When Did Game Length Become Such an Issue?

Many gamers are concerned over The Order: 1886 reportedly short game length. But why should that be a concern when high-quality entertainment is there? The Geek Culture discusses.

[Aloy-Boyfriend]

Since The Order:1886 is an exclusive.

Length has always been a minor issue since forever. Games in the past weren't as long as I thought they were, and I realized that when I played Ocarina of time on my 3DS. Do people really put length over fun and quality? I actually never cared and still don't care about the length of games. I just care about the fun and entertainment.

And let's not talk about many short games out there that still many didn't seem to complain about. What I've seen is that people use the economy crisis to justify that a game should be over 20 hrs to be worth $60 bucks. That'd be a good point for some people, but length isn't the only factor for a game to be worth the orice tag. I wonder how many found AC Unity worth the money at launch. No Quality, tons of quantity.

[Neonridr]

Ocarina of Time was like $100 in Canada when it launched on the N64. So $70 is like a bargain! :P

[Lightning Mr Bubbles]

Gaming length is no more of an issue now than it has been in the past but I think it should go without saying that a single player adventure game like The Order should last you at least 10-12 hours. The fact that you can beat the game in 5-8 hours is a problem to me. I can't really defend that, I think people are right for having an issue with it and the criticism is deserved here.

[nicksetzer1]

It's been an issue since ... always. This game is single player only. And the story isn't decision based. Basically after on playthrough you are essentially done. Why we are suddenly pretending content provided for 60$ is not important Is the better question.

The unending need to defend this game is what os really surprising. Especially when those whining are the first to bash other games for the amount of content they have...

I am by no means saying this game is terrible, but anyone who has played the game and any issue, no matter the validity, is suddenly a troll/idiot (by people who never played the game) when it comes to this game.

[MysticStrummer]

"This game is single player only. And the story isn't decision based. Basically after on playthrough you are essentially done."

I guess I'm the only one who replays good games that fit that description…? Metal Gear Solid and Ico leap to mind. I'd try to list others but there are simply too damn many games like that for me. I guess people's attention spans are shrinking over time.

"anyone who has played the game and any issue, no matter the validity, is suddenly a troll/idiot (by people who never played the game) when it comes to this game."

The people I judge to be idiots are the ones who have ignored the reports of longer play times, but seized on the 5 hour report like it was a life preserver in story seas.

[Zenith4k]

Came on here to say zelda ...memories

[nicksetzer1]

@mystic "The people I judge to be idiots are the ones who have ignored the reports of longer play times, but seized on the 5 hour report like it was a life preserver in story seas."

People think that because there was a literal part by part walkthrough by "playmethrough" in which he played through the game normally in 5 hours. Since when is believing video proof being an idiot. In fact most would think the exact opposite.

http://www.gamespot.com/art...

"I guess I'm the only one who replays good games that fit that description."

I didn't say it can't be replayed, but when the game is EXACTLY the same every time you replay, I can't imagine that being a selling point as you're claiming. Also, it is completely ignorant (lacking knowledge) of you to say people who don't replay linear are childish people with no attention span. Maybe some people would rather spend their time playing other games than playing the same game, the same EXACT way, multiple times.

Again though, none of this means the game is terrible as you are trying to imply as my intention. I am buying the game and I am looking forward to it, but I also am not trying to defend things about the game which are known to be true. (Cinematic emphasis, qte's and short campaign time) Those things, in this case, don't outweigh MY interest in the game. That said, they are certainly important factors for people when deciding whether or not to spend 60$ though.

[PoSTedUP]

its not a problem for thoes that are buying it. dont like it? dont buy it.

[DragonKnight]

Game length isn't an issue until it feels like one. When you play a game and feel like it ended too soon, then it's an issue. That could be because the game is so good you want more, or because it legitimately is so short you didn't feel like it offered enough in terms story or character development, but a 5 hour masterpiece is always preferable to a 50 hour borefest.

[pixelsword]

Why is it an issue when apparently most people don't finish their games? A short game will allow them to finish, although I love a very long, MGS4-Magic Carpet-NES Goonies- length game, myself.

[Kal0psia]

Oh, now we ask the right questions when it's their dear product under threat?! Oh the hypocrisy with these articles.

[Bdub2000]

It's an opinion on an individual basis, obviously. $60 for 5 hours of great game play is a bargain for one individual, and a ripoff to the next guy. Therefore, one guy buys it while the other passes it.

$60 for 5 hours doesn't sit well with me, so I'd pass on it. Remember how many people freaked out that titanfall was $60 for multi-player only and everyone cried foul? But the MP was complete and fun, didn't matter. How amazing the Order is won't matter, everyone's gonna bitch (except those that play it and love it)

[GordonKnight]

It's funny because people usually make the opposite compliant about movies. (That movie would've been great if it was 30 minutes shorter).

[Software_Lover]

You mean like A.I.?

I was f'n embarrassed that I took my wife (then girlfriend) to see that. We looked at each other with that same "WTF is going on look" lol. Movie should have ended an hour ago.

[porkChop]

That's because many movies today are plagued with "filler" just to pad out the run time.

[WickedLester]

@porkCHop,

You mean like so many open world games that pad it's length with pointless side quests?

[BluFish]

Did you just compare an interactive game to a passive movie?

[Software_Lover]

Oh please. Just stop it. People complained about game length last gen.

[WelkinCole]

But not like this. Short games COD4 was never scrutinized anywhere near the level this game is scrutinized for its game length even though this game is not out yet.

[reallyNow]

welkin, to be fair, COD's main draw is the multiplayer. that said, i prefer campaigns to be shorter than 15 hours. 7 hours is usually when i start to lose interest. Heavenly Sword was perfect IMO. It told a story really well, and the gameplay didnt get stale by time the credits rolled.

Edit: whats happening now, is that games are 20+ hours, and they get points docked for repetitious gameplay. so to counter that, game makers start forcing different gameplay elements to keep it "fresh" for reviewers. Thats how we end up with bad stealth missions in a game that's core mechanics dont really support that type of game. Its also the kind of crap that leads to great games having the WORST ENDING MISSION OF ALL TIME in my opinion, Dying Light. I say build a great game mechanic. build a great story to go along with it. and keep it concise enough so the player doesnt lose interest. end on a bang, uncharted 1 style.

[turdburgler1080]

A game needs to be long enough to do the job. 7...8 inches er I mean hours is about right. 5 hours just doesn't get it done. Also the games gotta be fleshed out. You can platinum this game in the first pass. It's not not thick enough. You could say it's under developed;-)

[Knushwood Butt]

Close.

More like, since the people obsessed with trying to put this game down got wind that it's actually pretty good. They then had to find something else to moan about.

[aCasualGamer]

Yes, but if you actually pay attention to what people say about this game, it's quite obvious this game isn't really an AMAZING game. It's a good game. Some design flaws here and there. But where most people find enjoyment is in the setting and different weapons.

There are alot of flaws with this game that i don't think are mentioned, that have nothing to do with the games length. It's just nothing innovative about it or creative apart from the outrageously beautiful game visuals and artstyle.

[VJGenova]

I agree that game length is not the only factor that affects wherher or not I'll buy a game, but it is a factor.

Take a game like Contra on NES. I can beat the game in 30 minutes. Is that a problem? No, because I love playing the game. When I was a kid, I had to use the 30 lives code to beat it. I started challenging myself to see how many lives I could end the game with. Eventually, I got so good at it that I stared doing 1 life runs where if I died, I stopped playing.

This game, and a few others are shooting for more of a cinematic experience. I personally do not understand this movement. With movies, I'll buy ones I love and have friends over to screen it. So the argument that blu rays cost $20 is flawed because the ones I buy will be seen by 4-6 people. I can't picture myself inviting a bunch of people over to watch me play this game.

Also the cinema argument holds no weight either as I only go to movies with a group ...

I get the quality over quantity argument, which is why I bought black flag for $10 on steam sale. I got $.20/hour rate for it as I played it for 50 hours. This game looks significantly better so I may buy it for $30 and play it for let's say 10 hours for a rate of $3/hour. See the point?

[SamPao]

Nope. Try harder next time.

[Charybdis]

Ofcourse it would be nice to have a longer game without sacrificing quality. Maybe they will add some more content in the form of DLC. If the game is successful we might see a sequal if the game is at good as it looks it would certainly be nice to have a longer game without sacrificing quality.
In the end the discussion might come to the point where we need to discuss completion rate of games and their length combined with the monetary value we as consumers should designate to these products, luckily the pricing of the game is not set in stone an consumer have options to get the price at a lower price even if it is at a later stadium

[Bigpappy]

You must be very, very young if you believe that game length started with the order.

[Debaitable]

Stop it. Time is a factor when you can't buy games as often as others. I will buy a game with the highest longevity entertainment value because I don't want to be twiddling my thumbs waiting till the next time I can afford another game. I'm not saying this game is any less spectacular but the value of my $60 goes with more replayability. This game will be just as great the day I get to grab it for an amount I deem worthy of my money. Which I will place $40 & below.

[aCasualGamer]

I've never paid as much for games as today.

If the game is purely linear without any side missions or anything after the single player is finished, then i'm gonna feel i just got robbed if the game isn't absolutely mindblowing after 6-7 hours, and i mean a game that stands out as much as Last of Us.

This is something that i differ on with alot of gamers(my opinion not economical situation), but i'm not the wealthiest of gamers and i really like to feel like i put my money to an experience that was worth it. If i pull out the disc and feel, hmm, there's really no reason for me to ever put this disc in again after 6 hours and i lost 70$(games where i live are a bit expensive, then ofcourse that's wrong for me.

People arguing that you can't put time over quality, i think are missing the point. It's not whether the game is 10 hours longer than order that makes it great, it's if you get the feeling that "hmm, that was really short". If you get that feeling.. then something IS missing. It's not about a set amount of hours, it's whether or not the overall story and gameplay is experienced as being too short. I've had the same experience where i thought, "hmm, this game was way too long", but having a game being too long doesn't lower the value of the game. Having a shorter game.. does.

This is my personal opinion on the matter and as said, probably most people don't think as i do, but hey it is what it is.

edit:

Why this specific game is getting so much debate over the games length is obvious to me as it might not be to most. It's because this game offers absolutely......... nothing......... after the single player story. The game design is linear and it's a third person shooter. So by large, it is purely a movie that is playable. Some made the same argument over Heavy Rain, but where Heavy Rain stands out is in its replayability and overall choice progression in story elements. It is very different argument all together as i put nearly 50 hours in to that game to experience different stories through different choices and ultimately different endings.

The Order is a very specific story told in a cinematic fashion where the player has ZERO control over where it's going.

This is why i think it's really hard to argue that Order is worth the price of admission. It's basically... a very expensive interactive movie, albeit a very good interactive movie, but still... very expensive in my opinion.

[OrangePowerz]

I would say about 4 days ago. I didn't see such destruction of a game by the media or the community when Heavenly Sword came out even though that game was shorter.

@CasualGamer

The majority of games don't give you a choice of where it's going. You praise TLoU, but just like the Order you have ZERO control over where it's going.

Also games are cheaper now to buy then they had been 5, 10 or 20 years ago. Also you don't loose 70 bucks, trade it back in and you get most of your money back.

Edit: Maybe a bunch but what's going now is far from just a bunch, we get what 5 or more articles per day of how shorr it is and how bad it is for the industry?

[aCasualGamer]

If you pay an extra visit to you memories you might find something that reminds you of a bunch of articles actually pulling it to pieces over the short length of that game.

[aCasualGamer]

On the article count... there are more articles released today than back in the days of Heavenly Sword and many are gathered here on N4G so it seems to be alot more, and maybe it is, but it's a growing industry and there's bound to be more voices heard.

On the game. Last of Us had amazing design in levels where a) you could choose different paths and different strategies on building up tools. b) you could play the game stealthy and/or action oriented go all offensive. The last of us has such deep gameplay elements alot of it passed by from gamers, unjustly in my opinion. The games story doesn't allow for any choice, but it's a linear story. The game is much longer than The Order and in a different dimension quality wise. It had deep and fun multiplayer mode and you could replay the game using new game plus mode. The story was on a different scale, and the characters are what nailed in this game. There's no comparison.

I don't have a problem with it's linearity, but if you are going to only offer a linear story with no sidetracking (i.e. larger level design for different paths and strategies) and the gameplay is designed in such way as to only allow for cover shooting, then hell yes you better atleast have and amazing story with harder grip rather than just a good story that is on the shorter scale.

There's such a flaw in comparing the games linearity to the linearity of storytelling in a game such as last of us, because ultimately last of us does everything so much better design wise and in offering options in gameplay strategy.

There's really nothing you could do in The Order, to grant a second playthrough other than delving into the world and looking at the details all over again, because it is basically a cover shooter game.

It's definitely not as deep as Last of us gameplay wise or story wise, so if all you're going for is Linear storytelling with zero replay value and only 5-7 hour story... THEN YES, you'll get scrutinized for releasing it with such a pricetag.

Now, i'm not saying it's a bad game... don't mistake my arguments for anything remotely close to a statement as that. I'm saying if you release a game within those confined walls of linearity in storytelling and GAMEPLAY and don't offer anything else, then your game better be on par of Last of Us level of storytelling and the characters better be memorable. Otherwise the game is "just", a good 6 hour cinematic game, with a really high pricetag.

[OrangePowerz]

Well I guess neither of us playes ir yet so neither of us can say if it has a great story or not. Until I played it I won't know, I definitely won't rely on the views of people who watched the playthrough of it on Youtube.

The first Uncharted took something like 9 hours with little in the way of replayability with linear and small levels and the gunplay wasn't that great. It was still an awesome game. I don't have the time to replay games shortly after I completed them so that doesn't change anything for me.

Most comment's suggest that the game takes over 8 hours to finish. Yes there is a video where it takes 5 hours. The guy who uploaded the video uploads playthroughs of games so he is focused on getting through the game quickly and not like your normal player would get through the game.

[aCasualGamer]

I haven't played it yet but i've seen the gameplay videos of many playthroughs online, because i was very curious whether this game was short and how the gameplay was.

The game is without a doubt on the shorter end and that's from the videos of players that don't rush through the game.

All i'm saying is that the game should have offered some replay value of some sort. Why the developers didn't realize this is beyond me.

The game is good. It is. But still it felt really short and rushed sequences at the end of this game to me made it obvious they were planning many sequels ahead. The game is without a doubt lacking in content and doesn't suffice a 70$ pricetag in my honest opinion.

Hopefully they'll realize that gamers just don't pull things out of thin air when they criticize some of the aspects of their decisions and make an honest effort at releasing a more filled game when going for that pricetag.

[BluFish]

Are you getting paid by RaD? You are in every single Order thread defending it.

[Aloy-Boyfriend]

Are the haters being paid by the Illuminaty to hate this game?

[JasonKCK]

Game length has been debated long before The Order so just stop.

[Professor_K]

"Since The Order:1886 is an exclusive"

You

cant be ....serious...

[BallsEye]

Funny how all the defensive artiles appear when it's about sony exclusive. No color in gears of war 1? BAD! No color in Killzone or The Order - It's realistic and atmospheric!
Lower resolution than 1080p in xbox games? Trash! Killzone MP runs in res close to 720p, the order have black bars and is all blurred out? ALL COOL! Artistic!
I could go on and on. As always, double standards.

https://twitter.com/TheRazo...

Ah this is just pure gold...

[NerdStalker]

well you sit and enjoy your xbox one come this Friday and we the ps4 owners will enjoy a top exclusive called the order, you jealous? Sounds like you have a chip on your shoulder Ballseye.

[DarkOcelet]

When a PSP developers decided to make a great looking game exclusive for the PS4.

Or when the director of Far Cry 4 said that linear games wont work this gen and some people actually believed him.

[Aloy-Boyfriend]

It's funny because 70% if not more of Far Cry 4 was Far Cry 3 reskinned. Talking about Linear games not being the future when your game is a rehash.

It's called ''Variety.'' Linear games, open world, multiplayer, platformers, and etc. This industry has become more varied than in the past. Don't like a type of game? Don't buy it! I personally enjoy all kind of games that are well made.

[DarkOcelet]

Far Cry 4 became boring as $hit after 5 hours doing the same things over and over again. I barely finished it. Ubisoft games are become so similar its disgusting.

[Lev1903]

Typical. Blame ubisofts opinion for the critics of the order. 5 hours is short. Even if the game is awesome beyond believe.

10 hours or 9 is good. Bit not 5 hours. Common dont kid yourselves. The order has nothing more then its campaign and no extras. Its not worth 60 bucks. Of its true

[LexHazard79]

@ DarkOcelot, and you'll be doing the same shit over and over in The Order. Its the same for almost all games. Once you learn the gameplay of a game its all repetitive really. ..

[OrangePowerz]

@Lev

So it's a fact that it would take you 5 hours to finish because there is a video of a guy that finishes the game in 5 hours?

That is the Idiogracy that is so annoying. There are plenty of others that say it took them 8 hours or more to finish, but we all should take it as a fact that a normal and casual playthrough takes 5 hours because of the video uploaded?

[Helios86]

Took me roughly 9 hours to finish the game. Fine by me since I liked the world/setting, the characters and the shooting was solid.

Either way they've laid a really good foundation for the future.

And tbh I'd rather have a new IP with potential than the same old CoD, AC, BF, Far Cry and so on.

[blockcoc]

So people only recently started having problems with game length?

[FrostedFire]

Someone give this man a trophy.

[LexHazard79]

Why are you guys saying since its exclusive to PS4? Even fans waiting for the game are complaining.
Its like you're trying to make it a fanboy issue, when in reality its just a content issue. Its a single player game, if all you can give me is 5 to 8hrs, then it probably worth a rental and not the $60 theyre gonna charge us for it.

[DarkOcelet]

It really differs from one person to another. Bioshock Infinite could last you from 8 to 10 hours, maybe even less but the way i play the game, it took me over 16 hours because i explored every nook and cranny and stayed to marvel at the artistic masterpiece those artists had drawn.

I wouldn't trade the game for any other game because it was short on length, because i enjoyed every moment of it.

So if i enjoyed The Order 1886 then i will not rent it, i will get my copy and i will keep it. But like i said it differs from one person's perspective to another.

[Gilettehad_]

- Since small sites jumped on the same wagon, seeing that even though they might lose all credibility, they might still get a few clicks.

- Since Sony just re-won the NPD again.

- Since MS fans are scared about the fact they have almost no exclusives for 7 months.

Those are a few.. Shameful, all of it. Gaming is not what it used to be, because of the community of self entitled brats, teenage bloggers, and angry children whose parents cannot afford more than 1 console.

I've despised the gaming media since the PS3 came late to the party, and the hate tirade started then. I truly think the downfall of gaming journalism started then.

[UnHoly_One]

You know, I wouldn't know if Xbox had any exclusives coming in the next 9 months or not if I didn't see it referenced in EVERY SINGLE ORDER 1886 article.

Who flippin' cares???

I know what games are coming that are interested in, and I know what platform they are on, but I can't imagine coming up with figures like that. What difference does it make?

You realize that consoles play other games besides exclusives, right? You guys act like Xbox owners have to stare at their home screens for 9 months until they get to play again.

[BigShotSmoov007]

You just sound dumb cause MS and their fans have nothing to do with this. People complained wih Ryse and how short that game was and peopled complained with Infamous also. Developers are so focused on making a game look pretty that they not even focused on how much game they are giving us and they want us to spend $60 on short experiences. That's the issue and it always has been an issue. Thats why I have no interest in this game right now until it hits bargin bins cause when you can platinum a game in 10 hours, then you know the game is short. And for people that think I'm lying about platinum the game in 10 hours:

http://psnprofiles.com/trop...

This guy got the game early, platinum it and look at the length it took him. That's just pathetic.

[yarbie1000]

I think 7-8 hrs is good for a game like this. The devs have said this is a cinematic experience. Some games are meant to be played over & over (multiplayer) - some are meant as a fine wine that you experience once and you never forget. I've played really good short games.

I think it does become relevant to some for value of their $. I personally don't buy games unless I plan on playing them for a long time. Sometimes I'm right, and sometimes I'm wrong.

If I can beat a game in a week, and there isn't much replay value I'm just going to rent it.

If this game only has 4-5 hours of actual gameplay time I just can't personally justify buying it. http://videogamesandnews.co... So i'm going to rent it. And hopefully i'll enjoy it. I rented Horizon 2, but later ended up buying it because the replay value was a lot more than I anticipated. I'd have no problem doing the same here if i'm wrong.

[Doge]

If I remember correctly, it was Modern Warfare 2 that kicked it off last gen.

[LexHazard79]

Except no one was really playing Call of Duty for its single player campaign. You still had tons of content and online multiplayer and well worth the $60.

[UltimaEnder]

Great op-ed... couldn't agree more!

[DanaBlack]

Once i platinumed Second Son in a week, there was really no reason to keep it so i traded it and sadly that's how i see it going with this game

[Themba76]

well thats you I still havnt platinumed that game.

[SmokingMonkey]

https://www.youtube.com/wat...

*Video Game* War has changed

[uth11]

Because all the other mud they flung at The Order didn't stick, so now they're hammering this point.

[MysticStrummer]

…and it's still not sticking, judging from the Amazon sale chart.

[mgszelda1]

I beat the first God of War in 6 hours, that game was amazing

[SmokingMonkey]

What!? 6 hours! THat's IT?!

Cinematic!

QTE's!

That game sucked and you know it!!!

/s

[VJGenova]

I read this as Gears of War, and I was going agree but add the caveat that I played it co-op, which makes a difference to me. I loved the shared experience of that series.

That said, God of War was awesome. I played it on Hard a few years back and it gave me a real good challenge and took me quite a bit longer than 6 hours. Think I had to fight Ares 50+ times.

Ninja Gaiden Black really for me started on pushing to play on a harder difficulty. I love how the enemies and moves of them change as you up the difficulty. Only could get a few levels into very hard because it was, well, very hard.

[Why o why]

Oiiii mate.... god of war 3 on hard....I swear the first boss (poseidon) took me around 45 minutes to an hour...tuff mf'er.

Ill play this on hard as I normally do. If I complete that to the level I normally complete a game in 5 hours I'd be both surprised and pissed.

Tgat said, with this game it seems many just want the something negative to stick....I mean who on earth watches a 5 hour gameplay video of a game they intend to play huh..... Ill see for myself as I'm on a day one movement. Why do so many ignore the longer gameplay stats. My problem, as it always is with n4g, is truths and half truths mixed with agendas vitriol.

[_-EDMIX-_]

God Of War, Onimusha 1, Portal, Mirrors Edge, any of the Call Of Duties, Gears Of War etc.

Many many game are not these long 20 plus hour epics, even the MGS games the second or 3rd time over are much, much shorter, same with the RE games.

I just think many are trying to fill a time with some sort unit of measurement of "fun" LMFAO!

In that regard, God Of War isn't great, neither is Gears Of War, neither is Portal etc lol

Its just a dumb thing to really try to rate games by. Games are not like film in that regard...hell neither is film.

Some films are great short if they fit the concept, some films are amazing long, some films should have been longer to fulfill the concept more etc.

[LexHazard79]

On normal...

[brotherlymoses]

$60 +tax for a 7-8 hour game with no replay value or multiplayer. That's a $10 game.

[SmokingMonkey]

Ico

Trophy: Beat the game in under 2hrs

Priceless

[MysticStrummer]

Any fun game has replay value. End of story.

[Silly gameAr]

Since people need something to nit pick about when they have nothing else. Game length will be a non-issue after The Order comes and goes, and then will pop back up when people find a game that they want to trash but can't find a real reason to trash it.

I wonder if Quantum Break or Tomb Raider will be a problem when game lenght is bought up? Guess we'll have to see.

[diesoft]

Because $60 is a lot to spend for a short experience. Justify it however you want but most of us want to play a game that satisfies us and if it's really good then a short time with it is disappointing, even if it's very awesome.

[hennessey86]

the quality of the game is more important than the length, the longest movies are 3 to four hours so a 5 to 8 hour game as long as its good should be no problem for anyone.

[BlackTar187]

it's amazing how hard the US media is trying.

[LexHazard79]

Oh the Americans!! How is it now becoming a U.S. media thing? You're the one trying too hard.

[BlackTar187]

I'm american btw.

I call a spade a spade.

[Commodore]

Because in this economy, $60 for less than 10 hours of game play is kinda bullshit. I can easily rent the game for $5 for 3 days and get the same experience.

[Tales RPG addict]

That's why I play Rpg's most of the time both Western and Jrpg's including old school and new titles.

[uth11]

I don't even have enough time finish all the games I have, there's many I haven't played yet because I'm busy with others. Why does every game need to be 20 hours or more? There's many games I don't buy simple because they are too long and I don't have enough time to get into them.

I appreciate games that don't require huge time investments.

[VJGenova]

I know right? That's why I pick up games on sale and delay gratification a little bit. Take The Darkness II. I paid one whole dollar for it and it took me 6 hours to beat. Great game! Totally worth the dollar!

[Multiplatguy]

Length and content has always been important to most people until the rumours started about The Order. Now all of sudden, people think it's fine. And it's obviously a console war thing.

I see people constantly blaming Xbox fanboys for the criticism that this game has received and that is what is really bothering them. They don't want this game to fail because they feel it will somehow hurt their little pride in the console they prefer.

You PS fanboys can blame Xbox fanboys all you want but the truth is if you found out Quantum Break was only 5 hours long, including cutscenes then you would be making fun of it and saying how dumb that is. And if you claim you wouldn't be then you're full of it.

[izumo_lee]

It goes both ways buddy. That is the nature of fanboys who claim to be gamers. A real gamer is willing to accept and look pass any criticism that is made for a game and enjoy it based on their own assessment.

Whether it be a Xbox exclusive, Sony exclusive, or Nintendo exclusive there will unfortunately be people trying to bring the game down.

[JasonKCK]

It doesn't go both ways on this site.

[Multiplatguy]

The fanboyism goes both ways yeah. All fanboys, regardless of their platform of choice are constantly saying stupid things that anybody with sense would be flagging as trolling. But unfortunately those are the top comments with the most agrees on this site.

Although I disagree with a real gamer looking past criticism. A real gamer can criticism a game he likes and a real gamer can hear criticism without it putting him into a childish fit of rage.

[WelkinCole]

Except this game is not 5hrs long.

[MidnightWatcher]

Silent Hill 2 takes about 7 hours to conplete, was a full priced game and it turned out to be one of the greatest ever made.
Not saying the Order will turn out to be one of the greatest games ever made, but i'll always take deep, varied and short over shallow and long *cough* Skyrim, Crysis2 *cough*

[Convas]

Is this the same board that jumped ALL over Call of Duty and other games (Ryse was bashed for a short campaign as well and that game had a multiplayer component) last generation?

Suddenly, a game that's on a certain popular platform is getting criticized, for features that OTHER GAMES HAVE BEEN CRITICIZED FOR, it's some giant bias conspiracy right?

Gotta love that persecution complex.

[gangsta_red]

This is what is so confusing to me. I mean weren't we all up and arms about Metal Gear Ground Zeroes being so short?

How about Titanfall for having no SP and only MP?

Game length and content has always been a hot topic for any game. It's truly amazing how people want to disregard an age old argument because now their game on their console of choice is now being put under a microscope.

All of a sudden the "western" media is biased.

[MysticStrummer]

"This is what is so confusing to me. I mean weren't we all up and arms about Metal Gear Ground Zeroes being so short?

How about Titanfall for having no SP and only MP?"

I wasn't up in arms about either of those games for either of those issues, so no, "we all" weren't.

"It's truly amazing how people want to disregard an age old argument because now their game on their console of choice is now being put under a microscope."

That goes both ways. Some people piling on The Order defended other games that had the same criticisms, but were simply on their console of choice. By the way, an argument being age old doesn't make it valid.

[gangsta_red]

"By the way, an argument being age old doesn't make it valid."

But an age old topic constantly being argued is equally tiring especially when we all know pretty much the answer.

"so no, "we all" weren't."

By "we" I mean the same people in this and other articles who are now crying foul. If you were not, then you are not apart of the "we". I didn't know I had to be so literal.

[Silly gameAr]

Didn't see many articles that came out daily about Titanfall BEFORE that game even came out constantly nitpicking it to death. In fact, we mostly heard praise from the media before and after the game launched.

And, at least Ground Zeroes was out before we heard anything about the length, and even then we didn't hear about it as much as The Order. Not even close.

[gangsta_red]

@SillyGamr

We heard just as much about Ground Zeroes length before it was out as we did any other game.

http://n4g.com/news/1449765...

And really? You didn't see any nitpicking of Titanfall...

http://n4g.com/news/1288072...

http://n4g.com/news/1433749...

http://n4g.com/news/1433190...

Those are just a few quick links to show you that every high profile game has gone through some sort of scrutiny. The reason why a lot of you don't see it is because...

A) You were apart of that scrutiny.
B) You didn't have any interest in the game unlike The Order.

"In fact, we mostly heard praise from the media before and after the game launched."

Maybe because Titanfall had actual hands on gameplay that a lot of people felt was fun unlike some who played the demo of The Order.

[Silly gameAr]

You have a dozen more of those articles? Because I'm sure I can link a dozen Order articles that came out in the past 2 days alone.

And, there was plenty of praise for The Order when people got their hands on, it's just that people chose to ignore those articles and go straight for the negative crap. Kind of set the tone for the game on N4G. The N4G "media" saw the negative articles and saw the hit potential for them because people would flock to them no matter if they had interest in the game or not. It's not a conspiracy theory, and it's not people's imaginations.

It's obvious to anyone with eyes whats going on here, well, except for the people like you that chose not to see the problem because you had no interest in The Order or a PS4 to play it on in the first place.

[Imalwaysright]

Since I started buying games with my own money.

[Excalibur]

Now that we are in Next Gen with both consoles now using Blu-Ray I expect ALL games to be bigger/longer/better quality.
Devs have been screaming about space and better hardware forever now, given that they now have Blu-Ray, Bigger HDD and the cloud now and better Hardware sorry IMO a 5-6 hour game is unacceptable.

I'll also say this, I don't care if it's exclusive to one machine or other (I own both so no fan boi here) if you have a single player only game with no 1+ capabilities 5-6 or even 7 hours is pretty sad on your part, I don't care how pretty your game looks or how good your story is you won't get my hard earned 60+ $$$.

I really want to play the Order 1886 but I'll wait until it hits the 20-30$$ range.

[Fro_xoxo]

There are many games that have been slated for their lengths.

The Order will not be an exception.

Some care about game length, some don't

That's just the way it is.

[OC_MurphysLaw]

Game length is always questioned when the replay value of game is being questioned. The main reason the The Order 1886 is being questioned regarding its length is 100% around the fact that there is no co-op or mp component. I would guess average person only plays through a single player game once unless it has some elements in its core that makes replaying fun.

[telekineticmantis]

It's always been an issue, but I've never seen it like this. I don't know abour outside of the gaming community, but with the amount of attention, this game is receiving from Journalists, this game must be expected to do Call of Duty numbers.

[OhMyGandhi]

I have a PS4, and I am looking forward to playing The Order. However, This is a high profile release, an exclusive. Ready At Dawn are a brilliant team of developers, they somehow put God of War with little compromise in terms of quality on a handheld platform.

But that is not the point. I want to see AAA titles like these strive for a longer run time. I love short games. Gone Home, Limbo, Braid, Portal 1, Journey, Costume Quest, Dear Esther, Among the Sleep and many others remain favorites of mine, to be treasured for the rest of my life.

But I imagine that with a significantly larger budget, these games would have grown exponentially in size, and thereby lengthening their total experience. A good example is Portal. A rather short endeavor that suddenly became much larger in its sequel. They didn't just rehash much of what was shown in the first iteration, but expounded on it with new mechanics, keeping the experience fresh.

Now, the only caveat with The Order being a shorter game is that the experience BETTER be fresh throughout. The lack of a truly understandable response from RAD's creative lead didn't help matters, but worried people like me. Sometimes a short game can be indicative of an experience that ran out of ideas.

I don't want spawn closets, and shooting galleries. I want a cinematic experience that keeps me on my toes.

I'd like to think that as technology gets better and better, and the literal size of a game's data files has no real limitation, that we get longer games. I'm not asking for fetch quests, and 300 hour experiences.
Hell, I'm not even asking for 30 hour experience. But double digits. I am one to take my time through a game.

I'll never forget walking through the abandoned, decrepit hallways of the hospital section in Silent Hill 2, noticing all the cool little details that so many others might have missed, and those little touches can make me appreciate the game all the more. I spent far too much time in certain areas because the experience as whole deserved my attention, demanded me to slow down and enjoy the game to its fullest.

I'm not ready to jump on the "lets hate The Order for its length" bandwagon. I prefer to watch when the game releases, and watch other developers to see what they'd do as well. If the game is derivative, and people are still defending it, game length and all, then we have an even bigger issue on our hands.

[Tales RPG addict]

If you all really want games with long lengths go play some Jrpg's, WRpg's, and MMO's.

Long games/series that are generally really good

Elder Scrolls Series
FFXIV A Realm Reborn
Guild Wars 2
Xenogears
Xenosaga Trilogy
Xenoblade Chronicles
Xenoblade Chronciles X
Dragon Age Series
Namco's "Tales of Series"
Final Fantasy I-X.
Kingdom Hearts series
Suikoden Series
.Hack series
Wild Arms Series
Demon's Souls
Dark Souls I & II
Bloodborne
Baldur's Gate
Ys Series
Persona Series
Shin Megami Tensei Series
Fire Emblem series
Disgaea Series
Final Fantasy Tactics/War of The Lions
Star Ocean series
Valkyrie Profile I & II
Ogre Battle
Tactics Ogre
Sega's "Shining" Series
Legend of Legaia
Legend of Dragoon
Breath of Fire I - IV
Eternal Sonata
Radiata Stories
Secret of Mana
Seiken Densetsu 3
Legend of Mana
Soul Blazer
Illusion of Gaia
Terranigma
Chrono Trigger
Dragon Quest series
Brave Fencer Musashi
Romancing Saga 1-3
Saga Frontier
Witcher 1-3
Mass Effect Trilogy
Ni No Kuni Wrath of the White Witch
Dark Cloud 1 & 2
Rogue Galaxy

And that's only the tip of the iceberg of J/Wrpg's I know off of the top of my head. Stop complaining and play some awesome Rpg's.

Btw this list includes some Wrpg's and Jrpgs that I know are gonna be awesome.

[TOTSUKO]

People would rather run miles in a massive map to do an objective and call it dense gameplay.

[Father__Merrin]

when?

since 1 party has exclusive games during 1st half of year whilst the other party has multiplats only...

the bias is out but the thing is Sony won't stop releasing games due to media bias, I'm glad I picked PS4 as my new gen console as did many others

[Canthar]

Game still looks good. It's not for me as I am not a QTE fan at all, hated God of War. The length had no impact on my choice to get it or not.

[JoshBadWriter]

Since companies started charging $60 for 5 hours. I'm tired of these fanboys who can't think for themselves and just go with the party line.

[Donnywho]

I've been checking trophy percentages of PS3 and PS4 through the PS4. A very small amount of people actually beat the games they buy. So how much of this uproar is from people who won't even see it through, no matter the game length?

[Xavior_Reigns]

There are so many games in previous generations that were short yet they are considered amazing, great, epic, and masterpieces.

No its simple - people have an agenda against The Order plain and simple. Again if the game sucks so be it, but let people determine that themselves.

As for reviews the game will definitely be slaughtered even if it is good, because no one enjoys a serving of crow. And trolls will be even more vocal - what a sad bunch.

[Lethaltare]

I've always favoured quality over quantity. There's so many classic games that can be beaten in 30 minutes or less and they use to cost £50.

[gamerfan0909]

These articles defending the Order is getting old now. If you can't respect someones legit criticism on the games length then shut up and buy the game. Seriously I can't remember another game where people went out of their way to defend it this much. The game is 5.5 hours long INCLUDING cutscenes. If you can't even understand why people are questioning that then you're simply either biased, refuse to admit the game is flawed, or simpy do not care about other gamers opinions.

Someone on here said it perfectly. The guy that posted that 5 hour gameplay vid was not an fanboy or a anti sony drone. He was a consumer who bought a 400 dollar PS4 and a 60 dollar game and showed other potential consumers with PS4's the games length. So that guy is suddenly an xbot? The Sony fans on GAF with PS4's nd verified PSN accounts are all xbox fanboys because they voice their displeasure with the length?

I have zero problem with a video game being 5 to 8 hours long. I don't even have a problem with The Order being 5 to 8 hours long. What I do have a problem with, or better yet a fear with, is that in the future devs are going to try to make single player only games and scale everything back to capture great graphics and deliver short gameplay times. Again I see no problem with what RAD is doing. If there's enough consumers willing to buy it then so be it. But for a lot of you to come on here and dismiss the fact that the games length is a legit opinion is bullcrap and you know it.

And some of you defending short campaigns are full of it. A lot of these same accounts destroyed Ground Zeroes, COD, Battlefield for short campaigns. Fact of the matter is 80 percent of the people defending every flaw this game has only defend it because it's a Sony published game. I never see this passionate of response for games like Destiny, Watchdogs, AW, and other multiplats.

[L0wlifeGamer]

There are many high rated games with a length like The Order. But now it's 2015 and > dat console war. Haters gonna hate.

[JamesBondage]

"When did game length become so important?"..

First off, when did games become so short? i remember 10+ years ago, games would take weeks, Months! to complete... But game length became important when EVERYONE and their moms started releasing games with either day one dlc, or dlc thats announced before the game is even released. Leaving you wondering if they intentionally released that extra bit of game separately just to f*ck you out of 15-20 more dollars

[Elda]

The complain game is so old now with this game,everybody needs to move on to somthing else already.I already get what R@D are trying to convey,either you're going to buy it ir not.I'll be picking this game up playing it for what it's worth no matter if it's 5 or 15 hrs...30 or 60 dollars then moving on to play something else,that's the luxury of having a PS4 & a job.

[Kalebninja]

games I play have always been decent lengths like the first two kingdom hearts games were around 21 hours long, most final fantasy are at least 30+ hours, and Zelda skyward sword took me 40 hours to beat. look at dragon age and the witcher :) #rpgs

[Ch1d0r1]

Ill take quality over quantity any time.

[_LarZen_]

I find the discussion to be silly when statistics tells us that most people never finish their games. So those that argue that they get more value from long games and don't see the value in a 5h game.

Why is it more value when almost no one finishes the games that lasts 20-30h?

On Steam only 32% finished Skyrim. Only 30% finished Borderlands 2...

Here is the source. http://www.ign.com/articles...

[Predaking77]

When?

Since never. It had never been an issue. If you don't like the length of The Order JUST DON'T BUY IT. No one is forcing you but let me Tell you that judging an amazing game as The Order JUST for its length is a very stupid thing to do.

There wouldn't be a problem if The Order was multiplatform but since it is a very good exclusive and it has become the best looking game on any console, the xbox fans can't live with the hate and will use any pointless thing to spread it.

[Skankinruby]

Its never been an issue. If the order wasn't a ps4 exclusive this wouldn't be a topic of discussion anywhere. The gaming community has gotten beyond pathetic at this point.

[oSHINSAo]

Short Answer, since Sony fans care about Resolution, Frame Rate, Quantity of Indies, is it ok that they can point those issues, but when it came to be something against Sony, they all get nuts

[Xavior_Reigns]

You forgot to places "boys" behind fan and even then your statement is incorrect. I'm a sony & ms fan yet aren't them ms fanboys excited for the resolution bump & framerate bump from DX12? Also like any ps fanboy, ms fanboys will go "nuts" when needed so don't play innocent.

Hurry back to your bridge though...

[UltimaEnder]

I couldn't agree more with the points made in this feature article; being in my mid-30s, full time career, and two kids plus a wife I would rather a game be GREAT for 4-6 hours and little focus on multiplayer than an average player experience / story that lasts 15-30 hours and features a whole slew of multiplayer options. Give me quality over quantity any day of the week... AGREED?

[no_more_heroes]

True, but the argument is that there's not enough content to ask for $60. If it was less than that, I doubt there would be all this complaining.

I, however, will do what I do for every game. I will leave the mad people inside my laptop screen to their madness, while I do my own thing. Which means, I will wait for a few more decent* reviews to roll in. Then I'll watch an LP of it.

If the soundtrack doesn't grab me by the neck and lick my ears clean, then I'm not likely to buy it at $60. Lower than $60, almost definitely (if the other two thirds of the game are good).

*decent meaning well written reviews, whether they praise the game or not.

[trywizardo]

since always , specially for SP games ...

[Psychotica]

Before the Atari 2600, it was always about length because the only video games required you to put quarters in them for a just a few minutes, maybe 5 if you survived long enough.

[Adolph Fitler]

Game right up my alley... As they say, can't please everyone...someone is always going to find something to pick out, about any product... That's just human nature...
For instance, I love jokes about EVERYTHING, including death & such.... Whereas, some of the jokes I hear & like, or like & tell, would be highly offensive to 6-7/10 people (hell maybe more)... But, f-ck them..
I couldn't give a shit about them, & would make a joke about them, before there cold dead bodies hit the embalming table...

That is my humour.. Black, dark, sick, whatever other BS label...Nope, I'm just fully open minded, understand that death is part of life, & see that as no boundary for comedies sake.... my motto be, if you can't laugh about it, you may as well be dead..

That is a belated rant, that could have said in short, that we all have different tastes, personalities & ideologies....that is what makes us all unique... that no single person is exactly the same as the next...in fact, there are some big divides in us, to the point we sometimes kill each other over them...

So, in short, "LIKE & BUY THE ORDER, OR I WILL WISH DEATH UPON YOU & YOUR STANKY HO FAMILIES".

PEACE, LOVE & MUNGBEANS TO ALL........ALL WHO BUY THE ORDER ONLY...TO THE REST OF YOU, DEATH BE WITH YOU....

[Novistador]

When retailers charge 60$ per game. Replay value DOES matter. CoD, evolve, Battlefield and other multi-player heavy games can get away with an 8hr campaign because the replay value online can be 50hrs plus. BEING SHORT DOES NOT MAKE IT A BAD GAME,but it does mean that the game may not be worth it to a lot of people. It may even bother those who bought it. As it stands (to me) the game is not worth the 60$ price tag.

[Scottyxboxoneandps4]

Games that are focused soley on singleplayer should be at the very least 8 hours. Sure I like to replay a good game, but this is where it's different than a multiplayer only game. The multiplayer games gonna have longer legs obviously. This is why I worry for the order. People have already said their not that impressed by the gameplay now it's only 5 hours long?
Still gonna get it at the end of the week,just hope I won't be trading it in as fast.

[Ashunderfire86]

Since Call of Duty made it standard.

[Excalibur]

It cracks me up when people try to compare a game from "back in the day" to the systems we have now, yes there were some fantastic short games "back in the day" but the thing they seem to forget is you were lucky if that game broke 128kb in size, with the hardware/software we have now we should ALL demand more, a five hour single player only game is unacceptable IMO but if you want to pay for it go ahead, I expect more for my hard earned money.

[Trekster_Gamer]

Game length became an issue for me when the price tag hit 65 a game.

[Surt]

Cause nerds and kids can't quite their emotions and use bloody logic. Worse and more annoying then those kids that take sociology courses in college.

Do the bloody math. Even at 5hr game. That is what? Two 2hr hour movies right? Now unless you go to the movies alone (that's sad) that's two tickets at $25 per movie. $50 total.

So let me see... You get a great single player experience that you keep for $60. Or you get two movies that you can't keep for $50. There.

Fan boys.. on both bloody sides. *spits on the ground*