Summary
While not every game needs to feature 20 to 50 hours worth of gameplay to be good, some have had disappointingly short campaigns, particularly in thefirst-person shootergenre. On average, 7-10 hour-long games can be satisfying, but when the games are less than that, gamers feel let down.
There are plenty of poorly received games that suffer from this quality, but even good games sometimes feature short campaigns. In a way, it makes it more disappointing, because the player could be invested in the characters or the gameplay, only for it to end abruptly when it should have gone on longer.
Three Campaigns And Still Too Short
Aliens vs. Predator (2010)
Bringing the legendary war between two of science-fiction’s most popular characters to FPS fans, AvP delivers three outstanding single player campaigns and provides untold hours of unique 3-way multiplayer gaming.Experience distinctly new and thrilling first person gameplay as you survive, hunt and prey in the deadly jungles and swamps surrounding the damned colony of Freya’s Prospect.As the Marine, you’ll experience a claustrophobic and terrifying experience where light is your friend, but there’s never enough. However, the United States Marine Corps are humanity’s last line of defense, and as such they are armed to the teeth with the very latest in high explosive and automatic weaponry.As the Predator, you will stalk from the shadows and from above, passing athletically through the treetops to ambush your victims. Although equipped with an array of powerful, exotic weapons and tracking equipment, honor ultimately dictates that you must get in close and take your trophies face to face.As the most deadly species in the universe, the Alien offers you the chance to play as the very stuff of nightmares - the monster in the dark swarming forward with countless others, jaws like a steel trap and claws like blades.
TheAliens Vs. Predatorreboot had the visuals and gameplay to be a classic, with three different campaigns for the Colonial Marine, Yautja (Predator) Hunter, and the Xenomorph. Sadly, each campaign can be beaten easily, with the longest being the Colonial Marine at three hours long.
The short campaigns were also a problem with the original twoAliens Vs. Predatorgames, making it a surprise that Rebellion improved on nearly every aspect except that one. Even though it’s still consideredone of the bestPredatorgames, and one of the bestAliengames as well, the problematic length forAliens Vs. Predatoris even more apparent now that the online multiplayer is barren.
Respawn Entertainment made a name for themselves withTitanfall 2,which improved on everything from the first game. Where the firstTitanfallhad no story campaign,Titanfall 2gave players an intriguing sci-fi story about the bond between a pilot and his AI-powered mechanized suit known as a Titan.
Unfortunately,Titanfall 2’scampaign ends far too quickly, at barely six hours. The ending feels more like the halfway point of the story, not the climax, which leaves a bitter taste, since Respawn never followed up with DLC or a proper sequel, even though theirnow-famous battle royale game,Apex Legends,takes place in the same universe.
The Shortest Story In The West
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger
CAN YOU STAND AGAINST THE DEADLIEST GUNSLINGERS WHO EVER LIVED?From the dust of a gold mine to the dirt of a saloon, Call of Juarez® Gunslinger is a real homage to the Wild West tales. Live the epic and violent journey of a ruthless bounty hunter on the trail of the West’s most notorious outlaws. Blurring the lines between man and myth, this adventure made of memorable encounters unveils the untold truth behind some of the greatest legends of the Old West.Meet the legendary outlawsBilly the Kid, Pat Garrett, Jesse James… Face down the West’s most notorious gunslingers and live the untold stories behind the legends.Dispense your own justiceWith a gun holster tied to your leg, become a ruthless bounty hunter on a journey made of all-out gun battles.Prevail in deadly gunfightsMaster the art of blasting pistols, shooting rifles and dodging bullets. Unleash lethal combos to gun down multiple enemies in split seconds.Become the West’s finestChoose the specific gun-fighting skills you want to develop and acquire new shooting abilities to become the West’s finest gunslinger.
Thanks to the quasi-arcade style ofCall Of Juarez: Gunslinger, the game’s length isn’t too detrimental. However, it is easy to understand why some gamers would find the short campaign disappointing at first, especially since other games in theCall Of Juarezseries are much longer.
Still,Call Of Juarez: Gunslingeris praised for its tight first-person gameplay, which is combined with an art style that resembles classic bounty fliers. While it was notRed Dead Redemption 2-level,Call Of Juarez: Gunslingeris considered a strong candidate forone of the better cowboy gamesout there.
Treyarch’sBlack Opsgames, part of theCall Of Dutyfranchise, have become known forhaving some of the best campaignsin the FPS genre. They feature memorable characters, massive action sequences akin to a Michael Bay film, and are usually lengthy, and all of that is the case forCall Of Duty: Black Ops Cold War…except for the length.
AfterBlack Ops 4went without a campaign entirely,Black Ops: Cold Wartried to go back to the series' more grounded roots, the results which, while an improvement, longtime fans still felt didn’t hit the mark like previous titles. The first threeBlack Opsgames often reached up to nine hours worth of missions that fans loved, whileBlack Ops: Cold Warshowcased a downgrade, despite there still being a quality game there to be found.
By all intents and purposes,Left 4 Dead,and its sequel, are intentionally short due to the game’s mission structure. SinceLeft 4 Dead 2is considered a revolutionary shooter thatinspired many zombie survival gamesafterward, the five to six hours' worth of campaign proved to work out in the end.
With all of that said, Valve’sLeft 4 Dead 2does lose its luster after enough playthroughs. Thankfully, there are many mods and fan-made expansions on PC that have allowed fans to elongateLeft 4 Dead 2and keep it fresh, but the base game for casual players can get stale, especially in comparison to its spiritual successor,Back 4 Blood, which takes 10 to 12 hours to complete.
Thanks to the breakneck pace thatBulletstormmoves at, the five-hour length feels almost like a two-hour marathon. That’s a testament to how funBulletstormcan be though, from the agile movements of the characters to the dozens of trick kills that can be executed.Bulletstormkeeps the player hooked and ready for more, but time flies when having fun.
Sadly,Bulletstormis one of manygames that deserved a sequelbut never got one. However, it was remastered in 2017 with the option to play through the story again as the famous video game protagonist Duke Nukem instead of Grayson Hunt. Even so, 5 hours just doesn’t feel like enough for this bombastic FPS.
It is clear thatHomefronthad a lot of passion put into its development; it was a shooter withRed Dawninspirations. The story sets upthis terrifying apocalyptic war gamewith events that leave the player wanting to fight and get payback against the invaders.Homefrontthen backs it up with solid gameplay, only to end way too soon, at barely over four hours.
The final battle ofHomefront’scampaign didn’t even feel close to a finale, so when the credits started rolling, gamers felt unsatisfied and ready for more. While there was aHomefrontsequel, it took on a radically different style, whereas the first game felt like the beginning of a new first-person shooter franchise in the same vein asCall Of Duty.
In all fairness, the originalPortalwas an experimental mod forHalf-Life 2that exploded into its own game. As such, it makes sense forPortalto not have a long story mode, at only three and a half hours long. It’s also more of a first-person puzzle game and such games are rarely extensive.
With context in mind, it is impressive what Valve did with a simple mod, creating complex puzzles that require a lot of patience to solve, combined with a funny yet eerie villain who became iconic. Even years later, the originalPortalis still a classic to own on Steam, and the sequel,Portal 2, proves superior in every way.
As a concept,SuperHotblew up the internet because, in the game, time only moves when the player does. So, akin toPortal,SuperHotis more of a puzzle game, but there is plenty of shooting and slashing required to solve those puzzles. Overnight, the game became a smash hit.
Unfortunately,SuperHotends almost as quickly as it begins, at just over two hours long, and some gamers felt it lost its footing in the last few scenarios.SuperHotwas still given a mostly warm reception, since it did provide a lot of fun as an indie title.
