Why The Longing Takes Four Hundred Days to Play

Time's a funny thing, isn't it? We've got so much of it and yet it never feels like enough. So many games are about time, and they've all got different ways of using it to motivate and manipulate players - but what's the underlying truth behind the way video games use chronology?

To find out, The Architect is going to have to go deep, deep underground to play with a little game called The Longing which, as the name may imply, is very very long indeed.

You Saw:

The Longing (2020)
A Hat In Time (2017)
Overwatch (2015)
Starcraft 2 (2012)
Super Mario Bros (1985)
Undertale (2015)
Super Mario Galaxy 2 (2010)
Wonderful 101 (2013)
Super Metroid (1994)
Time Limit (1983)
Rayman Legends (2013)
Pikmin (2001)
Mass Effect 2 (2010)
Portal (2007)
Mirror's Edge (2009)
Verlet Swing (2018)
Spelunky (2008)
Sonic Mania (2017)
Outer Wilds (2019)
Monster Train (2020)
Minit (2018)
Sexy Brutale (2017)
Megaman 11 (2018)
Braid (2008)
Quantum League (2020)
Hitman 2 (2018)
Team Fortress 2 (2007)
Animal Crossing New Horizons (2020)
Time Clickers (2015)
Adventure Capitalist (2014)
Cookie Clicker (2013)
Forager (2019)
Universal Paperclips (2017)
Factorio (2020)
Satisfacotry (Early Access)
Super Mario 64 (1996)
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim (2011)
Slay The Spire (2019)
Horizon Zero Dawn (2017)
TitanFall 2 (2016)
Fall Guys (2020)
Runescape (2004)
Breath Of The Wild (2017)
Vanquish (2010)
Return of the Obra Dinn (2018)
Final Fantasy 14 (2010)
RAID: Shadow Legends (NO NO I REFUSE TO LOOK AT THIS GAME ANY MORE THAN I HAVE DONE)
Control (2019)

[kRionikk]

Someone: "This game is all about waiting."
Speedrunners: *waits faster*

[AshArtzMusic]

“My top game of this year”

*game takes longer than a year to play*

[boldandbrash]

"How many hours you got on that game?"
"9600"
"Damn, thats alot"
"I only beat it once"

[chrisforreal]

The Longing: *Takes 400 Days To Complete*
Monopoly: Pathetic

[tremox]

"Are you too fixated on optimising your play to really enjoy it?"

Factorio players: "I don't even understand the question."

[funnyname]

Imagine the timer having a minute left, you’ve a got a massive smile on your face, and then your data corrupts.

[Typhooone]

I remember, the first time I beat Minecraft survival I waited throughout the entire end screen because I felt I should've, my friends kept urging me to skip it because everyone's seen it before but I didn't listen. I watched the credits roll by and all the while I couldn't help but think "I did this by myself"

[woodyhoody]

Time Stamps
The Longing 00:00 - 01:28
Temporal Mechanics 01:28 - 02:03
Time Limits 02:04-03:20
Mass Effect 2 03:24-04:20
Time trials 04:23-06:10
Time Loops 06:11-10:15
Waiting.... 10:12-14:30
Some Longing spoilers 14:30-15:30
Time 15:30-18:40
Video ending 19:00-20:45

[ragnarock]

Imagine the 400 days are over and then it says: “Do it again. Show your process.”

[Darnarus]

The game is just a visual representation of the developement process, in real time. 4h to plot everything out, two weeks to draw and implement the first corridor, 120 days to get the moss thing working.

[oantimido]

I miss playing skyrim AFTER all the maior quests are done, just to hunt some deer, get to walk a bit in the countyside, camp a night in the woods, really good experience overall.

This “The longing” looks like a good game for adults.

[grfrjiglstan]

"Wow, this game looks interesting. I think I'll download it."
_Estimated download time: 14 hours_
"Wow, it's already started!"

[eyelnne]

Don't be fooled. The original timers for arcades, was to eat quarters.

[SingingPixels]

Being involved in the making of this game, it makes me really happy seeing videos about it 🤗

[oyfum]

“This game takes 400 days to complete.”

Meanwhile, terraria calamity players waiting for their final boss to actually be released so they can beat the game properly: ☠️

[Old_Guard]

“This game takes 400 in real life days to complete”

Speed runners: “3, take it or leave it”

[syncopatedglory]

this is a really important message tbh. too many games want you to feel obligated to play for their bottom line, but it's your duty to yourself to guard your time and spend it on the things that genuinely please you. too many people sink time into games or shows that they hate. it's okay to cut something lose; you will fill the ensuing void with something afterwards.

[DTFauxClassic]

There was no greater feeling of liberation than when I was playing one of those dime-a-dozen town-building games on mobile, and I was hit with the revelation of how much of my time and energy was focused on playing I game I wasn't really playing. And that's fair enough when it comes to games that have a meaning, message, or payoff... but some of these games are just ad revenue generators for the devs.

It's a double-edged sword, because games have probably never been as free and accessible as ever (this would've blown my mind as a kid in the 90s), but they can also take advantage of people's time and money in pretty cynical ways. It'd be curious to see just how many hours people have given up watching unskippable ads just to "enjoy" a few more minutes of passive gameplay.

[tatters]

I feel like a continuous 400 stream of The Longing without speeding up time ever would be a charity stream to rival Desert Bus For Hope.

[razbuten]

This game looks like it would make me feel awful, and I love it.