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Well, what did you think of the past year in your family? Could it be described as all as good as you pretended on online? Packed with top marks for the kids and riotous dress-up birthday parties for the parents? Or was it a swamp of frustration with only sporadic entertaining highlights? Is any of this actually real, or is everyone now AI-generated AI slop beings with celebrity dental work?

I have gathered everyone for a reflection, whether they wanted to or not, to reflect on the crucial thing in a calendar year: what titles we enjoyed the most. Without further ado:

Release Oldest Daughter Played the Most

Horizon Zero Dawn

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"It’s not my games column."

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

"Digitally?"

"In the actual world."

Title Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I have no interest in games on my phone." He seemed insulted that I even asked. Fair enough.

Release Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She is trying to get into drama school, but when she wasn’t singing, she was tackling Resident Evil. She also elaborated in great detail about her accomplishments on The Sims, where her avatar has a successful utopia with far better healthcare than her older sibling has in the real world.

Game the Wife 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. Her phone game: something called Woodle, where you have to remove pins.

Game I Laughed at My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Any time I see my adult 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 engaging in this to build character so he can grow up and play games for mature audiences. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Notable Gaming Family Member of the Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

She was the clear winner for this one. She is incredible. Superior 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 exceptionally well-crafted card game competitive game, with its ever-changing range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The downside about games that endlessly add to their range is you have a moment of clarity and see it is all just an attempt to suck you into fomo-fuelled microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Glorious reinvention of a iconic franchise. Captivating atmosphere from the start. I wish I could deal with my demons so effectively in real life.

Game I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this stunning, original game and I just was short on the mental bandwidth to give it what it required earlier this year. With holiday guests over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the wee small hours after appropriate hospitality.

Title That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I acknowledge Balatro was 2024’s breakout game, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is exceptional. It just gets each element right. Crazy Poker is a fantastic concept, but the effects behind the different joker cards are so inventive it has become a game I would happily play at any hour. Throw in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an absolute high-water mark of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Title I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a wave of criticism when I critiqued how a technical issue in another game soured the experience for me, but that other title is still a gargantuan gaming achievement in terms of art, sound, acting – which I valued even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the individual who took the time to send a message to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "missing the point". I present that in the exact way, because I appreciate the effort, and she is obviously an astute judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Alright. Give me a punishingly tough Metroidvania-esque thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". Great fun. I get that it is beautiful and is perfection if you are into challenging games, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I want less of in my current stage of life. I was around back when all games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was acceptable when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many questionable things.

Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025

Toss-up between corporate partnerships that sparked debate, and expensive game releases. Both morally indefensible and repugnant.

Games I Would Name My Children After, If I Was Ever Stupid 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 console gaming or endless scrolling, but it is sore like anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs insured 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 cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.