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Alright, how did you experience the past year in your home? Could it be described as truly wonderful as one might claim on Facebook? Full of academic success for your offspring and riotous themed fancy dress birthday parties for the grownups? Or was it a sea of disappointment with only sporadic fun moments? And was any of it actually real, or have we all become AI-generated AI slop beings with celebrity dental work?

I've assembled my thoughts together, ready or not, to discuss the crucial thing in twelve months: which releases we were obsessed with the most. So here goes:

Game Oldest Daughter Played the Most

Horizon Zero Dawn

"Why can't you pick just one?"

"This isn't my personal ranking."

In the mobile realm, she’s been playing Cityscapes and "trying to find reasonable healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In reality."

Release Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

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

Game Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

Her goal is to get into drama school, but when she took a break from vocals, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also elaborated in great detail about her accomplishments on The Sims, where the Shark has a thriving utopia with far better healthcare than her older sibling has outside the game.

Game the Wife Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She started the year at sixty percent completion and ended it at 82%. It’s a marathon not a sprint for her. Her mobile diversion: something called Woodle, where you have to extract pins.

Title I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Any time I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I rib him like a cross between a persistent critic. When he protests, I reply that I am engaging in this to prepare him so he can grow up and play games for mature audiences. It’s a very Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Notable Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

It wasn't even close 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

It was in a league of its own to the hours I spent on this remarkably well-crafted deck building competitive game, with its ever-changing range of cards and game variations.

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The downside about games that constantly evolve their range is you wake up one day and realise it is all just an attempt to lure you into compulsion-based microtransactions. So enjoyment soured halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Glorious reinvention of a classic franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the off. I wish I could eviscerate my demons so effectively in real life.

Game I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just lacked the time or headspace to give it what it needed earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I will be playing this in the late night after evening drinks.

Game That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I'm aware Balatro was last year's breakout game, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is remarkable. It just gets each element right. The core concept is a wonderful concept, but the abilities behind the different wild cards are so imaginative it has become a game I could play any time. Add in the charm of the card design, and this is an definite high-water mark of gaming. I wouldn't mind being stuck in a broken-down lift for hours just so I have an opportunity but play it.

Title I Got the Most Flak For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a bit of backlash when I critiqued how a technical issue in another game damaged the experience for me, but that other title is still a gargantuan gaming achievement in terms of production values – which I appreciated even more after slogging through 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 "poorly reasoned". I share that verbatim, because I appreciate the effort, and she is obviously an sharp judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Alright. Give me a bastard-hard non-linear thing and don’t tell me guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". What a joy. I acknowledge that it has great art and is flawless if you are into the genre, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I am less interested in in my current stage of life. I was around back when many games were like this, and I'm over it. It was okay when I was a kid, but so was many questionable things.

Biggest Gaming Controversy of 2025

Debate between corporate partnerships that caused concern, and expensive game releases. Both difficult to justify and repugnant.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all make interesting names called 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 video games or phone use, but it is sore like hellfire in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs protected back in the 90s.

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.