Our Household Alternative Gaming of the Year List for 2025
Alright, what did you think of the past year in your family? Could it be described as entirely positive as people post on Facebook? Overflowing with top marks for the children and riotous themed fancy dress birthday parties for the adults? Or was it a ocean of letdowns with only sporadic fun highlights? And was any of it actually real, or are we all digitally altered AI slop beings with unrealistic teeth?
I've corralled my thoughts together, willing or unwilling, to reflect on the paramount thing in a calendar year: which video games we played the most. So here goes:
Title Oldest Daughter Played the Most
Pikmin
"Is it impossible to pick just one?"
"This isn't my games column."
On her phone, her go-to has been Cityscapes and "attempting to locate adequate healthcare."
"In the game?"
"In the actual world."
Title Second Son Played the Most
Overwatch
"I refuse to play games on my phone." He was offended that I even asked. I respect that.
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 playing Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where the Shark has a thriving utopia with far better healthcare than her older sibling has in the real world.
Game 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 marathon not a sprint for her. On her phone: something called Woodle, where you have to extract pins.
Title 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 persistent critic. When he complains, I reply that I am doing this to build character so he can mature and play games for grownups. This defines our Scottish father/son relationship.
Most Skilled Gaming Family Member of the Year
Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024
It wasn't even close for this one. She is incredible. Superior 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 deck building competitive game, with its constantly evolving range of cards and game variations.
Game I Wish I Had Played Less
Marvel Snap
The catch about games that constantly evolve their range is you eventually realize and realise it is all just an attempt to suck you into compulsion-based microtransactions. So affection became resentment halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.
Game I Wish I Had Played More
Doom: The Dark Ages
Excellent reinvention of a iconic 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 refuse to rush this beautiful, unique game and I just was short on the time or headspace to give it what it deserved earlier this year. With family visits over the festive period, I will be playing this in the late night after appropriate hospitality.
Game That Saved My Soul When I Needed It
Balatro
I acknowledge Balatro was last year's breakout game, but I was a late adopter. And it is incredible. It just gets each element right. Its gameplay loop is a fantastic concept, but the abilities behind the different wild cards are so creative it has become a game I literally would play any time. Throw in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an absolute pinnacle of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have an opportunity but play it.
Game I Got the Most Flak For Criticising
Outer Worlds 2
I endured a bit of backlash when I mentioned how a specific bug 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 slogging through Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the individual who took the time to send a message to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "missing the point". I share that verbatim, because I acknowledge the engagement, and he is obviously an sharp judge of character.
Title Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get
Hollow Knight: Silksong
Fine. Give me a brutally difficult exploration-focused thing and don’t tell me guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". 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 want less of in my adulthood. I was around back when most games were like this, and I'm over it. It was okay when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many questionable things.
Biggest Gaming Controversy of 2025
Debate between business deals that raised eyebrows, and high launch costs. Both morally indefensible 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 be unique names called from the doorstep at bedtime.
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 doomscrolling, but it burns like anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs insured 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 make 2026 last until the heat death of the universe.
Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036
The Witcher 4.
