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So, how did you experience 2025 in your family? Could it be described as all as good as one might claim on online? Full of A-grades for the children and riotous dress-up birthday parties for the adults? Or perhaps it was a swamp of frustration with only sporadic enjoyable flotsam? And was any of it authentic, or are we all AI-generated virtual entities with celebrity teeth?

I've assembled the family together, willing or unwilling, to reflect on the crucial thing in any given year: which video games we were obsessed with the most. So here goes:

Title First Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"You can't expect my definitive list."

In the mobile realm, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "searching for adequate healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In real life."

Release Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He seemed insulted that I even asked. Fair enough.

Game Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

Her goal is to get into acting, but when she stepped away from the mic, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also elaborated in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where her avatar has a thriving utopia with infinitely better healthcare than her older sibling has in real life.

Game the Spouse Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She started the year at 60% completion and ended it at 82%. It's a long haul not a sprint for her. On her phone: something called Woodle, where you have to unscrew 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 classic comedy bit. When he protests, I reply that I am engaging in this to toughen him up so he can be a man and play games for grownups. It’s a very Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Notable Gaming Family Member of the Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

There was no contest for this one. She is a machine. More impressive than I was at Dancing Stage MegaMix in my prime.

Game I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

It was in a league of its own to the hours I spent on this remarkably well-crafted card game digital pastime, with its regularly updated range of cards and game variations.

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The catch about games that endlessly add to their range is you have a moment of clarity and realise it is all just an attempt to suck you into fear-of-missing-out driven microtransactions. So affection became resentment halfway through the year and it went into the bin.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Glorious reinvention of a iconic franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could deal with my issues so effectively in real life.

Game I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this stunning, original game and I just lacked the time or headspace to give it what it required earlier this year. With holiday guests over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the late night after evening drinks.

Game That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was the previous year's sleeper hit, but I was a late adopter. And it is remarkable. It just gets each element right. Crazy Poker is a wonderful concept, but the powers behind the different joker cards are so inventive it has become a game I would happily play any time. Add in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an definite high-water mark of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have the perfect excuse but play it.

Game I Got the Most Flak For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a wave of criticism when I mentioned how a specific bug 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 appreciated even more after slogging through Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the commenter who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I mention that verbatim, because I appreciate the effort, and they are obviously an sharp judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Alright. Give me a punishingly tough non-linear thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". What a joy. I get that it has great art and is ideal if you are into this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I want less of in my mid-fifties. I was around back when all games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was okay when I was a kid, but so was many less comfortable things.

Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025

Close call between questionable alliances that raised eyebrows, and high launch costs. Both ethically dubious and concerning.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all be unique names called from the doorstep at bedtime.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. Seriously. I don’t know if it’s because of console gaming or endless scrolling, but it is sore like the mines of sulphur in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs looked after 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 stretch time until the heat death of the universe.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.