i was recently recommended this video:
and it got me thinking about games that test your endurance or persistence, specifically over a single session ā there are obviously heaps of games that expect/require players to dedicate enormous amounts of time and concentration over multiple sessions, and while the two are not mutually exclusive, thatās not what iām talking about here.
as i was thinking about the kinds of games (or certain ways of playing) that do this, i found myself splitting games into one of two groups, based on the average level of maintained dexterity/skill that is expected over a single session. this distinction is subtle, and maybe kinda tenuous, but i am interesting in distinguishing the two.
a unifying feature of these two categories is that they both require the player to be actively (physically) engaged with game, even if that engagement is as low impact as simply holding down a button or joystick. this aspect feels important to me, because it distinguishes these games from āidleā games, which are also fascinating, but strike me as being designed to be ignored or forgotten, and then remembered again.
iāve been thinking for quite a while now about streaming games like these; iām not a particularly witty or charismatic, but i am persistent, and perfectly willing to dedicate a few hours of my life to, idk, finding the edge of the map in a walking sim.
anyway here are a few games that i thought fit this criteria:
- desert bus
desert bus feels like the urgame of this type and has spawned many clones and romhacks on various systems (like this one). important to note that the above video shows a full playthrough of the game at three times normal speed.
time investment: huge. focus investment: low.
- elite dangerous
elite dangerous and its kin are what i was referring to when i said that prolonged concentration over a single session does not exclude a game from also requiring the player to invest many hours over multiple sessions as well. i sunk around a hundred hours into it during one of the lockdowns last year and flew something like 22k light years in a week or so. at some point iāll pick it up again and go to the core or something. game rules.
time investment: long (variable). focus investment: medium - high.
- the nĆ¼rburgring
ok this is kind of a joke but also this is here as a cover-all for endurance racing games in general and the nĆ¼rburgring in particular because it requires such intense concentration and skill to race well. itās extremely good. play gt sport, or forza or w/e else itās in.
time investment: long (depends on lap-count i guess). focus investment: very high.
there are heaps of games about driving or flying a long distance (eurotruck, flight sim, maybe even something like sky odyssey, tho not quite to the same extent) but personally iām kinda more interested in walking than driving or flying (especially flying). my favourite parts of death stranding were all the ponderous terrain navigation, and iāve played so many connor sherlock games, and iāve sunk idk how many hours into minecraft just walking until i found a mountain or island that i liked the look of.
anyway iām tired and i donāt really know what iām going for here but idk how to engage with things that i like without making lists so, what other endurance games or ways of playing games or particular levels or challenges like this are there?? i wanna know!
also please suggest a better thread title because āendurance gamingā makes my skin crawl
