How long do you like dungeons to be?

[FrogMage]

This is kind of a specific question but I've been wondering, what length of dungeon do people like the most? Do people like longer, more complex dungeons (e.g. twilight princess, skyward sword) or smaller, more fast-paced dungeons (e.g. a link between worlds)? What games and specific dungeons do you think handle this the best? Generally 3d dungeons are longer than 2d ones, so that's something to note.

 

[thePlinko]

Longer all the way. If I’m not getting stuck in a dungeon then it’s not doing a good job of being a dungeon. That being said it the length needs to be due to an actual challenge in navigation and not because of it being full of cycle-based movement *cough City in the Sky cough.*

 

[Dizzi]

medium length.... you want an adventure but ya still wanna do the story...

 

[Fletch]

I think a hearty half hour to an hour's good enough for me. I think if done well, in that time, you'd explore enough of the dungeon to understand its layout and piece things together and work from there to make your way to its end without feeling like it's extending the time you're there for.

 

[Azure Sage]

A half hour or so is a good chunk of time for a dungeon, I agree. It should be long enough and require enough exploration and investigation that it feels like an adventure all of its own. Sometimes this can even include the effort it takes to reach the dungeon itself. BotW and TotK had amazing dungeon buildup that were often as long as the dungeons themselves.

 

[Uwu_Oocoo2]

My favorite type of dungeon is one where I can play for an hour or two, reach a convenient save point (like a fast travel back to the beginning) and pick it up for the next half the next time I play. It should have a good midpoint and be long enough that I can actually reach that midpoint and be like "aight that's enough". That's probably really specific but that's just how I play them.

 

[Hyrulian Hero]

Snowpeak Ruins. You mean I get to play an actual linear story while I complete a dungeon?! I have rarely gotten tired of a typical Zelda dungeon no matter the length but even though Snowpeak Ruins didn't have my favorite layout, puzzles, or theme, it was probably the most coherent dungeon I can remember. The less linear dungeons of TotK didn't hold my attention well, unfortunately. I don't know as I really have a preference as to length of the dungeon. Majora's Mask may have had the least dungeon content in comparison to the content in the rest of the world and it was great because Nintendo balanced it well.

 

[DarthCreeper10]

an hour from start to finish. It's probably just me but I have horrible patience lol. But it needs to be challenging anyways

 

[YoungGanon23]

It depends, i personally really enjoyed the 1 or 2 hour Dungeons as happened in the old 3D Zelda games

 

[Bowsette Plus-Ultra]

As long as they need to be.

I don't really think there should be a standard length or format to a dungeon. Knowing ahead of time the layout and how long it'll take to beat kind of takes away from the danger and the mystery of it all. If they're all about the same length and g through the same structural beats then do they really feel like dangerous, unknown places?