Extended playing sessions

[Sam P]

Confession time.

 

I have a rather peculiar problem. If circumstances aren't such that I can have at least 2 hours or so of playing video games, I prefer not to get started at all. A typical session for me would be 2.5 hours. Maybe 3.5 if the game happens to be really captivating.

 

Any more than that and I become fatigued - shoulders too sore, fingers start to cramp and vision starts to blur.

 

What about you guys?

 

What is your:

 

1.) Typical playing period?

 

2.) Longest ever session? Do mention the game played, for any special occasion or purpose, or anything else of interest.

 

My longest session was probably shortly after I acquired Goldeneye for N64, when I stayed up with 3 other friends playing for something like 5 hours. Never done anything like that since. Not that I didn't enjoy it, however...

 

3.) Ever done what movie buffs do? For example, instead of watching the trilogy of a movie set you would play through a game set.

 

Let's hear em! 8)

[blackcalx]

I tend to play for about two hours at a time. I'm like you, I'd rather not get started if I can't invest a good chunk of time. However, my shrinking available time finds me changing my gaming habits. I play more FPS titles (vs RTS and RPG) because of the "pick up and play" aspect of them.

 

I believe the longest session I ever had was with Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. I started playing as soon as I got home from school (3-ish) and finally turned it off about 5:00 AM, just in time to shower and get ready for the next day's classes.

 

I haven't done the marathon gaming, though I often will try to get a little "history gaming" in before a big release.

[iainl]

Its only about 30-60 minutes for me, however. Probably explains why I don't do RPGs and prefer arcadey games.

[Angry the Clown]

It very much depends how engrossed in the game I am, as I am sure it is for most people. On average, between one and two hours I'd imagine. I probably play about 4hrs worth of games a week when in the mood. Not touched a console in about a month mind you, but Knights of the Old Republic will hopefully fix that.

 

My longest session I think was back when I had Mario 64. It was difficult to put down and I played it for hours on end ensuring I got everything... I did so, which is rare for me. It was worth my time. I've not been compelled to play a game that much and that thoroughly since.

 

 

3.) Ever done what movie buffs do? For example, instead of watching the trilogy of a movie set you would play through a game set.

 

No, but that's a nice idea. I believe a friend of mine said he played some of the resident evils back to back over a weekend. I'm rubbish at Resident Evil games, despite how much I enjoy playing them. I've never completed one.

 

Daniel

[Mark E]

60 minutes is generally my minimum though I've been known to sneak a quick fix if I'm playing something particularly toasty.

 

Longest session, hmm, I think the longest may be the time I sank eight straight hours into Final Fantasy IV. I'm pretty good for making sure I get enough sleep. That being said I'm sure I've sunk an equivalent amount of time into Deus Ex the past couple of weeks, trying to finish it off before school starts.

[JoeyN]

Since live came out when i do get on on, it pretty much on for a while. Many times we start off playing one game for two hours. Switching to another for another 3 or so.

 

capt

[JFo]

What is your:

 

1.) Typical playing period?

 

It totally depends on the game. Recently, I've gone 3+ hours at a time playing F-Zero GX and Resident Evil for the GameCube. That will include bathroom breaks and the occasional time needed to stretch my legs and rest my mind and body.

 

2.) Longest ever session? Do mention the game played, for any special occasion or purpose, or anything else of interest.

 

I don't usually keep track of how much time I spend playing a game, so this one's a little harder to say. It could be The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Mario 64, or perhaps even The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I do remember spending so much time playing Metroid Prime when it first came out last year that when I was done playing through the whole game, I thought to myself, "What am I going to do now? How am I going to spend my free time?" I had played it so much for so long that I pretty much no longer knew how to make any other plans.

 

3.) Ever done what movie buffs do? For example, instead of watching the trilogy of a movie set you would play through a game set.

 

I think I could only do this with older games. The games these days typically take too long for me to play through them all at a single play session. I've never done this, but I would love to sit down and play through every Mega Man game for the NES sometime, one right after the other.

[The Daisy]

For me, I play games for around an hour or two at a minimum. If I can't get that much time in, I probably won't bother starting. I like to get lost in a game for a while, and I can't do that if I have to keep looking at the clock.

 

Longest gaming session? I got Tecmo Super Bowl for the NES on a Friday afternoon. I started playing at around 4 or 5 PM. I stopped playing around 6 or 7 the next morning. Took a 4 hour nap, ate some lunch and played it again until 3 the next morning. Slept in a bit on Sunday and played it until 11 that night.

 

It's no wonder that I still love that game.

 

I've never thought of playing through a game set... although like Daniel mentioned, you could probably do that with the Resident Evil games.

 

Glen

[Angel P]

I agree that if I can't get at least 2 hours, I'm not playing. I also average about 3 but don't play as much as I'd like due to DVDs and all the shit that's on my TiVo.

 

2.) Longest ever session? Do mention the game played, for any special occasion or purpose, or anything else of interest.

I don't have as many long sessions as I used to anymore (and don't remember how long when I did) but I remember having at least one very LONG session with every console I've had.

 

Metal Gear - NES

Sonic The Hedgehog - Genesis

Super Metroid - SNES

Resident Evil - PS1

Metroid Prime - GC

 

3.) Ever done what movie buffs do? For example, instead of watching the trilogy of a movie set you would play through a game set.

I once saw the Alien Trilogy (before Resurrection was released) on VHS in one sitting. I can't imagine doing that with video games. Too much stress on the eyes, hands, back, shoulders and marriage. :green:

[Robot Monkey]

1. Typical playing time: 90 minutes.

 

2. Longest playing time: Probably KOTOR. That first weekend was ugly. I played for an hour in the morning at a buddy's place before he and his wife got up. Then he ran out and picked up his own copy and we did some errands. He set up another TV and his Xbox in the living room and we played side-by-side from noon to 3 AM. Then we played from 9 to 3 PM on Sunday, I went home and played for 2 or three more hours. Ugly.

 

3. Never tried a marathon play-through of any game series.

 

-j

[Sam P]

Woah, some of you guys are nuts! Some of those extended sessions put me to shame. :shock:

[rustyjaw]

I have to go way back for my record gaming time. Back to the arcade, around 1983-4, the Atari Star Wars game (vector)...I played for 8 hours on one quarter.

 

Around the same time, me and a friend played Ultima IV (Commodore 64) for an entire day, probably from 10am until 2am the next day.

 

These days, I'm a tad more sane. If I'm really into a game, I often play it for 2-3 hours. This past saturday, between ESPN NFL, Mario Golf, F-Zero and Bombastic I played for about 6 hours...but not in a row. It was approx 2 three-hour sergments.

 

But then I can go for a week or 2 without playing any games.

[merlot]

2.) Longest ever session?

ThrillHo and I played well over 200 matches of the original Soul Calibur (it stops counting after 199, so we reset it). This event took place over an entire day & night, non-stop. :green:

[Hank Scorpio]

1.) Typical playing period?

 

It really depends on the game. RPGs and other story-based games I play for a longer period of time than a fighter or sports games - at least in single-player mode. Multiplayer I'll play for as long as my pals want.

 

But RPGs anywhere from 1-3 hours, sometimes more. I can't play games like that for less, because it doesn't feel like I'm accomplishing much, plus it breaks up the story.

 

2.) Longest ever session? Do mention the game played, for any special occasion or purpose, or anything else of interest.

 

I can't say for certain, but here's some that pop out at me:

 

1. Halo - My pals and I played it on GameSpy for 8 hours. We've gotten together countless times and played for over 4 hours in system link mode.

 

2. Goldeneye - Before Halo, this was one game even my casual-gamer friends enjoyed immensely. Every weekend we'd play for a few hours a night. Even my friend's Dad would play a bit with us, and usually get beaten badly.

 

3. Worms - For a while it was a weekly thing after work to drink and play this game on a Friday or Saturday. Usually for a few hours.

 

4. KOTOR - I think 5 hours was the most I played this uninterrupted, on a few occasions.

 

5. Final Fantasy (various games) - Part 8 I played an awful lot while trying to level up to beat the Weapons. But part 3 on the SNES I played for about 8 hours one afternoon while staying home "sick" from school.

 

6. Metal Gear Solid 2 - I played about 5 hours one night when I knew I was nearing the end and wanted to finish it.

 

7. Metroid Prime - About 3-5 hours a few times. Incredibly addictive.

 

8. Various online games - I was part of some very fun Socom benders. The first night I played RTCW was for a good 5 hours. Phantasy Star Online as well, there were numerous nights spent playing until 3 am or so.

 

Good times.

[Camp]

Typical: 30 to 60 minutes (I'm just too busy for much more).

 

Longest: Actraiser for SNES. I had just finished working an overnight shift (10PM to 8AM) when I was asked to stay at work "for a while". I ended up staying until about 8PM. When I finally got home I was so wired I couldn't sleep. I ended up playing through the game. I finally beat the game (and got some sleep) around 7AM that morning.

[Romier S]

Typical: 2 to 3 hours at the very least.

 

Longest: When I first started playing Dark Age of Camelot, I remember having off for a full 3 days from work. I jumped on Thursday evening at around 7pm and I logged off of the game on Friday at 12pm in the afternoon. I dont think I played the game again for another 2 weeks. That was one of my longest gaming binges ever.

[dienekes96]

1997. It wasn't as much continuous gaming as it was the events surrounding it. But there was a lot of continuous gaming to be had.

 

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

 

I had just moved to Virginia Beach (military transfer), and was waiting for my apartment to be available. I had been very anxious for SotN, based upon a huge GameFan article several months earlier. I knew the game was a sequel to the Dracula X game (that I still had, and have, the GameFan for, from the mid-90's), I knew that it looked great, and I knew that it was supposed to be incredible. I grew up on CV games, from the very first NES through SCV IV a few years earlier on SNES. It was in my blood, so to speak.

 

So, wandering through Babbages, a week early, and what do my eyes see? The very bland U.S. cover art for SotN A rapid purchase, and a trip to Bachelor Quarters (essentially a long-term military hotel) I was staying in. No luck hooking up the PS1 in my room. But the rec room had a tube big screen...it would have to do. I played a few hours til they kicked me out. I also had to leave those BQ for another across town due to some reservists exercise. I got to my new room around dinner, and played until 5 AM...always saying, just one more room, just one more save. I then checked into our apartment, and had to go to sea. We broke, and had to pull back in a bit early. I BOUGHT a 20" TV (my stuff still had not arrived), and played about 6 hours the one night we were home.

 

All in all, when I wasn't at work or out eating, I played SotN until I beat it.

 

I still love playing it

 

Take care,

Chuck

[Solitice]

During the NES days I used to rent a game and play it all the way through that night, so I had quite a few all nighters that way. The last time I spent a freakishly long time playing a game was on EQ with a "rare item" camp that started on a Thursday night and I got the drop on the next Monday morning...I consider that to be my "rock bottom" where I realized that I had a serious problem with that game.