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Well, how was the past year in your family? Did it seem entirely positive as you pretended on social media? Packed with top marks for the kids and elaborate themed fancy dress celebrations for the parents? Maybe it felt like a swamp of disappointment with only occasional enjoyable moments? Could any part be actually real, or have we all become digitally altered synthetic personas with celebrity teeth?

I've assembled everyone for a chat, ready or not, to discuss the most important thing in a calendar year: what titles we played the most. So here goes:

Game Oldest Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Why can't you pick just one?"

"It’s not my definitive list."

Meanwhile, on mobile, her go-to has been Cityscapes and "attempting to locate decent healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In real life."

Release Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I have no interest in games on my phone." He was offended that I even asked. Point taken.

Game Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She is trying to get into acting, but when she wasn’t singing, she was tackling Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where the Shark has a successful utopia with far better healthcare than her older sibling has in real life.

Title the Wife Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at sixty percent completion and ended it at 82%. It’s a marathon not a sprint for her. On her phone: something called Woodle, where you have to extract pins.

Release I Teased My Kids About My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Any time I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I give him a hard time like a cross between a persistent critic. When he objects, I reply that I am doing this to toughen him up so he can grow up and play games for grownups. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Impressive Gaming Family Member 2025

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

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

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

No other game compared to the hours I spent on this insanely well-crafted deck building digital pastime, with its regularly updated range of cards and game variations.

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The worst thing about games that endlessly add to their range is you eventually realize and understand it is all just an attempt to lure you into fear-of-missing-out driven microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it went into the bin.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Glorious reinvention of a legendary franchise. Immersive atmosphere from the start. I wish I could eviscerate my issues so effectively in real life.

Title I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I'm unwilling to rush this stunning, original game and I just didn’t have the mental bandwidth to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With holiday guests over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the late night after appropriate hospitality.

Game That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I'm aware Balatro was 2024’s sleeper hit, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is incredible. It just gets every single thing right. The core concept is a wonderful concept, but the powers behind the different special cards are so creative it has become a game I could play at any hour. Add in the charm of the card design, and this is an definite peak of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Title I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a wave of criticism when I wrote about how a glitch in another game ruined the experience for me, but that other title is still a gargantuan gaming achievement in terms of overall polish – which I valued even more after slogging through Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the reader who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "bitter, confused resentment". I share that verbatim, because I respect the passion, and he is obviously an excellent judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a punishingly tough non-linear thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "explore". What a joy. I acknowledge that it has great art and is flawless 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 the same could be said for many less comfortable things.

Biggest Gaming News of 2025

Toss-up between business deals that sparked debate, and premium pricing. Both difficult to justify and concerning.

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 bellowed from the doorstep at tea time.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. Seriously. I don’t know if it’s because of video games or endless scrolling, but it is sore like hellfire 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 make 2026 last until the cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.