stub 5 Insanely Long Challenges That Gamers Actually Completed - Gaming.net
Connect with us

Best Of

5 Insanely Long Challenges That Gamers Actually Completed

Published

 on

Seeing as we covered some of the most time-consuming video game challenges earlier this week, it seems only right that we follow up with something just as trivial. With that, we've been doing a little digging for some of the most painstakingly enduring achievements that have been forged by real-time gamers. Now, whether they can even be considered as accomplishments or not is sort of irrelevant, because, whatever they are — some people out there sure are proud of their efforts. Of course, while we don't condone fulfilment in the slightest — we do have to question the details surrounding the odd goal or two.

Whether it's for a place in the Guinness World Records or just a talking point amongst friends — people will always look to find new ways of challenging their gaming abilities. Pointless or not — it's all fun and games in the long run. That said, we can't deny that these devoted five aren't just a little crazy for designing and completing these following challenges. I mean, I can't say we'd plan on stepping up to bat in the same ballpark anytime soon.

 

5.  20,000 Perfect Wii Bowling Games

As if one perfect game wasn't enough of a flex already.

There's no denying the fact that Wii Sports was a major turn in gaming back in 2006. With its neat little library of bite-sized sports that could be enjoyed by all ages, it was a guaranteed crowd-pleaser for the whole family. That said, some sports really weren't meant to be played for lengthy periods of time — like bowling, for example. While fun in shorter bursts — the Wii Sports game definitely wasn't built to entertain for years on end. Unless, of course, your name is John Bates, in which case bowling is as vital as breathing.

The 90-something year old, although fading from the spotlight since 2018, has contributed to the history of ludicrous gaming achievements through his devotion to the Wii Sports bowling game. With a whopping 20,000 games played, Bates has racked up millions of points that span over a seven-year career with nothing but a wrist strap and a couch indent to keep him company. But hey — whatever makes the guy happy. Can't say we'd play 20,000 games of Wii Bowling, but hey-ho — each to their own and that.

 

4. The World of Warcraft Pacifist

Imagine grinding to max level through picking flowers…

Grinding your way to the max level in World of Warcraft isn't something that happens overnight. In fact, it takes weeks, months, and perhaps even years to reach the end-game content and soak in its riches. And as expected with a game that revolves around PvP and key-mashing action, reaching those levels isn't exactly achievable without cutting down a few foes along the way. Except, it actually is— and players have really gone to ridiculous lengths to reach it, too.

Back when level 80 was at the apex of the grind, players would challenge themselves to ascend the ranks without so much as slaying a single enemy. Instead, in order to climb the board, users would only accept fetch and escort quests and ultimately banish anything that involved a glimmer of violence. Through said method, climbing to the highest level was actually made possible. An absolutely insane way to play, of course — but an interesting achievement to harvest nonetheless.

 

3. Almost Every Minecraft Build

One devoted team went as far as recreating the whole of Middle-Earth over a ten-year timeline.

Contrary to what many will tell you, Minecraft is a worryingly subtle way to lose several years of your life to what can only be described as clicking a mouse a million times over. But that's not our way of saying Minecraft isn't a good game — because it is. In fact, through the power of the basic little builder, players have been able to unleash their creativity with some truly outstanding works of art. It's just that, well — it is a lot of time to put in for what is basically, without trying to trigger any Minecraft fanatic — a tower of cubes.

From mapping the whole of Los Angeles to constructing the very depths of Mordor, players have been sewing together mega builds by the motherload for almost a decade now. However, as impressive as each entry to the catalogue is, it doesn't help the fact that every submission would've effectively taken thousands of hours to string together. On average, a casual Minecraft player might put in a hundred hours or so over a serious length of time, whereas the elite collective is most definitely racking up several thousand or more. Now, whether you agree or not — that's a lot of time to commit to something — even for video game standards.

 

2. “Completing” Candy Crush Saga

Candy Crush Saga: where 9000 levels stand between sanity and sweet sweet victory.

While Candy Crush isn't something you'd stick around for through to its dying days, it's still definitely a second home to an enormous number of loyal followers that drop in from time to time. Though, with over 9,000 levels to attend to, it's no wonder many people use the match-three puzzler as a simple stepping stone on the way to shorter and more fulfilling games. But having said that, believe it or not — there is a remote collective who have seen the entire saga through to its bitter end.

If you've stuck with Candy Crush ever since its 2012 launch, then physically keeping up with the endless slew of level uploads isn't that big of a deal. In fact, it works out as being around 3 games per day. With each level taking approximately three minutes, what you're looking at is around nine minutes a day — for eight years straight. Having said that, you must really love Candy Crush in order to ride the train for that long.

 

1. “Desert Bus for Hope”

What is Desert Bus for Hope?

While the other four challenges were worthy of a place on this list for ambition alone — nothing quite captures our attention more than a good old fashioned gaming marathon. And that's where Desert Bus for Hope strolls in. As an established charity that originated way back in 2007, the roster of gamers and organizers have banded together for an annual event that ultimately aims to raise money through gaming. And while that sounds pretty standard in some respects — it's the very game that the team delve into that drives the funding.

Desert Bus, a mini-game that originates from Penn and Teller's never-released Smoke & Mirrors collection, puts its players behind the wheel of a virtual bus on a long and winding road that spans an overwhelming eight-hour-long journey. With next to nothing to see or do other than drift from left to right every once in a while, the monotonous mini-game has been slandered for being one of the worst games ever to touch the shelves. And it's because of the infamous status of the game, that Desert Bus for Hope was able to fuse its monotony with sheer goodwill. Seems odd, of course — but 2020 alone managed to pull in just over a million dollars in donations. Yes — for driving a bus back and forth for a week straight. Now that's commitment.

 

Looking for a few more challenges? You could always take a look at this list we've weaved together:

5 Time-Consuming Video Game Challenges That Really Aren’t Worth the Stress

Jord is acting Team Leader at gaming.net. If he isn't blabbering on in his daily listicles, then he's probably out writing fantasy novels or scraping Game Pass of all its slept on indies.