The 8-bit era was a simpler time, to be sure. This certainly wasn't the case for the difficulty of many of the games, which was often unforgiving and grueling, but rather, the overall presentation and length. Given the restrictive, limited capabilities of Nintendo's NES and its cartridges, this is understandable.
And yet, there were quite a few surprisingly lengthy titles which could take weeks of commitment to knock out, even when disregarding the high number of inevitable deaths when playing.
These typically came in the form of the more intricate role-playing games and often converted software from machines like Commodore 64; callbacks to a more nuanced, robust form of gaming represented by personal computers of the early 80s.
Whether they're ports or original software, there are various NES titles that can eclipse even the most grandiose RPG epics of the modern era, taking dozens of hours to finish. Let's take a look at 10 of the longest now.
10 Ultima III: Exodus- 22 Hours
The Ultima series shines as a relic of a bygone age of gaming, where personal computers reigned and super detailed, cryptic WRPGs were all the rage. This massive and tricky adventure for the NES feels like a time capsule into that forgotten era. Despite being something of a whittled down port from the Apple II, Ultimate III: Exodus still towers above most other games on the NES in terms of its depth and length.
If you can somehow overcome the slew of tough monsters and find your way through the countless 3-dimensional mazes, you can complete the main story in under 22 hours.
9 Wizardry: Proving Ground Of The Mad Overlord- 21 Hours
Speaking of Apple II converts with cryptic 3D dungeons, this port proves similarly detailed and lengthy. As is the case with many early RPGs, there is a wealth of text, statistics, and other information you'll be sorting through here. You'll be managing a fighting party of up to six characters, each with their own class, race, and "alignment" of good, neutral, or evil. Aside from the primitive first-person dungeons, this game is essentially a text-based adventure, meaning there will be quite a bit of reading - along with mindlessly wandering about.
Assuming you know what you're doing, this journey can be completed in just over 21 hours.
8 Dragon Warrior IV- 25 Hours
Ah, we're back to the prettier, more intuitive overhead map with the Dragon Warrior series, but that doesn't mean the 4th entry in this classic JRPG franchise is any simpler. You know you're dealing with a pretty robust adventure when the studio behind it had taken 2 whole years to develop it - a long time for an 8-bit title. This game takes something of an Octopath Traveler approach by dividing up the gameplay into 5 distinct chapters, each of which follows a different protagonist, while they come together later in the game.
This epic multi-character quest (even without its added 6th chapter in the DS/PlayStation remake), can take 25 hours to beat!
7 The Bard's Tale- 25 Hours
Are you sensing a theme with these massive gaming odysseys? Yes, here we have another old school RPG which largely hinges on a heavy dose of text, along with crunching numbers. This '91 port - also known as The Bard's Tale: Tales of the Unknown was partly tweaked from the Apple II original, though it retains much of the intricate details of its originator.
You'll be controlling up to six party members, who can either attack, guard, cast spells, use items, or "sing songs" in true Bard fashion. And once again, you'll be navigating some vague, 3D landscapes in a choppy first-person perspective. Even practiced Bards will find this lengthy tale taking around 25 hours to conquer.
6 Final Fantasy II- 25.5 Hours
Yes, even when tracing this iconic RPG epic back to its more primitive 2D roots, Square Enix (then Squaresoft) offered some truly large, dynamic Final Fantasy games. This one tends to get somewhat overlooked in favor of the classics, as it was rather different from the original Japanese fans loved, and didn't receive a Western release until many years later.
Still, there are many things to appreciate about this 2nd installment of FF, and the sheer amount of content is one of them. This game also helped pioneer the Skyrim-esque system of skill points increasing based on how much they're used. The iconic Final Fantasy II can be completed in roughly 25 hours and 30 minutes.
5 Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon And The Blade Of Light- 28 Hours
While this intricate strategy-RPG is still confined to the shores of Japan in its original form, Fire Emblem fans were able to finally travel back to the series' roots with the Virtual Console release on Wii, 3DS, and Wii U almost two decades later. As is the case with most of the distinct Fire Emblem games, this title stresses tactical moves and battle strategies above all else.
Although this retro title doesn't match the grandiose 47-hour journey that comprises Three Houses for Switch, it's still one of the biggest NES games, clocking in at 28 hours just to beat the main story. Completionists have their work cut out for them, as this can take nearly double that time.
4 Dragon Warrior III- 30 Hours
While Enix had created some deep and majestic RPG hits with Dragon Quest I and II, they truly stepped up their game with this third installment (which is actually a prequel of the original game). An elaborate class system was introduced, mechanics became more streamlined, and the colorful environments were as expansive as ever.
Perhaps most significant, though - this epic adventure more than doubles the length of the more archaic first game, clocking in at almost 30 hours! In terms of accessibility, majesty, and the amount of content, this is truly the pinnacle of RPGs on the NES.
3 Final Fantasy III- 30 Hours
It sure seems like Japan gets all the most robust games for themselves - at least initially. Thankfully, this underrated FF odyssey was eventually remade for the DS and PSP several years after the original NES classic. Still, even in its original 8-bit form, traversing the majestic floating continent of FFIII and completing your quest could take over 30 hours.
This 3rd game is really where things start coming together, as the traditional xp system (absent from II) makes a return here, as does a refined character class system.
2 Pool Of Radiance- 32 Hours
Despite its absence in the "official" title, this text-heavy RPG falls under the vast and fantastical Dungeons & Dragons moniker. And as you'd expect for an adventure romp bearing the name D&D, this NES port of Pool of Radiance is immensely dense and long.
The game hasn't aged that well, featuring those prototypical black screens filled with tons of stats, permadeath, along with - you guessed it - more blocky 3D navigation. Still, Pool of Radiance really was a mechanical marvel for its time, and is still one of the longer games of the classic era.
Making to all the way to the epically named final boss, "Tyranthraxus the Flamed One," can take around 32 hours.
1 Tecmo Super Bowl- 68 Hours
What have we here? A long NES game that isn't rooted in strategy or role-playing? Yes, as it happens, there are a number of old sports software that can take a surprisingly long time to complete. This is usually thanks to lengthy career modes meant to more realistically resemble months-long seasons in sports.
This renowned 8-bit football classic is particularly robust, however. While the gameplay is actually pretty straightforward, there is a ton of content to "tackle" at your disposal. Even when plowing through this one with the beast that is Bo Jackson, completing an entire season and post-season can take around 68 hours!
That is a lot of football. Be sure to apply ample ice to those sore muscles!