One thing I have struggled with lately is finding good games to play. I bounce around from game to game trying to enjoy it but it just doesn’t scratch the itch like it used to. For example, one of my favorites was old school RuneScape, but it hasn’t really been giving me the same enjoyment that it used to. So then I would open up World of Warcraft, Destiny 2, just playing a little bit of each game. Think maybe I need some new games to play but it’s tough to find them these days.
So what are your favorite 1000+ hour games?
I’ve only got a few. Several of them don’t really track hours, but I know I’ve put over 1000 into them. Games like Super Smash Bros. (Melee, Brawl, and 4) and Rock Band 2.
Other than those, the only one I’ve measurably put 1000 hours into is Skullgirls, but Guilty Gear Strive will likely get there in a few years. Skullgirls is a game with so much depth that I can’t imagine ever getting bored of it. If anything, I’d just lose motivation because I can’t see the path to improving, but I’ll definitely never see every permutation of strategies you can employ by combining characters together. Guilty Gear Strive has so many creative ways to use its expanded Roman Cancel system that any Evo highlight reel is full of creative ways out of situations that you’ve never seen before.
Don’t Starve Together scratches the MMO itch for me. It’s not an MMO, but there are public servers where you can hop in and hang out, raid bosses and whatnot. I have ~4k hours in it now.
If it clicks with you Monster Hunter (World+Iceborne’s a good starting point) can easily eat up hundreds of hours of your time grinding and doing endgame content, especially if you have a group to play with.
Team Fortress 2
The only two games I have that I’ve put more than 1000 hours in are Factorio and Rimworld. I’d highly recommend both.
DOTA 2 is my primary time waster, have over 3000+ hours on it. It’s endlessly entertaining, because there is so much variability in the games. You have 4-8 spells depending on the hero, with 6 active item slots, which means once your team has leveled up, team fights can be a burst of seconds, or a 5+ minute long affair, with each tank employing different survival strategies to block damage, heal, or escape, just to heal and get right back in it. There are multiple different game modes, but are a little challenging to find and play. Still, it is the one game I play with the steepest learning curve. I don’t think I saw myself as “good at the game” until I was around 1000 hours in 😶
Smite is the only other game I have 1000+ hours in. I started playing it as a break from DOTA 2, and as a way to connect with my little brother. It’s a lot like DOTA 2, but far more simplistic. Each god has 4 spells, with no active items. Instead of left-clicking for movement on a map, you use WASD to maneuver your god. It’s fun, and you can pick it up after like 30 hours. The different game modes are a lot easier to navigate than in DOTA, but it’s also a lot less engaging. The updates and quests are all very simplistic. I was going to try out the new Smite 2, but after watching some game play, it looks… exactly the same as Smite 1.
Not a favourite anymore but still beats my second most played games by a factor of 4… Warframe was fun at the beginning and really clicked at about 200hrs. I left after about 2200hrs because I burned out but it still has a place in my heart.
Rimworld, and Football Manager (although they last one I played is 2020)
Factorio
The Factory Must Grow
I’m almost 100 hours into my new space age save, and I’ve played nearly 1k hours since I bought it 5ish years ago. By far one of the most enjoyable games I’ve ever played and I highly recommend it to everyone who enjoys sandbox games
Factorio. It’s the game I always come back to, and I’m always ready to spend 5 minutes playing here and there now that it works so well on steam deck.
Mine are:
Any Fallout or Elder Scrolls
Diablo 2 or 3
Stardew Valley
Borderlands 2
And I never consider it a real game, but I do sink the most hours in Hearthstone. I’ve been playing it almost daily for the past ten years.
Rocket League cracked that for me, crazy ceiling on that game.
Crusader Kings III is gonna crack it eventually…
Garry’s Mod. Basically a gateway drug to hobby animation, and in some ways not so far off from the modding tools used to make it.
If you’ve watched stuff like Heavy Is Dead, they’re usually made with it. Some more professional-looking stuff is instead made in “Source Filmmaker”.
Project Zomboid, Valheim
Valheim!
Sims 2 Skyrim Stalker franchise (including mods) Doom 2 Vrchat Arma franchise Halo franchise World of warcraft … I may have a problem.
There was a moment in my life when I thought that perhaps I was outgrowing games… that they were just not really designed for the entertainment of adult human beings in a way that could satisfy me. Not one of my old stand-bys could, as you said, “scratch the itch” or provide “the same enjoyment that it used to.” I found myself spending more time with films and books.
Then I got into FromSoft games and indie titles, and within a year I realized games still held incredible experiences for me. I hadn’t outgrown games. I had only outgrown the bland slop represented by most AAA releases, and especially by online multiplayer releases. Personally, I’d recommend giving up on looking for a new 1000+ hour obsession. Instead I’d recommend seeking a broad array of 10-100 hour loves. If you haven’t already tried them, for me a love of gaming was saved primarily by: Dark Souls, FTL, Spelunky, and Hollow Knight.
There was a moment in my life when I thought that perhaps I was outgrowing games
My exact thought earlier this year, honestly. I’m right there with you
Personally, I’d recommend giving up on looking for a new 1000+ hour obsession. Instead I’d recommend seeking a broad array of 10-100 hour loves.
This is exactly what I’ve been doing for the past 6 months. I’ve discovered some pretty crazy and amazing titles. Played Everything from BG3 to No Man’s sky, lots of indie titles my favorites being Boomer shooters and new up and coming titles. I tried Stardew Valley for the first time since everyone seems to be raving about that one, and a couple similar ones like my time at Sand Rock, Valheim was awesome. Guess I feel like I’m running out of stuff to play lately
If you still haven’t tried anything FromSoft has made in the past decade, please do.
I’ve played dark souls remastered… It’s hard as hell man. Haven’t tried Ellen ring yet but it’s on my list