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Alright, how was the past year in your home? Was it all as good as people post on social media? Full of top marks for the children and elaborate dress-up gatherings for the grownups? Maybe it felt like a swamp of frustration with only sporadic entertaining flotsam? And was any of it authentic, or is everyone now digitally altered virtual entities with perfect dental work?

I have gathered the family for a chat, ready or not, to debate the paramount thing in any given year: which releases we played the most. So here goes:

Title First 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 "searching for decent healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In reality."

Title Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He was offended that the question was posed. Point taken.

Game Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She's attempting to get into drama school, but when she took a break from vocals, she was tackling Resident Evil. She also elaborated in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where her character 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 began the year at sixty percent completion and ended it at eighty-two percent. It's a long haul 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

Any time I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I rib him like a cross between a classic comedy bit. When he objects, I reply that I am behaving this way to build character so he can be a man and play games for grownups. This defines our Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Skilled Gaming Family Member This Year

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

It wasn't even close for this one. She is a machine. More impressive than I was at Dancing Stage MegaMix in my prime.

Game I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

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

Title I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The catch about games that frequently update their range is you have a moment of clarity and understand it is all just an attempt to suck you into compulsion-based microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Excellent reinvention of a classic franchise. Immersive atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could deal with my demons so effectively in real life.

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

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this gorgeous, distinctive game and I just lacked the time or headspace to give it what it required earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the late night after evening drinks.

Game That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was last year's breakout game, but I was a late adopter. And it is exceptional. It just gets every single thing right. Crazy Poker is a brilliant concept, but the effects behind the different special cards are so inventive it has become a game I could play at any hour. Combine that with the cleverness of the card design, and this is an true peak of gaming. I wouldn't mind being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have an opportunity but play it.

Game I Got the Most Backlash For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a minor pile-on when I wrote about how a technical issue 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 valued even more after playing 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 share that as written, because I appreciate the effort, and she is obviously an sharp judge of character.

Title 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 "explore". 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 am less interested in in my current stage of life. I was around back when many games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was okay when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many outdated things.

Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025

Debate between corporate partnerships that raised eyebrows, and premium pricing. Both ethically dubious and unpleasant.

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 bellowed 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 button mashing or endless scrolling, but it burns like the mines of sulphur in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs looked after 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 stretch time until the end of days.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.