This Household Personal Gaming of the Year List for The Past Year
Well, how was the past year in your home? Was it truly wonderful as one might claim on Facebook? Overflowing with top marks for the kids and elaborate dress-up birthday parties for the parents? Or perhaps it was a swamp of frustration with only rare fun flotsam? And was any of it genuine, or are we all AI-generated AI slop beings with celebrity dental work?
I've corralled the family for a reflection, ready or not, to reflect on the paramount thing in any given year: what titles we were obsessed with the most. Without further ado:
Game First Daughter Played the Most
Horizon Zero Dawn
"Can’t you pick just one?"
"You can't expect my personal ranking."
Meanwhile, on mobile, her go-to has been Cityscapes and "searching for adequate healthcare."
"In the game?"
"In reality."
Game Middle Son Played the Most
Overwatch
"I have no interest in games on my phone." He took umbrage that I suggested it. Fair enough.
Title Third Daughter Played the Most
Resident Evil Biohazard
She's attempting to get into theatre school, but when she stepped away from the mic, she was immersed in Resident Evil. She also went on in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where the Shark has a successful utopia with far better healthcare than her eldest sister has in the real world.
Release the Wife Played the Most
Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time
She began the year at sixty percent completion and finished the year at eighty-two percent. It’s a marathon not a sprint for her. Her mobile diversion: something called Woodle, where you have to unscrew pins.
Game I Found Amusing That My Kids for Still Playing
Minecraft
Every time I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I give him a hard time like a cross between a relentless heckler. When he complains, I reply that I am behaving this way to toughen him up so he can mature and play games for grownups. It's a classic Scottish father/son relationship.
Most Impressive Gaming Family Member of the Year
Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024
There was no contest for this one. She is a machine. More impressive than I was at my peak gaming days in my prime.
Game 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 ever-changing range of cards and game variations.
Title I Wish I Had Played Less
Marvel Snap
The worst thing about games that frequently update 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 got uninstalled.
Game I Wish I Had Played More
Doom: The Dark Ages
Stunning reinvention of a classic franchise. Captivating atmosphere from the start. I wish I could dispatch my issues so effectively in real life.
Title I Wish I Had Played More (Puzzle-Focused Edition)
Blue Prince
I'm unwilling to rush this beautiful, unique game and I just was short on the mental bandwidth to give it what it required earlier this year. With holiday guests over the festive period, I plan to dive into this in the early morning after evening drinks.
Game That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It
Balatro
I'm aware Balatro was the previous year's sleeper hit, 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 powers behind the different joker cards are so imaginative it has become a game I would happily play any time. Combine that with the cleverness of the card design, and this is an true high-water mark of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.
Game I Got the Most Backlash For Criticising
Outer Worlds 2
I experienced a bit of backlash when I wrote about how a glitch in another game soured the experience for me, but that other title is still a gargantuan gaming achievement in terms of production values – which I appreciated even more after experiencing Outer Worlds 2. So my appreciation goes out to the reader who took the time to send a message to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "missing the point". I present that in the exact way, because I appreciate the effort, and they are obviously an sharp 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 leave me without 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 this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I am less interested in in my mid-fifties. I was around back when most games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was acceptable when I was a kid, but so was many outdated things.
Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025
Close call between questionable alliances that sparked debate, and premium pricing. Both morally indefensible and concerning.
Games I Would Name My Children After, Were I I Was Ever Foolish 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 console gaming or endless scrolling, but it is sore like anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs protected 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 cows come home.
Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036
The Witcher 4.