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Well, how did you experience this year in your household? Could it be described as truly wonderful as one might claim on online? Overflowing with A-grades for the kids and wild dress-up birthday parties for the parents? Or was it a ocean of letdowns with only rare entertaining highlights? Is any of this actually real, or is everyone now AI-generated AI slop beings with perfect dental work?

I've assembled everyone for a chat, willing or unwilling, to reflect on the most important thing in a calendar year: what titles we enjoyed the most. Let's get started:

Title Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Why can't you pick just one?"

"It’s not my games column."

Meanwhile, on mobile, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "attempting to locate reasonable healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In real life."

Title Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

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

Game Third Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She is trying to get into acting, but when she took a break from vocals, she was playing Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where her avatar 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. She's in it for the long run not a sprint for her. Her phone game: something called Woodle, where you have to remove pins.

Release I Found Amusing That 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 protests, I reply that I am doing this to build character so he can mature and play games for grownups. This defines our Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Impressive Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

There was no contest for this one. She is unstoppable. 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 insanely well-crafted deck building competitive game, with its regularly updated range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The downside about games that endlessly add to their range is you eventually realize and see it is all just an attempt to lure you into compulsion-based microtransactions. So affection became resentment halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Stunning reinvention of a legendary franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could dispatch my demons so effectively in real life.

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

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this stunning, original game and I just was short on the focused attention to give it what it required earlier this year. With holiday guests over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the early morning after evening drinks.

Game That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I acknowledge Balatro was last year's surprise hit, but I was a late adopter. And it is incredible. It just gets each element right. The core concept is a fantastic concept, but the abilities behind the different special cards are so inventive it has become a game I would happily play constantly. Add in the cleverness of the card design, and this is an definite peak of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Title I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a bit of backlash when I critiqued how a specific bug in another game ruined the experience for me, but that other title is still a colossal gaming achievement in terms of art, sound, acting – which I appreciated even more after slogging through 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 "poorly reasoned". I present that in the exact way, because I acknowledge the engagement, and they are obviously an astute judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Alright. Give me a bastard-hard Metroidvania-esque thing and provide little guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "explore". How delightful. I get that it is beautiful and is perfection if you are into challenging games, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I am less interested in in my adulthood. 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 Scandal of 2025

Toss-up between business deals that sparked debate, and premium pricing. Both ethically dubious and repugnant.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all be unique names bellowed from the doorstep at tea time.

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 anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs protected 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 cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.