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Well, what did you think of this year in your family? Could it be described as all as good as you pretended on online? Full of academic success for the kids and riotous themed fancy dress gatherings for the adults? Or was it a ocean of frustration with only occasional enjoyable flotsam? Could any part be genuine, or is everyone now digitally altered AI slop beings with unrealistic smiles?

I have gathered my thoughts together, willing or unwilling, to discuss the crucial thing in twelve months: which releases we enjoyed the most. So here goes:

Title First Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"You can't expect my games column."

On her phone, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "trying to find adequate healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In real life."

Title Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

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

Title Third Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

Her goal is to get into acting, but when she stepped away from the mic, 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 thriving utopia with far better healthcare than her big sister has in the real world.

Release the Wife Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at sixty percent completion and finished the year at 82%. It’s a marathon not a sprint for her. On her phone: something called Woodle, where you have to extract pins.

Game I Laughed at 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 relentless heckler. When he protests, I reply that I am doing this to prepare him so he can mature and play games for grownups. This defines our Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Skilled Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

She was the clear winner 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

Nothing came close to the hours I spent on this remarkably well-crafted deck building competitive game, with its ever-changing range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The worst thing about games that constantly evolve their range is you wake up one day and understand it is all just an attempt to trap you with fomo-fuelled microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it was deleted.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Stunning reinvention of a iconic franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could dispatch my demons so effectively in real life.

Game I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just was short on the time or headspace to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With family visits over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the early morning after appropriate hospitality.

Game That Was a Lifesaver When I Needed It

Balatro

I'm aware Balatro was 2024’s breakout game, but I was late to it. And it is remarkable. It just gets absolutely everything right. Crazy Poker is a fantastic concept, but the powers behind the different joker cards are so imaginative it has become a game I would happily play at any hour. Add in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an true high-water mark of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Game I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a bit of backlash when I critiqued 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 recognized even more after slogging through Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the individual who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I mention that verbatim, because I appreciate the effort, and she is obviously an sharp judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a punishingly tough non-linear thing and don’t tell me guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". Great fun. I acknowledge that it is beautiful and is perfection if you are into the genre, 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 my patience is gone. It was okay when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many less comfortable things.

Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025

Toss-up between business deals that caused concern, and high launch costs. Both difficult to justify and unpleasant.

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 bellowed from the doorstep 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 phone use, but it burns 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 make 2026 last until the heat death of the universe.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.