RiverGenie

My routine is just to blow air through the vents every couple of months or so with a small handheld blower i got off amazon. Never really had much dust come out and both my Series X & PS5 remain as quiet as the first boot up.

All I can say is I enjoyed both Avowed and The Outer Worlds 2. So much so that I am more excited for the dlc for OW2 & the NG+ patch for Avowed than I am for many of the new releases announced for 2026.

I am sad that we won't see anything Outer Worlds beyond the dlc though.

I have tried several of the Yakuza games and I have to be honest I just don't get the appeal.

FF2 might be something I will play for nostalgia but its not something I am going to be in any rush to start either.

I already have the gold edition so I have all the dlc and the only thing I am missing are a few cosmetics that I don't care about.

I am not really sure why they released this definitive edition to be honest and at £45. You can still get the gold edition for £9 (from multiple sites according to google.)

I tried RE Village but got bored running around a big mansion and talking to npcs that i had no interest in. Uninstalled the game no regrets.

While i have played and enjoyed Atomfall a lot i did so at its release by purchasing it. So it being on gamepass offers me no value.

Only other game I have a small interest in is Roadcraft but I just havent got around to playing it yet.

Other than the above mentioned I had no interest in any of the other games in that list. Overall I would rate the month as a D for me personally.

Another one of those games that the youtube influencer idiots dog piled for views but I enjoyed playing a lot. Looking forward to playing it again when the NG+ patch releases.

As there is nothing in the near future I am excited for with new releases its a good time to do another solo run of Baldurs Gate 3. I will probably spend several hours just trying to figure out what class to play.

I have also been picking away at The Division the original one. Its very grindy but as mentioned its a good time for me to dive into that sort of game.

Nothing for me as I already own Space Marine 2.

The campaign is ok but a bit repetitive by the end. It's a very generic story and it's really easy to set how it will play out from a very early point.

Ultimately I would say this is an ok gamepass game. I was still disappointed with it and it was not worth the price I paid, even with it being discounted in a sale

Some things are better when they just stay as memories of the past.

Niche genre = muted niche response

I went the premium route with FH5 and was disappointed with the dlc. It was about then I fell off the open world racing thing altogether so I won't be doing it again in FH6.

I will take a look via gamepass but it needs to be something better than the same tired gameplay in new clothes.

At this point I don't anticipate buying the game.

Roadcraft is in my play later list but I just haven't got around to putting any significant time into it yet.

Death Stranding is one of the most boring games I have ever forced myself to play. Lots of style but for me that is all it had with little in the way of substance that I found enjoyable.

No interest in Ninja Gaiden and its highly unlikely I will even download Ragebound.

@FraserG thank you and appreciate the response.

@Fiendish-Beaver As far as I can tell only A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead hasn't been on gamepass. Everything else is on gamepass or has been on gamepas in the past

@Fiendish-Beaver I have said & posted that many times while I have been active of this site. Even pointed out that Push Square have that option in their version of this poll.

Even if I am going to play one of the games I almost never vote in the poll due the the bias in the way it's presented on this site.

On Series X i am still mostly playing Path of Exile 2 but I think I am about done after my current character is leveled up & into maps.

On PS5 I am playing some GT7. A friend encouraged me to buy the power pack dlc and i have to say I am quite enjoying it which surprised me a lot. I am a online multiplayer racer and almost never race ai in any game.

However the new iteration of the Sophy ai that comes with this pack is certainly a step above any ai I have raced before. It almost feels like racing real people with the way it will attack / defends the racing line and its position.

So while I still prefer online races the power pack dlc is better than I anticipated.

Did not like the reimagined FF7 at all and would still rather play the og version. Everything in the reimagined FF7 is all very shiny & smooth but it also lost its "soul" with the glow up and to me that isn't a trade worth making

@Sveakungen vibrant visuals and things like prisma & actions n stuff do a lot to bring Minecraft to current gen standards in terms of visual presentation.

********
Hytale looks promising but they have a lot of work ahead of
them but it is one to keep an eye for certain.

Will it topple Minecraft? Probably not but i hope it makes Mojang take notice so they start to look at Minecraft more critically with regard to future updates.

I saw this over the New Year and knew just like Fallout London it would never work on series consoles though I understand some cosmetic parts are available (again like Fallout London).

I guess next gen xbox will make this a non issue going forward but for now tough luck i guess.

I have had fun with the Path of Exile 2 early access but I would be surprised if they manage to hit a free to play launch in 2026.

It does get better with each update but they have a mountain of issues to resolve and they still have a lot of content still to add.

Unless they announce a release date in the next month or so I am not excited for any of them.

Currently playing Fallout New Vegas and I would be interested in a remake on a modern engine but only really if Obsidian were the driving force behind it (Give them Fallout 3 as well.) Sadly Obsidian are recently on record to say that they are not really interested in that project so its unlikely that will happen.

I just hope the Obsidian are available for consultation at the very least with who ever has landed that gig and they are able to stop Bethesda screwing it up.

Achievements are just things that happen while I play games my way at my own pace.

In all my years of gaming I don't think I have ever hit 100% achievements in any game. They are just not important to me in any way what so ever. Playing a game just for the achievement points is pretty much the antithesis of my own gaming preferences.

Not a resolution as such but I really want to make a big effort to get back into serious sim racing games like iRacing or the fairly new Le Mans Ultimate while I am still able to.

This will require me to get a decent gaming pc and that may take more time than I would like to put together given current shortages etc. Still I hope to have a permanent sim racing rig set up at some point this year.

Xbox wise (or consoles generally) I don't have a much excitement for any new games already announced beyond a few dlc i know are coming for games I own. Lets hope we see a lot of surprises or shadow drops as we move further into 2026.

I have been enjoying season 2 of Fallout on Amazon so there is only one game I can be realistically playing, yup Barbie Project Friendship!😉

Fallout: New Vegas is all I have been playing recently and I have been enjoying it a lot. So many moments of fun for such an old school game and I still have all the dlc to dive into.

I do want to have a run at Fallout 4 too as there is a mod I want to try that adds the play as a ghoul system from Fallout 76. It looks interesting enough to warrant a fresh start once I am done with New Vegas.

I recognise Blue Prince is a good game generally but its just not something I personally enjoyed (same with Expedition 33.)

It's likely that in 2026 I will be moving back to being a pc gamer.

My main reason for doing so is my love of competitive sim racing. While console options are getting better it's nothing compared to the choice I would have with a gaming pc.

Additionally with Play Anywhere a good chunk of my Xbox library will remain available to me. I barely use my PS5 so I won't miss anything on that side.

If I do go the pc route I can't see what consoles could offer that would entice me to want one at that point.

So to answer the question posed I would be willing to spend zero money as any console is likely going to be irrelevant to me.

Nothing for me till March with Crimson Desert and even that is a maybe. Still not convinced GTA 6 is locked in so its hard for me to be excited about it and anything with TBD I just ignore for now.

Looking at the list right now I hope it will fill out with a few surprises as there isn't anything I am super excited for. Put it this way I am more excited for the dlc for Stalker 2 & The Outer Worlds 2 than anything else at the moment.

Happy New Year folks. 🥂🎉

We had a lot of gaming options in 2025 and while not all fit my personal preferences I do hope 2026 has the same diversity and options available throughout the year.

Ah 💩, here we go again.

For me the best dev team that Microsoft have on the books.

In 2026 they have dlc for The Outer Worlds 2 to release, they are still working on Grounded 2 early access and have said they have a big patch for Avowed with NG+ among other things.

It will be interesting to see if they have anything else in the works alongside all that. Either way let them cook and they will deliver.

Get a calendar, close your eyes and pick something at random.

Its going to clash with something no matter what and that's just within gaming. If you look at other things too such as major sporting events etc etc that may erode your audience impact ....

Yeah good luck with that.

Stalker 2 is my most played game of 2025 in terms of time played. Enjoyed it right from day one and i can't wait to see what they can achieve in 2026 with the engine update and dlc.

@RadioHedgeFund magazines had value beyond just product promotion back before the internet. Modern 💩influencers💩not so much.

End of the day i made a throw away comment while waiting for my tea to brew I wouldn't over think it too much 🫖😉

And we wonder why game prices keep going up🙄

Hypothetically if Nintendo did buy Xbox it would be the one thing that would guarantee I would never buy an Xbox product again & move back to PlayStation.

Of the big three Nintendo are the most predatory and least consumer friendly. Not that Xbox & Playstation are saints or in any way good in that area but compared to Nintendo they are.

I don't understand how Nintendo get away with it or are not called out on it more often.

As for the story it seems anything that is seen as bad for Xbox will get attention these days no matter how stupid said story is.

@Markatron84 Gaming is my escape from dealing with people.

In the few games I play that have a general chat (Diablo 4 & Path of Exile 2 mostly) I turn it off. So restricting my ability to communicate with other folks isn't going to change anything for me.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out though. I expect there will be issues as is usual with any sort of sweeping change like this.

Sorry you lost me at friends? I don't understand what you mean.

(Kind of related I wonder how soon into the New Year the restrictions on age verification will kick in. The emails are starting to stack up & I am getting the notifications more often when I turn on my Xbox.)

@RBRTMNZ best for you doesn't mean best for everyone else its really that simple. Everyone likes what they like and if someone has fun with Silksong that's great but if they found that fun elsewhere well that is just as good too.

Its not the fans or community that is killing Xbox but I am not having that conversation with anyone this evening as it would sour my holiday vibe.

Hope the New Year bring you more of what you enjoy my friend.

@Tasuki or and hear me out its about to get a bit wild so bare with me - some folks actually enjoyed something more than you might have done so they voted for it on that basis.

I know that is an advanced concept but I am sure you can figure it out, I believe in you

@RBRTMNZ wow imagine that different people like different things.

I hope you got as much fun out of Silksong as I did out of Avowed as that means you had a fantastic time too. No one needs to be embarrassed 🙂

@Tasuki um you are aware that this list is compiled from the votes of folks who read this site right, right?

I am happy to see Avowed in at number 2 as its a fantastic game that caught a lot of undeserved flak at launch.

Much seemed to come from same folks who dog piled Dragon Age Veilguard who never actually played it but already decided it was trash before it even released and i just find that sad (Veilguard was also much better than the internet would have you believe too imo.)

A pretty solid list of games with Arc Raiders & BF6 the only ones on it I haven't played.

I am somewhere over 20 i think but not at home so can't say exactly. I can say for certain that they are all digital and I can't remember the last time I got a physical game.

I thought it was decent and I did complete it which is unusual for me with this sort of game. My only real issue was the combat was very much a one note experience throughout the entire game.

Everything else from the story, characters, music and environments has such obvious care, detail and depth to it but the thing you do the most in the game apparently not so much.

Even so I would still encourage folks to at least try it if you get the opportunity.

Avowed and Atomfall would be my votes.

Whatever /shrugs

I just play the games I enjoy & will just continue to do so while I am able to. If at some point in the future that is no longer a viable option for me I will look at my options then.

I am really enjoying Path of Exile 2 and will probably put time into that over the Christmas break.

I will also likely check out the new content in Stalker 2 because there is nothing more Christmassy than being chased across a radioactive wasteland by a bunch of feral mutants ( & certainly less dangerous than trying to snag the last turkey in Sainsburys on Christmas Eve 🍗😂)

I played only two of those to completion (Borderlands 4 & KCD 2).

I did try Expedition 33 & Blue Prince but they didn't do anything for me. Non of the other games in the top 10 looked interesting enough to me to try.

That said 2025 has been an excellent year for games on Xbox for me with the likes of The Outer Worlds 2, Atomfall & Satisfactory and the majority of my gaming has been on the Xbox this year by a huge margin. Let's hope 2026 offers the same variety and excellence.

I got a PS5 just to play GT7 online multiplayer daily races. They are the most accessible and competitive online races I have access to on console.

Everything else about GT7 I have no interest in as I don't want to collect virtual cars just for the sake of collecting them and racing the AI is just dull (though Sophy is a step in the right direction.)

I enjoyed the driving experience of Motorsport much more but the online racing standards are just awful. No repercussions for poor racing and that really killed my interest in playing it any more

Honestly right now you really need a pc if you are into any sort of competitive online racing and that is something I will be exploring in 2026.