How do you feel about games that record your total play time?

[Xara]

It doesn’t matter to me whether a game records my total play time or not, but I think it’s cool when it does! I’ve mostly been playing switch games these past few years, so I’m used to how many hours I’ve sunk into a game being recorded. Personal data like that is interesting to me, and I like that it serves as physical evidence of how I’ve spent my gaming time, what games I like the most and have spent the most time playing, what games I haven’t given as much attention to, etc.

It’s definitely a little embarrassing when I look at my play times and feel like I’ve maybe spent too much time gaming, but the most hours I’ve put into a game (New Horizons) is 2,615, which is equivalent to around 108 days. That’s definitely a lot of time, but taking into account that I’ve had the game since release day (almost 4 years ago), the pandemic, and the amount of free time that I had because of it, I don’t think it’s a terribly insane amount of time?

Either way, it’s nice to look at and reflect back on all of the time I’ve spent and all of the fun I’ve had. Time spent having fun is never time wasted imo.

 

[Zerous]

I enjoy having it, it can serve as both a measure of ooo how much time have I spent enjoying this game, as well as sometimes a reflection of how I want to spend my time in the future.

I enjoy comparing hours with friends as well!

 

[MiniPocketWorld]

I don't mind it, but yeah I understand the feeling of, oh.. I spent that much time playing video games.... Maybe I should have been doing something else?
I'm not sure I could say I feel like it was a waste of time the end. I usually play games when I feel burnt out, over whelmed, or I just need to physically rest due to muscle weakness or pain. So, I mean that time would have been spent on my butt regardless whether I was reading, napping, watching something or playing a game.
It does kinda give you an indicator of what games you tend to play the most which can be helpful knowing what you like a little bit better.

 

[Midoriya]

I don't really care one way or the other. It at least gives me a better idea of which games I tend to gravitate towards.

 

[amemome]

Mixed feelings, especially since if the time looks "big" I feel like, man, so much time spent on this game but also like man, I did so much in the game!

 

[frogslime]

I like numbers and stats so I try to have that stuff enabled as much as possible. Also, I can gloat about it. Hoho, I'm clearly a bigger fan of this game than you because I have one more hour on it. But yeah nah, I don't stress about it too much unless it's a really uncreative tycoon game in Roblox or something. Then again, I don't play League or Overwatch so I have nothing to be ashamed about (kidding).

 

[Chris]

I do prefer to see these stats. I like to see that I'm getting my money's worth out of a video game or console purchase. It helps me make sensible decisions going forward.

E.g. Do I keep buying Assasin's Creed games and not playing them for more than a few hours each? Maybe I shouldn't buy the next. Or did I get enough use out of my Nintendo Switch to justify buying its successor at launch?

 

[Dinosaur]

It doesn't really matter to me since most of the time those numbers probably aren't true for me. I have a bad habit of starting games, playing for an hour or so and then wandering off for 6 hours leaving it on lol. I do get kind of curious though how much time I've actually spent playing vs how much time is just sitting there idly with games open on the screen.

 

[rocketspruggs]

I don't care, I think it's fun to look at how much I have played sometimes.

 

[deana]

I enjoy being able to see how much time I've spent on a game. Especially when looking back on my game library after a lot of time has passed seeing the total playtime gives me an idea of if the game was any good or how difficult it was.

 

[wuppytime]

SO i think, at least according to my steam, ark survival evolved is nearly at 900 hours played. but do i recommend it?
ABSOLUTELY NOT LOL. the studio behind it is. something. i never saw a game so poorly managed in my whole 25 years of life. a lot of false hopes and big promises that they can never ever stick to.

but will i play more??
of course. </3 i'm in too deep.

 

[Snek]

Yes, because these Switch games are pretty expensive and I want to know if I've gotten my money's worth of the game. The Switch even tells you have many hours you've put in. I've gotten the most out of the games I've played but sometimes I do wonder if I play too much of one game. Even though I've played enough of the Pokemon games to get my money's worth, I've decided to take a hiatus from those games to make sure the other games in my library get as good playing time.

 

[Croconaw]

I haven't really thought about it because I don't pay much attention to it. I know on mainline Pokémon games they will tell you your playtime each time you start the game and I see the number, but the numbers don't phase me.

 

[magicaldonkey]

yeah, i like seeing my playtime on my switch and playstation. love me some stats! seeing an increase in hours played after quitting a game is satisfying

 

[~Kilza~]

Honestly, I really enjoy it! I love having info like that so I can tell how long it takes me to beat certain games, or how much time I've put into open-ended games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons, or if I was able to beat a game faster than any time I previously played it, and so forth. It's honestly nice these days how the console/handheld itself or something like Steam will track the time you played a game for you, rather than requiring the game itself to do it. Though I'll admit I'd love more detailed breakdowns, like from the Nintendo 3DS/Wii U days where you could see how many times you played it/your average playtime, or what days you played a certain game. The Switch is definitely lacking in that regard, so I can only hope the Switch successor brings that kind of info back unlikely, but, you never know.

 

[SkyKnight03]

I'd like to know all my playtimes. Makes for a good way to access what was most worth my money and in general it's just simply interesting data.

 

[podunk]

I'm mostly the same -- I flip between enjoying the record of the effort I've put into the game and being a little embarrassed. I also sometimes get into a speed running mindset when starting a game with a timer -- "oh man what if I finish the game super fast, that would look cool on the timer!"

 

[Hyoon]

i love seeing stats about myself (??? lol??) like spotify unwrapped and stuff like that so i like it when games record my playtime or offer other stats like how many times i died and did some
other activity or something. it's pretty neat to see c:

 

[Blink.]

I like seeing the stats. It shows how much time I've invested. Maybe because it was super fun, replayable, or maybe I just really wanted the achievements.

 

[CometCatcher]

A bit embarrassed, but also proud. Some of the skill-based platformers (Celeste, Hollow Knight) I spent a lot of time on to "get good," so to speak, and it's nice seeing that the time and hard work paid off. Plus, I had fun!