How long should games be?

News that Arkane studios-developed, Bethesda-Published Neo-Victorian, first-person, mystical, Stealth and a whole lot of other adjectives action game Dishonoured would come in at about 12 hours – for those who like to rush through things – has been met with mixed reaction.

[zeal0us]

Long enough to know I'm getting my money's worth.

[ATi_Elite]

Oh No!

Condoleezza Rice is testifying before congress the exact size of my penis! WMD = Weapon of Minor Dimensions!!

Anyway if a game is $60 then you better get $120 of fun outta it.

My motto is if i put in over 40 hours into the SP or 100 hours into the MP then yeh i'm happy!

Not repetitive bullcrap gameplay but EPIC OMG 40 hour gameplay.

[ABizzel1]

Depends on the game.

Shooters can get away with a 6 - 8 hour campaign, because multiplayer and co-op add longevity to the game.

Most other games should aim for 10 - 12 hours. 8 hours is a decent length for a campaign while IMO 12 is the golden number for what we generally think of as a single player campaign (Hack and Slash, Adventure games, etc...)

RPG's, Strategy games, and MMO's however should aim for around 40+ hours. IMO 30 is the bare minimum for those genres with the exception of strategy games since it's a broad genre.

However, at the end of the day you have to feel the game was enjoyable enough to justify the purchase.

In a perfect world shooters would have amazing and deep campaigns stretching to the 10 hour mark, Action-Adventure games would be mini epics reaching the 15 - 20 hour mark, and RPG's would be world-wide enchanting quest upwards of 60+ hours. But nothing's ever perfect.

[CustardTrout]

Don't they check this? If the game is too long it won't fit in the disc drive...

Seriously, there's usually a spot you should reach for, if your game is repetitive and you know this then don't drag it on but don't charge £40.

[D3mons0ul]

100-300 hours, let's do it!

No more bullshit, step it up people

[Jreca]

The game promotes diversity. If it can be replayable enough, 12 hours seems fine.

[vallencer]

I love how everyone wants games to be long because they are $60. Have any of you played any old nintendo games as of late? Those games are easily within the 1-3 hour range and when they came out they were $50 or more so i don't understand the complaints? Just like back then not ALL games are going to be long it's how it has been and always will be. Contra can't be as long as Dragon Warrior just like Call of duty can't be as long as Elder Scrolls. Two different games its just not possible.

[LOGICWINS]

"Those games are easily within the 1-3 hour range and when they came out they were $50 or more so i don't understand the complaints?"

Standards have changed.

[vallencer]

So we get twice as many hours of gameplay for 10 more dollars and people want more?? I don't care if a game is four hours long and is $60 as long as its good and i had a blast playing it then it was worth the money.

[vickers500]

10 hours minimum.

WAY more for games that don't need to rely on scripted cinematics and heavily cinematic sequences.

[GiggMan]

lol @ the picture posted.

[RXL]

it depends on the story..and genre..

i don't want my RPG 8 hours long..

but for an action game that seems like the sweet spot..

a good adventure/story driven game would be great at 10 hours..

you have to actually realize and break it down in terms of what takes up time..

an average boss battle only takes up anywhere between 2 and 5 minutes..

if you're game is 10 hours long...that's NOTHING in terms of scope and time..

RPG's like Skyrim or Final Fantasy are upwards of 25-40 hours because of how BIG the maps are HUGE and there is so much traveling.

[Treian]

as long as RPGs in the SNES, PS1, and PS2 days!!!!!!!!!

[Hicken]

The length of a single playthrough isn't all that important to me, unless a game is only good for one playthrough. In that case, I'd like 15+.

If, however, I can play through the game multiple times and still enjoy the experience, then even a handful of hours is enough.

[SonyStyled]

im usually pretty happy with 8+ hrs for single player

[smashcrashbash]

As long as it is a rich satisfying experience it doesn't have to be exceedingly long. Journey wasn't too long but left me speechless. Better to have a short game that gets to the point and you have good fun along the way then some game then have a game trying to distract you from how short it really is with dumb tasks that you really don't care about 'Go gather all the red flowers in the forest' and you feel like asking 'Do I have to?'

[MdotBreed]

How long was the original Bioshock? It was pretty linear and no one complained about the campaign length of that. Dishonored, in my opinion, is Bioshock in a different setting with different enemies. And that's not a bad thing. Bioshock sucked you in with it's story, interesting characters and awesome game mechanics. The game mechanics are there. If Dishonored can create a compelling storyline then I think people will look past the short champaign.

People are too entitled nowadays. No one has a gun to their heads to buy these games. Throw $5 on it at Gamestop so you get your preorder goodies, wait til you read/see a review for the game and, if it still looks good, pick it up. Otherwise, transfer your five bucks to a new game and be done with it. Hell, if it's only 8 hours, you can rent it for a night at Red Box and save yourself $59 altogether.