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So, how was this year in your family? Could it be described as truly wonderful as one might claim on Facebook? Packed with top marks for the kids and wild dress-up gatherings for the grownups? Or perhaps it was a ocean of disappointment with only occasional fun moments? And was any of it authentic, or have we all become digitally altered virtual entities with celebrity teeth?

I've corralled the family for a reflection, whether they wanted to or not, to reflect on the paramount thing in any given year: which video games we were obsessed with the most. Without further ado:

Release First Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"It’s not my games column."

On her phone, she’s been playing Cityscapes and "trying to find adequate healthcare."

"Digitally?"

"In reality."

Game Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I have no interest in games on my phone." He took umbrage that I even asked. Fair enough.

Game Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She's attempting to get into theatre school, but when she took a break from vocals, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also went on in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where the Shark has a blooming utopia with far better healthcare than her big sister has outside the game.

Release the Spouse Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at sixty percent completion and ended it at 82%. She's in it for the long run not a sprint for her. On her phone: something called Woodle, where you have to unscrew pins.

Release I Laughed at My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I give him a hard time like a cross between a persistent critic. When he protests, I reply that I am doing this to toughen him up so he can be a man and play games for grownups. 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

It was in a league of its own to the hours I spent on this insanely well-crafted strategy wizard’s poker, with its regularly updated range of cards and game variations.

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The downside about games that frequently update their range is you wake up one day and see it is all just an attempt to trap you with fear-of-missing-out driven microtransactions. So affection became resentment halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

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

Title I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this beautiful, unique 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 plan to dive into this in the wee small hours after appropriate hospitality.

Game That Was a Lifesaver When I Needed It

Balatro

I'm aware Balatro was 2024’s breakout game, but I was late to it. And it is incredible. It just gets each element right. Crazy Poker is a brilliant concept, but the effects behind the different special cards are so imaginative it has become a game I could play constantly. Add in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an absolute pinnacle of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have an opportunity but play it.

Title I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a minor pile-on when I wrote about how a glitch in another game ruined the experience for me, but that other title is still a massive gaming achievement in terms of art, sound, acting – which I appreciated even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the commenter who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "missing the point". I mention that in the exact way, because I acknowledge the engagement, and they are obviously an sharp judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a brutally difficult non-linear thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". How delightful. I acknowledge that it has great art and is flawless if you are into the genre, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I want less of in my mid-fifties. I was around back when most games were like this, and my patience is gone. 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 premium pricing. Both morally indefensible and repugnant.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all make interesting 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 button mashing or endless scrolling, but it aches like the mines of sulphur in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs looked after 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.