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Well, how did you experience the past year in your family? Was it all as good as one might claim on social media? Packed with academic success for your offspring and elaborate themed fancy dress celebrations for the grownups? Or was it a ocean of disappointment with only sporadic fun highlights? And was any of it genuine, or have we all become digitally altered AI slop beings with celebrity dental work?

I've assembled everyone for a reflection, willing or unwilling, to discuss the crucial thing in a calendar year: what titles we were obsessed with the most. So here goes:

Title Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"This isn't my personal ranking."

On her phone, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "searching for adequate healthcare."

"Digitally?"

"In real life."

Title Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He seemed insulted that the question was posed. 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 playing Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where her avatar has a successful utopia with far better healthcare than her eldest sister has in the real world.

Game the Partner Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at 60% completion and ended it at eighty-two percent. It's a long haul not a sprint for her. Her mobile diversion: something called Woodle, where you have to unscrew pins.

Release I Teased My Kids About My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I rib him like a cross between a persistent critic. When he objects, I reply that I am behaving this way to toughen him up so he can grow up and play games for grownups. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Skilled Gaming Family Member of the Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

There was no contest for this one. She is incredible. Superior than I was at Dancing Stage MegaMix in my prime.

Game I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

No other game compared to the hours I spent on this exceptionally well-crafted strategy wizard’s poker, with its ever-changing range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The catch about games that endlessly add to their range is you wake up one day and realise it is all just an attempt to suck you into fomo-fuelled microtransactions. So enjoyment soured halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Stunning reinvention of a legendary franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the off. I wish I could eviscerate my issues so effectively in real life.

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

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this stunning, original game and I just was short on the focused attention to give it what it needed earlier this year. With family visits over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the late night after family time.

Title That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was 2024’s sleeper hit, but I was late to it. And it is remarkable. It just gets absolutely everything right. The core concept is a wonderful concept, but the powers behind the different special cards are so imaginative it has become a game I would happily play constantly. Combine that with the charm of the card design, and this is an absolute peak of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have an opportunity but play it.

Title I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a bit of backlash when I critiqued how a technical issue in another game damaged the experience for me, but that other title is still a gargantuan gaming achievement in terms of production values – which I recognized even more after experiencing Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the reader who took the time to contact me to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I mention that in the exact way, because I respect the passion, and he is obviously an excellent judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Sure. Give me a bastard-hard Metroidvania-esque thing and don’t tell me guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "figure it out". How delightful. I get that it looks ace and is perfection if you are into challenging games, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I want less of in my current stage of life. 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 sparked debate, and expensive game releases. Both ethically dubious and unpleasant.

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 shouted 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 aches like the mines of sulphur 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 wait patiently until the cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.