🔗 Share this article This Dominik Diamond Unofficial Video Game of the Year List for This Year So, how was the past year in your home? Was it all as good as you pretended on online? Packed with A-grades for the kids and elaborate dress-up birthday parties for the parents? Or perhaps it was a ocean of letdowns with only occasional enjoyable flotsam? And was any of it actually real, or have we all become seven-fingered synthetic personas with perfect dental work? I've assembled the family for a chat, willing or unwilling, to discuss the crucial thing in twelve months: what titles we were obsessed with the most. Without further ado: Title Eldest Daughter Played the Most Just Dance 2024 "Why can't you pick just one?" "You can't expect my definitive list." In the mobile realm, she’s been playing Cityscapes and "trying to find adequate healthcare." "In the game?" "In the actual world." Release Middle Son Played the Most Overwatch "I refuse to play games on my phone." He seemed insulted that the question was posed. Point taken. Title Third 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 immersed in Resident Evil. She also spoke at length in great detail about her successes on The Sims, where her character has a thriving utopia with significantly better healthcare than her older sibling has in real life. Release the Partner Played the Most Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time She began the year at 60% completion and finished the year at 82%. It’s a marathon not a sprint for her. Her mobile diversion: something called Woodle, where you have to remove pins. Release I Found Amusing That 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 relentless heckler. When he objects, I reply that I am engaging in this to toughen him up so he can be a man 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 She was the clear winner for this one. She is incredible. Even better than I was at Dancing Stage MegaMix in my prime. Game I Played the Most Marvel Snap Nothing came close to the hours I spent on this remarkably well-crafted card game wizard’s poker, with its constantly evolving range of cards and game variations. Game I Wish I Had Played Less Marvel Snap The downside about games that endlessly add to their range is you wake up one day and understand it is all just an attempt to suck you into fear-of-missing-out driven microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it was deleted. Game I Wish I Had Played More Doom: The Dark Ages Glorious reinvention of a classic franchise. Captivating atmosphere from the start. I wish I could dispatch my problems 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 lacked the focused attention to give it what it required earlier this year. With relatives staying over the festive period, I aim to experience this in the wee small hours after family time. Game That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It Balatro I acknowledge Balatro was 2024’s surprise hit, but I was late to it. And it is remarkable. It just gets every single thing right. Crazy Poker is a wonderful concept, but the effects behind the different special cards are so creative it has become a game I literally would play at any hour. Add in the wittiness of the card design, and this is an true peak of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a broken-down lift for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it. Game I Got the Most Backlash For Criticising Outer Worlds 2 I endured a minor pile-on when I critiqued how a glitch 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 experiencing Outer Worlds 2. So thank you to the commenter who took the time to write in to say that my Outer Worlds 2 review was "poorly reasoned". I present that verbatim, 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 Fine. Give me a punishingly tough exploration-focused thing and don’t tell me guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "explore". Great fun. I get that it has great art and is perfection if you are into this kind of thing, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I want less of in my mid-fifties. I was around back when all games were like this, and my patience is gone. It was fine when I was a kid, but so was many outdated things. Biggest Gaming News of 2025 Toss-up between questionable alliances that caused concern, and premium pricing. Both ethically dubious and concerning. Games I Would Name My Children After, If I Was Ever Stupid Enough to Have More Clair Obscur, Despelote and Bananza would all be unique names called from the back door at bedtime. Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming Right Thumb Joint. Honestly. I don’t know if it’s because of button mashing or endless scrolling, but it burns like anything in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs protected 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 cows come home. Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036 The Witcher 4.