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Alright, what did you think of the past year in your household? Did it seem entirely positive as you pretended on social media? Full of top marks for your offspring and elaborate costume gatherings for the adults? Maybe it felt like a swamp of frustration with only occasional fun flotsam? And was any of it actually real, or have we all become AI-generated virtual entities with celebrity teeth?

I've assembled everyone for a chat, ready or not, to reflect on the paramount thing in any given year: which video games we enjoyed the most. So here goes:

Release Oldest Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"This isn't my games column."

Meanwhile, on mobile, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "trying to find adequate healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In reality."

Release Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He was offended that I suggested it. Fair enough.

Game Third Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

Her goal is 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 successes on The Sims, where her avatar has a successful utopia with infinitely better healthcare than her older sibling has outside the game.

Title the Wife Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She started the year at 60% completion and finished the year at eighty-two percent. It's a long haul not a sprint for her. On her phone: something called Woodle, where you have to remove pins.

Release I Laughed at My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I give him a hard time like a cross between a relentless heckler. When he objects, I reply that I am doing this to prepare him so he can grow up and play games for mature audiences. This defines our Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Skilled Gaming Family Member 2025

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

There was no contest for this one. She is incredible. Even better than I was at Dancing Stage MegaMix in my prime.

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

No other game compared to the hours I spent on this exceptionally well-crafted deck building digital pastime, with its regularly updated range of cards and game variations.

Title 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 compulsion-based 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 legendary franchise. Captivating atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could eviscerate my issues so effectively in real life.

Game I Wish I Had Played More (Thoughtful Edition)

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this beautiful, unique game and I just was short on the mental bandwidth to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I will be playing this in the early morning after evening drinks.

Game That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was the previous year's surprise hit, but I was late to it. And it is incredible. It just gets absolutely everything right. Crazy Poker is a brilliant concept, but the effects behind the different special cards are so inventive it has become a game I would happily play at any hour. Throw in the cleverness of the card design, and this is an absolute pinnacle of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Game I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I endured a wave of criticism when I mentioned how a technical issue in another game ruined the experience for me, but that other title is still a colossal gaming achievement in terms of art, sound, acting – which I appreciated even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the commenter who took the time to contact me to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I mention that as written, because I acknowledge the engagement, and she is obviously an astute judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Alright. 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". How delightful. 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 desire less in my current stage of life. I was around back when all 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 News of 2025

Close call between business deals that raised eyebrows, and high launch costs. Both difficult to justify and unpleasant.

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 dinner time.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. Honestly. I don’t know if it’s because of button mashing or doomscrolling, but it is sore like anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs insured 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 stretch time until the end of days.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.