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Alright, how was 2025 in your home? Did it seem entirely positive as you pretended on online? Overflowing with A-grades for your offspring and elaborate dress-up birthday parties for the parents? Or perhaps it was a swamp of letdowns with only occasional entertaining moments? Could any part be genuine, or is everyone now seven-fingered AI slop beings with unrealistic dental work?

I've assembled my thoughts for a reflection, whether they wanted to or not, to discuss the paramount thing in a calendar year: which video games we enjoyed the most. Without further ado:

Release Oldest Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"This isn't my personal ranking."

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

"Digitally?"

"In real life."

Title Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I have no interest in games on my phone." He took umbrage that I even asked. Point taken.

Game Third Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She is trying to get into drama school, but when she took a break from vocals, she was playing Resident Evil. She also went on in great detail about her accomplishments on The Sims, where her character has a thriving utopia with far better healthcare than her big sister has in the real world.

Title the Partner Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at sixty percent completion and ended it at eighty-two percent. It's a long haul not a sprint for her. On her phone: something called Woodle, where you have to unscrew pins.

Title I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Any time I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I give him a hard time like a cross between a classic comedy bit. When he protests, I reply that I am doing this to build character so he can grow up and play games for adults. It’s a very 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. More impressive than I was at classic rhythm games in my prime.

Game I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

No other game compared to the hours I spent on this insanely well-crafted card game wizard’s poker, with its regularly updated range of cards and game variations.

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The catch about games that constantly evolve their range is you eventually realize and realise it is all just an attempt to trap you with fomo-fuelled microtransactions. So enjoyment soured halfway through the year and it went into the bin.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Glorious reinvention of a legendary franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the start. I wish I could deal with my problems so effectively in real life.

Game I Wish I Had Played More (Thoughtful 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 will be playing this in the early morning after appropriate hospitality.

Title That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I acknowledge Balatro was last year's surprise hit, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is incredible. It just gets each element right. The core concept is a fantastic concept, but the effects behind the different wild cards are so imaginative it has become a game I would happily play any time. Throw in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an true pinnacle 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 wave of criticism when I wrote about 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 slogging through 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 "bitter, confused resentment". I share that as written, because I appreciate the effort, and he 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 exploration-focused thing and don’t tell me guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "figure it out". What a joy. I get that it has great art and is ideal if you are into challenging games, 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 my patience is gone. It was acceptable when I was a kid, but so was many less comfortable things.

Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025

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

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all sound good names called from the garden 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 aches like the mines of sulphur in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs protected back in the past.

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 cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.