Yes, an excellent example of this problem is comparing a year like 2014 to any other year of this last decade.
My favourite cRPG from the 2010s was/is Blackguards, being the only game from this decade's output that I've played that I instantly replayed upon completion, and went on to complete it again.
However, Blackguards didn't even rank in RPGwatch's (or many other site's) list of top 10 for that year, as that was the most cramped year for big name RPGs of the lot:
1. Divinity: Original Sin
2. Wasteland 2
3. Dragon Age: Inquisition
4. Shadowrun: Dragonfall
5. Might & Magic X: Legacy
6. Lords of Xulima
7. Risen 3: Titan Lords
8. Legend of Grimrock 2
9. Dark Souls II
10. South Park: The Stick of Truth
And Blackguards, being a completely new name by a completely new dev, and not being triple A but just double A, left it at a 'current vogue' disadvantage. Even me, during the year it came out, did not think I'd like it as communication about the game was very poor indeed with most people just referring to it as not much more than a tactics game, which it was nothing of the sort, it was a regular normal full blown traditional epic RPG that just had a novel and unique way of presenting exploration.
Had Blackguards come out in 2013 though… well, the chart for that year only has 8 games total for it's top 10, we couldn't even name a 9th or 10th position. And who won that year? Mass Effect 3, a game that has gone down in the annuls in infamy rather than must-play classic.
And for all the possible subjective opinions about the quality of Blackguards or Dragon Age: Inquisition, I'm not sure how anyone could keep a straight face by recommending a new gamer DA:I before Blackguards, let alone Risen 3. Just like M&MX, these are all weaker examples of series that have long-since only been made to appeal to the extreme die-hard fans of franchises that were begun last decade or before, whereas Blackguards is an excellent example of the luxury of individuality and variety and uniqueness that more aptly represents the mindset and atmosphere of the more memorable 2010s crop.