🔗 Share this article

So, how did you experience 2025 in your family? Was it all as good as you pretended on Facebook? Overflowing with academic success for the kids and wild dress-up celebrations for the grownups? Maybe it felt like a swamp of disappointment with only sporadic fun highlights? And was any of it actually real, or is everyone now digitally altered virtual entities with celebrity smiles?

I've corralled everyone for a chat, whether they wanted to or not, to reflect on the paramount thing in twelve months: what titles we enjoyed the most. So here goes:

Title Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"This isn't my definitive list."

On her phone, her go-to has been Cityscapes and "searching for reasonable healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In the actual world."

Title Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He was offended that I suggested it. I respect that.

Release Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She's attempting to get into acting, but when she took a break from vocals, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also went on in great detail about her accomplishments on The Sims, where her avatar has a successful utopia with infinitely better healthcare than her older sibling has outside the game.

Release the Partner Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at 60% 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 extract pins.

Game I Laughed at My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I set about him like a cross between a relentless heckler. When he objects, I reply that I am engaging in this to prepare him so he can grow up and play games for grownups. This defines our Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Impressive Gaming Family Member 2025

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

She was the clear winner for this one. She is a machine. Even better than I was at classic rhythm games in my prime.

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

No other game compared to the hours I spent on this insanely well-crafted deck building wizard’s poker, with its regularly updated 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 lure you into fomo-fuelled microtransactions. So affection became resentment halfway through the year and it was deleted.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Excellent reinvention of a classic franchise. Immersive atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could deal with my issues so effectively in real life.

Game I Wish I Had Played More (Puzzle-Focused Edition)

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this beautiful, unique game and I just didn’t have the focused attention to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With holiday guests over the festive period, I will be playing this in the late night after family time.

Game 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 every single thing right. Crazy Poker is a fantastic concept, but the powers behind the different wild cards are so inventive it has become a game I literally would play constantly. Throw in the charm of the card design, and this is an absolute peak of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a broken-down lift for hours just so I have the perfect excuse but play it.

Title I Got the Most Flak For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a bit of backlash when I wrote about how a specific bug in another game soured the experience for me, but that other title is still a colossal gaming achievement in terms of art, sound, acting – which I appreciated even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the individual who took the time to send a message to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "missing the point". I share that in the exact way, because I appreciate the effort, and she is obviously an astute judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a bastard-hard Metroidvania-esque thing and provide little guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "explore". What a joy. I get that it looks ace and is flawless if you are into challenging games, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I desire less in my mid-fifties. I was around back when many games were like this, and I’ve had enough. It was okay when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many questionable things.

Biggest Gaming News of 2025

Debate between business deals that sparked debate, and premium pricing. Both difficult to justify 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 doorstep at tea time.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. Seriously. 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 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 wait patiently until the heat death of the universe.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.