The most influential video games aren’t always the most popular, and rankings never tell the whole story. To mark the end of the decade, our editorial team published a list of the top 100 games. We’ve also created this supplemental series, in which individual Polygon writers get to talk about the most important games from that same period, and exactly how they changed the course of the industry.
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The most important games of the decade
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November 15, 2019
Why Demon’s Souls is the most important game of the decade
Before Dark Souls changed everything, Demon’s Souls changed everything
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November 13, 2019
Why Gone Home is the most important game of the decade
How a little game influenced the entire industry
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November 12, 2019
Why Kentucky Route Zero is the most important game of the decade
The ‘unfinished’ indie casts a long, affecting shadow into 2020 and beyond
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November 11, 2019
Why Breath of the Wild is the most important game of the decade
Here’s to the next decade of open-world gaming
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November 8, 2019
Why Spelunky is the most important game of the decade
A simple game can be mined for greatness if you dig deep enough
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November 7, 2019
Why Minecraft is the most important game of the decade
Video games are bigger than one console or one genre, and Minecraft is bigger than one man