What's the ideal length for RPGs?

[JarlFrank]

I like the way KotC2 handles this with modules. This way you get multiple different games using the same engine. You can put many hours into it while keeping each game dense with interesting stuff.

Yeah, I love playing modules or maps for my favorite games. I'll play everything that comes out for KotC, and my most-played game ever is Thief because of its many fan missions.

The problem with games that are very long is that they usually don't have enough unique content to make all of these hours interesting. And the difficulty curve gets wonky at some point, in RPGs you gain experience and the game should in some way be balanced to have an engaging leveling curve where it stays challenging but fair throughout. Overly long RPGs tend to have the player become overpowered long before the game's end, especially if there's a lot of optional sidequests and you approach the game as a completionist, doing everything there is to do before you head on with the main quest. In shorter games that's less of a problem.

So having a set of 10 modules, each of which takes 10 hours, has challenging hand-made encounters, a bunch of side quests, and choice and consequence with multiple endings, is better than having one 100 hour module that follows the same design principles but is overly long.

 

[BruceVC]

Personally I prefer short ones so I replay them quickly to try different builds, but those are becoming scarce nowadays. What are your thoughts on it? is there an ideal standard length or does it depend on the game? does game length influence your purchases? Disc-ass.

Great question, I voted 80-200 hours so games like Witcher 3, BG2, D:OS2 and Oblivion (with side quests ) are good length for me

Ideal time, 140-160 hours

 

[ItsChon]

Question is framed wrong. As others have pointed out, the ideal length for an RPG is however long it needs to be for it to provide the experience it's setting out to give. If it's a story based RPG like PS:T or DE, it's around 20-50 hours. If it's a massive game like Underrail, it's 50-150 hours. There is no right answer about the length of an RPG, because that depends on how much content they have to give that actually fits within the game. I prefer whatever length is best suited to the game in question.

 

[Peachcurl]

I don't have time for 100 hour butt fuck sessions

you guys know these games have 'save' features that let you play them in multiple sessions, right?

*ahem*

But that would be cheating!

 

[rusty_shackleford]

I don't have time for 100 hour butt fuck sessions

you guys know these games have 'save' features that let you play them in multiple sessions, right?

*ahem*

But that would be cheating!

Why would suspending your play to resume where you left off be cheating?

 

[NecroLord]

There is nothing more infuriating than your game crashing,losing all your progress and you forgetting to save your game. In games without checkpoints(Daggerfall,Deus Ex,Temple of Elemental Evil) this is just...
"Save often and in different files" is what Kotor2 says. The devs trying to tell the player something,eh?

 

[Ryan muller]

30-60 being very precise.

This usually means the game has enough side content while maintaining a good pacing for the main story, i also rather have them replayable than longer but less replayable so i can keep returning and trying different builds.

Anything 100+ usually has crappy pacing

 

[Viata]

5~10. In fact, I'd prefer it was 3~5 hours. It would be even better if there was no "we saved the world" bullshit plot.

 

[Viata]

You cook not because you enjoy cooking, but because you want a nice meal at the end.
You work out not because you enjoy lifting heavy shit, but because you want to get stronger.

No, I do both of those because I enjoy the act, not the results.

 

[Falksi]

My faves are usually around 20-30 hours to finish, 50-70 hours to complete everything. I MUCH prefer replayability and replayable RPGs to those with a good-once through set up too.

One thing I've noticed is that for me to stay interested in any RPG past the 15 hour mark, the ultimate goal/big bad has to have appeared and been very much involved with the story. I played Y's & Dragon Quest XI last year, and neither had even remotely got going by the 15 hour mark, it was a fucking joke and I could not stay interested at all.

 

[whydoibother]

You cook not because you enjoy cooking, but because you want a nice meal at the end.
You work out not because you enjoy lifting heavy shit, but because you want to get stronger.

No, I do both of those because I enjoy the act, not the results.

I am talking about the proverbial You, not exactly you, dear "not like other girls" poster.
And if you enjoyed cooking regardless of the meal at the end, you'd be a cook. You aren't, because you don't actually enjoy cooking for its own sake, because you are just posting shit for karma on Polish Reddit.

 

[Beans00]

I guess that BGT/EasyTutu qualifies then, as does the Dark Savant Trilogy and maybe World of Xeen.

BG2+ToB itself is over 100 hours if you do all the content

Maybe if you're retarded or like 12.
I replayed bg 2 + tob last year or the year before for the first time since I was a kid and I knocked it out in 42.6 hours(tob took like 12 on its own probably). I also played on the 2nd hardest difficulty and did probably 85-90% of the content(I skipped unseeing eye which is probably a few hours for example).



As for the OP, as long as a game is good and stays good the whole time I generally don't care how long it is.

I'm a pretty thorough person so until I get bored I generally like to do everything in games. The only games I can legitimately remember sinking 100+ hours into single playthroughs was thunderscape and M&M6. I feel like for a lot of people playtime is padded out by dying and reloading over and over again.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

I guess that BGT/EasyTutu qualifies then, as does the Dark Savant Trilogy and maybe World of Xeen.

BG2+ToB itself is over 100 hours if you do all the content

Maybe if you're retarded or like 12.
I replayed bg 2 + tob last year or the year before for the first time since I was a kid and I knocked it out in 42.6 hours(tob took like 12 on its own probably). I also played on the 2nd hardest difficulty and did probably 85-90% of the content(I skipped unseeing eye which is probably a few hours for example).



As for the OP, as long as a game is good and stays good the whole time I generally don't care how long it is.

I'm a pretty thorough person so until I get bored I generally like to do everything in games. The only games I can legitimately remember sinking 100+ hours into single playthroughs was thunderscape and M&M6. I feel like for a lot of people playtime is padded out by dying and reloading over and over again.

"I rushed through the game so you must be 12"
I know you guys hate rpgs, but I wish you'd stop judging people who like them based on how much you hate them

 

[NJClaw]

I want good games to be as long as possible and bad games to be as short as possible.

Putting philosophical thoughts aside, the RPGs I enjoyed most are in the 40-60 category, but I wouldn't be opposed to see them go on for twice as long (if that wouldn't cause a drop off in quality).

 

[Mr. Magniloquent]

rusty_shackleford Why did you make a poll if your intent was simply to criticize anyone with a different preference than your own?

 

[rusty_shackleford]

rusty_shackleford Why did you make a poll if your intent was simply to criticize anyone with a different preference than your own?

that is a good question, and the answer would be

































I didn't make the thread, tardo

 

[Apostle Hand]

if it's good I can play it forever

 

[Beans00]

I guess that BGT/EasyTutu qualifies then, as does the Dark Savant Trilogy and maybe World of Xeen.

BG2+ToB itself is over 100 hours if you do all the content

Maybe if you're retarded or like 12.
I replayed bg 2 + tob last year or the year before for the first time since I was a kid and I knocked it out in 42.6 hours(tob took like 12 on its own probably). I also played on the 2nd hardest difficulty and did probably 85-90% of the content(I skipped unseeing eye which is probably a few hours for example).



As for the OP, as long as a game is good and stays good the whole time I generally don't care how long it is.

I'm a pretty thorough person so until I get bored I generally like to do everything in games. The only games I can legitimately remember sinking 100+ hours into single playthroughs was thunderscape and M&M6. I feel like for a lot of people playtime is padded out by dying and reloading over and over again.

"I rushed through the game so you must be 12"
I know you guys hate rpgs, but I wish you'd stop judging people who like them based on how much you hate them

Obviously you're not 12. I'm just insinuating you're extremely bad at games if it took you 100 hours to beat BG2.

I mean maybe when I played bg2 as a kid back in like 2001 or 2002 I might have broken 60 hours. Maybe.

If you want to prove otherwise record yourself playing bg2 and lets see how much time you spend reloading.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

I guess that BGT/EasyTutu qualifies then, as does the Dark Savant Trilogy and maybe World of Xeen.

BG2+ToB itself is over 100 hours if you do all the content

Maybe if you're retarded or like 12.
I replayed bg 2 + tob last year or the year before for the first time since I was a kid and I knocked it out in 42.6 hours(tob took like 12 on its own probably). I also played on the 2nd hardest difficulty and did probably 85-90% of the content(I skipped unseeing eye which is probably a few hours for example).



As for the OP, as long as a game is good and stays good the whole time I generally don't care how long it is.

I'm a pretty thorough person so until I get bored I generally like to do everything in games. The only games I can legitimately remember sinking 100+ hours into single playthroughs was thunderscape and M&M6. I feel like for a lot of people playtime is padded out by dying and reloading over and over again.

"I rushed through the game so you must be 12"
I know you guys hate rpgs, but I wish you'd stop judging people who like them based on how much you hate them

Obviously you're not 12. I'm just insinuating you're extremely bad at games if it took you 100 hours to beat BG2.

I mean maybe when I played bg2 as a kid back in like 2001 or 2002 I might have broken 60 hours. Maybe.

If you want to prove otherwise record yourself playing bg2 and lets see how much time you spend reloading.

https://howlongtobeat.com/game/810

you skipped most of the content, so, congratulations about being able to brag about beating it on the codex?

 

[Beans00]

I guess that BGT/EasyTutu qualifies then, as does the Dark Savant Trilogy and maybe World of Xeen.

BG2+ToB itself is over 100 hours if you do all the content

Maybe if you're retarded or like 12.
I replayed bg 2 + tob last year or the year before for the first time since I was a kid and I knocked it out in 42.6 hours(tob took like 12 on its own probably). I also played on the 2nd hardest difficulty and did probably 85-90% of the content(I skipped unseeing eye which is probably a few hours for example).



As for the OP, as long as a game is good and stays good the whole time I generally don't care how long it is.

I'm a pretty thorough person so until I get bored I generally like to do everything in games. The only games I can legitimately remember sinking 100+ hours into single playthroughs was thunderscape and M&M6. I feel like for a lot of people playtime is padded out by dying and reloading over and over again.

"I rushed through the game so you must be 12"
I know you guys hate rpgs, but I wish you'd stop judging people who like them based on how much you hate them

Obviously you're not 12. I'm just insinuating you're extremely bad at games if it took you 100 hours to beat BG2.

I mean maybe when I played bg2 as a kid back in like 2001 or 2002 I might have broken 60 hours. Maybe.

If you want to prove otherwise record yourself playing bg2 and lets see how much time you spend reloading.

https://howlongtobeat.com/game/810

you skipped most of the content, so, congratulations about being able to brag about beating it on the codex?

I guess most people on that site suck as bad as you do lol.

 

[Viata]

you'd be a cook

"if you enjoy something, then it means you are paid for doing that"
I guess that makes you a video game streamer.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

I guess that makes you a video game streamer.

he already admitted he only plays games just to see the end
people who like short games really are touched in the head

 

[whydoibother]

you'd be a cook

"if you enjoy something, then it means you are paid for doing that"
I guess that makes you a video game streamer.

Stop pretending to be retarded. Streaming video games for a loving is a gamble, and the odds are bad. Almost nobody makes it. The same is not true for restaurant cooks. If it really was joy for you to cook, and you aren't a chef, you are retarded. Much more likely, you are just lying for karma.

 

[NecroLord]

I guess that makes you a video game streamer.

he already admitted he only plays games just to see the end
people who like short games really are touched in the head

Define "short game".
FPS games,for one,tend to be on the short side.

 

[Viata]

If it really was joy for you to cook, and you aren't a chef, you are retarded

Fucking jew. Man can't enjoy doing something unless he is paid for it, I guess.