remains consistently challenging to the point that further down the line you revisit levels and realise just how much you have gotten better due to the fantastic level design is really difficult to do. If you go back to mop up when you are quite far in, you realise that what was once challenging has become easily manageable. The game is worth every penny, sale or not.

seeing Red Dead 2 in the top 5 is cooked

@Swizze i honestly do not understand how the game is so well rated either.

I've genuinely played better mobile games than Celeste.

And no Hollow Knight... lol this list is garbage.

@Swizze I think Celeste is well worth it, especially if you've had experience with depression, which ties into the narrative. The platforming was spot on (same team as towerfall - which was my favorite single-screen platformer of the decade). I had high expectations for the precision jumping and tight controls given the team's repertoire, but what I didn't expect was for the game to make a statement with its story that genuinely helped some cope out of game. Without spoiling anything....play it.

@AlienX thank you for the info. Though that maybe, who knows, I could milk a bit more resolution of the machine.

@daniruy It's not entirely impossible, some Wii games for whatever reason use deflicker in 480p (Another Code, Sonic Unleashed) if Nintendo wanted to change this it would be no problem I believe.

Plus you'd still be getting better load times, that makes it so much better imo, and no noisy disc drive.

@BlueOcean I half agree with you. I really enjoyed BotW. Mario Odyssey I returned, because it was super boring.

@BlueOcean You probably haven't even played the games lmao. If anything the N64 Zelda and Mario games are way overrated and outdated. I've played many, many Zelda and Mario games, and I can definitely come to the conclusion that BOTW and Odyssey are the best of the bunch.

@Manski777 Probably, I have played BotW way more than you with over half the Koroks collected and all shrines and DLC completed! Super Mario Odyssey, yes I also beat it but I stopped collecting the extra moons soon after. It's very childish to say that someone hasn't played a game when they think it's not a masterpiece. Besides, you are so wrong thinking that Super Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time are worse.

@matdub Breath of the Wild is not a bad game, it just disappointed me as a The Legend of Zelda game. Super Mario Odyssey yes, it's lacking all the magic moments and fun gameplay that make the classic 3D Mario games so good and enjoyable. Super Mario Odyssey looks good and it's serviceable and that's it.

Nintendo is the God of Videogames

Your top 50 list is wrong in that it's missing SUPER MARIO GALAXY 1, which had a 97 score. You allow RED DEAD 1 and 2 and MASS EFFECT 1 and 2 on the list. Why did you leave out GALAXY 1? FIX THIS. And fire the writer.

@Swizze best 2d platform ever made probably

Zelda has 70 perfect scores, more than any other game in that site's history, and it's not even by a small margin. Mario Galaxy 2 has like 43 perfect scores, so I'm not sure how they count this. Probably by the average, since Zelda has those 1 or 2 reviews that were not so positive.