Key Takeaways
- Long video games can provide great value for your money, but the length alone doesn't determine quality. Developers of these extremely long games might think otherwise.
- Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate, RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, and Gran Turismo 4 are among the longest games ever, with playtimes ranging from 75 to 78 hours.
- Harvest Moon: Back to Nature, Persona 3, and Might & Magic: Heroes 6 are also lengthy titles, offering gameplay ranging from 81 to 85 hours.
There is no hard and fast rule about how long a video game needs to be. After all, great games come in all lengths. There are some wonderful brief games that only last a few hours and can be beaten in one session. There are also fantastic titles on the other end of the spectrum, though, that last hours upon hours.
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It's all about what is done within the time. So, more doesn't necessarily mean better. Yet, the developers of Valheim and others may disagree since they made extremely long titles. In fact, according to HowLongToBeat, they have the longest main stories ever.
Updated August 3, 2024, by Ben Jessey: The games on this list certainly give you your money's worth in terms of content, as they're the longest games ever. In this update, we've made sure the times provided by HowLongToBeat are still correct and have added a few more titles to the collection.
To be considered for the list, a game must have at least 10 main story times submitted to HowLongToBeat and something resembling an ending.
19 RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 - 75 Hours
RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 is a management simulation game that you can play for as long as you desire. You are free to build the most impressive and lucrative theme park possible. However, that doesn't mean you can't complete the game in a sense.
There are a host of different scenarios that place you in a unique park and give you an objective to complete. Finishing them all takes about 75 hours. This hefty playtime is due to how long some of the more difficult scenarios take to beat.
18 Record Of Agarest War - 75.5 Hours
Record of Agarest War is a game that needed to have a fairly long story. This is because it tells a tale of a war between good and evil that lasts generations. These generations are actually featured in the game itself.
After set points in the narrative, you jump forward to the next generation of warriors. This wouldn't have really had the same impact if the game only lasted a few hours. It's supposed to feel like you're engaged in a lengthy war. Your character's role in the conflict is complex, as you can follow the light or dark path. Along the way, you participate in many turn-based battles.
17 Pathfinder: Kingmaker - 76.5 Hours
Pathfinder: Kingmaker is based on the Pathfinder tabletop RPG series. As those games tend to be long, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that a video game version eats up a lot of hours, too. During that time, you will be experiencing an isometric RPG that features both real-time and turn-based combat.
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Outside of fights, you can spend time building up your kingdom. Well, technically, it's not really a kingdom at first. It's just a piece of land. But you can make it into a kingdom over the course of the game. You do this by creating buildings and assigning people important roles. All of this can take some time, which is one of the reasons the game is long.
16 Valheim - 77 Hours
Survival sandbox games like Valheim don't generally have endings. After all, they're just usually about surviving in an open world for as long as you can or want. Yet, Valheim is different from traditional survival titles.
You are controlling a Viking attempting to prove himself worthy of entering Valhalla. If you know about Norse Mythology, you will know that those who reach Valhalla are brave warriors. Therefore, you must prove yourself in that regard, too, by defeating the six bosses in the game. They're no slouches, and you start with nothing, so it takes a while to achieve those six victories.
15 Gran Turismo 4 - 77 Hours
Most racing games don't have an average completion time since they don't technically end. Gran Turismo 4 is different, though, as it has an actual conclusion in the form of end credits. It isn't the end of a major narrative or anything like that. Instead, you unlock the credits once you win the Gran Turismo World Championship.
This series is only unlocked after beating all the beginner and professional events. So, it's the climax to your racing career, which is why it deserves a credit sequence. It takes about 77 hours to get it.
14 Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate - 77.5 Hours
The original Monster Hunter 4 was only released in Japan. But a few months later, the Ultimate version came out, which allowed North Americans and Europeans to experience this lengthy action RPG.
The game is about fighting large monsters, but there is a bit more to it than that. You get to explore detailed environments, acquire resources, and track your large target. These things can take a bit of time, so it isn’t surprising that the game takes as long as 77.5 hours to complete, especially as some of the toughest beasts take a long time to beat.
13 Dragon Quest 7: Fragments Of The Forgotten Past - 78 Hours
Dragon Quest 7 is a turn-based JRPG with a story that revolves around an island. It's named Estard and is thought to be the only bit of landmass around. However, the hero of the story finds evidence of the existence of some surrounding islands.
This leads to a long, colorful adventure involving time travel. You go to different places in the past to learn a lot about the missing islands. So, you explore plenty of distinct places throughout the story, which is why it takes such a long time to beat.
12 My Time At Sandrock - 78.5 Hours
My Time At Sandrock is a farm life simulator set in a desert town. You play as a newcomer to the said town, as you're hired as the area's new builder.
The gameplay is fairly open, as you're free to build, farm, find resources, talk to people, complete quests, and explore. However, there is also a main story to work through by completing missions. Doing them all takes about 78.5 hours. Because of the nature of the game, though, most players will likely get distracted at various points, meaning the game takes longer to finish.
11 Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate - 79 Hours
Monster Hunter Generations is a spin-off to the main Monster Hunter series. Yet, despite being a spin-off, it's a lot like the mainline titles. This is because every mission tasks you with hunting large, dangerous beasts.
The Ultimate version is an HD port for the Nintendo Switch, and it's even longer than the original title. In fact, it's 24 hours longer, as you need around 79 hours to finish all the main quests in this version.
10 Story Of Seasons: Trio Of Towns - 79 Hours
Story of Seasons: Trio of Towns is an RPG mixed with a farming simulator. These types of games don't typically end, but you can reach the credits on this one, and it takes around 79 hours to do so.
The start of the game sees your customizable protagonist leave home in pursuit of their dream of becoming a farmer. You achieve this dream as you spend the entire game planting and growing crops. You also speak to people and can even get married if you desire, so you're able to live a full life as a farmer.
9 Harvest Moon: Back To Nature - 80 Hours
Harvest Moon: Back To Nature is a farm simulation game that actually has an ending. The story begins with you as a child, but you soon grow up and take ownership of a farm. You have to build the place up over the next few years while building relationships with nearby residents.
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You can even get married in this game and have a kid. Who you decide to spend your life with and how well you build up your farm impacts your conclusion, which will arrive after about 80 hours. This lengthy time is understandable, as the game's story spans several years.
8 Persona 3 - 81.5 Hours
Persona 3 FES has a main story length of 80 hours. As the two games aren't significantly different, there was no need for a separate Persona 3 FES entry.
Persona 3 tells a wild and compelling tale about a high school student who joins a special group known as the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (aka SEES). This group investigates a strange anomaly called the Dark Hour. In the process, they battle monsters known as Shadows in a mysterious tower they can enter during the Dark Hour.
When you're not doing that, you're living a typical teenage life. These quieter moments contain life and social simulation elements. To give both aspects of the game enough attention, it would have to be quite long. It certainly accomplishes that by lasting 81.5 hours.
7 Might And Magic: Heroes 6 - 83 Hours
Might & Magic: Heroes 6 is a turn-based strategy game that contains a few RPG elements. It's set in a fantasy world called Ashan. The place looks beautiful, but it could soon become a battleground due to an impending war between angels and demons.
Caught up in the conflict is a family of heroes. This tale lasts around 83 hours. The measured and strategic gameplay is likely part of the reason the game is so long.
6 SnowRunner - 90 Hours
SnowRunner puts you in the shoes of an off-road trucker who has to navigate difficult weather and dangerous terrain to make deliveries. You don't just deliver whatever you want to wherever you want. You have specific contracts and tasks to complete.
The contracts serve as the main missions, and they vary in difficulty. To complete all of them takes around 90 hours, according to the users on HowLongToBeat. So, it's one of the longer adventures you will experience in gaming.
5 Oxygen Not Included - 90 Hours
In Oxygen Not Included, you manage and look after your own space colony, making sure your people have oxygen, good food, power, and more. In the process, you can travel to different asteroids and planets to explore. So, there are survival, simulation, and exploration elements to this game.
These sorts of titles don't tend to have endings. Yet, you can technically 'beat' Oxygen Not Included by reaching The Temporal Tear, which is the farthest destination on the Starmap. It takes a lot of time to achieve that impressive feat, though.
4 Monster Hunter Freedom Unite - 100 Hours
As you'd expect, in Monster Hunter: Freedom Unite, you hunt monsters. In fact, most of the game's missions revolve around slaying beasts of some kind.
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Sometimes, you need to track and kill towering creatures. On other occasions, you have to dispose of smaller monsters, but there are typically more of them. There isn't much story in the game, but you can still beat it by finishing all the missions, which takes around 100 hours or so, depending on your skill level.
3 Persona 5 Royal - 101 Hours
The original Persona 5 has a main story length of 97.5 hours. As the two games aren't significantly different, there was no need for a separate Persona 5 entry.
According to HowLongToBeat, Persona 5 Royal takes a few hours longer than the original Persona 5. Both of them are incredibly long games, though, about a secret group known as the Phantom Thieves. These teenage vigilantes attempt to change the hearts of evil adults.
They don't do so with interventions and influential speeches. Instead, they have the power to go into the Metaverse, which contains their target's desires. From there, they can make them change their ways. The group targets plenty of people in the game. Plus, there are life simulation elements and plenty of long story conversations. So, it's no surprise the game is so long.
2 Kerbal Space Program - 115 Hours
It's debatable whether a game like Kerbal Space Program can be considered long or short, considering it doesn't really end. The career mode sees you run a space program where you send little green creatures into space using vehicles you create. You can complete an unlimited number of randomized contracts.
However, one contract tasks you with completing the Ultimate Challenge. To some players, this is essentially the final challenge to say you beat the game.
1 Library Of Ruina - 118 Hours
Library of Ruina is a unique game in which you run a library. Yet, instead of giving out books and organizing your shelves, you battle your guests. More specifically, you control your librarians, who fight your guests. The battles incorporate card play, dice rolls, and plenty of strategy.
There are many battles to participate in and guests to fight. Plus, there are a fair amount of lengthy story scenes. This is why the main story lasts a staggering 118 hours.
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