Jim Norman, Staff Writer
Most played games of 2025:
Okay, I was expecting to see two of these, but how the hell did I spend 34 hours in the NSO Game Boy library? I played a lot of Mario’s Picross last year (what can I say? It makes me happy!), but surely not that much. Hey ho, welcome to the podium, little guy.
68 hours in Mario Kart World doesn’t completely surprise me, given how long I spent searching for those damn P-Switches, Peach Medallions and ? Panels. Maybe one day I’ll be able to come back to it with an open mind and an open heart… but I’ll leave it another couple of months.
And finally, the least surprising of them all: Donkey Kong Bananza. It turns out that reviewing and guiding a game like this one takes quite a bit of time, and I poured 112 hours into this bad boy to make sure that it was 100% wrapped up. An absolutely sublime reintroduction into the 3D platforming space for the prized primate.
All in all, a somewhat meatier year — though one where I still racked up triple figures on my PS5 with some tasty releases that haven’t come our way yet. I put 456 hours into 51 games, with Silksong and Pokémon Legends: Z-A just missing out on a top-three ranking. Bring on 2026 and another ~500 hours of gaming!
Ollie Reynolds, Staff Writer
Most played games of 2025:
Is it really any surprise that my most played game of 2025 is Metroid Prime 4: Beyond? Having written our review for Retro Studios’ latest, along with a 100% completion guide campaign, yes, Beyond managed to completely dominate my life for a good few weeks there.
The Hundred Line – Last Defense Academy isn’t too far behind, mind you. This is still my favourite game of 2025, and to be honest, even with all of the time I put into Prime 4, I’m kinda shocked The Hundred Line didn’t bag the top spot. I’m really tempted to play through it again from scratch in 2026, so we’ll have to see if it winds up on my top three again this time next year.
Finally, I’ve been dipping in and out of Street Fighter 6 so often in 2025 that it’s just about managed to nab third place. I’ve been testing and reviewing a whole bunch of arcade controllers for the Switch 2 recently, and SF6 is the go-to game to really put them through their paces. More of the same this year, please!
I also feel compelled to mention that none other than Resident Evil 6 just missed out on the top three. Look, I love this game, and I spent so much time in The Mercenaries No Hope mode. I just can’t get enough.
Alana Hagues, Deputy Editor
Most played games of 2025:
…well, one of these is not like the others, eh? I’m not sure what happened at the beginning of the year, but I apparently couldn’t put down Hello Kitty and friends, which I played for *gulp* 173 hours. Was I okay for the first half of 2025? I think so?
Otherwise, my other two games I actually predicted would pop in my 2024 write-up — unsurprising given that Xenoblade Chronicles X is absolutely massive, and I rolled credits at the 112-hour mark. And between reviewing, the DLC, and guiding it, Pokémon Legends: Z-A clocked in at 94 hours. Woof. Some of that is donut farming, idling, and taking screenshots, of course.
Hollow Knight: Silksong was close to the top three at 83 hours, while Fantasy Life i is nipping at Hornet’s ankles at over 70 hours. Otherwise, Mario Kart World, Donkey Kong Bananza, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons are all around 50 hours.
Overall, a darn good year! 2025 was a much busier year for my Nintendo consoles than 2024 was — I’ve clocked in 1029 hours between the Switch 1 and Switch 2. I have a feeling that’ll slip a little in 2026 for life reasons, but we’ll see!
Gavin Lane, Editor
Most played games of 2025:
I was mainly channelling the ‘Oh crap, I need to finish that before the sequel drops’ energy in 2025.
I’d escaped Hades several times before, naturally, I just hadn’t gotten to the surface the 10 times needed to get the proper ending. One thing led to another, and yep, another 28 hours on the clock. As for Hollow Knight, I bought it on sale years ago but never got to it. I’m now sitting on 86% completion with 35 hours on the clock, and I imagine the NS2 Edition will encourage me to push that higher.
And sandwiched between those two, there’s Bananza, a game I like a little less every time I return, but I’ve still managed 32 hours and counting. Probably time to call it a day, unless the kids badger me for more “Ooo, banana!” and the Zebra Bananza music.
Bubbling under that, it was a bitty year – 272 hours across 61 games, including a first-play of Metal Gear Solid and a big ol’ chunk of time with both Mario Kart World and that hot new 2025 release, Katamari Damacy REROLL. Give the kids what they want, I say. Naaa na-na na-na-na na-na…
Mai Ladyman, Video Producer
Most played games of 2025:
In all honesty, I didn’t do too much gaming in 2025 due to that age-old excuse of life (and work) getting in the way. Oh… and playing on other platforms, primarily PC (sorry!). 2025 began with me starting yet another Stardew save in an attempt to reach Perfection, and even though I’m nowhere near that milestone, it was a nice routine of mine before and after work.
Saying that, getting my hands on the Switch 2 gave me a kick up the bum to finally get some games from my backlog completed. I mostly sank my teeth into indies, cosy games and generally games with shorter runtimes. I often got lost in Night City (or found myself recklessly speeding in the outskirts) and creating a new ACNH island just for kicks, whilst abandoning my OG island on my old Switch. Although I’m over 850 hours on ACNH, I’m itching to up them even more now that the update is here.
Considering I played a bit of catch-up in December with Pokémon Legends: Z-A and Persona 5 Royal, I honestly thought they’d make the cut! I guess they must have been a wee bit behind, so here’s hope for next year’s review. I’m hoping now that I’ve joined the Nintendo Life team, I can get my hours back up and finally have time for games!
PJ O’Reilly, Staff Writer
Most played games of 2025:
I’m surprisingly happy with how my top three has ended up this year, as it pretty much reflects my actual faves overall for 2025. Just about.
Usually there’s a little bit of review time cross-contamination (and XCX is defo there for this reason), but these are all worthy of top three spots in terms of how much I love ’em, too. Hades 2, although I don’t adore it quite as much as the OG, is still a masterclass and head and shoulders above most examples of its genre in terms of overall quality of gameplay and narrative.
XCX, I’ve ranted and raved enough about by now, you can check out my 10/10 review if you don’t believe me, and The Ivalice Chronicles, well, besides being so far up my street it’s moved into my house, it’s a wonderfully well-realised and endlessly endearing thing.
What else was up top for me in terms of playtime? Bananza, Mario Kart World and Silksong are all in there, obviously, but so is Fast Fusion, Axiom Verge 2 (back on that replay vibe) and Divinity Original Sin 2, which is just one of those games that I’m forever and always mucking about in!
Those are our Years in Review most-played games, but what about yours? Vote in our poll below and let us know your favourite stats in the comments.
