Highlights

  • 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 78 to 79 hours.
  • Harvest Moon: Back to Nature, Persona 3, and Might & Magic: Heroes 6 are also lengthy titles, offering gameplay ranging from 81 to 87.5 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.

Related
10 Visual Novels You Can Beat In A Few Sittings
Only got a few hours to spare? Try these visual novels.

It's all about what is done within the time. So, more doesn't necessarily mean better. Yet, the developers of the following games may disagree since they made extremely long titles. In fact, according to HowLongToBeat, they have the longest main stories ever.

Updated January 12, 2024 By Ben Jessey: Games vary heavily in length, as you have some really short adventures that you can beat in one sitting and others that seem to take forever. This list revolves around the latter, as this is a collection of the longest games ever.

In this update, we've added a few more games. In the process, we've altered the lengths of a few others as more people have added completion times to HowLongToBeat, which means the original average lengths are no longer accurate.

A game has to have at least 10 main story times submitted to HowLongToBeat and something resembling an ending to be considered for the list.

14 Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate - 77 Hours

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Screenshot Of Players Fighting Monster

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. Yet, there is a bit more to it than that, as 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 hours to complete, especially as some of the toughest beasts take a long time to beat.

13 Pathfinder: Kingmaker - 77.5 Hours

pathfinder: kingmaker valerie talking

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.

Related
8 Best Side Quests In Pathfinder: Kingmaker
Take a break from the main story of Pathfinder and delve into some of these side quests - they're worth experiencing.

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.

12 Gran Turismo 4 - 77.5 Hours

Gran Turismo 4 Screenshot Of Yellow Car

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 77.5 hours to get it.

11 Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate - 78 Hours

One of the many monsters you will face in Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate

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 78 hours to finish all the main quests in this version.

10 RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 - 78.5 Hours

Rollercoaster 2 Screenshot Of Pink Rollercoaster

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 78.5 hours. This hefty playtime is due to how long some of the more difficult scenarios take to beat.

9 Story Of Seasons: Trio Of Towns - 79 Hours

Story Of Seasons Trio Of Towns Screenshot Of Character Running Across Farm
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. It's a dream that you achieve 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.

8 Persona 3 - 80 Hours

Persona 3 Screenshot Of Protagonist With Sword

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 80 hours.

7 Harvest Moon: Back To Nature - 81 Hours

Harvest Moon Back To Nature Screenshot Of Characters Talking Next To Hospital

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.

Related
The Best Harvest Moon Games, Ranked
Harvest Moon, also known as Story of Seasons, is a popular farming game - but with so many entries in the series, which is the best to play?

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 81 hours. This lengthy time is understandable, as the game's story spans several years.

6 Might & Magic: Heroes 6 - 85 Hours

Might & Magic Heroes 6 Screenshot Of Gameplay Including Grassy Area and Several Characters

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 85 hours. The measured and strategic gameplay is likely part of the reason the game is so long.

5 SnowRunner - 93 Hours

Snow Runner: Trailblazing In A Humvee Up A Snow Filled Mountain

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 93 hours, according to the users on HowLongToBeat. So, it's one of the longer adventures you will experience in gaming.

4 Monster Hunter: Freedom Unite - 98 Hours

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite Screenshot Of Knight And Monster

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.

Related
The Best Hunting Video Games
We've assembled a list of the best hunting games ever to grace a screen.

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 98 hours or so, depending on your skill level.

3 Persona 5 Royal - 101 Hours

persona 5 royal ann and joker walking together-1

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 - 109 Hours

Kerbal Space Program Take Off

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. There are an unlimited number of randomized contracts you can complete.

However, there is one contract that tasks you with completing the Ultimate Challenge. To some players, this is essentially the final challenge you need to do to say you beat the game.

1 Library Of Ruina - 118 Hours

The bookkeeper Angela from Library of Ruina in her gold-tinted, candlelit library.

Library Of Ruina is a unique game where 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 is a fair amount of lengthy story scenes also. This is why the main story lasts a staggering 118 hours.

Next
10 Shortest Triple-A Games
If you don't have all day but want to enjoy a great triple-A experience, try out these short but good titles.