On Replayability

What makes a game worth a second, third, or fourth play through? I find myself asking myself this as I begin my seventh run through Castle Crashers. Despite the minimal story, repetitive gameplay, and short length, I have played this game more times, and spent more hours in it, than most games. The one aspect that keeps bringing me back for more, unlocking new characters and weapons upon completion of a playthrough, requires extremely little work from the developers. Every character fits a basic pattern, so it is easy to add new characters, and no new tactics are necessary to learn. In addition, the multiplayer aspect adds a new level of variation to the game.

Other games, however still draw me in for another play through without being as short as Castle Crashers. Mass Effect allows for a number of choices throughout the game, mainly whether you are good or evil which encourages multiple playthroughs of the game. On the other hand, classic epic RPGs like the Final Fantasy series still draw me in to replay them. However, these games are replayed differently. Unlike Castle Crashers, I don’t go straight back into another run of the game. Instead, I set the game aside after beating it and revive it for another run years later. These games are exactly the same, and instead of trying to get to new stuff, I treat these replays like rereading a good book. I look for subtle things that I would have missed the first time through, or just to refresh my memory and relive a great story.