🔗 Share this article

So, how was this year in your home? Could it be described as truly wonderful as people post on online? Packed with academic success for the kids and wild costume birthday parties for the parents? Maybe it felt like a ocean of frustration with only sporadic entertaining highlights? And was any of it genuine, or are we all AI-generated virtual entities with celebrity smiles?

I've assembled my thoughts together, whether they wanted to or not, to discuss the paramount thing in a calendar year: what titles we were obsessed with the most. Let's get started:

Game Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Why can't you pick just one?"

"This isn't my definitive list."

Meanwhile, on mobile, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "attempting to locate reasonable healthcare."

"Digitally?"

"In the actual world."

Title Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I have no interest in games on my phone." He seemed insulted that I suggested it. I respect that.

Release Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She is trying to get into drama school, but when she stepped away from the mic, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also elaborated in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where her character has a successful utopia with far better healthcare than her big sister has in real life.

Release the Spouse Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at sixty percent completion and finished the year 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 extract pins.

Release I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I give him a hard time like a cross between a classic comedy bit. When he complains, I reply that I am behaving this way to prepare him so he can mature and play games for mature audiences. It’s a very Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Notable Gaming Family Member of the Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

There was no contest for this one. She is a machine. Even better 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 digital pastime, with its regularly updated range of cards and game variations.

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The worst thing about games that endlessly add to their range is you eventually realize and realise it is all just an attempt to trap you with fear-of-missing-out driven microtransactions. So enjoyment soured halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Excellent 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 (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just didn’t have the mental bandwidth to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With family visits over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the wee small hours after evening drinks.

Title That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I'm aware Balatro was last year's surprise hit, but I was a late adopter. And it is incredible. It just gets every single thing right. The core concept is a wonderful concept, but the abilities behind the different special cards are so inventive it has become a game I would happily play any time. Combine that with the charm of the card design, and this is an absolute high-water mark of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a broken-down lift for hours just so I have the perfect excuse but play it.

Game I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I endured a bit of backlash when I critiqued how a specific bug in another game damaged the experience for me, but that other title is still a colossal gaming achievement in terms of overall polish – which I recognized even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the reader who took the time to contact me to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "bitter, confused resentment". I share that verbatim, because I acknowledge the engagement, and she is obviously an excellent judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a bastard-hard non-linear thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "explore". Great fun. I get that it looks ace and is flawless if you are into the genre, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I want less of in my current stage of life. I was around back when most games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was fine when I was a kid, but so was many questionable things.

Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025

Toss-up between business deals that caused concern, and premium pricing. Both morally indefensible and repugnant.

Games I Would Name My Children After, If I Was Ever Crazy Enough to Have More

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all sound good names shouted from the garden at tea 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 phone use, but it aches like anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs looked after 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 cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.