Our Diamond Family Unofficial Game of the Year List for This Year

Alright, what did you think of 2025 in your family? Did it seem entirely positive as you pretended on online? Overflowing with A-grades for the children and riotous themed fancy dress celebrations for the grownups? Maybe it felt like a swamp of disappointment with only occasional entertaining highlights? And was any of it authentic, or have we all become AI-generated AI slop beings with unrealistic smiles?

I've assembled the family for a reflection, ready or not, to discuss the most important thing in a calendar year: which releases we were obsessed with the most. Let's get started:

Game First Daughter Played the Most

Just Dance 2024

"Can’t you pick just one?"

"You can't expect my definitive list."

In the mobile realm, she's invested time in Cityscapes and "trying to find reasonable healthcare."

"Digitally?"

"In real life."

Release Second Son Played the Most

Overwatch

"I refuse to play games on my phone." He was offended that I even asked. Fair enough.

Game Youngest Daughter Played the Most

Resident Evil Biohazard

Her goal is to get into theatre 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 her avatar has a successful utopia with significantly better healthcare than her big sister has in real life.

Release the Spouse Played the Most

Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time

She started the year at sixty percent completion and ended it at 82%. It's a long haul not a sprint for her. Her mobile diversion: something called Woodle, where you have to unscrew pins.

Game I Teased My Kids About My Kids for Still Playing

Minecraft

Whenever I see my adult son playing Minecraft, I set about him 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 grow up and play games for mature audiences. 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 incredible. More impressive than I was at classic rhythm games in my prime.

Game I Played the Most

Marvel Snap

Nothing came close to the hours I spent on this remarkably well-crafted deck building digital pastime, with its constantly evolving range of cards and game variations.

Title 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 trap you with fomo-fuelled microtransactions. So love turned to hate halfway through the year and it got uninstalled.

Title I Wish I Had Played More

Doom: The Dark Ages

Excellent reinvention of a iconic franchise. Captivating atmosphere from the beginning. I wish I could eviscerate my problems so effectively in real life.

Title I Wish I Had Played More (Cerebral Edition)

Blue Prince

I decline to rush this stunning, original game and I just didn’t have the focused attention 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 family time.

Game That Kept Me Sane When I Needed It

Balatro

I know Balatro was 2024’s sleeper hit, but I was late to it. And it is remarkable. It just gets absolutely everything right. Crazy Poker is a brilliant concept, but the powers behind the different wild cards are so imaginative it has become a game I would happily play at any hour. Combine that with the cleverness of the card design, and this is an absolute peak of gaming. I fantasize about being stuck in a small space for hours just so I have nothing to do but play it.

Title I Got the Most Criticism For Criticising

Outer Worlds 2

I received a bit of backlash when I wrote about how a specific bug in another game damaged the experience for me, but that other title is still a gargantuan gaming achievement in terms of overall polish – which I recognized 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 "bitter, confused resentment". I share that verbatim, because I appreciate the effort, and he is obviously an excellent judge of character.

Game Everybody Loved That I Just Didn’t Get

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Fine. Give me a bastard-hard Metroidvania-esque thing and leave me without guidance on what I am supposed to be doing, except "look around". What a joy. I acknowledge that it looks ace and is ideal if you are into challenging games, but I cannot think of a gaming experience I desire less in my adulthood. 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 questionable things.

Biggest Gaming Scandal of 2025

Close call between questionable alliances that caused concern, and expensive game releases. 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 make interesting names shouted from the garden at bedtime.

Part of My Body That Aches Most From Gaming

Right Thumb Joint. No joke. I don’t know if it’s because of console gaming or endless scrolling, but it aches like hellfire in the mornings now. I knew I should have got my thumbs protected 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 wait patiently until the cows come home.

Game I Am Looking Forward to the Most in 2036

The Witcher 4.