Our Diamond Family Alternative Game of the Year Roundup for This Year

Well, how did you experience this year in your home? Could it be described as entirely positive as you pretended on online? Overflowing with top marks for the kids and elaborate dress-up celebrations for the adults? Maybe it felt like a swamp of disappointment with only rare fun highlights? And was any of it actually real, or have we all become digitally altered AI slop beings with unrealistic dental work?

I've corralled my thoughts for a chat, ready or not, to reflect on the most important thing in a calendar year: what titles we played the most. Let's get started:

Title Eldest Daughter Played the Most

Horizon Zero Dawn

"Is it impossible to pick just one?"

"This isn't my games column."

Meanwhile, on mobile, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "attempting to locate adequate healthcare."

"Virtually?"

"In real life."

Title Middle Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I don’t play games on my phone." He seemed insulted that the question was posed. I respect that.

Release Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

She's attempting to get into drama school, but when she stepped away from the mic, she was tackling Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her achievements on The Sims, where the Shark has a successful utopia with infinitely better healthcare than her big sister has outside the game.

Title the Spouse Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She began the year at 60% completion and ended it at eighty-two percent. She's in it for the long run not a sprint for her. Her phone game: something called Woodle, where you have to extract pins.

Title I Laughed at My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Every time I see my 21-year-old son playing Minecraft, I rib him like a cross between a classic comedy bit. When he complains, I reply that I am engaging in this to toughen him up so he can grow up and play games for mature audiences. This defines our Scottish father/son relationship.

Most Notable Gaming Family Member 2025

Eldest Daughter on Just Dance 2024

There was no contest for this one. She is incredible. Even better than I was at classic rhythm games in my prime.

Title I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

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

Game I Wish I Had Played Less

Marvel Snap

The worst thing about games that constantly evolve their range is you have a moment of clarity and see it is all just an attempt to trap you with compulsion-based microtransactions. So enjoyment soured halfway through the year and it was deleted.

Game I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Excellent reinvention of a classic franchise. Engrossing atmosphere from the off. I wish I could dispatch my demons 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 didn’t have the time or headspace to give it what it needed earlier this year. With holiday guests over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the wee small hours after evening drinks.

Title That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I'm aware Balatro was 2024’s surprise hit, but I was late to it. And it is remarkable. It just gets each element right. The core concept is a fantastic concept, but the effects behind the different special cards are so creative it has become a game I could play any time. Combine that with the wittiness of the card design, and this is an definite peak of gaming. I dream of being stuck in a elevator for hours just so I have the perfect excuse but play it.

Title I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I experienced a minor pile-on when I wrote about how a glitch in another game soured the experience for me, but that other title is still a massive gaming achievement in terms of art, sound, acting – which I valued even more after playing Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the individual who took the time to contact me to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I present that as written, because I acknowledge the engagement, and he is obviously an sharp judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a bastard-hard exploration-focused thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "explore". What a joy. I acknowledge that it looks ace and is flawless 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'm over it. It was okay when I was a kid, but the same could be said for many less comfortable things.

Biggest Gaming News of 2025

Debate between questionable alliances that caused concern, and expensive game releases. Both morally indefensible 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 make interesting names shouted from the garden at bedtime.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. Honestly. I don’t know if it’s because of video games or endless scrolling, but it burns like the mines of sulphur 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 make 2026 last until the heat death of the universe.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.