🔗 Share this article

Well, how was the past year in your family? Was it all as good as you pretended on Facebook? Packed with academic success for the kids and riotous themed fancy dress celebrations for the parents? Or perhaps it was a sea of letdowns with only occasional entertaining flotsam? Is any of this actually real, or is everyone now AI-generated AI slop beings with perfect dental work?

I've corralled my thoughts for a reflection, willing or unwilling, to discuss the most important thing in twelve months: which video games we were obsessed with the most. So here goes:

Title First Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"This isn't my personal ranking."

Meanwhile, on mobile, she’s been playing Cityscapes and "attempting to locate reasonable healthcare."

"Digitally?"

"In real life."

Title Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

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

Title 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 tackling 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 outside the game.

Release the Wife Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She started the year at 60% completion and ended it at 82%. 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.

Title I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Every time I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I set about him like a cross between a persistent critic. When he objects, I reply that I am doing this to toughen him up so he can be a man and play games for mature audiences. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Impressive Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

It wasn't even close for this one. She is a machine. Superior than I was at my peak gaming days in my prime.

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

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

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The catch about games that frequently update their range is you eventually realize and understand it is all just an attempt to lure you into compulsion-based microtransactions. So affection became resentment halfway through the year and it was deleted.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

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

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

Blue Prince

I'm unwilling to rush this beautiful, unique game and I just lacked the focused attention to give it what it required earlier this year. With family visits over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the late night after appropriate hospitality.

Title That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was last year's surprise hit, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is remarkable. It just gets every single thing right. Its gameplay loop is a wonderful concept, but the effects behind the different special cards are so imaginative it has become a game I could play constantly. Combine that with the charm 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 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 glitch in another game ruined the experience for me, but that other title is still a gargantuan gaming achievement in terms of overall polish – which I appreciated even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the reader who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "bitter, confused resentment". I present that verbatim, because I acknowledge the engagement, and they are obviously an sharp judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Sure. Give me a brutally difficult Metroidvania-esque thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "figure it out". How delightful. I acknowledge that it has great art and is flawless if you are into this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I am less interested in in my mid-fifties. I was around back when most games were like this, and I’ve had enough. It was acceptable when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many questionable things.

Biggest Gaming News of 2025

Close call between corporate partnerships that raised eyebrows, and expensive game releases. Both difficult to justify and concerning.

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 button mashing or phone use, but it is sore like anything 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 stretch time until the end of days.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.