Shortest RPG ever?

[Paraclete]

So I've been watching a stream on JTV today, and the guy just finished the game in about 9hrs, and that's with him dying ever 2-3 minutes. So the game is in the realm of 7-8hrs?

 

Is this one of "those" games that thinks multiple play throughs count towards the gameplay total?

 

I'm sorry but 7-9hrs is not ok at todays' prices. That Casino Royale game was 9hrs and it was only $40. MW2 had 7hrs of SP not to mention limitless hours of MP.

 

Don't get me wrong, the game looks fun(bad animations/textures aside), but I can't bring myself to drop $60 on a short RPG, let alone ANY game.

[Oblarg]

So I've been watching a stream on JTV today, and the guy just finished the game in about 9hrs, and that's with him dying ever 2-3 minutes. So the game is in the realm of 7-8hrs?

 

Is this one of "those" games that thinks multiple play throughs count towards the gameplay total?

 

I'm sorry but 7-9hrs is not ok at todays' prices. That Casino Royale game was 9hrs and it was only $40. MW2 had 7hrs of SP not to mention limitless hours of MP.

 

Don't get me wrong, the game looks fun(bad animations/textures aside), but I can't bring myself to drop $60 on a short RPG, let alone ANY game.

 

You could beat ME1 in 6, that doesn't mean much.

 

Average playthrough length will be 20-30 hours, and you'll need at the very least three playthroughs to see all the content.

[Tigranes]

Given that there is so much nonlinearity in the game, I wouldn't be surprised if playthrough lengths wildly varied depending on the choices you make. I mean, you can meet a major character (Sie) or you might never meet her - surely that changes a few hours.

 

I'd imagine 25+ for those who take their time, etc, then ~10 for a rush through on normal/easy difficulty.

[Thorton_AP]

This game was not designed to be only played through a single time. If you do, you're missing out on what is unique and special about the game.

 

 

The original Fallout was arguably shorter if you knew what you were doing.

[Baeus]

Well hey, in one run through I managed to beat Fallout 2 in under an hour.

 

Doesn't mean it wasn't a huge game with plenty to do though.

 

Most western RPGs can be powered through rather quickly if you don't stop to smell the roses. Especially if you're doing a live feed and you don't want your eyeballs to melt from playing for 20 hours straight.

 

3 hours till I'm out of here and can play AP. Huzzah!

Edited May 26, 2010 by Baeus

[Chronotope]

Is he doing every mission?

 

Personally I don't mind if it is fairly short because I do want to go through it a couple of times but the first country alone probably took me a couple of hours to completely finish.

[Itkovian]

He definitely was playing faster than he probably normally would have. Rushing in at things wihtout really understanding them, taking little time to read emails (and it looks llike tehre's a lot of those), and generlaly not trying the different approaches.

 

That adds up to a lot, and considering the huge replay value (since there is clearly a "multiple approaches" feel to the gameplay), it should take longer than that.

 

That said, this is a beautiful example of how things get exagerated. When the guy finished the game, the moderator said many times it took him 11 hours, not 9.

 

Itkovian

[Pop]

There are <2 hour RPGs out there, so no.

[Thorton_AP]

Which would those be? Haha.

 

Ultima IV was pretty quick IIRC

[WorstUsernameEver]

One guy speed-running doesn't really say much. Granted, there are longer rpgs, but they've also a greatly reduced replay value compared to Alpha Protocol.

[Alvin Nelson]

Read E-mails. Matt MacLean did a great job on those. I laugh each time i play through.

[HoonDing]

Which would those be? Haha.

[Yachemenev]

So I've been watching a stream on JTV today, and the guy just finished the game in about 9hrs, and that's with him dying ever 2-3 minutes. So the game is in the realm of 7-8hrs?

 

Is this one of "those" games that thinks multiple play throughs count towards the gameplay total?

 

I'm sorry but 7-9hrs is not ok at todays' prices. That Casino Royale game was 9hrs and it was only $40. MW2 had 7hrs of SP not to mention limitless hours of MP.

 

Don't get me wrong, the game looks fun(bad animations/textures aside), but I can't bring myself to drop $60 on a short RPG, let alone ANY game.

 

You could beat ME1 in 6, that doesn't mean much.

 

Average playthrough length will be 20-30 hours, and you'll need at the very least three playthroughs to see all the content.

 

6 hous for Mass Effect 1? Is that a speed run or something like that, because it took me about that time to just get a bit into the first planet after the first visit to the Citadel, and I ignored most of the side quests.

[Klemer]

Jagged Alliance 2 could be beat in about 20minutes....

[Deus Ex Machina]

Overall game length is relative.

 

Two recent games that are said to be quite short (Alan Wake and Red Dead Redemption), took me a substantial amount of time to beat (approx. 15 hours for Alan Wake and approx. 40 hours for Red Dead Redemption). Granted, I am a completionist.

 

Mass Effect 2, a recent western RPG, took me just over 60 hours to beat, and that was said to be relatively short.

 

I'm quite sure that Alpha Protocol will take me no less than between 20 to 30 hours to beat on my first playthrough, although it will probably take me longer.

[ProtocolX]

If you noticed, he did not talk to hardly anyone, but who he needed, he killed everyone, his handler hated him, by the end of the game there was 1 person who liked him (the reporter). From watching his run, i am pretty convinced that it will be about 20+ for me. That makes it a short game, but that seems to be the norm more and more. I know you could get through Dragon Age fast, but it took me 52 hours.

 

What is interesting to me is now I have seen his play through, I am curious as to how different mine will be in regards to choices i make that he did not.

 

The best comment was made when he was waffling on killing someone and one of the users wrote "Just pretend it is a girl . . . " as he was killing the strippers/hookers as he went through.

[Baeus]

With about 3 hours of playtime, I've managed to do the tutorial and am half way through my 2nd mission. Maybe I suck, and maybe it's cause I'm playing as a steathly character, which requires you be rather patient and deliberate, but I don't see this game being finished anytime soon.

[WorstUsernameEver]

With about 3 hours of playtime, I've managed to do the tutorial and am half way through my 2nd mission. Maybe I suck, and maybe it's cause I'm playing as a steathly character, which requires you be rather patient and deliberate, but I don't see this game being finished anytime soon.

 

What platform? Comments about control/IA/graphics? (the three things people don't like about the game apparently)

[HoonDing]

The best comment was made when he was waffling on killing someone and one of the users wrote "Just pretend it is a girl . . . " as he was killing the strippers/hookers as he went through.

Ladykiller achievement unlocked.

[Baeus]

With about 3 hours of playtime, I've managed to do the tutorial and am half way through my 2nd mission. Maybe I suck, and maybe it's cause I'm playing as a steathly character, which requires you be rather patient and deliberate, but I don't see this game being finished anytime soon.

 

What platform? Comments about control/IA/graphics? (the three things people don't like about the game apparently)

 

Wrote all that in another post, buuuuut. 360 version, and the graphics are for my standards. Controls are responsive, although they take some time to get used to. Camera is a little tight in on you, especially in confined spaces, can be hard to catch things to your sides. AI isn't great, but as yet, I've yet to see it do anything as buggy as the preview versions on 1up and such like shoot in the sky. Mind you, I'm usually rather close in to the enemies by the time a fight starts, don't know if that affects it.

 

But as a complete package, I really like it. Early in the story for me, haven't managed to meet many people, but it's got a spiffy atmosphere to it Always some fun perk or little side thing coming up. Some fun conversations, especially if you try to be a smartass

[HoonDing]

Last stealth game I played was NOLF 2, so that's what I'll be comparing the game against.

 

Can I expect to eavesdrop on quirky enemy conversations, and the necessity to distract enemies with the toss of a coin? Not to mention, escape from the pursuit of relentless enemies by the drop of a banana peel?

[Raithe]

Any game that lets you have an exciting level set in Akron, Ohio has an awful lot going for it...

 

Here's hoping AP can match up against that level of awesome.

Edited May 26, 2010 by Raithe

[coomber]

Yeah, Fallout can be completed in 15 minutes. Fallout 3 in an hour. Speed runs don't tell you much.

 

The fact the embargo for reviews is so close to the release date says more.

[kreese12]

Ya as I said in another thread, the game looks a bit short to me also. Not criminally short or anything, but short. I say this mainly because of the limited number of primary levels there seems to be ( every video shows either the middle eastern level, the yacht, or the train yard(.

 

But ya , if there is that much versatility and extra difference in your 'choices' beyond just different canned responses like most other games, then that's totally fine with me. Better to have a 8 hour game with lots of possible variabilty than it is to have a 60 hr game like a final fantasy where the game is super-linear and you have to harvest chobobobos (or whatever they are called) for 20 of those hours.

[qaz123]

I wouldn't worry too much. Like someone mentioned, game length is relative. Ultimately, it depends on your own tastes. If your someone who doesn't like to replay games (and it seems AP gives more incentive to do this than most) then it might not be worth it and you should wait for a price drop. Just remember it may not take you only 7-9 hours to finish.