🔗 Share this article

Alright, what did you think of this year in your family? Did it seem all as good as one might claim on Facebook? Overflowing with A-grades for your offspring and riotous costume celebrations for the parents? Maybe it felt like a ocean of frustration with only occasional entertaining flotsam? Is any of this genuine, or have we all become seven-fingered virtual entities with perfect smiles?

I've corralled everyone for a reflection, ready or not, to reflect on the crucial thing in twelve months: what titles we enjoyed the most. Let's get started:

Game Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Horizon Zero Dawn

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"This isn't my personal ranking."

In the mobile realm, she’s been playing Cityscapes and "searching for decent healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In real life."

Title Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He took umbrage that I suggested it. Point taken.

Release Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She is trying to get into drama school, but when she wasn’t singing, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where the Shark has a blooming utopia with infinitely better healthcare than her older sibling has outside the game.

Release the Spouse Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at 60% 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.

Title I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I rib him like a cross between a classic comedy bit. When he protests, I reply that I am doing this to build character so he can be a man and play games for adults. It’s a very Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Skilled Gaming Family Member of the Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

She was the clear winner for this one. She is unstoppable. More impressive than I was at my peak gaming days in my prime.

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

No other game compared to the hours I spent on this remarkably well-crafted card game wizard’s poker, with its constantly evolving range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The downside about games that constantly evolve their range is you have a moment of clarity and realise it is all just an attempt to suck you into compulsion-based microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it was deleted.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Stunning reinvention of a iconic franchise. Immersive atmosphere from the start. I wish I could deal with my issues so effectively in real life.

Title I Wish I Had Played More (Thoughtful Edition)

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this beautiful, unique game and I just didn’t have the focused attention to give it what it needed earlier this year. With holiday guests over the festive period, I plan to dive into this in the wee small hours after evening drinks.

Title That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was last year's breakout game, but I was a late adopter. And it is incredible. It just gets absolutely everything right. Its gameplay loop is a wonderful concept, but the abilities behind the different joker cards are so imaginative it has become a game I could play any time. Throw in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an absolute pinnacle of gaming. I wouldn't mind being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Game I Got the Most Backlash For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a minor pile-on when I mentioned how a technical issue 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 my appreciation goes out to the reader who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I mention that verbatim, because I acknowledge the engagement, 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 bastard-hard exploration-focused thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "figure it out". What a joy. I acknowledge that it looks ace and is ideal if you are into this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I want less of in my adulthood. I was around back when many games were like this, and I'm over it. It was acceptable when I was a kid, but so was many less comfortable things.

Biggest Gaming Controversy of 2025

Toss-up between corporate partnerships that caused concern, and premium pricing. Both morally indefensible 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 sound good names bellowed from the garden at bedtime.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. Seriously. I don’t know if it’s because of console gaming or endless scrolling, but it burns like anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs protected 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 heat death of the universe.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.