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Alright, how did you experience this year in your home? Was it truly wonderful as one might claim on social media? Overflowing with A-grades for the children and elaborate themed fancy dress gatherings for the grownups? Or perhaps it was a swamp of frustration with only rare enjoyable flotsam? Is any of this genuine, or is everyone now seven-fingered synthetic personas with perfect teeth?

I've corralled the family for a reflection, willing or unwilling, to discuss the paramount thing in any given year: which releases we enjoyed the most. Let's get started:

Release First Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"It’s not my personal ranking."

In the mobile realm, she’s been playing Cityscapes and "attempting to locate reasonable healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In reality."

Game Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He took umbrage that I even asked. Point taken.

Game Third Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

Her goal is to get into theatre school, but when she stepped away from the mic, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where her character has a successful utopia with significantly better healthcare than her big sister has in the real world.

Title the Partner Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at sixty percent completion and ended it 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 unscrew pins.

Game I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Any time I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I set about him like a cross between a relentless heckler. When he protests, I reply that I am doing this to toughen him up so he can mature and play games for grownups. It’s a very Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Skilled Gaming Family Member 2025

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

She was the clear winner for this one. She is incredible. Superior than I was at Dancing Stage MegaMix in my prime.

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

No other game compared to the hours I spent on this insanely well-crafted strategy competitive game, with its constantly evolving range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The worst thing about games that frequently update their range is you have a moment of clarity and understand it is all just an attempt to trap you with 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

Glorious reinvention of a classic franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the start. I wish I could dispatch my demons so effectively in real life.

Title I Wish I Had Played More (Thoughtful Edition)

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just was short on the time or headspace to give it what it required earlier this year. With family visits over the festive period, I will be playing this in the wee small hours after evening drinks.

Title That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I acknowledge Balatro was the previous year's sleeper hit, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is remarkable. It just gets absolutely everything right. Crazy Poker is a fantastic concept, but the effects behind the different special cards are so imaginative it has become a game I literally would play any time. Add in the charm of the card design, and this is an true peak of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have the perfect excuse but play it.

Title I Got the Most Backlash For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a minor pile-on when I mentioned how a technical issue in another game soured 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 thank you to the individual who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I share that verbatim, because I appreciate the effort, and he is obviously an excellent judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Sure. Give me a bastard-hard exploration-focused thing and provide little guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". How delightful. I understand 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 most games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was fine when I was a kid, but so was many outdated things.

Biggest Gaming News of 2025

Toss-up between corporate partnerships that sparked debate, and premium pricing. Both difficult to justify and concerning.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all sound good names bellowed from the back door 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 phone use, but it is sore like anything 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 wait patiently until the end of days.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.