Come on, you knew my Top 30 list wasn't going to have too much in common with everyone else's.  So just based on that I went ahead and said screw it and decided to make a list of my favorite more obscure games.

It was tough to figure out exactly what makes a game a "niche game" so the definition I came up with is something like this:  A game that doesn't really fit into a traditional genre or was not designed with the intention of appealing to a wide gaming audience.  Pretty broad definition really, and I'm sure there will be a few games on this list that people will question, but hey that's what makes a list good right?  So without further adieu. . .

30.  Order Up  (Wii)

A cooking game made by a couple geeks with great senses of humor. Good controls, cooking, and jokes covering everything from Star Wars, Iron Chef, kung-fu movies, and lots more.

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29. Rythym Heaven  (DS)

It pains me to admit it, but it's really not a bad game. I just suck at it.  It's goofy, quirky and plenty of replay if you have decent reflexes (I do not, so I play farming games).

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28.  Bit.Trip Beat  (WiiWare)

The most retro gaming experience ever given a completely modern twist turning it into something that's almost a rythym game.

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27.  NyxQuest  (WiiWare)

A traditional platformer with a unique set of controls. Absolutely beautiful game and its a shame so many people are missing out on it.

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26.  Samba Di Amigo (Dreamcast)

A Latin flavored Rhythm game using maracas!!!  GENIUS!!  The Dreamcast version is awesome fun. . .  the Wii version is pure crap.

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25.  WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgames! (GBA)

YAY Microgames!!!  What exactly is a microgame??  I don't quite know but just like the orgasm they're 15 seconds of fun that everyone should enjoy.  

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24.  Viva Pinata (Xbox 360)

It's like the Sims with pinatas.  That just doesn't right, but that's as close as I can describe it.  But this Pinata garden simulator one of the modern day Rare's best games.

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23.  Scribblenauts (DS)

Look past the hype and you'll see one of the most original games ever made.  The pleasure you get from it is directly in proportion to your imagination.  Got one? You'll love it.  If you don't. . . just pass.

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22.  Chibi Robo (Gamecube)

It's all about making people happy!  And that's what really matters right?  Play as a little Robot whose sole calling is to make people happy by cleaning up.

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21. Hotel Dusk: Room 215 (DS)

Once upon a time an adventure game wouldn't count as niche, but it does now.  And this is probably the best pure original adventure game to come out for the DS.

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20.  Trauma Center: Under the Knife (DS)

No game ever frustrated me like this one, and yet I kept coming back.  Hospital drama and surgical touch-screen fun.  Well maybe not fun.  More like an obsession that I refused to stop playing.

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19.  Art Style: Pictobits (DSiWare)

Sort of like Tetris, but not really.  It combines a love of classic 8 bit NES fun and a good addictive puzzle game.  

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18. Patapon (PSP)

It's a strategy game designed by guys who really really wanted to make a DDR game and it's awesome. Couple that with a silkscreen type graphic style and you've got a badass game.

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17.  Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem (Gamecube)

Technically it's a survival horror game, but this game takes it to a completely different level and puts itself on a different plane with the way it attempts to scare the player.

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16.  Braid (Xbox 360)

A platformer with jigsaw puzzles and a bunch of different time manipulation features and a plot twist that no one saw coming.

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15.  Muramasa: The Demon Blade (Wii)

Incredibly gorgeous hand painted 2-D graphics and an amazing soundtrack pared off with crisp flawless jumping and attacking controls.  This game is the final word on the arguement about whether or not games can be art.

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14.  Jet Grind Radio (Dreamcast)

Roller skating, civil disobedience, and the beginning of cell-shaded graphics.  This game had a style all its own and never got nearly the attention it deserved.

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13.  Little Kings Story (Wii)

I may not be a fan of the game, but I recognize that it is very good.  It's the cutest real-time strategy game ever made and despite the look there's a ton of depth and gameplay there.

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12.  Rez (PS2)

An onrails shooter that's more about the music than the game.  Plus it's the first game to ever offer a vibrator that pulses along with the music for his and her pleasure.

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11.  Flower (PS3)

The most beautiful and entrancing game on the PS3.   Flying flower petals everywhere.  It's cooler than it sounds.

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10.  World of Goo (WiiWare)

Make bridges out of goo and save them from the evil corporation.  It's sort of what Tim Burton would do if he made games and could rip his lips away from Johnny Depp's buttcheeks.

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9.  Lost Winds (WiiWare)

A fantastic platformer with an incredible art style and sountrack, and unique IR controls that sets up a great little story. It's only crime is that it ends too soon. (*note* it's sequel Winter of the Melodias is probably better but since I've yet to play it I can't put it up here just yet)

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8.  Lumines (PSP)

Possibly the best pure puzzle game to come out this decade.  It's like Tetris on acid with light and sound patterns playing a role and is one of the high spots of the PSP.

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7.  Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (PSP)

An RPG puzzle game.  Strange combination, but it works and it works well.  If you have the option go with the PSP version as it seems to be the sharpest slickest version out there.

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6.  Rune Factory Frontier (Wii)

Farming, fighting, cooking, fishing, monster raising, dating, magic, blacksmithing, chemistry, astronomy, and more with one of the greatest fantasy villages of all time for a backdrop.  The game has just about everything.

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5.  Guitar Hero (PS2)

It may be the most mainstream and whored out series in gaming today, but when this game first came out there was virtually no interest in music or rythym games. This game took a niche genre and introduced it to the world.

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4.  Harvest Moon: Back to Nature (PS1)

Arguably the greatest Harvest Moon game of all time.  It piled more characters, more crops, and more things to do than ever before without sacrificing the things that make this farming series great.

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3.  Katamari Damacy (PS2)

Rolling a sticky ball around to pick up everything you see with the goofiest and greatest gaming soundtrack of all time.  None of the sequels have done it justice, but I say keep trying.

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2.  Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (DS)

A traditional adventure game that takes place in the court room with a set of laws that just don't fly in any country I've ever heard of.  An amazing cast of characters and a pretty good sense of humor makes this game and just about every other game in the series a must-play.

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1.  The World Ends With You (DS)

This game started out as a jRPG with a bizarre control scheme and by focusing style over substance it created a brand substance that just freaking rocks. Not just the best niche game from the last 10 years, but it really is one of the best games of the last 10 years and proof that SE can still create an amazing game without the words Final, Dragon, Fantasy, or Quest.

Foolz said:

Rhythm heaven?!

Okay I'll be honest... I needed filler.  30 good niche games was tough even for 10 years.

There is no way I could put together a top 30 from the last decade.  

Good thing you included the word "niche" in your subject or I'd not know where to start on dismantling your list.

Muahahahha. Once its written it cannot be unwritten. Robio admits Rhythm Heaven is good

Nice list.

Also you would love Lost Winds Winter of the Melodias, it kicks the first games ass.

aspro said:

Wario Ware is getting short shrift all over the place in these games of the decade list.

How about a Zombie top 30 list "Games of the Decayed"?

Dvader said:

Should I play Chrono Trigger before The World Ends With You. I dont want one game to overshadow another.

They are both so different that you could play either -- they are equally good.  Chrono is just a straight up JRPG with incredible music and character design.  The World Ends With You is more interesting in terms of the characters, presentation and fight mechanic.  

TWEWY is shorter, if that helps. And avoid spoilers.