Canada
United States
New Zealand
Australia
Ireland
First things first, games listed here are judged based on the game-time required to complete the main storyline and added side quests, not considering replays.
Also, we’ve played through most of them (bar one) so you can take our word for it.
A bit more before we go straight into the basics of it. This longest video games ever list will be updated over time and we will make sure to add any and every latest game that may just deserve to be on this list.
And if you think some other games should make it to this list, feel free to leave a comment!
Top 15 Longest Video Games Ever: Ranked and Updated
15. Assassins Creed Odyssey
Game Length: Average 75 Hours+
- Release Date: 2nd October 2018
- Developer: Ubisoft
- Platform Supported: Xbox, PS4, PC, Google Stadia. (Check out Google Stadia free 1-month trial!)
We know, this is not the video game you would expect to get into the top 15 but it does anyway by pure merit.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is the biggest AC game yet, bigger than Valhalla. Set in ancient Greece, right around the time when Sparta (post-Leonidas) and Athens are busy at war and you can choose either side as the female or male lead, twins by birth, to fight, ride and kill your way to avenge the murder of their father.
Not a true AC game though, there’s little stealth on offer and you’re just maneuvering through lengthy combat duels. But it’s the map, the storyline, and the bountiful side quests that keep things interesting.
You’ll definitely be playing beyond the 60-hour mark unless you’re the RPG type, then you’re looking at around 100 hours at the least. This is one of the biggest open-world games around where you can access almost every bit of the map. And there are loads in it to keep you busy.
14. Red Dead Redemption 2
Game Length: Average 80 Hours
- Release Date: 26th October 2018
- Developer: Rockstar Games
- Platform Supported: PS4, Xbox One, PC, Stadia.
Ah the crème de la crème of open-world gaming, Red Dead Redemption is one of the longest video games ever simply because you can rarely get enough of it.
If you haven’t played RDR2, you should pause everything and simply go ahead with it right now. It is difficult to re-imagine an open-world game set in the Wild Outlaw West better than RDR2.
Take a hike, hunt a deer, have some meat, and ale by the lakeside and watch the sunset – RDR2 is an experience, and you can live every moment of it. Make sure to go beyond the main storyline though, there’s a beautifully detailed world awaiting.
It’s the fleeting moment that might never come again which will drive you on as John Marston. Forget side quests although there are enough to keep you hooked well into the 100-hour mark and beyond (other than the 50-hour main storyline.)
Thing is, Red Dead Redemption is a piece of digital art to experience. It is fun to point of obtuse nonchalance and creates a brotherly endearment that few video games have even tried to create. And the online multiplayer mode simply puts the cherry on top.
13. Stardew Valley
Game Length: Average 80 Hours
- Release Date: 26th February 2016
- Developer: Eric Barone, Sickhead Games, ConcernedApe
- Platform Supported: Switch, PS4, Android, Linux, iOS, PC, PS Vita
If there was ever a game that ended up better as an inspiration from a cult classic, it’s this. Stardew Valley is not Harvest Moon (We loved that too!) but what it should have been in the first place – more than a farming game.
There’s almost something to do, and you must do it, in Stardew Valley. Tend to your crops, say hi to your neighbor, repair the silo, etc., all before it’s dark and bedtime.
Monotony is served on a silver platter with the simplest of tasks to get done by the day. Stardew Valley is a life lived in accomplishing the most morbid tasks around.
But it’s the relationships, the innumerable variables to each relationship that you can create with the 30-something characters in the village, that drive the game forward into broader horizons. (The Sims seems too mathematical at times. Relationships are not percentages or fathomable at all!)
All said, by the time you get used to it, the village must have already taken a good 20 odd hours from you and the game’s just getting started.
The simplistic complexity of it all is what will drive you forward beyond the 50-hour main gameplay. Some of us, rare individuals of sorts who prefer to get to the bottom of things, will end up way beyond the 120-hour mark though so beware!
- Related Read : Best Games Like Stardew Valley
12. Xenoblade Chronicles X
Game Length: Average 80 Hours
- Release Date: 29th April 2015
- Developer: Monolith Soft, Nintendo
- Platform Supported: Switch, Wii U, Nintendo 3DS
What can you do to make an already successful sci-fi RPG series better? Simple really, just make it bigger.
Xenoblade Chronicles X expands into a larger world with bigger monsters and meaner mechs to create perhaps the most demanding gaming environment you will find in a JRPG.
But unlike Odyssey, it’s less about the map and more about how the game pans out.
Delayed gratification in video games is a tricky proposition. Overdo and you can end up on the wrong side of the sales charts, even with a great game.
Xenoblade Chronicles X pushes it. Too much on this and we’ll end up giving away spoilers but let’s just say that all those excellent game videos you see are rarely what you get in-game.
Yet this is what makes iteration X one of the longest video games around and an excellent one at it.
You will be asked to reinvest your time and reroute across the vast terrain to avoid an angry big gorilla thrice your level.
Till then, make do with what you have, survive in the hostile but exquisitely detailed planet of Mira, and drool for the next big mech upgrade!
11. Baldur’s Gate II: Enhanced Edition
Game Length: 90 Hours Average
- Release Date: 15th November 2013
- Developer: Overhaul Games, BioWare
- Platform Supported: Switch, PS4, PC, Xbox One
On the one hand, there’s the Sims, where numbers are not that difficult to follow up and get the best of. On the other, there are classic old-school isometric RPGs like Baldur’s Gate that gamers (the nobility that is!) prefer over pointless FPS like Valorant and COD: Cold War.
Baldur’s Gate II is the big bad wolf of RPGs, a cult classic brimming with content, combat, the obvious prerequisite of foresight, and then some more content.
You never get enough of goblins and ghouls in this enhanced D&D game. Jon Irenicus, your protagonist this time is a couple of shades better off than Sarevok – mature, foreboding, and dark. Mind you though, this is not just one of the longest RPGs around, it’s one of the hardest game around as well.
In just game length, Baldur’s Gate 2 will implore you to sit tight and think hard, for at least 60 hours plus in just the basic storyline (unless you’ve played Baldur’s Gate I – then it’s around 45 hours tops.)
Beyond that though, keep going at the darker corners of the realm till you find the big red dragon!
10. Dragon Age: Inquisition
Game Length: Average 85 Hours +
- Release Date: 18th November 2014
- Developer: BioWare
- Platform Supported: PS3, Xbox 360, PC
Dragon Age: Inquisition is one of the best video game sequels around in the sense that it surpasses everything that the previous two generations achieved, added together!
A true-blooded RPG that’s not necessarily open-world but instead differentiated into multiple zones to teleport to and from – Dragon Age: Inquisition is daunting in its map and gameplay.
However, it’s the characters, subtly woven together and with somewhat uncannily prolonged cutscenes that take this game forward as one of the longest RPGs around.
9 playable characters with none of them any weaker than the other, Dragon Age: Inquisition is a masterpiece of the genre. Even the simplest gamers will be well engrossed for about 60 hours.
But consider the myriad of side quests and hidden whatnots, you’re looking at 150 hours plus at least.
Piece of cake?
09. Fallout 76: Wastelanders Expansion
Game Length: Average 50 Hours (Full Game Content Above 160 Hours!)
- Release Date: 14th April 2020
- Developer: Bethesda Game Studios
- Platform Supported: PS4, Windows, Xbox One
Fallout 76 is the longest game ever in the series, more so with the Wastelanders DLC, a video game of epic proportions with a sprawling map big enough to waste your hours.
True that Fallout has lost its charm over the years. There’s only so much you can do in a post-apocalyptic West Virginia and Fallout 76 sometimes does fall short on that count
You still have the multi-optional conversations, tidbits of information, rogues to kill, objects to loot. But that’s about it.
Perhaps the only reason this Wastelanders DLC is worth playing is that it’s free. But that’s almost like a freebie to coax players into coming back for Fallout 76. Why Bethesda?
Apart from the bugs and the vast emptiness of a humongous map, Fallout 76: Wastelanders has enough playable content to last 50 hours.
Stray beyond that even for a little while though and you’re looking at enough content to the game on for at least 170 hours!
08. Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain
Game Length: 70 Hours Plus (Full Game Content Above 170 Hours!)
- Release Date: 1st September 2015
- Developer: Kojima Productions, Konami
- Platform Supported: Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3, Windows.
Metal Gear is veteran creator Hideo Kajima’s best work for some time and it’s only befitting that this 5th installment also brings the series to a tightly wound wrap.
In case you haven’t played Metal Gear games, we suggest you have a go at Metal Gear Solid 3 as a lot of the story follows up from it.
You’re playing as the Big Boss, a rare video game character with almost the same build as a certain Captain Price. What you will enjoy though is the tactical gameplay with a lot of bonus for stealth gamers.
Back in 2015, this was one of the longest games to beat, with a whole bevy of missions available at the Mother Base. The fact that you can almost add any enemy entity (almost any) to your mercenary team with a hot air balloon was hot cake back then and still.
Straight up, blasting your way through the missions will take 50 hours tops. Think your way through without really getting to know the excellent maps fully and you’re looking at 100 hours.
The best part is – this game will compel you to think of things from the other perspective and add to the hour count before you know it!
07. Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Game Length: 70 Hours Plus (Full Game Content Above 175 Hours!)
- Release Date: 18th May 2015
- Developer: CD Projekt
- Platform Supported: PC, PS4, Xbox One, Switch.
Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is not the longest video game in the world, but for some, this is the best RPG yet and therefore, worth replaying.
First up, what CD Projekt achieved with this video game is unfathomable. Taking a linear RPG series of simply exploding it into a beautifully crafted open-world while integrating each quest with the huge map – they deserve the accolades coming their way.
If you love Witcher 3 without complaints, perhaps you banked on the popularity of it instead of playing the previous iterations.
Just so, Witcher 2 was brilliant as well, although not as enjoyable to the mass. Geralt was not running through an open world anymore but we missed the difficulty to combat. Preparation was so necessary; we loved the certainty of death without it.
Barring that though, Witcher 3 is an improvement on almost all counts, especially in the complicated but intelligible storyline, alone demanding around 55 hours.
When that’s done, there’s enough content to stretch you to more than 175 hours.
And then there’s a replay a few weeks later!
06. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Game Length: 50 Hours (Full Game Content Above 180 Hours!)
- Release Date: 3rd March 2017
- Developer: Nintendo
- Platform Supported: Switch, Wii U
Breath of the Wild is one of the longest open-world games around, but it’s so much more than just a video game.
The Zelda series has always been at the forefront of animation art, the best that Japanese animation artists could create.
This, however, takes it a whole notch higher, with perhaps the fascinating art languages speaking to you in almost every scene that Link darts by.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is a revelation in a time where video games have become run-of-the-mill action thrillers, losing their charm over the day.
If you haven’t played this masterpiece of digital art yet, you should, today. It is calmingly beautiful, a rare compliment to offer for any video game.
Beyond that, there’s a lot to do as Link in the fascinating world of Hyrule, enough to keep you busy for at least 60 hours on it.
Take the road less traveled and you will open up to a world painstakingly created to give you a tough time, urging you to always be prepared for it.
Just here, at this moment when you wander through a forest to the hilltop to take the beauty of the world created, you are well in over 170 hours without even realizing it!
Also read: Best Zelda Games Of All Time, Ranked
05. Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Game Length: Skyrim is Endless. Period!
- Release Date: 11th November 2011
- Developer: Bethesda, Iron Galaxy
- Platform Supported: PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Switch, PC
One of the few video games of this generation that does not need an introduction, Skyrim has changed how we perceive video games to be.
It is vast, open-ended, brilliantly engineered, and addictively multiplayer.
Is this the best video game ever?
Fact that Skyrim can be considered as an entrant for the best-ever spot is an understatement.
Although there’s a central storyline, it acts mostly like a base from which the game expands outwards.
There’s so much lore to Skyrim, it’s almost impossible for a new player to get a grip of it early on, one of the biggest reasons why the game has not managed the nascent crowd.
But for those who still play Skyrim, well into their 30s or more, there’s nothing like it and perhaps there may never be.
As for the hours, Skyrim is virtually endless!
Check out this Special Edition patch!
04. Persona 5
Game Length: Average 100 Hours +
- Release Date: 15th September 2016
- Developer: Atlus, P Studio
- Platforms Supported: PS3, PS4
Persona 5 is a mish-mash of the most addictive gameplay models into a rare combination that works just a bit too well.
There’s a chance you haven’t played Persona yet, it took the iteration till 2006 to hit the US market without much fuss.
By then though, people were taking notice of this Sims alternative with D&D gameplay added in.
With Persona 5, the makers have hit the ball out of the park.
Take your basic ‘kill the monster and then kill a bigger monster’ RPG mechanics and essentially add to a teenage life simulator of sorts along with a brilliant script, and you can get close to what Persona 5 does so well.
It merges the most fundamental of RPG gameplay mechanics and amplifies it with addictive story builds.
Persona 5 might not be your cup of tea, but this is one of the longest video games ever as far as its main storyline is concerned, stretching up to 100 hours.
Take your time through the nooks and crannies within the game and you’re easily looking at 170 hours plus.
03. Elite: Dangerous
Game Length: Average 180 Hours+
- Release Date: 16th December 2014
- Developer: Frontier Developments
- Platforms Supported: PS4, Xbox One, PC
We simply had to add this to a longest video games ever listing given the sheer amount of time gamers end up spending on it.
Elite: Dangerous is unlike any other game on this list. Here, you are warping through the galaxy in a spaceship and doing whatever need be to earn your way up. There is a central storyline though, but the fun is in the multiplayer mode.
This is the epitome of what an open-world game should be.
There’s no central storyline to guide you towards your predestination. You are on your own, starting off as simpleton with a starship and a handful of space money.
What you become – between a pirate, a mercenary, a trader, or a miner is solely on your volition. Now that’s true open-world gameplay, and there’s just so much to do.
All in all, if you love the idea of a by-and-by trading space trading simulator along with a steady crop of players, few video games can come close to this.
Then there’s the vastness, the number of players, 3 warring factions, and an array of space equipment to keep you on your toes.
We love Elite: Dangerous, not just the longest video games around, but for what it is, close to 200 hours of it and more.
02. ARK: Survival Evolved
Game Length: Average 150 Hours + (Full Game Content Above 300 Hours!)
- Release Date: 2nd June 2015
- Developer: Studio Wildcard, Virtual Basement, Instinct Games
- Platform Supported: PS4, Xbox One, Switch
Clump Jurassic Park, Castaway, and G. I. Joe together and you’re close to what ARK: Survival Evolved can be best described as.
Few survival games are as intense, in both the difficulty and in the manner of gameplay as this. This is a video game of epic proportions, among the longest Xbox One games around, and it’s available on PlayStation as well.
ARK will make you grind through it. Handsomely rewarding and savagely punishing as well, the idea of taming dinosaurs wearing halo suits is encapsulating and works quite well.
It’s a bit of an overstretch considering that you start off stark naked on a beach with nothing and advance from the Stone Age.
But it’s a video game and a startlingly popular one at that too. We’d be surprised if this is not the longest PS4 game as well.
There’s only a base of storyline to help with the progression but uncovering all the upgrades and tech can push you to 500 hours, you read that right. If you are a gamer, this is worth a shot.
01. The Longing
Game Length: 9600 Hours (Total Game Length based on Storyline)
- Release Date: 5th March 2020
- Developer: Studio Seufz
- Platforms Supported: PC (Including Linux.)
Statistically, The Longing is the longest video game ever developed. The Longing is an adventure RPG, and you are Shade, the only remaining servant of a once-powerful king.
The king will sleep for 400 days post which his powers will be restored. But until then, you will scrape your way through the underground empire, reading post-modern literature or upgrading cavernous décor.
We’re yet to play this indie title, but we soon will, and we urge you to give it a shot!
Conclusion
These are the longest video games ever made, updated for 2021. If you think there is any other game that should make it to this list, somewhere in it, drop a suggestion. True that we’ve kept out the likes of Final Fantasy XII, Don’t Starve, Kingdom Come Deliverance off this list. Well, that’s because these games demand longer playtimes on average. But all said, looking forward to adding a few later maybe!
