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Well, how did you experience this year in your household? Did it seem all as good as one might claim on social media? Full of top marks for your offspring and elaborate themed fancy dress gatherings for the grownups? Or perhaps it was a ocean of letdowns with only sporadic entertaining moments? Is any of this actually real, or have we all become seven-fingered virtual entities with celebrity smiles?

I've assembled everyone together, whether they wanted to or not, to debate the most important thing in a calendar year: which releases we played the most. So here goes:

Release Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Pikmin

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"It’s not my games column."

Meanwhile, on mobile, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "trying to find decent healthcare."

"In the game?"

"In real life."

Title Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I don’t play games on my phone." He seemed insulted that I suggested it. Point taken.

Game Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She's attempting to get into drama school, but when she wasn’t singing, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also elaborated in great detail about her accomplishments on The Sims, where the Shark has a thriving utopia with far better healthcare than her eldest sister has in real life.

Game the Partner Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at 60% completion and ended it at 82%. It’s a marathon not a sprint for her. Her mobile diversion: something called Woodle, where you have to remove pins.

Game I Laughed at My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I give him a hard time like a cross between a relentless heckler. When he protests, I reply that I am doing this to build character so he can be a man and play games for adults. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Skilled Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

There was no contest for this one. She is a machine. Superior 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 exceptionally well-crafted card game wizard’s poker, with its ever-changing range of cards and game variations.

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The catch about games that endlessly add to their range is you eventually realize and see it is all just an attempt to trap you with compulsion-based 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 iconic franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could dispatch my issues so effectively in real life.

Title I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I refuse to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just didn’t have the mental bandwidth to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I will be playing this in the early morning after evening drinks.

Game That Saved My Soul When I Needed It

Balatro

I'm aware Balatro was the previous year's breakout game, but I was slow on the uptake. And it is exceptional. It just gets absolutely everything right. Its gameplay loop is a fantastic concept, but the effects behind the different wild cards are so inventive it has become a game I literally would play any time. Add in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an true pinnacle of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Game I Got the Most Flak For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I endured a wave of criticism when I wrote about how a glitch in another game damaged the experience for me, but that other title is still a colossal gaming achievement in terms of art, sound, acting – which I recognized even more after experiencing Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the reader who took the time to send a message to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I present that as written, because I appreciate the effort, and she is obviously an astute judge of character.

Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Sure. Give me a brutally difficult 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 the genre, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I desire less in my current stage of life. I was around back when all 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 Controversy of 2025

Close call between corporate partnerships that raised eyebrows, and expensive game releases. Both ethically dubious and concerning.

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

Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all be unique names called from the back door 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 video games or doomscrolling, but it aches like anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs insured back in the 90s.

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 end of days.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.