Video Games That Take the Longest to Finish
When you’re engrossed in a large-scale video game, time seems to change. Before you know it, you’ve spent more time in a virtual world than on some real-world hobbies.
Hours turn into days, and days into weeks. With hundreds of hours of content crammed into expansive worlds that won’t let you leave, some games intentionally require this level of dedication.
These are not short weekend excursions. These are long-term virtual relationships that require perseverance, commitment, and a significant portion of your life.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Skyrim doesn’t just give you a main quest and call it a day. The game spreads content across an entire province, stuffing caves, ruins, and towns with things to discover.
You can ignore the dragons entirely and still sink 150 to 200 hours into a thorough playthrough that covers most of what the base game offers. Finishing the main story takes about 30 hours, but that barely scratches the surface.
The modding community keeps things going even longer—some players have been exploring modded versions of Skyrim for over a decade, constantly finding new content that wasn’t in the original release.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Geralt’s adventure through the Northern Kingdoms and beyond stretches far longer than most action RPGs. The main story alone runs about 50 hours if you’re moving at a decent pace, but the side quests pull you in different directions constantly.
The expansions add another 50 hours easily, and that’s before you start chasing down every question mark on the map or playing Gwent with every merchant you meet. The game respects your time by making most of that content actually worth experiencing, but it still demands a serious investment.
Persona 5 Royal
Japanese RPGs have always leaned toward longer playtimes, but Persona 5 Royal takes it to another level. You’re managing a double life as a high school student and phantom thief, which means every day gets split between dungeon crawling and social activities.
One playthrough runs around 120 to 140 hours if you’re working through the main story and extras, but completionists who max every confidant, find every persona, and explore every palace thoroughly can push that to 150 to 160 hours. The game’s calendar system means you can’t rush through everything, even if you wanted to.
Time passes whether you’re ready or not.
Red Dead Redemption 2
Rockstar built a version of the Old West that feels alive in ways most games don’t attempt. Arthur Morgan’s story takes about 60 hours to complete if you’re following the main path, but the game fills every corner of its map with distractions.
You can hunt legendary animals, play poker in saloons, help strangers with odd jobs, or just ride around watching the weather change. Some players spend hundreds of hours in the world without finishing the story because the game makes existing in that space feel worthwhile.
Monster Hunter: World
Hunting monsters sounds simple until you realize each one requires different strategies, gear, and preparation. The base game offers dozens of large monsters to hunt, and each hunt can take anywhere from 10 to 50 minutes depending on your skill and equipment.
Then you start grinding for materials to craft better weapons and armor, which means hunting the same monsters repeatedly. The base game completionist run hits 200 to 300 hours, and the Iceborne expansion adds another 100+ hours on top of that with new monsters, areas, and endgame content.
The loop keeps pulling you back for one more hunt.
Final Fantasy XIV
MMORPGs earn their reputation for consuming time, and Final Fantasy XIV stands out even in that category. The main story questline spans multiple expansions, with each expansion’s MSQ taking about 30 to 50 hours to complete.
Running through the full story from A Realm Reborn through Endwalker takes 200 to 250 hours before you touch side quests, raids, crafting, gathering, or any of the other systems the game offers. Players who’ve been with the game since its relaunch in 2013 have logged thousands of hours, and new expansions keep adding more.
You could treat it as a part-time job and still not see everything.
Divinity: Original Sin 2
This isometric RPG respects classic design principles while adding modern depth. A single playthrough runs about 80 to 100 hours if you’re exploring thoroughly and engaging with the turn-based combat system.
But the game encourages multiple playthroughs by offering different origin characters, each with unique storylines and perspectives. The choice system means you can make different decisions and see how they ripple through the world.
Some players have put in 300+ hours across multiple runs.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2
Nintendo’s RPG tries to tell a grand story while giving you massive areas to explore. The main quest takes about 55 to 70 hours, but the game layers on side quests, blade collecting, and affinity grinding that push completionist runs to 150 to 200 hours.
The combat system takes time to learn, and mastering it means understanding how different blades work together. The post-game content adds even more hours for players who want to tackle the toughest challenges.
Fallout 4
The Commonwealth wasteland spreads out from Boston with endless locations to discover. You can follow the main quest and finish in about 20 to 30 hours, but most players get distracted by settlement building, faction quests, and exploration.
Completionist runs that cover most of what the game offers typically hit 150 to 200 hours. The game drops interesting locations and stories everywhere, making it hard to stick to one path.
DLC adds another 20 to 30 hours of content across new areas and quests.
Dragon Age: Inquisition
BioWare’s fantasy RPG gives you control of an organization trying to save the world, which means managing resources, recruiting followers, and exploring multiple large regions. The main story takes about 40 to 50 hours, but completionist runs that tackle most side content typically hit 100 to 130 hours.
The companion quests add depth to your party members, and making different choices across multiple playthroughs shows you how the story can shift.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Viking raids and English conquest provide the backdrop for one of the longest entries in the series. The main story runs about 55 to 65 hours, but completionist runs that cover all the mysteries, side activities, and collectibles across England and Norway typically hit 120 to 140 hours.
The combat and raiding feel satisfying enough that many players don’t mind spending extra time clearing regions. DLC expansions add more hours in Ireland and Francia, plus a mythological realm that extends the total playtime even further.
Nioh 2
This action RPG combines challenging combat with deep customization systems. The main story takes about 35 to 45 hours if you’re skilled at Souls-like combat, but most players take longer while learning enemy patterns and grinding for better gear.
The loot system drops tons of equipment with different stats and set bonuses, which encourages experimentation. DLC missions and New Game Plus modes add substantial content that can push total playtime to 100 to 150 hours for players who master the base game and want to tackle higher difficulty tiers.
Baldur’s Gate 3
Larian’s RPG adaptation of Dungeons & Dragons offers branching paths and consequences that change based on your choices. A single playthrough runs about 75 to 100 hours if you’re thorough about exploring and talking to NPCs, with completionist runs reaching 130 to 150 hours.
The game’s design practically demands multiple runs to see how different classes, races, and decisions affect the story. The combat encounters play out differently based on your party composition and tactics, which keeps subsequent playthroughs fresh.
Elden Ring
FromSoftware’s open-world take on their formula spreads tough bosses and hidden secrets across the Lands Between. The main path takes about 50 hours for experienced players, but completionist runs that find all the optional bosses and explore every hidden region typically hit 115 to 130 hours.
The exploration feels rewarding because you’re constantly finding new weapons, spells, and build options. Players who run multiple characters with different builds can extend that time considerably, but a single thorough playthrough gives you most of what the game offers.
World of Warcraft
Blizzard’s MMO has been running for two decades, and the amount of content reflects that longevity. Leveling one character to max level takes anywhere from 15 to 40 hours depending on which expansion you’re playing through, whether you’re using heirlooms or boosts, and how familiar you are with efficient leveling paths.
The endgame content includes raids, dungeons, PvP, professions, and achievement hunting that extend playtime indefinitely. Players with multiple max-level characters across different expansions have logged tens of thousands of hours.
Each expansion adds more, and the game shows no signs of stopping.
When Time Stops Mattering
The length of these games is not an excuse. They create worlds that are so dense that losing yourself in them doesn’t feel overwhelming.
When you’re actually playing, the hour counts become irrelevant because there’s more to the experience than just finishing. Certain games honor your time by providing crisp, concentrated experiences.
These ones honor it in a different way by providing you with so much to discover that time becomes just another resource you decide how to use.
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