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So, how was this year in your home? Was it entirely positive as you pretended on online? Full of top marks for the children and elaborate costume celebrations for the grownups? Maybe it felt like a sea of disappointment with only sporadic entertaining flotsam? Is any of this genuine, or is everyone now digitally altered virtual entities with celebrity teeth?

I have gathered everyone for a reflection, willing or unwilling, to reflect on the paramount thing in a calendar year: which video games we enjoyed the most. So here goes:

Game Oldest Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"You can't expect my games column."

On her phone, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "searching for adequate healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In the actual world."

Title Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I have no interest in games on my phone." He was offended that the question was posed. I respect that.

Release Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

Her goal is to get into drama school, but when she wasn’t singing, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also went on in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where the Shark has a blooming utopia with infinitely better healthcare than her older sibling has in real life.

Title the Spouse Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

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

Release I Laughed at My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Every time I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I set about him like a cross between a relentless heckler. When he objects, I reply that I am behaving this way to build character so he can mature and play games for grownups. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Notable Gaming Family Member 2025

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

There was no contest for this one. She is incredible. Superior than I was at classic rhythm games in my prime.

Game I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

Nothing came close to the hours I spent on this exceptionally well-crafted strategy digital pastime, with its constantly evolving range of cards and game variations.

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The worst thing about games that frequently update their range is you eventually realize and understand it is all just an attempt to lure you into fear-of-missing-out driven microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it went into the bin.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Stunning reinvention of a classic franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could deal with my problems so effectively in real life.

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

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just lacked the mental bandwidth to give it what it needed earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the early morning after appropriate hospitality.

Title That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was 2024’s surprise hit, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is incredible. It just gets absolutely everything right. Crazy Poker is a brilliant concept, but the powers behind the different joker 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 true pinnacle of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have the perfect excuse but play it.

Game I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a wave of criticism when I critiqued how a glitch in another game damaged the experience for me, but that other title is still a massive gaming achievement in terms of overall polish – which I recognized even more after experiencing Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the reader who took the time to send a message to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I share that as written, because I acknowledge the engagement, and they are obviously an excellent judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a punishingly tough non-linear thing and provide little guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "figure it out". Great fun. I acknowledge that it looks ace and is perfection if you are into challenging games, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I want less of in my adulthood. I was around back when most games were like this, and I'm over it. It was okay when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many outdated things.

Biggest Gaming Controversy of 2025

Toss-up between business deals that caused concern, and high launch costs. Both difficult to justify 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 be unique names shouted from the back door 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 phone use, but it is sore like hellfire 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 wait patiently until the cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.