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Well, what did you think of the past year in your family? Was it all as good as people post on Facebook? Packed with academic success for the kids and riotous dress-up gatherings for the parents? Maybe it felt like a sea of disappointment with only sporadic fun highlights? Could any part be actually real, or have we all become AI-generated virtual entities with perfect teeth?

I've corralled my thoughts for a chat, ready or not, to discuss the most important thing in a calendar year: which releases we enjoyed the most. So here goes:

Game Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"This isn't my personal ranking."

On her phone, her go-to has been Cityscapes and "trying to find adequate healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In real life."

Release Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I don’t play games on my phone." He took umbrage that I suggested it. Fair enough.

Title 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 blooming utopia with infinitely better healthcare than her older sibling has in the real world.

Game the Partner Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at 60% 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.

Game I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I set about him like a cross between a persistent critic. When he complains, I reply that I am engaging in this to build character so he can grow up and play games for adults. It's a classic 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 incredible. More impressive 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 exceptionally well-crafted card game competitive game, with its constantly evolving 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 compulsion-based microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it was deleted.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Excellent reinvention of a legendary franchise. Immersive atmosphere from the off. I wish I could eviscerate my problems so effectively in real life.

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

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this beautiful, unique game and I just lacked the focused attention 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 evening drinks.

Game That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was the previous year's breakout game, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is remarkable. It just gets absolutely everything right. Crazy Poker is a fantastic concept, but the effects behind the different joker cards are so imaginative it has become a game I could play any time. Add in the cleverness of the card design, and this is an true high-water mark of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have the perfect excuse but play it.

Game I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a minor pile-on when I wrote about how a technical issue in another game damaged the experience for me, but that other title is still a colossal gaming achievement in terms of production values – which I appreciated even more after experiencing Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the commenter who took the time to contact me to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I mention that as written, because I respect the passion, and she is obviously an sharp judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Sure. Give me a brutally difficult Metroidvania-esque thing and don’t tell me guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "figure it out". What a joy. I understand that it is beautiful and is flawless if you are into this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I desire less in my adulthood. I was around back when most games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was okay when I was a kid, but so was many less comfortable things.

Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025

Close call between questionable alliances that caused concern, and high launch costs. Both morally indefensible and unpleasant.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all be unique names bellowed from the garden at bedtime.

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 endless scrolling, but it aches like the mines of sulphur 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 stretch time until the cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.