🔗 Share this article

Alright, how was the past year in your home? Did it seem entirely positive as you pretended on online? Packed with top marks for the kids and wild costume celebrations for the parents? Or was it a ocean of disappointment with only occasional fun flotsam? Could any part be actually real, or are we all digitally altered AI slop beings with celebrity smiles?

I have gathered the family together, ready or not, to reflect on the paramount thing in any given year: which releases we enjoyed the most. Let's get started:

Title Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"It’s not my games column."

On her phone, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "searching for decent healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In the actual world."

Game Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He was offended that I even asked. I respect that.

Release Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

Her goal is to get into drama school, but when she wasn’t singing, she was tackling Resident Evil. She also elaborated in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where her avatar has a blooming utopia with far better healthcare than her older sibling has in the real world.

Release the Spouse Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She started the year at sixty percent completion and finished the year at eighty-two percent. It's a long haul not a sprint for her. Her mobile diversion: something called Woodle, where you have to unscrew pins.

Release I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I set about him like a cross between a relentless heckler. When he protests, I reply that I am behaving this way to prepare him so he can mature and play games for adults. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Impressive Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

It wasn't even close for this one. She is unstoppable. Even better than I was at my peak gaming days in my prime.

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

It was in a league of its own to the hours I spent on this remarkably well-crafted card game competitive game, with its ever-changing range of cards and game variations.

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The downside about games that endlessly add to their range is you have a moment of clarity and realise it is all just an attempt to trap you with fear-of-missing-out driven microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it went into the bin.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Excellent reinvention of a classic franchise. Immersive atmosphere from the off. I wish I could deal with my problems so effectively in real life.

Title I Wish I Had Played More (Puzzle-Focused Edition)

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this stunning, original game and I just didn’t have the time or headspace to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I will be playing this in the wee small hours after evening drinks.

Title That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was last year's surprise hit, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is incredible. It just gets every single thing right. Crazy Poker is a brilliant concept, but the powers behind the different joker cards are so creative it has become a game I could play any time. Throw in the charm of the card design, and this is an absolute pinnacle of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a broken-down lift for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Title I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I endured a bit of backlash when I wrote about how a glitch in another game damaged the experience for me, but that other title is still a massive gaming achievement in terms of art, sound, acting – which I valued even more after experiencing Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the individual who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "bitter, confused resentment". I share that as written, because I appreciate the effort, and he is obviously an excellent judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Sure. Give me a bastard-hard Metroidvania-esque thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "explore". Great fun. I understand that it looks ace and is ideal if you are into the genre, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I am less interested in in my mid-fifties. I was around back when many games were like this, and I’ve had enough. It was acceptable when I was a kid, but so was many questionable things.

Biggest Gaming Controversy of 2025

Debate between corporate partnerships that raised eyebrows, and high launch costs. Both ethically dubious and unpleasant.

Games I Would Name My Children After, If I Was Ever Foolish Enough to Have More

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all make interesting names bellowed from the back door at bedtime.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. No joke. I don’t know if it’s because of button mashing or endless scrolling, but it aches like anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs protected back in the day.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2026

Grand Theft Auto VI.
And it will come out in 2026, even if we have to wait patiently until the heat death of the universe.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.