I Like Short Games

General and high profile video game topics.
User avatar
Retro STrife
Posts: 2531
Joined: August 3rd, 2015, 7:40 pm

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby Retro STrife » July 21st, 2017, 12:10 pm

GTS wrote:Saying "Few adults with real lives have 40+ hours to dedicate to a game" is denigrating.


No it's not. No one is denigrating your lifestyle. Apparently you just qualify as one of the "few" with real lives that do have 40+ hours to dedicate to a game. If anything, we're jealous.

User avatar
SpaceGuitarist
Posts: 46
Joined: August 20th, 2016, 7:47 am

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby SpaceGuitarist » July 21st, 2017, 5:00 pm

Not sure I agree with this.
Of course I dislike games that take hundreds of hours to complete - mostly because I know that these games are based on repetition and grinding. But I would never say I prefer short games. As an adult, I am extremely concerned about how I spend my hard earned money, and I don't like forking out €€€ for a game that I can beat in a handful of hours.

There has to be a certain balance between the price I pay for it and the hours I can squeeze out of it. Usually, if I can get one hour for every euro I paid for it, I consider it a sound investment. Sounds brutal, but I don't like videogames nearly as much as to consider them pieces of art that transcend the old time/money rule.

User avatar
VideoGameCritic
Site Admin
Posts: 18102
Joined: April 1st, 2015, 7:23 pm

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby VideoGameCritic » July 21st, 2017, 7:42 pm

I think it also has to do with how many games you like to play. The World of Warcraft people seem to sink 100's (1000's?) of hours into the game with no desire to play anything else. Likewise there are people who sit around playing Madden or Call of Duty every day.

The people on this site tend to appreciate a variety of games from multiple generations, which limits the amount of time they can dedicate to any particular game.

User avatar
ptdebate
Posts: 1072
Joined: April 7th, 2015, 8:39 pm

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby ptdebate » July 21st, 2017, 9:37 pm

I, like GTS, see no conflict between having a full life and playing lengthy games. If a 10-hour shooter campaign takes a week to complete, then a 40-hour RPG will take four weeks! It's not that hard to finish long games if you just stick with it. But it shouldn't be hard work. If a game isn't holding your interest, don't force it. Good games will sustain your interest throughout the entire runtime.

Paul Campbell
Posts: 259
Joined: August 12th, 2015, 10:52 pm

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby Paul Campbell » July 22nd, 2017, 2:11 am

Atarifever wrote:
GTS wrote: Perhaps I know how to manage my time better. Think of all the other lengthy behaviors people engage in, such as time online, time staring at their phones, time binge-watching TV shows.

Sorry if you feel shamed.


Don't feel sorry that he decided to feel "shamed" instead of automatically thinking "I am an exception to the rule." I'm tired of not being allowed to speak on generalities or make general assumptions based on my observations because a person who doesn't fit the narrative decides to take offense. Get over it.

User avatar
Retro STrife
Posts: 2531
Joined: August 3rd, 2015, 7:40 pm

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby Retro STrife » July 22nd, 2017, 10:45 am

SpaceGuitarist wrote:But I would never say I prefer short games. As an adult, I am extremely concerned about how I spend my hard earned money, and I don't like forking out €€€ for a game that I can beat in a handful of hours. There has to be a certain balance between the price I pay for it and the hours I can squeeze out of it.


I was going to mention something along these lines earlier... specifically, that I almost always wait til a game drops significantly in price before buying it, which allows me to not expect a lot of time out of it. I understand if people paying $60 have higher expectations. But personally, I don't need $60 games the minute they come out. Jeez, I still have games that I wanted to play in 1998 that I haven't finished yet, so why am I going to hurry to buy the latest $60 game in 2017?? I throw it in my Amazon watchlist, and watch it drop in price over the months/years. Then I snag a good used copy when I'm ready..whether it be $30, $20, $10... At those prices, I can live with a 7 hour game.


ptdebate wrote:I, like GTS, see no conflict between having a full life and playing lengthy games. If a 10-hour shooter campaign takes a week to complete, then a 40-hour RPG will take four weeks! It's not that hard to finish long games if you just stick with it.


My problem is it takes me 1 to 2 months to finish that 10-hour shooter campaign and over a year to finish that 40+ hour RPG....

matmico399
Posts: 1419
Joined: November 25th, 2015, 6:11 pm

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby matmico399 » July 22nd, 2017, 11:17 am

Totally agreed Retro. I have so many games I never pay full price. With the exception of a few collectors gems I don't pay more than $20 for a game. I don't have to have it as soon as it's released. I have plenty to play until the price hits that magical number.

User avatar
pacman000
Posts: 1141
Joined: December 30th, 2015, 9:04 am

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby pacman000 » July 22nd, 2017, 12:11 pm

It took me about a decade to beat Super Mario Land's 12 levels. Put me in the short game camp.

I also have trouble convincing myself a $9 game is worth it; there's almost no way I'd buy one at $60.

I would like to try more RPGs tho.

jon
Posts: 1562
Joined: April 9th, 2015, 4:30 pm

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby jon » July 22nd, 2017, 4:32 pm

I think there's a reservoir of great short games from the 80's-90's. Games that are short can have a lot of replayability. A game that takes 30 minutes to complete can have a number of playable characters offering different playing experiences. That can contribute to a game like that having 20-30 hours of playing.

Voor
Posts: 1555
Joined: April 14th, 2015, 8:08 pm

Re: I Like Short Games

Postby Voor » July 23rd, 2017, 8:39 am

I'm a real life dad, and my issue is that I have other hobbies that also fill up my down time--music, biking, swimming, reading, movies, etc. Video games used to be #1, but as I get older, it slides down the list.

Same with the $$ part--with kids, mortgage, I just don't have tons of cash to sink into games/systems.

It very common for me to go for 1-2 weeks without playing ANYTHING, and then I'm using craving some Mario Kart or something easy to jump in and out of.

That another issue. I need a game that I can turn off at a moment's notice, not something with a checkpoint every 30 mins. "Daaaaaaadddddd!!!" Sure, I can play zelda 15 minutes at a time, but it takes me a while to remember what I was doing and what I'm trying to do next.


Return to “Video Games General”