The proper length of a video game will always depend on genre, type of game, and personal preference. It's a debate that many never really end, as some people love games that are incredibly long epics, while others enjoy shorter tighter adventures. Most gamers, it would seem, probably play a little in both, as it's possible to love games like Persona 5 and Skyrim while enjoying shorter, tighter games like Control and Remnant: From the Ashes (among many, many others). Deciding when/how to play these titles, even free ones like what the Epic Games Store offers, isn't always simple.
After all, one portion of that debate typically involves the price of a game: is a $60 game that is 120 hours long inherently better than a $60 game that is 12 hours long? Again, this is all personal preference, but that becomes muddied when that cost is taken out. Many services offer free games of all sizes, shapes, genres, and lengths, including Xbox Game Pass, PS Plus, and the Epic Games Store.
No matter how one looks at it, a free game is a free game, and that changes up the argument. One Redditor, StopSendingSteamKeys, took it upon themselves to sort all of the free games on the Epic Games Store by length. Many free games may get claimed but go unclaimed for a while, and returning to them may sometimes depend on length. Thanks to the aforementioned Redditor, who accumulated these times from video game length aggregate site HowLongtoBeat, players can look and see what they have unplayed and how long it'll take to beat.
Interestingly, the service has only given away 12 games that take 2 hours or less to beat, with those including some fan-favorites like Minit, What Remains of Edith Finch, and Gone Home. In contrast, the longest 12 games offered for free by Epic Games Store exceed the 28-hour mark, with the top three of those taking 69 hours (My Time at Portia), 88.5 (Elite: Dangerous), and a whopping 159 hours (Farming Simulator 19).
For those who love the Epic Games Store's weekly offering, which this week includes Bridge Constructor: The Walking Dead and Ironcast until July 15 (which will then be replaced with Obduction and Offworld Trading Company on EGS), this may just prove to be a handy list that can be further edited as games are added. It'll also helping picking a game based on length, depending on the mood the gamer is in and how much time they want to devote to another game.