Every Year Of 2010s Contains Great Action-Adventure Games, And These Are The Best

Summary

• Red Dead Redemption is hailed as one of the best Western video games ever with fun gunplay and a detailed open world.
• Batman: Arkham City stands out in 2011 for its captivating story, voice acting, beat ’em up, and stealth mechanics.
• Sleeping Dogs, though underrated, offers a unique premise of an undercover cop in the Triads and satisfying combat mechanics.

The 2010s was a decade that saw the release of a bunch of incredible games. Fans of the action-adventure genre were happier than most.

This is because, over those ten years, they were treated to the debut of the Red Dead series, some Assassin’s Creed titles, Yakuza games, a couple of Uncharted adventures, a few Devil May Cry sequels, a rebooted Tomb Raider trilogy, and more. In fact, at least one iconic action-adventure game was released every year in the 2010s. Here are the best ones.

10

2010 – Red Dead Redemption

Several great action-adventure games were released in 2010, including the likes of God of War 3, Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood, and Mafia 2. The best that year had to offer, though, was the original Red Dead Redemption.

To this day, it remains one of the best Western video games ever, due to its incredible writing, characters, and story. The general gameplay is fun, too. Both the gunplay and horse riding are responsive and enjoyable. Plus, the open world you get to roam around is incredibly detailed.

9

2011 – Batman: Arkham City

2011 saw the release of one of the best Batman games ever in Arkham City. Considering the Dark Knight’s long history in gaming, this is no easy feat. It edges out impressive titles, such as Uncharted 3 and Saints Row: The Third, as the best action-adventure game of 2011.

The game follows the titular Caped Crusader as he tries to uncover the secret behind the newly created Arkham City, a big prison designed to hold many criminals. The story is interesting and made a lot better by the incredible voice acting of the game’s cast. Also, the title offers both excellent beat ’em up and stealth mechanics.

8

2012 – Sleeping Dogs

Sleeping Dogs is an action-adventure game famous for being underrated. Therefore, it didn’t get as much attention as Assassin’s Creed 3 when they were both released in 2012. However, it deserves as much, if not more, praise than those two titles.

In the game, you play as a Hong Kong Police Officer who goes undercover in the Triads. This makes for an interesting premise, as the protagonist needs to manage his two lives. What’s even better than the story, though, is the game’s combat. Beating people up has never felt so satisfying.

7

2013 – Grand Theft Auto 5

2013 is often regarded as one of the best years for games ever. This is mainly down to the action-adventure genre. After all, the year saw the release of Grand Theft Auto 5, The Last of Us, Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag, and the rebooted Tomb Raider. All of these titles deserve plenty of praise.

GTA 5, in particular, is incredible. Yes, the constant re-releases of the game have grown annoying, but it is still an amazing open-world action-adventure title with a very interesting cast of characters and a well-written story. The city you’re free to explore is filled with little details to find and fascinating locations to visit.

6

2014 – Sunset Overdrive

Sunset Overdrive is one of the most creative and original action-adventure games released in the entire 2010s, never mind just 2014. It is about a city whose citizens have been turned into mutants due to drinking a strange energy drink.

The protagonist is one of the few survivors. As them, you have to battle these mutants while zip-ling and grinding on rails around the colorful city. You don’t just use these things to get around; Zip-lining and rail-grinding are an important part of the combat, as this is a game where you need to be in perpetual motion while fighting.

5

2015 – Yakuza 0

The Yakuza (aka Like A Dragon) series really hit its stride during the 2010s. Yakuza 0 is arguably the series at its absolute peak. The game is so good that it beats the likes of Rise of the Tomb Raider, Batman: Arkham Knight, and Just Cause 3 as the best action-adventure title of 2015.

It has pretty much everything you expect to see in a Yakuza game, meaning it contains wacky side stories, entertaining beat ’em-up combat, and a captivating main narrative. That narrative is told differently in this one, though, as there are two protagonists, meaning you get to see different perspectives on the compelling story.

4

2016 – Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End

There was a strong lineup of action-adventure games in 2016, with Dishonored 2 and Yakuza 6 being particular standouts. Yet, they can’t match the iconic Uncharted 4. It revolves around Nathan Drake meeting up with his long-lost brother and coming out of retirement to go on one last adventure.

That adventure ends up being an exciting one, as it takes Drake to many distinct and exciting places. While at these places, you get to enjoy the game’s wonderful gunplay and climbing mechanics. The puzzles are pretty fun, too.

3

2017 – The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is often regarded as one of the best games of its generation. Therefore, 2017’s other action-adventure titles didn’t really stand much of a chance against it.

The game is incredible and packed with content. There are so many places to go and things to do in the open world. And you get a lot of freedom in how you go about much of it. You’re encouraged and rewarded for experimentation, whether you’re traversing areas, solving puzzles, or battling foes. There’s simply an open feel to the entire experience.

2

2018 – Red Dead Redemption 2

Fans of action-adventure games were lucky in 2018 as Red Dead Redemption 2, God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, A Way Out, and Judgment were all released. It isn’t easy to pick the best game out of all those gems, but RDR2 is particularly special.

Its greatness comes from both its world and story. The world is vast and contains plenty of hidden secrets. Just wandering around the map is incredibly exciting as you’re almost guaranteed to find plenty of interesting things. As for the story, it’s very deep and brilliantly written. This stellar writing helps almost all the characters feel interesting.

1

2019 – Devil May Cry 5

You can call Devil May Cry 5 a hack-and-slash, a character action, or simply an action-adventure game. It fits into all three genres. What’s most important, though, is that it’s fantastic, and the other 2019 games in the same genre can’t match its quality.

DMC5 offers smooth combat that you get to enjoy while taking on all sorts of creatures in fast-paced battles. As with other games in the series, you’re encouraged to be ruthless and flashy while fighting your foes. Another wrinkle this instalment adds is the fact that there are multiple different protagonists who all have their own playstyle. Impressively, they all feel enjoyable to use. Not many games with multiple distinct playable characters can say the same.