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Well, how was this year in your family? Was it truly wonderful as you pretended on online? Full of A-grades for your offspring and riotous costume birthday parties for the adults? Or perhaps it was a swamp of frustration with only sporadic fun moments? Could any part be actually real, or have we all become AI-generated AI slop beings with perfect dental work?

I have gathered my thoughts for a reflection, whether they wanted to or not, to debate the paramount thing in any given year: which releases we were obsessed with the most. So here goes:

Game First Daughter Played the Most

Horizon Zero Dawn

"Why can't you pick just one?"

"This isn't my games column."

In the mobile realm, her go-to has been Cityscapes and "searching for adequate healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In real life."

Game Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I have no interest in games on my phone." He took umbrage that the question was posed. I respect that.

Title Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She is trying to get into theatre school, but when she stepped away from the mic, she was tackling Resident Evil. She also went on in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where her character has a successful utopia with far better healthcare than her older sibling has in the real world.

Title 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 marathon not a sprint for her. Her phone game: something called Woodle, where you have to extract pins.

Title I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Every time I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I give him a hard time like a cross between a persistent critic. When he protests, I reply that I am behaving this way to build character so he can mature and play games for mature audiences. It’s a very Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Impressive Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

There was no contest for this one. She is unstoppable. Even better than I was at classic rhythm games 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 strategy competitive game, with its ever-changing range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The catch about games that endlessly add to their range is you wake up one day and realise it is all just an attempt to trap you with fomo-fuelled microtransactions. So affection became resentment halfway through the year and it was deleted.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Glorious reinvention of a classic franchise. Captivating atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could deal with my issues so effectively in real life.

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

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this stunning, original game and I just didn’t have the time or headspace to give it what it needed earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the late night after evening drinks.

Title That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was the previous year's surprise hit, but I was a late adopter. And it is remarkable. It just gets absolutely everything right. Its gameplay loop is a fantastic concept, but the abilities behind the different joker cards are so imaginative it has become a game I literally would play at any hour. Throw in the cleverness of the card design, and this is an definite pinnacle of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a broken-down lift for hours just so I have an opportunity but play it.

Game I Got the Most Flak For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I endured a wave of criticism 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 production values – which I valued even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the reader who took the time to contact me to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "bitter, confused resentment". I present that in the exact way, because I appreciate the effort, and they are obviously an excellent judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Alright. Give me a punishingly tough non-linear thing and provide little guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "figure it out". What a joy. I get that it looks ace and is perfection if you are into this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I want less of in my mid-fifties. I was around back when all games were like this, and I'm over it. It was okay when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many questionable things.

Biggest Gaming News of 2025

Debate between corporate partnerships that caused concern, and premium pricing. Both difficult to justify and concerning.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all sound good names called from the doorstep at dinner time.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. No joke. I don’t know if it’s because of video games or doomscrolling, but it is sore like the mines of sulphur 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.