While Gamers Demand More Content, Less Are Actually Staying to Enjoy It

Video games are getting bigger. The budgets, the maps and especially the length are growing astronomically.

Game showcases are built around the next blockbuster hit. Sequels have to go above and beyond. 

With rising costs to buy games, players want their money’s worth. The return on investment isn’t resale value, it’s hours of content.

What gamers want, and what the majority actually consume is completely at odds. AAA titles and franchise installments are what generate hype and big sales numbers. The top-selling games of 2025 are full of big names: Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Red Dead Redemption 2 and Grand Theft Auto V among them.

But those sprawling maps and seemingly endless stories don’t keep gamers interested. Hype shifts to the next big release, while bloated stories often cause fatigue.

Game Completion

Elden Ring is one of the most discussed titles of the past few years. PC players make up the largest single-system player base for the game, and only 10% finish all achievements. The ending with the highest achievement percentage on Steam is only held by 28.3% of players.

There are plenty of dedicated players for these games despite the low numbers; 700,000 Elden Ring players have logged over 500 hours of time played, according to Alinea Analytics. 

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is another 60+ hour game that fewer than 20% of players complete. 

Hogwarts Legacy was the best selling game of 2023 despite—or possibly because of—its controversy. It has massive crossover appeal: gamers, book fans and movie fans all found something to connect with. 

Despite topping the charts, fewer than half of gamers finished the game.

Studios All In

Even with evidence against them, studios want to push out huge games. The last Darkstar Download linked to a report that EA is putting over $400 million into the next Battlefield. The article continued on to say that the company wants a player base 3–5 times larger than their previous titles. 

EA has a track record of delivering games surrounded by hype only to fall short. Anthem and Titanfall 2 are both games that players were excited for, and ultimately failed when EA’s launch windows were poorly timed. Titanfall 2 launched between EA’s own Battlefield 1 and Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare.

Rockstar is developing Grand Theft Auto VI, and its budget is over $1 billion. The game is estimated to push game prices up, with the potential to be the first in a wave of $100 titles. 

As stated earlier, big price tags mean gamers expect content; at this point, games are likely to deliver content that most will never actually consume.

A Costly Obsession

Gamers are showing studios what they want: bigger games, longer stories and more content for their money.

The problem is, studios are delivering—with bigger games, longer stories, and more content that comes at a rising cost.

With Grand Theft Auto VI being rumored to be the first $100 base game, each new game announcement carries the feeling that the entire industry will raise prices. Nintendo Switch 2 first-party games are already hovering at the $80 mark.

Players are getting exactly what they asked for: a costly experience that they will statistically never finish.

Priorities need to shift. Value for money doesn’t mean games built in excess. It should come from rich, enjoyable experiences with tight narratives—regardless of length. In a digital first-era, replayability and satisfaction need to matter more than size or initial hype.