Upon playing recently released Grand Theft Auto 4 I started to wonder how long games should really be. Along those lines, will we ever be satisfied? It took me a good 32 hours to beat the main storyline in GTA 4. However, I was unimpressed really. I felt too many missions were repeats of the last. Find x kill y. This especially rings true for WoW wherein game counts are done in days versus hours. On the flip side however, some games are a tad too short. 6-8 hours to finish something you paid 60 bucks for? I hope i’d never get only that much time with a pair of shoes that costs that much.

Now i know we’re talking entertainment, but really, what is a good length? I hate the quality versus quantity argument developers shamelessly throw out there to defend their horridly premature gameplay. Call of Duty 4, one of my favorite gaming experiences ever. A tad bit too short gameplay wise but a great game nonetheless. Smartly, this game’s online component lengthens gameplay exponentially. Thats another topic alltogether though. For now, lets stick to single player campaigns.

We’ve recognized too short or too long. So where’s the middle ground? Honestly, I don’t know. When it comes down to it, we never want to stop playing something unique and new at every level. As well, we hate droning on and doing basically the same thing for hours on end. I think the best developers can do is keep consumers engaged long enough to positively rate the game. Almost like good lovin’, it feels good most of the time but you have to find a good length of time to rate it as a good experience. Even then there will be complainers, but they still liked the game.

Multiplayer fits within this mix, and thusly will be the next post. look for it soon.