Comments on: Games are Getting Shorter (and that is Good)

By: When Books track your Behavior (just like Games do) | The Ludologist

When Books track your Behavior (just like Games do) | The Ludologist — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 13:53:22 +0000

[…] have even used user statistics to argue that games were too long, but this kind of tracking can also be seen as a dystopian future for […]

By: Jesper

Jesper — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 17:13:46 +0000

@Brian I agree that the ultimate test measure is quality. I am just saying that pure length has been valued over quality.

@Boes Yes, a completion vs. 100% completion option is a way of allowing games to speak to people with different tastes (and different amounts of time).

Full disclosure: I prefer to complete, rather than complete with 100%. I find the optional side missions in Mass Effect quite boring…

By: Boes

Boes — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 11:14:07 +0000

As opposed to a film, I believe a gamer is not necessarily expected to “finish” of “complete” the game in order to enjoy it or feel like the money for the game is well-spend. In some games it is not even possible: Tetris can’t be won and games like Sim City or Football Manager are simply open-ended. But also for games with a clearly defined start and finish, like Mass Effect, the player can enjoy playing the first, let’s say, “50%” and then choose to put it aside to try something new. There simply are different types of players (Bartle’s player types for example) who experience games differently. Some players reach their “game dead point” in which they have to spend too much “dead time” in order to reach higher goals (like finishing the game/campaign/story or in case of Sim City: to get 10 billion citizens or something like that) which might make them decide to stop playing. In stead of simply shortening games, there should always be a possibility for fans to play the game as long and often as they want. For people who generally don’t reach the end there might be a “short version” or low degree of difficulty to be choosen.

By: Brian

Brian — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 09:46:32 +0000

When I typically play a game I try to do as many of the side missions as possible. It is not often I try going for the platinum achievement in games as many of them have repeat action X 1000 times, which I hate.

A few games also simply overwhelm me. Like Baldurs Gate 2, with it’s vastness and sheer amount of gameplay possibilities, but I still play it since it is so well made.

A game I stopped playing was BulletStorm, even if it is short, I just didn’t feel it was that well made and certain aspects of it bugged me.

So to summize I would say that the it is not the length of a game which effects whether I will finish it or not, but rather it’s quality and contents.

By: Jesper

Jesper — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 14:21:09 +0000

@Mark I guess the big argument would be that we are consuming our entertainment in ever-shorter bites, due to more hectic and multifaceted lifestyle. (Though I would love to have some data saying that is actually the case.)

By: Mark N.

Mark N. — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 13:22:19 +0000

I’m not sure if it’s at all related, but there’s been some discussion of the same phenomenon in television series as well (over longer timescales). A typical 1950s/60s American television show may have had around 35-40 episodes with 50 minutes of non-advertisement programming each, for somewhere in the range of 30 hours. A 1990s network drama would’ve been around 20-25 episodes of 44 minutes each, for around 15 hours; and a 2000s cable drama might be 13 episodes of 50 minutes each, or around 10 hours.

By: Jesper

Jesper — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 08:45:32 +0000

@Brian As I read the article, the numbers refer to completing the main campaign.
When you complete a game, do you never reach a point where you wish for it to be over?

By: Brian

Brian — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 07:37:00 +0000

Just wondering, game completion does that mean just the main campaign or does it mean the 100% achievement where you can gotten every acheivement in the game ?.

In either case it leaves a question whether the game isn’t completed because the gamer thought it was too long, or if they got tired of completing everything in the game.

I dont think games should be shorter, but I agree with the removal of filler.

By: Jesper

Jesper — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 13:56:49 +0000

@Frank yes, that was unclear. I have added a note.

By: Frank Lantz

Frank Lantz — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 13:49:45 +0000

Oh, I see you clarified that on Facebook. Never mind. Stupid internet.