🔗 Share this article

So, how was this year in your family? Did it seem entirely positive as people post on Facebook? Packed with academic success for the children and wild costume gatherings for the adults? Or was it a swamp of letdowns with only rare entertaining moments? And was any of it genuine, or are we all AI-generated virtual entities with perfect dental work?

I have gathered the family for a chat, ready or not, to debate the crucial thing in a calendar year: which video games we enjoyed the most. Without further ado:

Release Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Horizon Zero Dawn

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"You can't expect my games column."

Meanwhile, on mobile, her go-to has been Cityscapes and "searching for reasonable healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In reality."

Release Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He seemed insulted that the question was posed. I respect that.

Game Third Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She's attempting to get into acting, but when she stepped away from the mic, she was tackling Resident Evil. She also elaborated in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where the Shark has a thriving utopia with infinitely better healthcare than her eldest sister has outside the game.

Title the Wife Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at sixty percent completion and ended it at eighty-two percent. She's in it for the long run not a sprint for her. On her phone: something called Woodle, where you have to remove pins.

Game I Laughed at My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I set about him like a cross between a relentless heckler. When he objects, I reply that I am behaving this way to prepare him so he can mature and play games for adults. It’s a very Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Notable Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

It wasn't even close for this one. She is a machine. More impressive than I was at Dancing Stage MegaMix in my prime.

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

Nothing came close to the hours I spent on this insanely well-crafted card game competitive game, with its constantly evolving range of cards and game variations.

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The catch about games that frequently update their range is you eventually realize and understand it is all just an attempt to suck you into 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 iconic franchise. Captivating atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could dispatch my issues so effectively in real life.

Title I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just didn’t have the focused attention to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With family visits over the festive period, I will be playing this in the early morning after family time.

Game That Was a Lifesaver When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was last year's sleeper hit, but I was a late adopter. And it is exceptional. It just gets each element right. The core concept is a wonderful concept, but the powers behind the different wild cards are so imaginative it has become a game I would happily play at any hour. Throw in the cleverness of the card design, and this is an definite peak of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have the perfect excuse but play it.

Game I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a minor pile-on when I wrote about how a specific bug in another game ruined the experience for me, but that other title is still a massive gaming achievement in terms of overall polish – which I valued even more after slogging through Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the commenter who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I share that as written, because I appreciate the effort, and she is obviously an sharp judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a brutally difficult exploration-focused thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". Great fun. I understand that it looks ace and is flawless if you are into this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I am less interested in in my current stage of life. I was around back when most games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was acceptable when I was a kid, but so was many questionable things.

Biggest Gaming Controversy of 2025

Close call between business deals that caused concern, and high launch costs. Both ethically dubious and repugnant.

Games I Would Name My Children After, Were I I Was Ever Stupid Enough to Have More

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all make interesting names bellowed from the garden at tea time.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. Honestly. I don’t know if it’s because of console gaming or phone use, but it aches like the mines of sulphur in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs looked after back in the past.

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 stretch time until the cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.