At the beginning of this year, I said something that I would deeply come to regret: "I'm sick of 100-hour RPGs." Long-ass games were my entire personality for so much of my life that I don't know why I ever thought such a thing. Twelve months down the line I'm glad I can eat my words, because long games are totally back, and I couldn't be happier.
Did they ever go away? Not really, especially on PC. Crusader Kings 3 continues to lock people down for hours on end and Factorio is one of those games that my pals never shut up about—albeit for a good reason, if our 91% review score is anything to go by. But 2023 feels like the year where long games have felt fun again, and reignited my drive to play them. It's the first time in a hot sec I've really appreciated just how nice it can be losing my life to a sprawling RPG.
