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Well, how did you experience 2025 in your family? Was it all as good as one might claim on Facebook? Packed with top marks for the kids and elaborate themed fancy dress birthday parties for the parents? Or was it a sea of letdowns with only occasional fun flotsam? Is any of this authentic, or have we all become seven-fingered AI slop beings with celebrity dental work?

I've assembled my thoughts together, ready or not, to reflect on the most important thing in any given year: which releases we were obsessed with the most. Without further ado:

Release Oldest Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"You can't expect my definitive list."

On her phone, her go-to has been Cityscapes and "attempting to locate reasonable healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In the actual world."

Title Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He was offended that I suggested it. I respect that.

Release Third Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She is trying to get into acting, but when she wasn’t singing, she was playing Resident Evil. She also went on in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where the Shark has a thriving utopia with significantly better healthcare than her big sister has in the real world.

Release the Wife Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at sixty percent completion and finished the year at 82%. It's a long haul not a sprint for her. Her phone game: something called Woodle, where you have to extract pins.

Title I Teased My Kids About My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Every 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 behaving this way to toughen him up so he can be a man and play games for grownups. This defines our Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Notable Gaming Family Member of the Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

She was the clear winner for this one. She is unstoppable. Even better than I was at classic rhythm games in my prime.

Game I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

Nothing came close to the hours I spent on this remarkably well-crafted card game competitive game, with its ever-changing range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The downside about games that constantly evolve their range is you have a moment of clarity 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 was deleted.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

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

Game I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just was short on the mental bandwidth to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With holiday guests over the festive period, I plan to dive into this in the late night after evening drinks.

Game That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I'm aware Balatro was last year's surprise hit, but I was late to it. And it is incredible. It just gets every single thing right. Its gameplay loop is a wonderful concept, but the powers behind the different joker cards are so imaginative 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 an opportunity but play it.

Game I Got the Most Flak For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a bit of backlash when I critiqued how a glitch 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 slogging through 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 "missing the point". I present that in the exact way, because I respect the passion, and she is obviously an excellent judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Sure. Give me a punishingly tough non-linear thing and provide little guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". Great fun. I understand that it is beautiful and is perfection if you are into this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I am less interested in in my current stage of life. I was around back when most games were like this, and I’ve had enough. It was okay when I was a kid, but so was many outdated things.

Biggest Gaming News of 2025

Debate between questionable alliances that caused concern, and premium pricing. Both morally indefensible and unpleasant.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all sound good names shouted from the doorstep at dinner time.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. No joke. I don’t know if it’s because of console gaming or endless scrolling, 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 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 make 2026 last until the heat death of the universe.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.