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Well, how was the past year in your household? Could it be described as entirely positive as people post on social media? Packed with A-grades for your offspring and elaborate themed fancy dress celebrations for the grownups? Or perhaps it was a sea of disappointment with only rare entertaining highlights? And was any of it actually real, or have we all become digitally altered synthetic personas with celebrity dental work?

I've assembled my thoughts for a chat, ready or not, to discuss the most important thing in twelve months: which video games we were obsessed with the most. So here goes:

Game Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"You can't expect my personal ranking."

In the mobile realm, her go-to has been Cityscapes and "attempting to locate reasonable healthcare."

"Digitally?"

"In the actual world."

Game Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

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

Release Third Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She's attempting to get into drama school, but when she wasn’t singing, she was playing Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where the Shark has a thriving utopia with far better healthcare than her older sibling has in the real world.

Game the Spouse Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She started the year at 60% completion and finished the year at eighty-two percent. It’s a marathon not a sprint for her. Her mobile diversion: something called Woodle, where you have to unscrew pins.

Title I Teased My Kids About My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Any time I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I rib him like a cross between a relentless heckler. When he complains, I reply that I am engaging in this to toughen him up so he can mature and play games for grownups. It’s a very Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Impressive Gaming Family Member 2025

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

It wasn't even close for this one. She is a machine. Superior than I was at classic rhythm games in my prime.

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

Nothing came close to the hours I spent on this exceptionally well-crafted card game wizard’s poker, with its constantly evolving range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The downside about games that frequently update their range is you wake up one day and understand it is all just an attempt to trap you with fomo-fuelled microtransactions. So enjoyment soured halfway through the year and it was deleted.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

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

Game I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I'm unwilling to rush this stunning, original game and I just didn’t have the time or headspace to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the late night after family time.

Game That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was last year's surprise hit, but I was late to it. And it is incredible. It just gets absolutely everything right. Its gameplay loop is a brilliant concept, but the effects behind the different wild cards are so inventive it has become a game I could play any time. Add in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an absolute pinnacle of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Title I Got the Most Backlash For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a minor pile-on when I critiqued how a specific bug in another game ruined the experience for me, but that other title is still a gargantuan gaming achievement in terms of art, sound, acting – which I recognized even more after experiencing Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the individual who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I present that verbatim, because I acknowledge the engagement, and she is obviously an sharp judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a bastard-hard exploration-focused thing and provide little guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". What a joy. I acknowledge that it is beautiful and is flawless 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 I'm over it. It was fine when I was a kid, but so was many questionable things.

Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025

Debate between corporate partnerships that caused concern, and high launch costs. Both difficult to justify and unpleasant.

Games I Would Name My Children After, If I Was Ever Foolish Enough to Have More

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all sound good names called from the back door 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 button mashing or endless scrolling, but it aches like hellfire 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 make 2026 last until the heat death of the universe.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.