Welcome back to The Punished Podcast! Before we dive into the meat and grits of this one, a heartfelt disclaimer: We recorded this one on August 27, right at the tail-end of Gamescom. That was seven weeks ago—an eternity in a year as fast-moving as this.
Back then, people were excited for Starfield. Anything was possible in the tantalizing reaches of space. Fast forward nearly two months, and the hype has waned. The game was good, not great; life moved on. Cyberpunk 2.0 came out. Maybe it’ll be enough to get Amanda to replay it. Who can say.
The point is, I dropped the ball, and I apologize. A special apology to my co-hosts, Amanda Tien and Sam Martinelli, and equal thanks for their patience as I ploddingly put this one together.
The good news? The content’s still fire!
The Punished Podcast Episode 2
This episode, we discuss the ideal game length. What makes a great two-hour game? A great 100-hour epic? Tune in for our thoughts, accompanied by a truly scathing take from yours truly.
Correction: At 43:26, I state that The Shawshank Redemption is a “crisp, 90-minute film.” That movie is two and a half hours, per IMDB. Clearly, I’m not a film expert. (Still a breezy film, though…)
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Timestamps
- 0:00 – Intro
- 2:59 – Discussing Game Length
- 52:08 – David’s Hot Take
- 1:05:16 – Outro
Every Game We Mentioned, Ordered by Play Time
Looking for your next big, medium, or small playthrough? Look no further. We went ahead and compiled every game we mentioned in this episode, then ordered it by “all styles” length on How Long To Beat.
Any title marked with an emoji is particularly great.
- Venba (1.5 hours) 🕹️
- Journey (2 hours) 🕹️
- A Short Hike (2 hours) 🕹️
- Inside (4 hours) 🕹️
- Smushi Come Home (4 hours) 🕹️
- Oxenfree (5.5 hours)
- Titanfall 2 (7 hours) 🕹️
- SEASON: A Letter to the Future (7.5 hours) 🕹️
- Halo 3 (9 hours) 🕹️
- Immortality (9.5 hours) 🕹️
- Signalis (10 hours)
- Gears of War 2 (11 hours) 🕹️
- Pyre (14 hours) 🕹️
- Pentiment (17.5 hours)
- The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (18.5 hours) 🕹️
- Assassin’s Creed Mirage (20.5 hours)
- Resident Evil 4 (2023) (20.5 hours) 🕹️
- Deathloop (22.5 hours)
- Chrono Trigger (26.5 hours) 🕹️
- The Outer Worlds (26.5 hours) 🕹️
- Mass Effect 3 (36 hours) 🕹️
- Nier: Automata (36.5 hours)
- Hades (41.5 hours) 🕹️
- Horizon Zero Dawn (46.5 hours)
- Ghost of Tsushima (50.5 hours)
- Starfield (58.5 hours)
- Horizon Forbidden West (64.5 hours)
- Mass Effect Andromeda (65 hours)
- Fire Emblem: Three Houses (73.5 hours)
- Red Dead Redemption 2 (77 hours) 🕹️
- Dragon Quest XI (85 hours) 🕹️
- Baldur’s Gate 3 (102 hours) 🕹️
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (102 hours) 🕹️
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (104 hours)
- Elden Ring (106 hours) 🕹️
- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (108 hours) 🕹️
- Persona 5 Royal (123 hours)
Song Credits
- “Searching for Cecilia Bellant” (Marcin Przybyłowicz) from The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Blood and Wine
- “Good Night” (Yasunori Mitsuda) from Chrono Trigger
- “Get Heart Container” (Manaka Kataoka, Masato Ohashi) from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
- “One Final Effort” (Martin O’Donnell, Michael Salvatori) from Halo 3
- “Smushi’s Lullaby” (Failpositive) from Smushi Come Home
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Sam has been playing video games since his earliest years and has been writing about them since 2016. He’s a big fan of Nintendo games and complaining about The Last of Us Part II. You either agree wholeheartedly with his opinions or despise them. There is no in between. A lifelong New Yorker, Sam views gaming as far more than a silly little pastime, and hopes though critical analysis and in-depth reviews to better understand the medium's artistic merit. Twitter: @sam_martinelli.
David is the founder of The Punished Backlog. He has a problem finishing games he starts. Just beat: Nine Sols, UFO 50. Working on: Metaphor: ReFantazio. Can't wait for: Hollow Knight: Silksong. Follow David on Twitter at @David_Silbert to keep up to date with all things The Punished Backlog.
Amanda Tien (she/her or they) loves video games where she can pet dogs, punch bad guys, make friends, and have a good cry. She started writing for the site in 2020, and became an editor in 2022. She enjoys writing about mystery games, indies, and strong femme protagonists. Her work has also been published in Unwinnable Monthly (click here to read her cover feature on Nancy Drew games), Salt Hill Journal, Poets.org, Litro Magazine, Public Books, and more. She was the Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Columbia University's Culinarian Magazine, and served for two years as the Managing Editor of Aster(ix) Literary Journal. She recently graduated with a MFA (Master of Fine Arts) in Creative Writing from the University of Pittsburgh. Her writing, art, graphic design, and marketing work can be viewed at www.amandatien.com. She does not post a lot on social, but you can find her on X and on Instagram.
