The wee hours!

kaos · Post by **kaos** » Mon Aug 30, 2004 10:18 pm

how many hours do you think an rpg should last?

Some people ask for 100+. and while its not impossible, im pretty sure the rpg will turn up pretty stale as a result.

I've seen complaints about games that where only about 10 hours long. and nobody wants to bother if it goes under that. seems like 20 is generally excepted and expected minimum.

But it seems to me that when these hours are talleyd up, the majority of them go into reading and comprehending the storyline + cutscenes.
and realistcly you've probably only spent half of the total time actually playing.

So just how long realisticly do you think a non-dungeon crawler rpg should be, before you consider it too short?

Post by **Melana** » Tue Aug 31, 2004 1:06 am

More than 20 hours to get the actual story finished, for a perfect completion with the sidequests and stuff... I dont like more than another 20 on it. Basically i just dont have the time or patience for it usually. That said if the sidequests etc are really good..I will clock up as many hours as I need to finish a game.

BradleySmith · Post by **BradleySmith** » Tue Aug 31, 2004 5:11 am

a game can be twenty minutes long and I'll call it money well spent if it was a good game. Time doesn't make the game.

Post by **Melana** » Tue Aug 31, 2004 8:39 am

I think though that the time you spend playing a game is translated into depth, plot and character developement as well as gameplay and side quests etc. I like at the end of my games to have a bit more depth than he saved slyvia from the bad guys and kicked there ass good.

I want to get to know my protagonists personality and quirks, I want to have had enough development not only of his strength on the battlefield but as a character as well. Why the hell should I be rooting for him... for all I know he's just pissed off because someone stole his girlfriend and he's on a villanous rampage.

A good game is able to give me all of that without a nice amount of FMV's, enough bashing stuff to crap time and story without being 200 hours long.

Darkside · Post by **Darkside** » Tue Aug 31, 2004 7:16 pm

Know what was sad? When the first part of the .hack game came out. lots of people complained that it was only 16 hours long. whiney little bitches. all 4 parts are probally 16 hours long. why complain. you have a long freaking game to play. get over it.

As far as i'm concerned, i don't have much time to finish an RPG. 16 hours is fine with me. just play it more on the weekends.

depends on how good the story is, if it's lame. i'd rather finish it off fast and bring it back to eb. If the story is good, i'd love to play it as long as i can. just that homework comes first. lol

last couple FF stories where kinda lame. Hopefully that Star ocean game doesn't have lame story. i might rent it..

Super Goat Weed · Post by **Super Goat Weed** » Wed Sep 01, 2004 2:13 am

i would guess that should depend on what the game contains.

i would like to see a game that you can complete in 25-30 hours of direct play, but if you added in sidequests and other things that you could just spend time doing after finishing the actual game it should probably take 50 - 60 to complete. That way you can just play the game if you want to, or mess around with other stuff if you've already finished it but want a little more to do.

Vandire · Post by **Vandire** » Wed Sep 01, 2004 3:11 am

longetivity doesnt really bother me, ive enjoyed rpgs that last less than an hour (flash ones mainly) and also enjoy ones that last 100+

so long as it has a gripping and compeling story, well thought out cast then im happy

Matt · Post by **Matt** » Tue Sep 07, 2004 7:32 pm

ummmm...i dont agree....if i spend £50..about $75-100 on an RPG...i want about 60+ hours outta it...games like devil may cry...my god...im soooo fuckin glad i borrowed that first,i would actually wasted my money on that short game...cos 6hrs...i mean..i could bought that,played it and traded it in the same day....thast no value for money

VAgrant story tested that a little...but i liked that...

but if i pay nothing...it doesn't bother me

i liked devil may crys story,it was compelling....but i was let down by that shit

Super Goat Weed · Post by **Super Goat Weed** » Tue Sep 07, 2004 8:45 pm

Vagrant story huh?

you know i have that game and i must be doing something wrong, battles against normal enemies last for over 10 minuites with my character doing maybe 5 points of damage max. I read FAQs, read the manual, did all sorts of things and i can't find out what i'm doing wrong

kaos · Post by **kaos** » Tue Sep 07, 2004 9:49 pm

make sure your using the right weapon type vs the type of monster.

like lizardmen for instance fall fast under a glaive.

then somtimes the fights just last really long. I fought a boss for what had to be an hour.

Super Goat Weed · Post by **Super Goat Weed** » Tue Sep 07, 2004 10:24 pm

it just seemed so damn annoying to me, and i was doing that. Hell i was switching weapons every time i ran into a different kind of monster just because i was hoping it would eventually speed things up

didn't happen, haven't played the game in years because of it, but i don't really want to part with it because i'm hoping someday i'll figure it all out

Wulf · Post by **Wulf** » Tue Sep 07, 2004 10:40 pm

47 hours

Vandire · Post by **Vandire** » Wed Sep 08, 2004 2:07 pm

first dragon i fought was a bitch in vagrant story, initial hit doing 0, had to get a chain of at least 30 to do any real damage to it

kaos · Post by **kaos** » Wed Sep 08, 2004 3:58 pm

oh yeah thata a huge part of it.

Chain.

the first few years i played it i didnt chain at all..
when i finally figured it out it was pretty damn swift.

you can make chains last for freaking ever if you get good at it

Vandire · Post by **Vandire** » Wed Sep 08, 2004 4:13 pm

my current record is 67, then i pushed square twice, and got pissed off, then the damn thing decided to hit me back, and i nearly died, which was fun..i wonder if my psx still works