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Well, how did you experience the past year in your family? Could it be described as entirely positive as people post on social media? Packed with top marks for your offspring and riotous costume celebrations for the grownups? Maybe it felt like a swamp of frustration with only rare enjoyable flotsam? Is any of this authentic, or have we all become seven-fingered virtual entities with unrealistic dental work?

I've corralled the family for a reflection, willing or unwilling, to reflect on the paramount thing in twelve months: which video games we enjoyed the most. So here goes:

Game Oldest Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"This isn't my personal ranking."

Meanwhile, on mobile, she’s been playing Cityscapes and "trying to find decent healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In reality."

Game Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I don’t play games on my phone." He was offended that the question was posed. Fair enough.

Title Third Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She is trying to get into theatre school, but when she stepped away from the mic, she was tackling Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where her character has a thriving utopia with far better healthcare than her eldest sister has in the real world.

Title the Wife Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She started the year at 60% completion and finished the year at eighty-two percent. It's a long haul not a sprint for her. On her phone: something called Woodle, where you have to extract pins.

Title I Laughed at My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Every time 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 mature and play games for grownups. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Impressive Gaming Family Member of the Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

She was the clear winner for this one. She is incredible. Superior than I was at my peak gaming days in my prime.

Game I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

Nothing came close to the hours I spent on this exceptionally well-crafted deck building wizard’s poker, with its ever-changing range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The worst thing about games that endlessly add to their range is you have a moment of clarity and realise 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 was deleted.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Excellent reinvention of a legendary franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the start. I wish I could deal with my problems so effectively in real life.

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

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just lacked the focused attention to give it what it needed earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the early morning after appropriate hospitality.

Game That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was last year's surprise hit, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is exceptional. It just gets every single thing right. Its gameplay loop is a wonderful concept, but the effects behind the different joker cards are so inventive it has become a game I would happily play any time. Throw in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an absolute high-water mark of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have the perfect excuse but play it.

Title I Got the Most Backlash For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a wave of criticism when I critiqued how a specific bug in another game ruined the experience for me, but that other title is still a gargantuan gaming achievement in terms of production values – which I valued even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the reader who took the time to contact me 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 excellent judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a punishingly tough Metroidvania-esque thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "figure it out". How delightful. I acknowledge that it looks ace and is flawless if you are into this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I desire less in my mid-fifties. I was around back when many games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was fine when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many less comfortable things.

Biggest Gaming News of 2025

Close call between business deals that sparked debate, and premium pricing. Both difficult to justify and unpleasant.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all make interesting names bellowed from the doorstep at bedtime.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. Honestly. I don’t know if it’s because of button mashing or phone use, but it aches like hellfire in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs looked after back in the day.

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 heat death of the universe.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.