Let’s start by clarifying what a “Western RPG” means to avoid any confusion. The term is generally a loose label combining development history and design traditions rooted in tabletop RPGs. While it’s often contrasted with JRPGs, there isn’t a clear geographical divide, so RPGs originating in Eastern Europe (which makes up a large part of the modern scene) can still be classified as Western.
Traits like character building, player agency, quests, and choices are common features of Western RPGs, but there’s no universally enforced design checklist. For instance, they can feature a solo protagonist or a party, with either real-time or turn-based combat. Generally speaking, CRPGs are a major part of the Western RPG segment.
Now, with that out of the way, we can get to today’s topic. Western RPGs are often among the longest story-driven games available, with sprawling, epic stories unfolding across vast, multi-region worlds. Some of the longest Western RPGs take over 100 hours to beat, essentially granting you months of active play.
Our main criterion is a classic narrative campaign you can actually complete, excluding sandbox or freeform RPGs without a defined story to finish. I’ll include only base games with no DLC, ranking them by average playtime from HowLongToBeat. Naturally, your own time with each game can vary drastically depending on your playstyle.
7
Divinity: Original Sin 2
Average Playtime: 102 Hours
Divinity: Original Sin 2 was a major leap for Larian, cementing the studio as one of the most notable modern CRPG makers even before its magnum opus, Baldur’s Gate 3. Both games have plenty in common while offering distinct experiences, and both demand exceptional dedication, ranking among the longest story-driven games ever.
Find the odd one out before the timer hits zero.
Your playtime in Divinity: Original Sin 2 could depend on numerous factors: how thoroughly you explore and chase side objectives, how well you understand the game’s intricate and rather slow turn-based combat system, and how deeply you explore relationships with your party. Overall, the game takes over 100 hours for an average full playthrough, leaving many other already lengthy RPGs like Dragon Age or Fallout far behind. Now, we can only imagine just how big and long the upcoming Divinity will be, as Larian aims to surpass itself yet again.
6
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
Average Playtime: 104 Hours
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Image via Warhorse Studios -
Image via Warhorse Studios -
The original KCD was already an enormous medieval RPG, yet it doesn’t hold a candle to Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2. Immersive, realistic, and filled with convincing characters and pleasant everyday routines that help you really become Henry, KCD 2 has raised the bar for the genre in multiple areas, confidently standing among the best and most defining role-playing adventures of this generation.
Even the main story path in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 could take an average player a month to finish, but you’d be missing loads of fun in the game’s side quests and activities. KCD 2 is best when played slowly, taking in its world and atmosphere and appreciating its measured rhythm of life in the 1400s, so you’d better approach it accordingly.
5
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Average Playtime: 104 Hours
Years go by, and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt remains a standout milestone for the genre, probably still the gold standard for story-driven open-world RPGs in the eyes of millions of fans. Combining admirable freedom of exploration, lengthy cinematic cutscenes, and event-packed quests, it’s a perfect blend of everything the genre has to offer, while its enormous world easily grants over a hundred hours of adventures.
As The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Remastered includes both expansions by default, it’s an even longer endeavor. Even without expansions, though, the original Wild Hunt features a complete story with meaningful endings, so its DLC are more like pleasant bonuses than necessary additions to the main story about the search for Ciri. Now, all eyes are on the next Witcher saga to see whether Geralt’s protégée will live up to his legacy.
4
Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader
Average Playtime: 107 Hours
Owlcat Games is one of the most notable isometric CRPG developers, taking the torch from Obsidian as the latter moved away from the format after Tyranny and Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. While we’ll (spoilers!) revisit Owlcat down the road, the studio’s Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader stands among the longest offerings in the genre and is a must-play title for fans of the universe.
Created in close partnership with Games Workshop, Rogue Trader is everything you’d expect: travel between star systems and planetary exploration, choices that matter, fleshed-out companions, tactical turn-based battles, colony management, and dozens of hours of branching quests to tackle in the Emperor’s name. As Owlcat tests new waters with the upcoming action-RPG The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, it’ll be interesting to see how the game compares to the studio’s isometric releases in terms of scope and length, but it’s probably better not to expect yet another 100-hour-long colossus.
Average Playtime: 115 Hours
Bethesda’s open-world RPGs rank among the biggest and longest in the genre, and Skyrim is the prime example. A reactive world, great freedom, countless hidden areas and secrets, optional companions, factions, daily routines, and so much more: Skyrim is the definitive fantasy simulator that’s quite possibly already installed on your platform of choice just in case.
While Skyrim is arguably the least narrative-driven game among these, with its relatively short main story and much of its charm coming from freeform exploration, side activities like settling into your own home, and generated quests (Radiant), it’s also one of the most absorbing. Starting a new adventure in Skyrim is bound to take substantial time, making the game an unavoidable pick for this selection.
2
Baldur’s Gate 3
Average Playtime: 118 Hours
Unlike Skyrim, Baldur’s Gate 3’s main path alone ranks among the longest story-driven RPG campaigns ever, clocking in at an astounding 75 hours. Sure, its tabletop roots play a part, with plenty to read even when choosing a single response and layered, tactical combat encounters rich in possibilities. Many of those battles need replaying when luck runs out or something goes sideways.
That’s not to downplay just how vast Baldur’s Gate 3 is, with its sheer abundance of quests to tackle and resolve in the most unexpected ways. It’s not uncommon for even die-hard fans to admit that the game is probably too long, as many become overwhelmed by ever-growing quest journals upon reaching Act 3. It’s probably a bit late for this advice, but if you’re thinking of starting BG3 for the first time, make sure you really have some time on your hands.
1
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous
Average Playtime: 142 Hours
What’s most interesting about the longest game on this list is just how substantial the gap is between Pathfinder and Baldur’s Gate 3, which is already a monstrous game brimming with content that relatively few players have actually completed. The listed figure here is an especially rough guide, but with Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous, Owlcat delivers a truly epic journey where your choices determine how you influence the world, while the game’s text-heavy structure and slow-paced combat ensure months of play.
And it’s not just Wrath of the Righteous — the previous entry, Pathfinder: Kingmaker, is another similarly massive offering, clocking in at around 137 hours for a single full playthrough. Both games leave competitors absolutely no chance of dethroning the Pathfinder series, so if you’re ready for a truly lengthy CRPG experience in the best tradition of Neverwinter Nights, these two are your safest bet.
