Here are the top 10 reasons to stop clinging to your video game cases and embrace digital.

Let’s face it: digital video game distribution is the future, but it is still in its infancy. Thankfully, some great creators have been working hard in the realm of the download, especially on the PlayStation Network. Some of the games are even better than any multimillion dollar behemoth a AAA-game company can produce. Digital distribution is the new frontier that is just starting to be explored. These are our top 10 picks available now on the PS Store:

10. Super Stardust HD


Asteroids fans, it’s time to put down your Atari joysticks and pick up that DualShock 3. The frenetic and frantic Super Stardust HD is the ultimate space-based shoot-em-up. Piloting your spaceship around a planet covered by a spherical deflector shield, you have to defend against rogue rocks and alien spacecrafts. With fast-paced action, lots of explosions and challenging levels, Super Stardust HD will keep you occupied for hours while your old Atari gathers stardust.

9. PixelJunk Monsters


Always willing to innovate on a tired genre, the PixelJunk series delivers another knockout download with PixelJunk Monsters. The tired trope of a tower defense game is given a new lease on life thanks to a new veneer and some gameplay changes. Monsters are invading your home, and it is up to you to move your character around to build towers and walls to keep the teeth-gnashing beggars at bay. PixelJunk Monsters is fun, stylish and way better than any of those pitiful tower defense games you probably have open right now in your other browser window.

8. PixelJunk Shooter 2


Picking up right where the original left off, PixelJunk Shooter 2 is even more fun than the original. Scientists are trapped in a strange and unknown underground world, and you have to use your spaceship to navigate the underground crevasses to save the poor brainiacs. Oh, did we mention that you’ll also have to take down some huge bosses as well? If you gave Galaga more free range of motion and a more complicated story, you might be on your way to approximating PixelJunk Shooter 2. As with all the games in the PixelJunk series, it is a feast for your fingers and eyes.

7. Joe Danger


Joe Danger is what you would get if you mashed up Excitebike with Sonic the Hedgehog and tossed in a bit of Evel Knievel for extra spice. You star as a daredevil tasked with mounting some fantastic feats before the timer runs out. Fly, flip, leap and crash your way through each cartoon-y level in search of that coveted high score. Joe Danger is enjoyable enough on your own, but challenging three other friends to a ridiculous race only multiplies the fun. Just make sure you stick the landing, or you’ll end up in the shark tank.

6. Stacking


The adventure game is a bit of a lost art, but the lovely folks at Double Fine Productions are keeping it alive with a little game called Stacking. You play as the youngest and smallest of a family of Russian stacking dolls during the Great Depression. It is up to you to save your brothers and sisters who have been forced into slavery because of their financial debt. Each puzzle between you and reuniting your family can be solved in many different ways. You can also take over other stacking dolls by jumping inside them and taking control of their special powers to get the job done.

5. Outland


If you mashed up Pitfall with Tron, you wouldn’t duplicate Outland, but you’d be on your way. This fresh and entertaining side-scrolling, action-adventure game looks absolutely unique and gorgeous. Neon colors abound as you leap and climb your way across lush jungles to return balance between the dark and light forces. Switching your powers from light to dark allows for different abilities and helps you take down some epic bosses.

4. Dead Nation


Everyone loves zombies. Well, they love killing zombies. If you can think of a better time than mowing down thousands of frisky, brain-hungry buggers, then we would love to hear it. Dead Nation is a top-down, spray-and-pray zombie-killing bonanza, and for that, we love it. The game is chock full of drooling, groaning hoards of undead eagerly providing you with a place to store your spent bullets. Did we mention that there’s a ton of explosions? Yep, things go boom.

3.  Limbo


If you want a black and white 2D game to scare the hell out of you, then you need look no further than Limbo. This barren game is as simple as it gets. You play as a small child with a big head and glowing eyes, and you need to find your way out of a nightmarish world. The land is littered with murderous puzzles, homicidal spiders and brain leeches looking to mess up your motor function. Even though the atmosphere is unsettling, there is beauty in the creepiness. As you make your way across this nightmare world, remember to avoid bear traps. You’ve been warned.

2. Braid


Braid is a dark tale of love and time manipulation. This 2D platformer is full of mind-bending puzzles and creepily adorable baddies. The story is a simple tale of a hero looking for his princess. Through the themes of each world and level, the game explores love, time and the nature of existence. You’re able to manipulate time to your advantage and complete the puzzle pieces to reveal more and more of this mysterious story. Complemented by amazing artwork, Braid is a welcome addition to the collection of games on your PS3’s hard drive.

1. Journey


Once in a while, a game crosses over into art. Journey is one such game. This sparse game is as simple as could be. Players must find their way to a mountain off in the distance. That’s it. Between you and your destination, there are gorgeous landscapes, ancient ruins and the occasional puzzle. Journey feels like every pixel has been thought out and caressed lovingly before being placed onto the screen. Like all good art, Journey elicits emotion. Wonder, intrigue, calmness and awe are only a few feelings that wash over you. But most of all, it gives you the greatest sense of satisfaction, which is what all gamers seek.

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