🔗 Share this article

So, how was 2025 in your home? Did it seem entirely positive as you pretended on online? Packed with top marks for the kids and wild costume gatherings for the adults? Or perhaps it was a sea of disappointment with only rare entertaining moments? And was any of it authentic, or are we all seven-fingered synthetic personas with unrealistic teeth?

I've corralled the family for a chat, whether they wanted to or not, to reflect on the most important thing in a calendar year: which releases we were obsessed with the most. Let's get started:

Title First Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"You can't expect my games column."

In the mobile realm, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "trying to find reasonable healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In real life."

Game Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I don’t play games on my phone." He took umbrage that I even asked. I respect that.

Game Third 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 went on in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where the Shark has a successful utopia with significantly better healthcare than her older sibling 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. It’s a marathon 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

Whenever I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I rib him like a cross between a persistent critic. When he complains, I reply that I am behaving this way to toughen him up so he can grow up and play games for adults. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Notable Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

She was the clear winner 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 deck building 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 have a moment of clarity and realise it is all just an attempt to suck you into compulsion-based microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Glorious reinvention of a legendary franchise. Captivating atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could eviscerate my problems so effectively in real life.

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

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just lacked the time or headspace to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With family visits over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the late night after appropriate hospitality.

Title That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I acknowledge Balatro was last year's breakout game, but I was a late adopter. 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 inventive it has become a game I literally would play at any hour. Throw in the charm of the card design, and this is an definite 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 Flak For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I endured a wave of criticism when I wrote about 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 production values – which I valued even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the commenter who took the time to send a message to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I present that in the exact way, because I appreciate the effort, and they are obviously an sharp judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Alright. Give me a brutally difficult Metroidvania-esque thing and don’t tell me guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". How delightful. I understand that it is beautiful and is perfection if you are into challenging games, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I desire less in my current stage of life. I was around back when many games were like this, and I’ve had enough. It was acceptable when I was a kid, but so was many less comfortable things.

Biggest Gaming News of 2025

Debate between business deals that caused concern, and expensive game releases. Both difficult to justify and concerning.

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

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

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 the mines of sulphur in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs insured 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 cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.