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Can a 40+ Hour Game Tell an Engaging Story?

November 05, 2008 in Blog comments 5

People are demanding longer games in the belief that it will make for a better storyline, therefore a better game overall in terms of gameplay and value.

Korey of youarelose.blogspot.com says that shorter games are better because you'll remember more. The rule is that the longer something takes, the less you're likely to remember by the end of it. He uses examples such as Portal Shadow of the Colossus as good games that are short in length, but still present a good storyline. This is in comparison to Jeanne d'Arc, taking a long time to get anywhere with while playing, which he says is a letdown because it reduces the want to play the game.

So how can developers create a good story without making it really long? Integrate it into gameplay better. A lot of people don't have the time to spend hours on a video game but still want to get out of it what a gamer who lives by the controller would.

So, consumers need to chuck out the "bigger and longer is better" mentality and take on board the "quality not quantity" one instead.

Dark Arcanine via youarelose.blogspot.com »
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  • 1
    Play ISDF Nov 5, 08
    I think it varies a lot. Some stories are engaging just for the sheer size and detail in them, others definitely need to be short due to how it unfolds. There's really isn't a yes or no answer to that question.
  • 0
    Final Blade Nov 5, 08
    As Play ISDF stated, it really depends on the game more then anything. MGS4 story was a long time but it was brilliant. So It worked for that game. So really there isn't a definite answer.
  • 0
    Shadow net583x s Nov 5, 08
    Go play Tales of Symphonia and you tell me
  • 1
    Mishtram Nov 5, 08
    There's a difference between a game having an immersive universe and a game forcing you to grind, and there's many other differences available between short and long games. My best memories still revolve around longer games like Baldur's Gate II and similar games to that. Yes, it was a very long game if you did everything and I'm sure some people couldn't keep up with it, but you were wandering around a universe with a built in history that they actually wrote into in-game books and told to you by dozens of NPCs! Battles and stories which intertwine across a city and the surrounding country side were all about. It's something a lot of creators don't do today, instead sending out a series of games which take 20 or 30 hours to complete but are "intense".

    Then they forget that if they don't have any form of variation to the type of intensity they are employing... well, the game gets very monotonous and while we do remember something, it's only going to be a singular type of gameplay.

    It's fine if you can create that sort of memorable gameplay, but trying to attach memorable gameplay to the length of a game is foolish. There are many more examples of bad games which were short than there are examples of short games which were good.
    • 0
      Daigoji_Gai Nov 6, 08
      Baldurs Gate II *tears of joy* I hope you are salivating for DragonAge... epic post, wish I could give you both my thumbs!

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