Sometimes, you get an itch to experience life outside your own. Perhaps you want to experience magic or put yourself in the shoes of a farmer. The closest thing to doing that without leaving the comforts of your home would probably be to start playing some really long RPGs.
Here’s a list of some lengthy RPGs with some quality gameplay that you could easily pour hours into if you’re looking for an escape.
We’ve taken into account 100% completion playtime rates, to put into perspective how long it would take for completionists to finish these games. In some cases, you’ll spend over 200 hours playing these games to completion. One game on our list has an average finish time that reaches over 300 hours!
We’ve got monster hunters, knights, farmers, and more for you to get into. Let’s go!
Persona 5 Royal
Average Total Completion Hours: 140+ Hours.
Hailed by many as a contender in the genre of best role-playing game out there, Persona 5 Royal keeps you hooked without realizing it. It doesn’t feel like a burden to continue the various quests and tasks given out in the game, and the cliche good vs evil trope doesn’t seem to be worn out.
This Royal version of Persona 5 is an enhanced rerelease of the original game that contains new characters, areas, music, plot, and more for you to explore. It’s a slight upgrade and offers more content which adds to your playtime. You play as Joker as he gets falsely accused of assault and navigates the Metaverse with newly awakened powers alongside other students with new powers.
Although the game is mainly an RPG, it does have dungeon crawling elements and social simulation elements added to make it more lively and intense.
Divinity: Original Sin 2
Average Total Completion Hours: 140+ hours.
At a glance, Divinity: Original Sin 2 doesn’t seem different from most RPGs you’ll come across out there. But when you continue playing it and everything starts to unfold, this game will catch you off guard in more ways than one.
For fans of tabletop board games like Dungeons and Dragons, Divinity is probably the closest thing that comes to mind that could replicate it. The combat system does get a little complicated and complex as you get further in, but that’s just what makes it interesting to delve into.
There are an absurd number of side quests for you to complete if you’re ever bored, and the world of Rivellon holds a lot of quests, stories, and character arcs for you to uncover. Everything seems to overlap with each other into an interwoven web as complicated as life itself.
You’ll be invested, and you can get your friends to be invested in it as well with the various multiplayer modes available.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Average Total Completion Hours: 180+ hours.
With a sequel coming in 2022, perhaps it’s a great time for us all to get in a little rerun of the game! Breath of The Wild is one of the best-selling games of all time, and for good reason. The game strays away from the usual formula of the Zelda franchise while retaining some of its previous charms.
Breath of The Wild was made into an open-world survival RPG rather than the usual linear story-driven game the franchise is used to. With this, the possibilities are endless – there are all sorts of customization, collectibles, and quests for players to embark on. We got to explore a different side and time of Hyrule in a rather freeing way with its open-world mechanic in place.
Everything in the game’s mechanics and physics allows players to explore and experiment with the world in a way that was not accessible to them before. This was definitely a beautiful treat for long-time fans of the franchise, and a good entry for those who are new.
The Witcher 3
Average Total Completion Hours: 170+ hours.
Everyone’s familiar with the brooding face of the witcher, he even has his own Netflix series out! You get to embody Geralt of Rivia as he tackles disgusting monsters, and gets into some debauchery and darkness. The Witcher series is known to be rather long if you’re a completionist looking to reach a 100% success rate.
Either way, pouring hours into this title doesn’t actually sound too bad at all. The Witcher 3 is a well-written RPG, its characters don’t bore us and the quests are interesting enough for you to want to keep going. It’s every adventurer’s fantasy to be in a huge high fantasy world surrounded by all sorts of mystery, monsters, and companions to spend it with.
The voice acting and deep lore are what keep this game going; everything is interconnected and feels rather real so it’s easy for anyone to immerse themselves into the world of Slavonic mythology.
Pathfinder: Kingmaker
Average Total Completion Hours: 180+ hours.
As a game inspired by Fallout 2 and Baldur’s Gate, Pathfinder: Kingmaker did a great job at being close to its inspirations. This one is an adventure for a lifetime, with fleshed-out battles in the wild. The one interesting factor of this game that drew a lot of people to it is the customizable aspect of its quests.
Playing from an isometric perspective, Pathfinder is a turn-based RPG where your decisions are the key to anything that happens in your world. You’re a lord governing over a town with politics and intrigue thrown into the mix. You decide who to fight, who to join you on your journey, and more.
You will meet a number of NPCs along the way that you can invite to join your party as advisors. Each of these NPCs has interesting characters, with their own personality traits and value to add to the party. Choose wisely and make sure to plan well!
Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor
Average Total Completion Hours: 90+ hours.
When you’re done with more cheerful and motivating games and are looking for something more on the gloomy side of things, we have Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor for you. Set in a massive open world, Warhammer is action-packed with battles and fights (melee and ranged) in a dark, somber world.
There are three classes for you to choose from: Psyker, Crusader, and Assassin. You can access the Tech-Adept class through the game’s expansion if you’re still craving more action after hours poured into this game.
As the game features destructible environments, don’t be afraid to get rowdy. Rope in some friends and play in co-op, destroying enemies and exploring the mechanics of this world. It’s a rather action-filled game when compared to most RPGs, and that is perhaps its saving grace.
Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius
Average Total Completion Hours: 220+ hours.
Brave Exvius is the longest Final Fantasy game released to date. So if you’re a Final Fantasy fan that has been missing the franchise, perhaps delve into this long never-ending title and you’ll feel somewhat rewarded.
This game is a spin-off of Square Enix’s Final Fantasy and the Final Frontier series by Alim, and it is a collaboration between the two studios. As it is a turn-based game, it employs rather simple battle mechanics so even beginners can easily understand how it works.
The game employs gacha elements, exploration stages, arena modes as well as limited-time events for players to enjoy. All this is pretty standard for a game currently only accessible through mobile or an emulator. However, Brave Exvius brings a whole lot more to the platform, which goes to show that the future of mobile gaming is indeed bright.
Rune Factory Frontier
Average Total Completion Hours: 125+ hours.
The longest in the Rune Factory franchise, Rune Factory Frontier is similar to Stardew Valley, but if you want something that is not Stardew Valley it’s right here for you. You play as a farmer tending to your farm while trying to uncover the mystery of a girl you’ve been seeing in your dreams.
The whale island in the sky is also in danger of falling onto the town that you have just moved into, and somehow everything seems interconnected. The mysteries and intrigue of Rune Factory Frontier are what differentiates it from Stardew Valley, even if they share a lot of the same mechanics.
Similar mechanics include farming, dungeon runs, the four seasons mechanic, marriageable villagers, and more.
Xenoblade Chronicles
Average Total Completion Hours: 160+ hours.
An open-world action RPG that you can fully immerse yourself into. If you want to spend more time in this fantasy science fiction world, you could easily dive into the entire series. When you think about it, the concept of the game is pretty wild: you’re in a war on the bodies of two titans frozen in time.
It’s a battle against humankind and machines, and you play Shulk, the character with the sword of Bionis (the Monado) that is prophesied to end the war once and for all. You join up with other characters along the way as you are out for revenge.
The latest release in the series would be Xenoblade Chronicles 2 on the Switch, so you can just dive into that if you’d like. None of the games in this series are interconnected so you don’t have to worry about any potential spoilers either.
Monster Hunter World
Average Total Completion Hours: 379+ hours.
Ever just want to let all hell loose on some really big, scary-looking monsters? Well, Monster Hunter World could help you solve that in a flash. The world is huge and detailed, you can choose to play its story campaign and capture a giant monster or you can jump into multiplayer with a couple of friends.
When it comes to Monster Hunter, there’s endless gear for you to craft with all sorts of weapons for you to play around with. Of course, if you’re focused on crafting gear, you will need to keep grinding and going on raids to gain enough materials to continue crafting.
Aside from that, there are all sorts of quests for you to take up in order to familiarize yourself with the ins and outs of the Monster Hunter world. You won’t feel bored or burdened, you can choose to do whatever you want and play however you like.
Stardew Valley
Average Total Completion Hours: 147+ hours.
The creme de la creme of farming games and calming RPGs. Stardew Valley is a lot of things rolled into one massive game. There’s a lot you can do in this game and you can play it however you like. You can choose to go on dungeon runs, plant seasonal crops, court the various singles in the area, fish some rare sea creatures, and more.
It’s a game that could fit anyone, and that’s what makes Stardew Valley special amongst many gamers. It’s also widely accessible on every platform, so you can play it on a commute or from the comforts of your home.
You’ll definitely find something of interest within the comforts of Stardew Valley, and for most, it is a great game to come back to after a long day of dealing with a 9 to 5 job.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Average Total Completion Hours: 223+ hours.
You’ve got to at least experience the beauty of the Elder Scrolls world at least once. Even if it takes hundreds of hours to complete, it won’t be something you realize until you’re at the end of it. The world will take your breath away in the best way possible.
Plus, there are lots to do! As the one and only Dragonborn, you need to save the world while leading a guild, conquer a fighting arena, and so on. As the game continues to keep you occupied, you won’t feel time pass you by. Your duties as Dragonborn will excite and continue to fuel you as you go along.
All this is intertwined with questlines and a story for you to follow. Plus, to spice things up there are all sorts of mods for you to pair with the game in order to make things more fun or challenging (if it isn’t challenging enough for you).
Baldur’s Gate 2
Average Total Completion Hours: 140+ hours.
Now if you’re looking for a classic role-playing experience that is still updated with the best mechanics, we’ve got Baldur’s Gate 2. That is until the third installment is released. We’re hoping for a 2022 release date, fingers crossed.
In the Forgotten Realms, this sequel continues the events of the first game and follows Gorion as he has caught the eye of a powerful mage – Irenicus. The game is built based on the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Edition and follows its rules. It’s a comprehensive and detailed game, so if you’re a beginner to the world, you might want to start with the first game before jumping in here.
Everything is played from an isometric perspective with 2D visuals. Simply completing the main questline would take over 30 hours, so you’ll definitely be filled with adventure at the end of your run.
Path of Exile
Average Total Completion Hours: 338+ hours.
Path of Exile seems to be packaged as a traditional RPG during its release, but after years of expansion and updates, it has evolved into something bigger and better. It has now added somewhat of a hack and slash mechanic into its gameplay which makes it even more interesting to try out.
There are seven character classes for you to choose from as you venture through the continent, fighting everyone in your way. Interestingly, there are no in-game currencies, with the game instead focused on a barter system.
If you’re tired of the mainline story and quests, you can hop into the various modes in Leagues as well, where you play by certain rules with all sorts of monsters and rewards in place. There are Leagues that vary based on the current events, but there are also permanent Leagues for you to try out.
Fallout: New Vegas
Average Total Completion Hours: 130+ hours.
The Fallout franchise itself is worth trying out if you’re into RPGs, but New Vegas takes the cake when it comes to super lengthy gameplay. Fallout: New Vegas brings a more realistic point of view to the world at large when compared to previous games in the series.
In New Vegas, you play as Courier as he is ambushed on his way to New Vegas while transporting a package. You were shot and buried in a cemetery but were dug out by a robot named Victor. Sounds insane, but in an apocalyptic world, it’s very much probable.
Anyways, now you’re on the hunt for the package you lost, while getting caught up with warring factions, making friends and enemies along the way. It sounds like a wild, wild west type of thing too; since you’re in the Mojave desert.
Concluding Thoughts
We hope that you have a great time adventuring or living a double life with these games. Perhaps it could help you relax after a long day or take off some steam on the weekend. Anyways, have fun exploring another world and life!
